All Access Column 2

	ALL ACCESS COLUMN #2 9/7/01 *PART 1* You would not believe what a busy past couple of weeks I have had. There's so much to discuss. Some of you probably noticed I was basically a ghost this week online. I have to apologize for my absence in the Official Club. School started this week, so that's pretty much self-explanatory. It's been an incredibly long five days. It was pure bliss to come home today and pass out on the couch for a few hours. I'm really cherishing my sleep now. But anyways, I'm fully refreshed and ready to go. Here's the column that I know the guys have been waiting for. They're aware I plan on talking about each of them individually. I definitely have a lot to say. But I'm sure I won't have any astonishing secrets to reveal so don't worry Dom. I'll get to that later on though. I want to talk about some other things first. Two weeks ago, I had the chance to go see Nick & Dom's sister Gina in the musical "John & Jen" she costarred in with Dominic Sahagun. I was curious to hear Gina since I had heard all sorts of good things about her singing capability from various people. But wow, what a voice. She blew my parents & me away. Dominic of course also did a phenomenal job as well. Nick & Dom really have a lot to be proud of their little sis. It's apparent how much the Restani family supports each other in everything they do. Once in a while during the night, I'd glance at Nick and Dom to see their expressions. They'd both be smiling from ear to ear, attentively watching their sister. Dom was leaning forward with one elbow on his knee. It was a cute thing to see. She has a beautiful voice & is extremely gifted. A bunch of us got to hang out afterwards & chat as well. I was introduced to Kristen's Barnum & Bailey boy-friend. I must say he's got quite the fashion sense there. Pink & green, very manly. He's a keeper. Don't worry if half of you are lost now. That's supposed to happen. It was fun since I hadn't seen some of the girls for a while. It really is nice to have those moments together where you just can hang out and chill. Last Wednesday at the state fair was quite an interesting day. The heat was so intense, I really thought I was going to pass out during some point of the day. It was so weird attending a concert without Megan by my side. Of course, I had my friend Monika with me, but it just wasn't the same. I miss Megan a lot! She's seriously like my other half. Not to mention, a lot of the fans I know well couldn't make it, so it was a little lonely with them not there. It was good to meet some of the newer fans though. I was happy to see a lot of fresh faces in the crowd. It showed how Townsend's fan base is widely expanding. I cannot even begin to explain how incredibly nervous I was for the guys. They had no need to worry, because I was doing it for them. I had complete confidence in that they would do well. However, I was worrying about technical difficulties already. I was the one sitting up straight in my chair, shaking my legs like a maniac, and crossing my fingers going "Please don't let anything go wrong. Please don't let anything go wrong." I don't understand whyI was acting like that because I certainly didn't do that the last time I saw them perform. So you could say I was freaking out more than I was showing it. I have a pretty keen sense of hearing when it comes tolistening to music, so you can't pass anything by me. When I noticed some of the guys' headsets weren't working during "Understand This", that's when I really became concerned. I could barely hear Matt & he had the lead vocals. Then when the introductions began after the first song, that's when the hand held mikes were brought in thankfully. I was so impressed with how well the guys handled themselves such a stressful situation. Nick made it look like it was nothing and Todd kept a smile on my face. It was a relief to see them smiling and joking around. In situations like that, you really have to be able to keep your cool because the attention of the audience is essentially in your (the performer's) hands. And Townsend's professionalism definitely showed in the way they continued to captivate the audience. The fans in the crowd were up for the "Go Townsend! Go Townsend! Go!" chant. I still say Rye & Todd's side won. And I'm not saying that because I was on their side. Hehe But I was very proud of the guys. The song that stood out most to me was "Just Say Goodbye". The harmony was just right and it was heart-warming to see Gina up there with her brothers by her side. You could really feel the energy the boys were putting through to sing that song. The song itself is very touching, reaching everyone on different levels and the guys singing it just topped it off. That was the icing to the cake. Paula did a great job with the new choreography. I can