Jane_Yamamoto's Blog

First off, I’m not even sure where to post this? It’s either entertainment or sports, because the national finals are shown live on ESPN.

Last week, I attended the L.A. County Spelling Bee. It was a regional qualifier with contestants between the ages of 9 and 11. The competition was pretty intense, with parents and kids alike giving it their all. You hear horror stories of some parents pushing their kids too hard, and by now you’ve probably seen the footage of that young boy fainting during a competition. But I didn’t see that. I saw parents providing support in an optimistic environment, and the kids seemed to relish the opportunity to show what they know.

And they were really good.  10-year old Glenda Chen was the winner. Her winning word?

U-N-C-O-N-S-T-I-T-U-T-I-O-N-A-L.

Glenda Chen and 2nd place winner  Hanz Legaspi  move on with the ultimate goal to win the 2008 Scripps National Spelling Bee. Winning the National contest is quite lucrative…last year’s winner took home $35,000 and a $5,000 scholarship.

Good Luck Glenda and Hanz!

SOME OTHER RANDOM THOUGHTS:

American Idol – They’re down to the top 10 Tuesday night. I’m always interested to hear from you. I will be interviewing former Idol contestant Kimberly Locke to see how life is for her post Idol.