Day 59 - A song from your childhood

Alright. So this is a bit tough. I didn't really listen to music when I was younger, and the only songs that I ever really knew were either lullabies or classical music that I listened to at home (sometimes we had classical music in the background, not quite sure why though). Since I don't really remember any of the classical songs, here's something that I would fall asleep to every night:

So I'm not going to lie: I like it when my mom sings it better. Her voice is so soothing, and not nearly as .... lively as this version of the song.

But I also have to admit that this isn't the song that I wanted to put on. But I couldn't find a video of the song. It's called "I See the Moon," and though there are versions of the song on YouTube, none of the version that I grew up with. It goes:

I see the moon

The moon sees me

The moon sees the one I want to see.

Please let the moon that shines on me

Shine on the one I love

Over the mountains

Over the seas

That's where my true love

Is waiting for me.

So please let the moon that shines on me

Shine on the one I love.

It's a sad premise - being separated from the one that you love. But I've also found that this is the song that I sing to myself if I'm having a bad time, and want to be somewhere else, or with someone else. It's the song that I sing when I'm missing someone, and just wish that we could be connected in some way.

I sang it to myself last summer, when I was separated from my friends and the person I was starting a relationship with. I sang it when we had to leave Louisiana to head back up north. I sang it when I couldn't fall asleep on the first night at college. And I sing it when I just need to remind myself that somewhere, someone is looking at the same moon, and the same stars. And that person might be thinking about me, just as I am about them.

Day 58 - A song that makes you feel guilty

This post is somewhat odd. Songs don't usually make me feel guilty, unless they're a guilty pleasure (which I've already written about). But maybe this will fit the bill:

So I guess you could put any Beatles song in here and it would still make me feel guilty (except for Here Comes the Sun). I'll try to explain why ... in letter form.

Hi.

I'm sorry that I never gave the Beatles a chance. I know they were your favorite. You knew every song, every meaning behind the words. You would hum their songs, and were excited every time they came on the radio.

I'm not quite sure why I didn't give them a chance. I mean, years ago I was in love with Here Comes the Sun (hence the exception above). But other than that, none of their music really stuck with me after the first couple of times I listened to it.

But your love of the Beatles has made me feel guilty, even though I know that I don't have any reason to feel guilty anymore. After all, it doesn't really matter if I like them. It wasn't going to change the shape of the universe, or give me the meaning of life. It would have probably just been ... nicer ... of me to try to give them a chance, or at least tolerate them a bit more.

So here it is: I feel guilty for not liking the Beatles. I apologize to them. And I apologize to you.

I hope somewhere you're still humming the tunes. One of us should be.

Day 57 - A song that you wish you could play

Hmmmm .... there are a lot of songs that I wish I could play. There are obviously some of the "classics" -Beethoven, Mozart, etc. But I think I'd most like to learn this:

Okay, granted, this is two songs. I'm sorry, but I really couldn't pick just one. Rather, I'd love to learn how to play the entire Cinema Paradiso soundtrack. It is just absolutely beautiful. Especially when the movie is played too.

I remember watching the movie in my high school Italian class. It was beautifully done, and it is still undoubtedly one of my favorite movies (along with a couple of other Italian ones as well). I remember sitting in the darkened classroom, finishing the movie, and crying. The ending just hits me. And the Italian language was just so filled with anguish, with despair, that I had no choice but to let my emotions get the better of me.

I'll never forget that moment. The moment when the old man gives his speech to the boy. The moment the boy is taken in by the man, who learns to love him. And, most importantly, the moment the boy realizes just how much the old man means to him.

It's a beautiful movie. In a beautiful language. With an absolutely gorgeous soundtrack.

Day 56 - A song you can play on an instrument

I know how to play this song on the piano. I stumbled across it one day when I was looking for new piano music, and, lo and behold, I fell in love with it.

Though I hadn't played it in (quite literally) months, the other day I had a lot on my mind. So I borrowed a music practice room in my dormitory and sat down at the piano, intending to just punch on some keys to let out my frustration. Or just sit there and listen to the gorgeous tunes coming from the other rooms. But instead, I found that my fingers moved along the keyboard and played this song. Completely from memory.