tell it's a lot more physically demanding, but again the guys pulled it off very well with the hand-held mikes. And there was unquestionably a lot of improvement in their dancing. "Tonight is For You" is my favorite song to both watch & hear since the style of music is the kind that makes you want to get up and dance. It's pop with an edge. That move at the end where all the guys are pointing in different directions never gets old. And who can't say they love the opportunity to watch Todd rap? Oops I almost typed tap. Now that would definitely be fascinating to watch...Todd tap. But yeah... I'm glad the boys are getting so many opportunities to perform. I know it's tiring and time consuming, but Julie's got the right idea. With every performance there comes improvement and a chance to do even better in the next performance. In the end, practice does make perfect. One thing for sure, you couldn't miss the guys on stage. And I liked the glittery clothes. Dom had me under the impression that he was going to look like a purple dinosaur from what he had told me about his outfit earlier. The fact that he was wearing purple was the last thing I was noticed. I thought he looked darn good. For some reason I thought Nick's design was a dollar sign. And I didn't even realize the twins had the same pants. Something was definitely wrong with my eyes that night. I think I was just focusing on them too hard. You know when you concentrate on something or someone so hard, you think you're aware of everything that's happening, but in actuality you really aren't? That's sort of what happened in my case. I have to hand it to the guys, they're pretty handy when it comes to making their stage outfits stand out. But they look just as cute in everyday wear with the messy hair. And I have to give major props to the Dream Team who did an excellent job selling T-shirts after the show and pumping up the fans in line. Make sure they get those promised hugs. =) There is something else that I noticed and feel I should talk about because the issue is very important to me. One thing that night I was disappointed in was the behavior of some of the parents in the crowd. I'm not trying to be negative in any way, but there were some points where I was disgustingly appalled at the lack of maturity in the adults. I can understand how parents would be concerted about their younger kids not being able to see since they're shorter. But you just can't continuously scream at people in front of you to sit down and expect them to listen. You gotta set a good example for your kids. People sometimes forget how important it is to be nice at events like that. If you give respect, you'll get respect back. If you ask nicely, they will listen. I know I probably sound like a mother right now, but those are just the facts of life. *PART 2* Finally here comes the juicy part. I get to talk about the guys! Yey! I love to talk about each one of them every chance I get, so this is fun for me. They're my ice breakers and conversation starters. Todd, Todd, Todd...there's so much to say about Todd. I hear a lot of new fans talking about how they think he's shy. Of course the first thing that pops into my mind is, "Todd shy?! I think not!" I guess he does come on as shy sometimes. But seriously, he's such a great person. Todd knows what he wants in life and what it takes to get it. He occasionally (Ok more than occasionally) does stuff that makes me crack up even though he didn't really mean to. Again the reminder that I laugh at everything, but there has to be a legitimate reason. I don't admit to being that weird. He's not one to space out, but I did catch that "open mouth, blankly staring at something" look once. The something being a TV screen though. He is forever on the go. I'm not sure Todd has the ability to keep still (not that it's a bad thing). He's moving one way or another. Todd's a big kid. Kind of like Billy Madison but a lot smarter. One thing I noticed, whenever I show a picture of Todd to someone who knows absolutely nothing about him, their immediate assumption is that he's a funny guy. It leaves me wondering how they were able to come to that conclusion. But when Todd has something to say, he definitely has something to say. I can tell when he feels strongly about the subject by the way he voices his opinion. Todd is very intelligent and it shows when he talks. Onto Rye, I thought he was a pretty quiet guy when I first met him. Extremely shy & not too talkative. I no longer think that though. When I was interviewing the guys at my school, he seemed to be the least interactive. Todd was such a trooper. He was sick at the time, but contributed a lot. And I was already nervous about the whole thing so I was a bit uncomfortable about that. Of course, I wanted to make sure the guys felt completely at ease. But