A Little Behind

Just watched the Country Music Awards and other than Brad Paisley's new stuff, I only knew two of the songs.  I need to listen to the radio a little more.  Or give up and just be old.

P.S. - Though I did, finally, get why people might be Taylor Swift fans so maybe that balances it out.  For once during a live performance the girl didn't seem overwhelmed by her own production value.

Freegle

As if I needed another reason to think libraries are awesome, over the last few months I have been thoroughly enjoying something called Freegle.  The Salt Lake County Library offers this service that allows you three free song downloads a week.  Like, as in you get to keep them, permanently and legally.

Now, not everything is on there, but the selection is pretty impressive.  New Brad Paisley album....check.  Miranda Lambert song I wanted (Only Prettier)...check.  Sara Bareilles (whom Becky Criddle made me aware of and I now love) ... check.   Really, sometimes technology actually is amazing.

My New Favorite Song

Sometimes the world of pop culture just hands you a present; like when Steve Young starred in Lois & Clark or when Howard Shore did the music for Twilight: Eclipse.   The latest example of this is Brad Paisley's song "Old Alabama."   I knew (due to Twitter) that he was doing some sort of song that had to do with the group Alabama, which made me happy, because when I was a little kid that's one of the groups I remember listening to with my whole family.  Then I heard the song.  Not only does it sample an Alabama song, it samples the Alabama song, "Mountain Music."  This is the song I remember listening to over and over, watching my little brothers dance around like (very macho I assure you) maniacs as we all giggled.  They were little enough that I'm not even sure they'd remember it, but I do, and this new song echoes one of my favorite childhood memories.  So needless to say, in spite of a hint of raciness, "Old Alabama" is my favorite song of the moment.

Atmosphere

This morning it was really foggy here, and as I was driving to the archives this morning I had music from the Twilight movies playing.  (Thanks to my smart husband for reminding me to bring music)  Is it possible for something to seem both melancholy and delightful at the same time?  Anyway, it was gorgeous with all of the trees peeking in and out of the fog.  Which is a good thing because I had a sucky research day.  I didn't find one single piece of information that even applied to our project - yuck.  Hopefully tomorrow will be better. 

I hope you all aren't tired of tree pictures yet, because I'm about to inflict another one on you.

15 Things I Love About America

Fortune Magazine made a list of 100 great things about America. Largely silly, and some of which I could do without (kegs? really?) it inspired me to think about the things I love about this country http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2010/07/02/100-great-things-about-america-part-1/?hpt=C2. So here they are 15 things - some serious, some less so - that I adore about the country of my birth

1. That the Founding Fathers created a Constitution and Bill of Rights so astounding that while it may not have initally included everyone, almost everyone has wanted to be included.

2. That Political disagreements are settled by words and court cases and not with guns and genocide.

3. Our diversity, of people and cultures yes, but also of the landscape. To have a country that can lay claim to Yellowstone, Death Valley and the Everglades is a pretty miraculous thing.

4. Religous Freedom.

5. That a girl born in a lower middle class home, to parents who didn't graduate from college, can currently be working on a PhD.

6. The Smithsonian Museums - they are free, they are amazing, and next week I'll get to go again!

7. (Something the Fortune List got Right) Drinks with Ice.

8. Country Music. Bring on the George Strait and the Brad Paisley,

9. That I live in a country where tacos, gyros, pizza and chow mein come via drive through and delivery

10. McDonalds.

11. American writers from high brow to low: Mark Twain, Shannon Hale, Emily Dickinson, Stephenie Meyer, Willa Cather, Langston Hughes, Sherman Alexie, Elizabeth Peters....

12. Popcorn.

13. The Statue of Liberty.

14. Road Trips. Yes I know road trips are possible in other countries, but our country is huge, loves cars, and has wierd and interesting places to visit.

15. Independence Day. At least once every year I have tears of gratitude and joy, and I'm delighted to have a holiday that requires me to remember to be thankful for where I live.

Running Playlist Part II

Here's some more of my favorites:

-"Baby, I Love You" by Aretha Franklin
I have my husbands much superior music tastes to thank for this one.

-"Crazy for This Girl" Evan and Jaron
I think these very talented boys were casualties of the death of the boy band era, and any pop song featuring a cello gets extra points. Speaking of boy bands and cellos...

-"The Hardest Thing" by 98 Degrees
Anyone who's known me awhile had to expect Lachey Brothers & Co. to show up on this list eventually, and this was the song that started the madness.

Running Playlist Part 1

I officially closed my Princess Bride Quote of the Day blog today, I've been having trouble keeping up with my blogging lately so I thought I'd concentrate on this one.

So I thought I'd start a silly topic for myself, inspired by driving around in the nice spring weather with the windows down and the stereo blasting. I've noticed that there are a few songs that no matter my mood I almost never skip. And though my music taste isn't the most high-brow or cool it does give me something to blog about.

Today's entries are:

-"The Power of Love" by Huey Lewis and the News
Cheesy yes, but fun and mushy and it reminds me of Michael J. Fox on a skateboard which is always worth a smile.

-"Supermassive Black Hole" by Muse
From the Twilight soundtrack, it's the song that's playing during the vampire baseball game. It tends to make me want to drive a little too fast, and always gives me some sort of odd confidence boost.

-"Superman Main Title" by John Williams or John Ottman, depending on the vintage. Whether it's my love of Superman or just how generally powerful and fun it is, this song always makes me happy

Hmmm...an unintended theme of movie soundtracks today.

Favorite Things of 2009 - Part I

I'm calling this Part I because I'm sure I'll think of some other things, but two of my favorite things (pop culture wise) of 2009 are:

1. Forest Born by Shannon Hale
This might be my favorite Shannon Hale book, and that is saying something. This book was on my brain for about a week. The thoughts it created weren't always comfortable, for example the main character is a teenager who manages to find absolute balance between, in fantasy terms anyway, public and family life. Something I haven't even come close to figuring out. This book was absolute page-turning entertainment but it stuck with me, a major achievement.

2. "Welcome to the Future" by Brad Paisley
This isn't the first Brad Paisley song that unexpectedly moved me to tears, and it probably won't be the last. In terms of both my own life, and the world in general, this song makes me very grateful to be where I am today. Surprisingly deep for a song that starts out talking about a Pac-Man game. His story about singing this song at the White House was one of the few "celebrity" news stories that actually made me happy. www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Music/07/23/brad.paisley.white.house/index.html