This song soothes me - it allows me to think while still enveloping me in peacefulness. It's kind of like a friend who is there if you need to talk, but is also nice to just have around as another person. But here, the song gives me the chance to think things through, to contemplate the dilemmas I am facing, but also fill the room with butterflies and reassurance.

Day 55 - A song that makes you laugh

Well, it may not make me laugh, but it certainly makes me smile.

I'm not really quite sure why this song makes me smile: maybe it's the beat, or maybe it's the fact that they mention summertimes in northern Michigan, which reminds me of so many good times.

One summer I went up to my friend's cottage for a week. We had fun playing in the lake, and going into town. We both bought yarn to spool knit, which is still one of my favorite things to do if I have extra time on my hands. It is amazing. But the best part of the week we spent up there? Spending time with her family, and making a bunch of everlasting memories.

Unfortunately our friendship has fallen apart. I miss it. Honestly and truly. But I also know that people change, and I am thankful that I was able to make so many memories with her while our friendship lasted.

And the summertimes in northern Michigan can never be replaced. They'll be with me all summer long. Heck, they'll be with me throughout my life.

Day 54 - A song you want to play at your funeral

I must admit - I've known that this song fits the topic for years. It sounds morbid, and maybe it is, but it's also true. It has a special significance, and holds a very special place in my heart.

First off, we're Scottish. The Ferguson clan. And every year, our church holds a "Scottish Sunday," where they bring in a Scottish band, complete with kilts, funny hats, bagpipes, and drums. There's even a giant sword. There's the presentation of the tartans, and dancing afterwards.

But during the service, they always play this song, and it always makes my mom and I cry. Like babies. Because not only do I find bagpipe music some of the most beautiful music in existence, but Amazing Grace was played at my grandmother's funeral. And those two factors combine to make the most beautiful, but also the most heart-wrenching song I could ever hear.

So here it is: the song I want to play at my funeral. I want bagpipes, and the bagpipers to be dressed in Ferguson tartan kilts. And please play all of the verses - I hate how people only know the first one.

(I like the second one better, but the first has some nice shots of them actually playing)

Day 53 - A song that you want to play at your wedding.

There are a couple of songs I would want to play at my wedding, but I don't know all of them yet. Of course, I'll probably have the traditional wedding march, and I'd like to eventually have my new-husband and I's "song" play sometime during the reception, no matter how outdated it is. But other than that? I'll have to think ... I know there are some songs that I personally love, and can somewhat imagine them at my wedding ... maybe.

I've always loved this song. And the music video. I think that the song is just the sweetest, and ... well ... I guess I just don't really know. I'd always heard the song at the most random times, and no matter what mood I was in, this song was guaranteed to put a smile on my face. It may be Howie Day. It may be the lovey-dovey aspect of the song. And it may be because there's just some emotion that seems to transcend the lyrics that makes this song stick in my heart.

Day 52 - A song you listen to when you're sad

So this is slightly weird, because there are multiple different types of "sad." But I guess the one I've had most recently is the kind of sad that's like "I'm missing my family, and a place where I have only good memories." So here's a song:

I don't particularly like this version of the song, but it's the best I could do at 12:45 in the morning. But here's a little story as to why I've chosen this kind of sad:

Yesterday, I drove back to my hometown in order to grab some stuff from my closet to prepare for our upcoming Spring Break. Usually my mom is there when I go back, and I'll always come in, yell "Hi Mum!!" and she'll respond, surprised, "Is my little sunshine home?!" It's our tradition. Along with a giant bear hug that seems like the world is ending. But anyways - I walked into the house yesterday, dropped my keys on the counter and my bag on the floor. I heard the cats run down the stairs to come and investigate who had just come in. The kitchen light was on, and I called out "Hi Mum!!"

But no one answered. Then I remembered, she was out of town. And I knew this - I had talked to her not two hours before, and it was made blatantly clear that I would walk into an empty house. But there's a difference between realizing it and having it become a realization.

