An up and coming vocalist - Nathan Pacheco

Today I received this email from my friend Sue B. who lives in the Bay Area. Their family members were former neighbors and we've kept in touch for many years. Sue shares a great story! Their son Jason is an amazing artist and I featured his work earlier here. This new vocalist Nathan Pacheco is amazing. I love the quality of his voice. I love that HUGE operatic richness of it and the expressive emotion with which he sings. I hope he has a bright future. Be sure and read his bio. He might even be better than....dare I say it...Josh.

Dear Friends and Family,

When I was in Italy this year helping Jason and Shelley, we had a wonderful opportunity to go to church in Terni (two times). At the first meeting, I met this wonderful young couple who were on their honeymoon. The LDS branch had a potluck after church, so we had a lot of opportunity to chat with members and visitors. Nathan Pacheco and his wife were spending six weeks in Italy. Nathan related the following story to me. He was so modest. I kept probing him for more information. He wasn't bragging to me, but this is what I learned. He studied opera at BYU, then went onto New York to study opera. He told me he had gone on a mission to Brazil. He is a committed member of the LDS church. The second Sunday he bore his testimony in Italian. Through a series of amazing events, he has become affiliated with Yanni. Even though I have my own thoughts about Yanni's music, Nathan told me this story.

Please check out the following website. Turn up your volume! It is worth listening to this amazing voice.

www.yanni.com/Voices/nathan

If you have any problems, just type in Yanni.com and look up Nathan Pacheco's name.

Now, let me tell you the rest of my story. After Sacrament meeting, I told his wife I was disappointed, because I wanted to hear him sing. She told him and he said, "Come with me". We went into a small classroom. I had my three oldest grandsons with me. They finally got their dad, Jason, to join us. Jason was embarrassed that I asked him. Oh well. He changed his mind later. Nathan shut the door and told me he would sing a song to me. Jason asked him if he wanted to be another Andrea Bocelli. He said, "We shall see." He told the boys to cover their ears because he would be singing very loud! Then he sang at full volume, "O Solo Mio". We were blown away. This isn't just some amateur hoping to achieve greatness. He is already there! He made it seem so effortless. He was so darling to us. Then, his wife told me to go to the Yanni website and hear him sing more. He has it all, looks, personality, name, stage presence and an amazing voice as well as genuine kindness. When he sang to us at full volume, I was overcome with emotion. Wow! A 29 old amazing person who has it all. What a treat!

Listen to what Yanni says about him. He now travels about six months of the year with the Yanni group. He has an unlimited contract, for many years to come. The rest of the year Yanni will introduce him to venues, provide opportunities and promote him. Sounds like what Sara Brightman did for Andrea Bocelli. I wish him well. I hope to hear him sing again in the live concert. Just wanted to share with you this sweet experience. Sue

Hotel ~ Motel

When I was a little kid, I couldn't tell the difference between a hotel and a motel. (I confess that I still have to think about it even now...) I remember thinking that since hotel started with the letter "h" that meant it was "high" in stature. Since motel rhymed with "low" that meant it was "low" in stature.

It's a stretch I realize now, but don't dispute the reasoning of a little kid.

Years passed. I still had trouble telling the difference between the two. I surmised that staying at a motel usually meant that you could enter the room from the parking lot and hotel usually meant that you had to go through a lobby and enter your room from inside the building. Since we were usually more interested in cramming lots of people into one room on trips to save money, we opted for the motel version so that we could enter discretely from the parking lot along with our sleeping bags and foam pads and not fall under the watchful eye of the front desk staff member.

I've finally come to a definite conclusion. I can now tell the two apart. It has to do with the way the toilet paper is presented. If it is folded in a nice sharp point, you can rest assured that you are staying in a hotel. It costs A LOT of money to fold toilet paper into the crisp sharp point you see when you enter the bathroom. The fancier the toilet paper presentation, the fancier the price, which usually means that you are indeed staying in a hotel my friend. If it has a toilet paper shield like the one shown here (kind of like its own coat of arms) well, just get out your charge card because you are in for a whopper of a bill. On the other hand, if the toilet paper is just hanging there all blunt and sad like, well you know that the blunt edge of the toilet paper means you are staying in a motel and not a very good one at that. You have a way to go up the chain before you reach the realm of the pointed toilet paper hotel (or occasionally the nice motel room.) We've stayed in them all over the years, the blunt-edge-recycled-off-color-harsh-scratchy-toilet paper rooms to the easy-to-grab-causing-no-delays-pointed-toilet paper that feels like a fluffy wash cloth when applied.