after 20 minutes or so, Rye opened up a lot more and that made me feel much better. Just give him some time, and he warms up quite a bit. He's really grown in so many different ways during the time I've known him. I have such a different opinion of him now then I did before. One thing however, the kid's attention span is umm...interesting. Sometimes it works to his advantage, other times it doesn't. I know the guys are forever giving him grief about it. It may seem like Rye's in his own world at times, but he's totally aware of what's going on. Rye notices some things a lot more than the others. Still gotta love him though. He has the most beautiful smile. The kind of killer smile that just makes the world better. Isn't that the Dr. Pepper motto? "Dr. Pepper, it makes the world taste better." Yep it is. Well then, I guess you could say Rye's like Dr. Pepper. That's the first good analogy I've made in a while. And no guys (specifically Matt, Dom & Nick), he DOES NOT look like Justin Timberlake. Hehe. Supposedly like that Filipino rapper. Where in the world did they get that from anywise? Matt's been such a blessing to the group. Matt is just Matt. What you see is what you get. There's nothing that could stop him from being himself. He's so modest & well grounded. The faces he makes are hilarious. I remember one incident at Drop Zone where he...well maybe I shouldn't get into that. But I swear he is the nicest guy I have ever met. No one can beat him to that. I've only known him for a few months, but I feel like I've known him for much longer. And somehow (I don't know how Matt did it), he's managed to make all of my friends instantly fall in love with him. Now it's Matt this, Matt that. Anytime the name Matt is mentioned, they all sigh which is hilarious to me. The boy's got skills. Now I know you some of you can totally understand when I say it's hard to find a guy to pay attention to solely you when you talk. A lot of the guys I know have a tendency to look at everything but the person talking and the most you can get out of them is a grunt. So it's a wonderful thing to find one who's just the opposite. Then in walks Dom. When he's talking to you he makes you feel like you're the only person around. And on top of that, he is a very warm and caring guy. That's a really good quality to have, making someone feel that special. He's very genuine. So you can see why I enjoy talking to him a lot. You don't have to worry about there being an awkward silence in-between the conversation. There's also this huge debate over whether or not he's a flirt, and I really don't know what to say about that. I'll support Dom in saying he's just a really nice guy. Lastly, we have Nick. He can be such a goofball, but that's the best thing about him. If there's anything I appreciate most, it's laughter. Anyone who can make me laugh stinks (See Bob, I told you it would mean cool in a matter of days). I am laughing 90% of the day. I remember Courtney was telling me about how he's like Chip from Beauty & the Beast. I don't remember how that came up but you know the little cup Chip. Hehe I don't know if that's flattering or not, being compared to an animated Disney character, we seem to think so. We could have said he was like Sebastian from The Little Mermaid or Timon from The Lion King...I think I've made my point. Many people don't realize it, but the twins are so different from each other. They both have distinct personalities. Once you really get to know them, you think "How in the world did I ever get them confused?" Luckily, I've been endowed with the ability to tell them apart. There's nothing that could ever make me regret meeting these five awesome guys and everyone else who has come along with meeting them. It's like winning a prize with extra bonuses. I feel very privileged to have met them. My life would be very different if I hadn't. I always think, "What if I hadn't come across Townsend's website? What if I hadn't gone to that Christina Aguilera concert? What if I hadn't spotted Nick?" I'm sure I would have found out about Townsend somehow, but my relationship with them would probably be a contrast to what it is today. I've adopted friendships with many wonderful, wonderful people who I wouldn't have met without them. Not just with fans who are my age, but also adults I can look up to and bond with. How many music groups do you know where their family, friends, and fans all get along? That's a long shot in this business, so we're some of the lucky ones. I'm very thankful for everything in my life and am glad to have my efforts recognized. Don't any of you ever think that your hard work to help promote Townsend will go unnoticed because it won't. That's it for now. Stay tuned for a possible "Special Edition" of the next All Access coming soon. Return To All Access Column Index