This time, there was no one to answer "Is my little sunshine home?!" There was no one to give a bear hug to. There was only two cats to scratch and a mom to call to let her know that I had made it back safely. And there was only this song to play, to make it seem like I had someone else there.

Someone else who wished they were in a different place.

Day 51 - A song you listen to when you are happy

Hmmmm ... when I'm happy I listen to a lot of songs. But if anything, usually I listen to "dance" music: things with a distinct beat that I can dance/sing to. I guess you'd call it club music. But I don't go to clubs.

Right now I'd listen to one of three songs, so I put all three here. I listened to all of them on loop this morning when I was driving from school back to my house, and have almost all of them memorized. But I'll have them down by tomorrow!

Day 50 - A song you listen to when you're angry

I'm sorry. I am in no state to decide what song I listen to when I'm angry, because I am SO far from that emotion right now. I'm ecstatic. Really. I honestly don't know how I'm going to go to sleep tonight.

But anyways, it's what the post wants, and this is the post you'll get.

I have to admit - I don't really listen to music when I'm angry. I like to clean instead. But sometimes I'll put this song on in the background. It may seem like I listen it to wallow, or to hold a grudge against whoever I'm angry at, or at whatever caused my anger. But I don't.

I like the slowness of the song - it calms me down. And the way the song is sung hit a chord with me: it seems as if the person is regretful that it is too late, but yet it's just the facts. He's sorry that it's too late, that things have passed and can't be changed, but yet it's reality.

There are some people who would fit this bill right now .... a couple of people for whom it's too late to apologize. Who have cut me down. Who have told me that they're sorry, but didn't ever think that I would say:

It's too late to apologize.

Day 49 - A song from your favorite album

Hmmmm ... this is a tough decision. I'm not a huge fan of just one artist, and it's rare for me to have more than one album (heck, even more than a couple of songs) from one specific person. But I guess I'll choose my favorite song from the person I have the most music from, since that must mean I like them, right?

This song is so true, and it applies to multiple people in my life. It's for my best friends (L, M, J, B, N, E, I, M :) ), it's for my mom, my dad, my brother. It's for those who I like, and who like me (if there are any ...). It's for the people who I can't live without, and those who are far away. It's for all of my family, even those who have passed on.

Things are always better when we're together. And I always count down the days until that wish comes true.

Day 48 - A song you wish you heard on the radio

Again, I don't listen to the radio, so I have no idea what is played on it. My apologies if this song is actually played:

You don't need to watch the video - it's in memory of someone who the creator was close to, I'm guessing.

I heard this song for the first time at my cousin's graduation party.  It seems like yesterday that my mom and I were driving back from Traverse City, MI listening to the "Grad Party" CD that my cousin had burned for us. I remember calling her and having her listen to the song so we could learn who sang this beautiful song. I remember listening to the CD, track 7, for months after that, and singing this song in the shower.

I believe this song might have actually been the first song I memorized all the words to. And I still can sing along, even though I don't listen to it all too regularly.

The premise of the song is sad, but it's also true. Everyone is on their journey to heaven (if you believe in that), but it is true, no matter what, that you can't take luggage with you in a hearse. It's not the material things in life that count, it is who you are as a person, and how you changed the lives of those around you.

I hope I'm working toward that. I think at this point, I may still have a backpack worth of luggage I'd have in the hearse, but that luggage is shrinking with each year, heck, with each month. Maybe by the time this year is over, I won't have any luggage.

I'd like to be a light packer.

Day 47 - A song that you hear often on the radio

I'm not going to lie - I absolutely hate the radio. Maybe it's because I don't have one distinct genre of music that I love, or maybe it's because I don't like the commercials, or maybe it's just my need for control and dislike of not knowing what I'm listening to. But whatever the reason, I really don't like it.

So instead, I'm going to post a song that I am assuming will be on the radio, because apparently the album just came out. I heard the song today from dearoldlove.com and kind of fell in love with it. Not only because of the refrain (which I love ...) but also because of the actual music, and, I guess to a certain point, the verses. But who knows?

All I know is that I've listened to the song 15 times (easily) since 12:00 today. And had 2 1/2 hours of classes between that time and now.