Case in point -(pun intended)

My columnist friend Ann Cannon agrees.
(Check out the comments at the end of her column, they're pretty funny too.)







And...in in case you need vodka, tequila, rum or vine in your room, or some organic blueberry gummy panda snacks, you need look no further than here. It even includes hangover pills, an intimacy kit, snacks & beverages all for 500% over cost. The bottle of water - $5.00 for 8 oz. Another sign that you aren't in Kansas any more and that you are definitely in a hotel.












So, take a look below... which is it? Hotel or motel? Here's a clue - It's all in the toilet paper!

Adventures with Marcy

My great friend Marcy came to town last week. We spent a day together chatting and having some fun. She brought her son to attend EFY and she also came to welcome a new grand baby girl to their family. When I picked her up I got to see her beautiful little grand daughter who is only days old, then I got to spend a fun day with her. We started the day going to Thanksgiving Point to see the gardens in full summer bloom. BTW - Thanksgiving Point has a $2.00 admission on Tuesdays in August to ALL their major attractions. Wow, what a great deal. It's normally $10.00 per person. The gardens were gorgeous and a complete change from spring time when we enjoyed seeing all the spring flowers in bloom. After walking around and taking it all in (complete with wonderful smells & a feast for the eyes) we enjoyed a delicious lunch at the Garden restaurant. We then headed to Rick's work and had some great adventures there that made for some memorable moments. Afterward, we ended our day walking through the Quilted Bear and looking at all the fun items that are for sale on consignment at that store. They had some great grandmother supplies and we enjoyed walking around and looking at all there is to see there. We ended the day with smiles and hugs and look forward to our next adventure together, hopefully sometime soon. We always have a wonderful time together. It's the kind of friendship that fills my cup. Our friendship has spanned over 35 years and has grown sweeter with the passage of time.

Camelot

We saw the Utah Festival Opera production of Camelot. It was very, very well done. The costumes and sets were from Broadway evidently and were on loan to the UFO. The singing was very good, but it's the story that really grabs me. Did Camelot actually exist? See this site.



I remember seeing this old movie musical back in 1967. See this link to watch a trailer. It starred Richard Harris, Vanessa Redgrave and Franco Nero. I remember feeling so forlorn for King Arthur, Guenevere and Lancelot. What if one woman truly loved two men and that love was the downfall of them all?

Arthur realizes that there is something going on between Lancelot and Guinevere, but out of love for them both, does nothing, instead banishing every knight who accuses them. Out of jealousy and hate Mordred brings down the fellowship of the Round Table by stirring up trouble. He organizes the return of all the banished knights and convinces Arthur to stay out all night hunting in order to test the loyalty of Lancelot and Guenevere.

Arthur does so unwillingly, and Mordred sees to it that Lancelot and Guenevere are caught during a final tryst. Lancelot escapes, but Guenevere is sentenced to die at the stake. Arthur, who has promoted the rule of law throughout the story, is now bound by his own law; he can make no special exceptions for the Queen and/or his own wife. In a climactic scene, Lancelot, who returns to save her, to the delight of Arthur, rescues Guinevere at the stake. In the film’s final scene, we return to the opening. Arthur is preparing to battle against Lancelot, at the insistence of his knights who want revenge. He is visited one last time by Guinevere, who has now joined a convent, and Lancelot. Arthur forgives them both and bids them a heartfelt farewell. Despite the fact that he and Lancelot are still friends, Arthur is obligated to fight because of the other knights' lust for revenge.

Prior to the battle, however, Arthur stumbles across a young boy named Tom, who wishes to become a Knight of the Round Table. Arthur is skeptical at first, but Tom espouses his commitment to Arthur's original ideal of "Not might makes right, but might for right." Arthur realizes that, although most of his plans have fallen through, the ideals of Camelot still live on in this simple boy. Arthur knights Tom and gives him his orders—to run behind the lines and survive the battle, so he can tell future generations about the legend of Camelot. Watching Tom leave, Arthur regains his hope for the future.


