Is this the first season of Idol where the winner doesn't have to sing some horrible original song? Ryan just said if Lee wins, he'll record "Beautiful Day," and it is indeed the U2 song. Surprised me.

Now I'm dying to see what Crystal chose.

I didn't recognize either of the songs, but they are far better than any of those crappy songs they used to write for the final contestants.

And, OMG, but Crystal's voice just gives me shivers and that last song made me want to cry.

I *am* crying. I also want "If you make a salad, I'll eat it" as my new tagline.

This was the weirdest Idol finale. It's like even 19E wants to be done with these kids. Lee made absolutely no impression tonight, as usual. And just now the judges are noticing that the fool is boring and charmless and tends to sing out of tune while wandering around the stage? Really? At one point during Beautiful Day, he was just standing there staring into the camera like "What do I do now?" You go home, little one. You go home. Crystal was awesome despite the fact that the judges tried to Happy Feet her with that damn Black Velvet. I don't know what to make of Ryan's assertion that the winner's first single will be some cover song, but at least we didn't have to hear Crap Winner's Single That Will Go Nowhere 2.0. (Although, for real, never heard Crystal's song before)

It just didn't even feel like a finale. It felt like any other episode.

ETA: Did someone just make the frikkin Gokey heart hands in front of the camera after Crystal's performance? Oh, hell to the naw.

I don't know it, but that last Crystal song really reminded me of Eva Cassidy.

I just looked it: it's called "Up to the Mountain," and is a Patty Griffin song about MLK Jr.

My boss is on a plane and Tim Gunn is in the seat in front of her! She says "compared to him the rest of the passengers look like homeless people." Ha!

Awesomeness! I would be so mortified to be on a plane with Tim Gunn in all my travel wrinkliness and smelling of airport lattes.

Ooh, last Crystal song (which I never heard before) gave me shivers. And I think she was about to cry at the end again.

She better damn well win. (Well, okay, traditionally number 2s often do better, right?)

For anyone who watched Antiques Roadshow this week, here's the follow-up story on the Native American baskets appraised at the end of the episode. A week after they filmed the show, one of the crew members on the show had stumbled across a photo from a 20-year-old research book that included a Washoe basketweaver posing with one of her pieces, one of the very same baskets they had appraised the previous week. So, instead of only being worth $25,000, it is now worth $75,000!