Day 46 - A song that you used to love but now hate

This might go along with an earlier post (I'm not sure which day, but the post about a song that I hate). Unfortunately, this title holds true for a decent amount of songs. Usually I'll listen to a song non-stop (and I really do mean non-stop) and then can't listen to it for months. It's not that I hate the song, it's just that I loved it so much to begin with that I can't listen to it anymore without feeling sick. And, if in that month time that I need to take a break from the song, I hear it, my dislike for the song grows.

So here is a song that fits this label - and it was played so much during the time when I really didn't need to hear it, that I believe I've grown to hate it:

I used to listen to this song NON-STOP. Really, I mean non-stop. But now I can hardly get through the opening chords. I'm not being dramatic, and I know it's a good song, but I just can't listen to it. It's kind of like when you know that something is going to taste delicious, but you just can't eat it because you've eaten stuff like it recently (for college kids this seems to traditionally be Ramen and Mac & Cheese ...).

Maybe one day I'll be able to listen to it again. And I hope I can - I remember how much I used to love it. But right now I can't. I just can't.

Day 45 - A song that describes you

Wow. Just one song? That's really hard.

If the post asked me to make a playlist that describes me, that would be no problem: I'd make a playlist of the songs that describe what I believe to be major points of my life: Home, Sweet Home Alabama, According to You, Amazing Grace, This is Goodbye, as well as others.

I suppose someone could just look at my iTunes library and see all of the songs that describe me. But probably the one that I want to fit me the most is:

So we're going to just not pay attention to who sings this. I'm not a big fan of her. But someone sent me the lyrics a while back and I thought they were cute. I'd like to think that this song embodies parts of me: snowflakes sing my name, and I try to have my soul find a home in every place that I go. Right now I'm working on figuring out how much I can do, and what heights I can go to in those things.

My ultimate goal is to "climb to the heights of all I can be" and "soar on the hope of marvelous things." I hope I can accomplish it.

Wish me luck!

Day 44 - A song no one would expect you to love

I've gotten a couple of these comments for a couple of different songs. The "Woah! Claire!! You listen to this?" or "Claire - do you actually know who sings this!?" (I notoriously live under a rock when it comes to all things music and pop culture related ...). But here's the most recent one - and one of the songs that I've heard the most surprise over.

I have to admit - I haven't watched the music video. But supposedly this is the clean version, so it can't be too bad, right? Maybe I'm just lying to myself.

In all honesty, I don't really know what drew me to this song. It might be the beat, it might be the repetition. It might be solely because it's something different, something that people wouldn't expect me to like. Who knows? But in any case, I have had a slight obsession with this song for about a month now.

But I'd just like to note, I haven't heard any of her other songs. Nor am I sure that I want to ... if I'm getting this much grief over one of them ....

Day 43 - A song that is a guilty pleasure

I'm sorry. I'm two minutes late. But I have a good excuse: I have done nothing productive all day, then went to the UM hockey game (we won ..) but then had to go out to dinner with my family. So I JUST got back to my dorm room ....

Okay ... well ... as much as I hate to admit this:

I mean, the artist is amazing. Honest and truly. And I think he makes the song speak with loads more meaning than Miley Cyrus does. But the fact that it was originally a Miley Cyrus song makes it a guilty pleasure. That, compounded with the fact that for a while I had a crush on Joe (he looks cute in his older pictures, and he has a British accent) make this song fit the theme for today.

So there it is. My guilty pleasure song. I hope it becomes yours too.

Day 42 - A song from a band you hate

Part of me doesn't even want to taint my blog with a song from this artist. But I guess I have to in the spirit of the blog ... so ... as much as I hate to do this:

I'm not even going to play it to see if the video works. I can't. I can't subject the other people in my room to this. And I enjoy the feeling of NOT having my ears bleed.

