When she was done, people were stunned, and clapped in awe as much as praise. She quietly went back to her group of friends and that was that. People approached her in gratitude throughout the night. To even have one moment like that is to live. What a gift. 6/6

It was the perfect pace too; plenty of room for ornaments and emphasis. It's so much harder to sing like that. As a band we held back and left her that space. Easily one of the top vocal performances I have seen in person. 5/n

To this day I don't know who she was or what language she sang it in. She kept the words "Fields of Gold". Every other word was completely unfamiliar to me. She captivated the whole room. Her singing was incredible. Her phrasing and momentum so unique and intentional. 4/n

We'd played it before for singers; most often in the style of Eva Cassidy's cover. Often overdone. But this lady's English wasn't great and she was shy to even talk to the band. She hummed a note to indicate the key, and counted in to set a pace like a pro. 3/n

Twenty years ago I was the guitarist in a live karaoke band. That's just what it sounds like; random people sing what they want and we'd accompany them live. One night a quiet lady came up and asked to do "Fields of Gold". 2/n

The US gets it more right to avoid picking a narrow course topic at age 17, and the Texas system of guaranteeing admission to the top 10% of every class no matter what is a great leveler. Avoids some of the pitfall incentives of concentrated rich schools and grinds.

I'd love to see the best of the Irish systems and US systems combined; from Ireland - a fully anonymous neutrally tested points system, with no admission essays, from the US - have a more general admission, and also admit students based on how they do relative to the rest of their own class.

At least it's not an Opera.

It took days of probes with a multimeter in several locations to pin that down. Two experienced HVAC techs who visited couldn't find it because of the trigger conditions. I don't know how hardware people do this all the time.

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