Idol has gone out of its way, I think, to not show Blake's tattoos.

And they certainly haven't asked him about them.

So I was really glad Friday that the local FOX interviewer did. She said oh my friend is a Blaker Girl and she wants me to ask ....

He said he has six, and then he very quickly pointed to the four on his arms and said what they are, as the camera followed along.

"They're all about symbolism. They're all symbolic of my life," he began.

Then he pointed to a large one on his upper left forearm, it's a portion of a keyboard. "Piano," he said, then pointed to the one underneath it, that goes down to his wrist.

"My sign, the yin-yang," he said. "They're mostly all about balance and what-not."

Then he pointed to the largest one of all, covering much of his right forearm, up to his elbow. it's lovely flowering branches.

"This is the transcendence of life in the Japanese culture," he said. "The cherry blossom tree."

Then he pointed to one below it, on his inner wrist. It looked like a classic Washington forest "root wad," a tree stump with its big roots going down.

"And roots," he said. "Just to know where you came from."

I really loved seeing him in his own element, performing in the studio with a friend on guitar and his own electronics. he said he was going to join a friend's band on stage that night at a seattle club, wish I'd been able to go.

I was hoping he had this sort of personal depth. And he does.

Why, oh why, did Idol not let us get to know any of them this year??