I do have to admit - as horrible as she is, and as much of a bad role model as she is, I do think that it is somewhat cool that she filmed part of her newest movie in my old high school. But that's about all that I can give her as far as positivity goes. Here are some of my issues:

• Even when she was filming the movie at our school, she was apparently a major jerk if people wanted an autograph or something. I mean, I'm sorry, but if you plunk yourself down in the middle of Small-Town America, what do you expect??
• I have a problem with her asking Nicholas Sparks to write a book for her. That's just a taboo. She's not THAT cool to have someone write her a book just because she wants it.
• She doesn't act like a role model for the smaller kids who look to her. I mean, she KNOWS that they look to her, but still acts in disrespectful and ... interesting .... ways.
• In my opinion, she really just isn't all that talented. Sure, she's Billy Ray Cyrus' daughter, which gives her a leg up on all of the other people auditioning for parts, but it just doesn't seem fair. There are SO many people that have more talent, but who aren't discovered because they don't have famous people connections.

There are more issues that I have with her, but quite frankly, I just want to end the post. I'm sorry I had to put you through this ...

Day 41 - A song from your favorite band

Quite honestly, I don't have a favorite band. Well, not a "traditional" favorite band. I don't have one specific person or group that I go back to over and over, so instead I can give you my favorite band right now. Or, rather, my favorite artist.

I absolutely love Yo-Yo Ma, and this song has been played so many times since I got it from a friend. And by "so many times," I mean around 50 times, just this week. At least.

The part that starts to get me is around 0:35. The melody coming in is just so beautiful, and organic. I can't help but lose my heart to the story when this part comes. 0:53, though, is my absolute favorite part. It comes up a couple of times during the song, but I always anticipate the first time it is played - the moment just before the note is silent - it is almost as if the cello is hovering over the note- hovering over the last moment that it played, and doesn't want to ruin the silence. But the beautiful silence is filled with even more beautiful music.

Oh my goodness. I think I'm falling in love with classical music.

Day 40 - A song that makes you fall asleep

Let me just put it out there: I heard this song before it because popular because of Twilight. I swear.

For a while, this was the song I would listen to in the car if I wanted to go to sleep, or if I just couldn't get my mind to slow down when I was going to bed. The lullaby really is a lullaby - the soft piano notes can fade into the background of your dreams, and the melody suggests an ending - the gradual tempo reduction lulls the listener into sleep.

I'll be honest - I'm not particularly one for listening to music before bed. Especially songs with lyrics. I find that

1. I always want to sing along to the lyrics, which isn't really conducive to falling asleep
2. One song leads to another (I'm very much like the mouse in If You Give a Mouse a Cookie)
3. Before I know it, it's an hour after I meant to go to bed, and I'm tired the next morning
4. When I DO finally wake up the next morning, I inevitably have the songs that I listened to the night before stuck in my head ....

Most of these aren't really big issues ... except for #4. Some of my friends know that I can NEVER get songs out of my head once they are stuck there. They'll stay there for days. And I'll go crazy, quite literally, trying to get the song out of my head.

But, for some reason, that doesn't happen with River Flows in You. I'm not quite sure why, but I'd rather just leave it at that. I'm afraid that if I try to figure out why it doesn't get stuck in my brain, that it will get stuck in there, and then I don't know what I'd do.

Well, other than go crazy.

Day 39 - A song that you can dance to

Well, the prompt never qualified that I had to be able to dance to it. Just that someone could. And she can.

I want to be able to so badly. I absolutely love ballet, and the Nutcracker is my all-time favourite. I remember when I was younger, I had a DVD of the Nutcracker ballet and would watch it often. I have the entire CD on my iPod, and it's a classic Christmas time viewing.

If only I could be a sugar plum fairy. All I really want is the dress ..... and the ability to dance like they do.

Day 38 - A song you know all the words to

This was a no-brainer. I know this song, backwards, forwards, upside-down. Really. Just have me listen to it. I'm pretty sure I could recite it in my sleep.

John Mayer is like Josh Groban - his voice is like an auditory hug. I mean, really, just listen to him. Please. He seems so ... perfect. When he sings this song, he's sensitive, but is in control. He sings from his heart, but also allows people to sing from theirs too.

I guess I'm just a sucker for singers whose names begin with "J." And who can play the guitar. That's probably another reason why I love this song - it's acoustic.