Then the movie First Knight came out about 15 years ago. It wasn't a musical but I loved that movie based on the story of Camelot. Still do. We recently saw it again on DVD with Rick's parents. They had never watched it and they really enjoyed it. So here's the thing, what is it about the story that grabs me? It's the themes of love, revenge, trying to stay true to high ideals, fighting
for something or someone else, giving up something you want now for something more that you want later, loyalty, duty, courage. It's just a great, complicated story with no easy answers and it's not hard to watch Richard Gere and Sean Connery.

The valley of the cache

Tuesday - Rick and I attended the wedding dinner at the Joseph Smith building in SLC of Camille W. one of my former student employees. She is such a great young lady and she finally found a great young man. Hip-hip-hooray for Camille! Rick drove me to met Carol, Mom and Taylor at the Layton mall afterward and we headed to the valley of the cache. Enjoyed visiting in route.

Wednesday - got up late. Went on a walk with Mom. She now lives in the same town where she grew up. She's come full circle. We walked past her childhood home, school and church. I love to hear her memories. I later walked past Jamie's house to visit - no one home. Visited with David. Went shopping for something special to give to Carol. Went over to Carol's house and made apricot jam. Stopped at Macey's to get a few things and saw Jamie. Enjoyed a lovely meal on the patio back at Mom and David's home. Carol and I went to the Utah Festival Opera with Mom and David and attended an evening program entitled: An Evening of Rodgers and Hammerstein Classics with the best selections from the King and I, Carousel, South Pacific, The Sound of Music and Oklahoma. Amazing. Loved the music. Saw Rick's Uncle John and Aunt Cherie. Not one sour note sung by the soloists and the orchestra was so professional. Saw cousin Scott F. and his girlfriend Carol. Visited with them eating Aggie ice cream afterward with Mom and David, Nancy and brother Gary, the managing director of UFO.

Thursday - got up late. Started reading ESCAPE about a woman who escaped with her 8 children from the FLDS culture. Hooked immediately. Also reading Harry Potter volume 7. Never tried reading two books at the same time, but since they're so different from one another, it's working out quite well. Met all my sisters with Mom at IHOP for breakfast. Returned to Mom's for visiting and a family meeting. Went shopping at Old Navy with Claire's friends & family 30% off coupon with Carol, Taylor and Janet. All got some good deals. We saved $130 between us.... Enjoyed hamburgers on the grill with Janet, Carol and family, Mom and David. Games afterwards. Spent the night at Carol's home in her guest room. Walked for about four miles with Carol and Janet and had a great chat at dusk.

Friday - walked with Carol and chatted. Went and picked up Mom and Janet and went to visit Aunt Rhonda and Uncle Bill. Continued on to visit Uncle Clair and Aunt Marilyn (who were headed out the door and couldn't visit long.) Edna and Rex not home. Visited Aunt Lorna. Ate lunch at the new Beehive Grill. Took Mom and Carol back to the families and Janet and I returned to visit Uncle Rex and Aunt Edna. We had lovely visits with all the relatives and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Learned much about our cousins and what they are doing. I love my aunts and uncles and enjoyed visiting with them. All of us enjoyed a LOVELY dinner at Carol's. Recipes to follow. Rick came from SLC where he was attending a day conference and he devoured Carol's food as well. Carol, Jan, Rick and I headed to Utah Festival Opera to learn our duties so that we could man the refreshment booth at intermission. Attended Camelot and loved it. More on that later. Headed back to Mom and David's to sleep. Janet to Carol's home.

Saturday - walked around Mom's old stomping grounds again. Rick ran up and down the "bear guts hill" two times. Mom and David live in a lovely town. Uncle Clair and Aunt Marilyn came over to visit more since we didn't get to visit with them on Friday. Enjoy a good long visit. Ran and got an Arby's sandwich before heading back to UFO to attend the matinee production of Carmen. Loved it. It's our 5th year attending a serious opera production. Some we have like better than others. This was a good one. The music was superb and easily recognizable. Saw Rick's Aunt Anne and Uncle George. Said goodbye to Gary and wished him well. Said goodbye to Mom and David. Appreciated their hospitality and love. Headed home. Stopped by to visit Dave and Courtney. Got home in time for bed. A great time was had by all, especially me. It was an easy going vacation which I thoroughly enjoyed! I love Cache Valley and I'm not alone. It's high on culture and low on stress and a great place to live the simple life.