I'm sorry - this post has been sporadic. I'm not really quite sure why. Other than the fact that I just finished a hard essay, and my brain is pretty much kaput. Well that, and my heart has sufficiently melted after listening to this song.

I want to be the girl he talks about in the song ... and though she gets her heart broken, I guess I wouldn't really mind. Because at least he would sing about it, with his beautiful voice.

I want someone to love me enough to make both of us fall - for each other. But most of all, I think I want my name written in the sky.

Day 37 - A song that reminds you of a certain event

Wow. There are just so many of these songs to choose from. There are the obvious ones: soundtracks and orchestral music from the movies and plays that I've seen, my friends and I's "theme songs," and the songs that are quintessentially meant for certain moments (graduation, weddings, funerals, school fight songs ...). But here's one that seems a bit out of the ordinary.

This song reminds me of crossing the Cincinnati bridge into Kentucky. It seems weird. I know it does. But this is the song to listen to when crossing over - especially when crossing from Kentucky to Cincinnati.

How did this song become the theme song of that bridge? Let me explain:

I'm slightly in love with the movie Love Actually. It is one of three movies that I watch on a regular basis, and it one of the sweetest movies I know ... really. So one day, I got the soundtrack, and started listening to it. Nonstop. Well, I had gotten the soundtrack when we were in Baton Rouge, so on our drive back up north, this song came on. Right as we reached the bridge.

When you're driving from Kentucky to Cincinnati and cross this bridge, you're surrounded on all sides - there's the river below you, and metal supports on both sides. Above you is the southbound highway. The view is stunning. So not only do you get the gorgeous view while you're on the bridge, but as soon as you exit the tunnel/bridge, there it is: Cincinnati.

Most of the time when we were driving back, we would hit this point just around dusk. So the city is lit up, we have the headlights on, and this song in the background. It seems as if we're driving to someone, and it's imperative that we get there. Soon. The song was meant for when the child ran through the airport, and I always wish that at the end of the song, someone would come and meet me. Or I would arrive somewhere where my loved one is.

It hasn't happened yet. But I know that I'll be driving across the bridge again. And I'll always be hoping for that special someone to be waiting for me at the end of the bridge.

Day 36 - A song that reminds you of somewhere

There are a decent amount of songs that remind me of places: All Summer Long, Sweet Home Alabama, even University of Michigan's Victors or The Yellow and Blue. But I think there's one song that reminds me of multiple places at once: Michael Buble's Home.

I guess this reminds me of three places. Because I have three homes:

When I first heard this song, it was the summer of 2010. I was in Baton Rouge for five weeks with my family, but was missing my friends. One sent this to me, and I couldn't stop listening to it. I wanted to go 'home' to Grosse Pointe. To where my friends were, to where a budding relationship was, to where my pets and history were. I thought of Baton Rouge as a temporary home - a place for family gathering, and a place to tan by the pool.

But once I left Baton Rouge, I realized that I came to call that home too. It was where family was ... and though I may not have had a history there, I knew in my heart that home was where my family was. As soon as my mom and I crossed into Mississippi on our way back up north, I wanted nothing more than to turn around, go back to the apartment, and transfer to LSU, where I would never have to leave Baton Rouge. But I knew that wasn't possible. So I had two homes.

The third came slowly, and I knew it was going to come. The place is Ann Arbor. It is where I live most of the time, have most of my friends (or at least, all of my friends that are together); it's where my things are, and where at least some of my family is. It's close to my history, and only a short drive to the airport to where my newest home is. And it'll be my home for the next four years, no matter where else I can place the 'home' label to. We may move again, or sell our house in Grosse Pointe, but I'll always know that I have Ann Arbor to reside in, if only for eight months out of the year.

So that's it. This song reminds me of all three places, because no matter where I am, a little part of me always wants to be in the other places: whether it's for my history, my family, or my stuff. I'll always want to go home. Even when I am there.

Day 35 - A song that reminds you of someone

This is hard. I know that I've been saying that for most of the songs, but this one is really and truly hard. I mean, I have so many songs that I've listened to only with certain people, and so many of those are dear to my heart. But looking over the letters from last month, I realized that I didn't write one to a person that I wanted to. So here's a song that reminds me of them, and the letter I wish I had written.

Hey you.

I remember walking back from school with you one day in seventh or eighth grade, and you had just learned this song in choir. You started to sing it, and I loved it. Not only the melody and the chords, but also the message.

I realize that for a while, you raised me up. You supported me through lots of things: middle school, changing friends, changing priorities, and, most importantly, our changing friendship. I could always count on you to be there for me, until that one time.

We stopped talking one day. Or, rather, you stopped talking to me. And I've always kind of wondered, why?  Was it because someone told you to? I think we both know who that 'someone' would have been. Or did you think that our friendship was too far gone and just decided to give up without telling me?

It doesn't matter now. The damage was done. You let me fall after you had raised me up. And now I can't seem to get over that fact. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for upsetting you. I'm sorry for not "forgiving and forgetting." I'm sorry that I didn't ever follow up as to what happened.

But really, I'm sorry that the song isn't true anymore. I've realized over the years that I'm more without you than I was with you. You supported me, and lifted me to see new things, but those new things weren't at greater heights. They were only in a different direction. And I've realized, I much prefer the direction I'm heading now.

Day 34 - A song that makes you sad

Tim McGraw's If You're Reading This almost brings me to tears every time I hear it. If it's not the lyrics, it's the tune, if it's not the tune, it's the situation and mood I'm in when I decide to listen to the song, and if it's not any of those, I was probably already crying before the song came on.

I remember the first time I heard this song: I was with my Quiz Bowl team driving back from a tournament in Sterling Heights. It was snowing out, and we were driving with a senior in his mom's minivan. We had just lost our last game of the season, and everyone was a little mopey. This song came on the country station.

The premise is depressing: a soldier has left to go to war and has died overseas. This is his final letter to his family - it states that if they are reading the letter, that he's "home" in heaven. There are little notes to everyone in his letter: to his wife, to his mother, to his unborn daughter, and to his father, who was also a soldier.

I wish that the families of soldiers can have something like this (not that I wish for any more soldiers to die). I wish that each of the members can have a personalized goodbye from their soldier. But even more than that, I wish that every soldier can have a round-trip ticket from their place of duty. A round-trip they can remember.

Day 33 - A song that makes you happy

Just like my favorite song, this is a hard category. I think that this time it's because I have multiple different forms of "happy." And for a song to make me happy, it seems to me as if I would have to be not happy first. And depending on which mood I'm coming from, there will be a different song that will get me to the "happy" point. But here's one:

(the video is a tad weird .. it's just the lyrics, but for some reason the official video wouldn't load on my computer ....)

Anyways. This song. Is. Amazing.

I heard it for the first time in Baton Rouge - my mom and I were in the mall and all of a sudden I hear the end of this song as we walk into a store. I fell in love with the end, and after we got home, I fell in love with the whole song.

I think that it's so adorable that it plays on the "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade" saying. And the fact that most of the stanzas are about a guy asking a girl out ... it's just so cute. I feel as if that is how every guy should ask their crush out. Sing this song. Or, better yet, have Chris Rice come and perform it. Take a chance, and just take hold of the beauty of romancing. I feel as if so much of that has gone away.

But then again, I really am a sucker for happy endings.

I hope you are too.

Day 32 - Your Least Favorite Song

So this was hard. I looked on my iPod and couldn't really find a song that I really didn't like ... or rather, that I never liked ever. I guess I should try to explain that: I go through phases. I listen to songs non-stop, but then can never listen to them again (or have to wait an extremely long time before I can bear to hear them). So I found a song that I used to love, well ... used to like. But now I just can't stand it - and I honestly wonder why I ever had it on any playlist in the first place.

I was shown this song by a friend. It is his favorite band. And for a while I had this song, along with another 311 song (Daisy Cutter) on my playlist. But listening to it again, I really wonder what I found in the song. I don't particularly like the musical aspect of it, and the lyrics are ... alright. Maybe. I mean, I guess it's cool that in the end it's talking about music, but really? A song about music being your best friend? I don't know ... it just doesn't strike me as all that great anymore. Not that it was ever all that great to begin with .....