#63- Playlist of my 101 favorite songs

When I set out to accomplish this goal, I thought it would be difficult to come up with 101 favorite songs. Now maybe that thought was silly, considering that my music library has 27,675 songs.

My first pass at my music library turned up 176.

Admittedly, I probably had just thrown a few in there that I only really like and don't qualify as a "favorite."  But I was pretty sure it was going to be incredibly difficult to narrow down my list. I mean, I had to kick off 75 beloved songs!

I decided to make a separate "Favorite Musical Theatre Songs" list.  That got me down to 138.  Not bad!  Now I only had to get rid of 37 more.  I sorted it by artist to see if maybe I had too many by one artist.  My first pass had turned up:

Billy Joel (10)
Maroon 5 (7)
Anberlin (6)
Frank Sinatra (6)
Green Day (5)
Michael Buble (5)
Aerosmith (4)

And many with 3 or less. Clearly I had gone a little nuts on the Billy Joel, at least.

So, I set to trimming it down.  Then of course, as I was trimming it down I kept remembering songs I had forgotten to add to the list.  And I had this irrationally intense fear that I would forget a song or artist that I loved.  Perhaps because I identify myself with music so much, it was incredibly important to me to make a list that was truly representative of my favorites.

Due to my irrational fear of screwing up my list, I decided to let it sit for a few days then revisit the list. Immediately I started cutting songs.  I mean, could I really have "Buttons" by the Pussycat Dolls on the same list as "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen?  No.  So now the list was down to 84.

I trimmed and added and trimmed and added some more and I am satisfied with the final result! Here it is, with every carefully chosen song (alphabetical by title). Link to it on Spotify here.  Whew!

1. 21 Guns - Green Day
2. Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell
3. Alice, Who The F**k is Alice? - Smokie
4. All You Need is Drums to Start a Dance Party - Piebald
5. And So It Goes - Billy Joel
6. Angel - Aerosmith
7. Apologize - OneRepublic
8. Awkward Game - Gabriella Cilmi
9. Back At Your Door - Maroon 5
10. B*tch - Meredith Brooks
11. Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen
12. Boyz in the Hood - Dynamite Hack
13. Brick House - Commodores
14. Buddy Holly - Weezer
15. Bullets in the Gun - Toby Keith
16. Can't Take My Eyes Off You - Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons
17. Candle (Sick and Tired) - The White Tie Affair
18. Chicken Fried - Zac Brown Band
19. Come Away With Me - Norah Jones
20. Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing - Sufjan Stevens
21. Cotton - The Mountain Goats
22. Crazy - Aerosmith
23. Crazy - Patsy Cline
24. Crazy Love - Michael Buble
25. Cryin' - Aerosmith
26. Dismantle. Repair - Anberlin
27. Don't Speak - No Doubt
28. Don't Stop Believin' - Journey
29. Don't Stop the Music - Jamie Cullum
30. Don't Worry Baby - Beach Boys
31. Dream On - Aerosmith
32. Dude (Looks Like a Lady) - Aerosmith
33. End of the World As We Know It - R.E.M.
34. Everything - Michael Buble
35. Fallin' - Alicia Keys
36. Feel Good Drag - Anberlin
37. Feeling Good - Michael Buble
38. Fields of Athenry - Dropkick Murphys
39. Fields of Gold - Sting & The Police
40. Follow Me - Uncle Kracker
41. Glasgow Love Theme - Craig Armstrong
42. Godspeed - Aerosmith
43. Harder to Breathe - Maroon 5
44. Heart of Gold - Neil Young
45. Heart Shaped Box - Nirvana
46. Hotel California - The Eagles
47. I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) - The Proclaimers
48. I'm Shipping Up To Boston - Dropkick Murphys
49. I Gotta Feeling - The Black Eyed Peas
50. I Like It, I Love It - Tim McGraw
51. I Won't - Colbie Caillat
52. If I Ain't Got You - Alicia Keys
53. If I Ever Leave This World Alive - Flogging Molly
54. Inevitable - Anberlin
55. Jessie's Girl - Rick Springfield
56. The Kids Aren't Alright - The Offspring
57. The Lady Is A Tramp - Frank Sinatra
58. The Longest Time - Billy Joel
59. Love in an Elevator - Aerosmith
60. Love You Till The End - The Pogues
61. The Luckiest - Ben Folds
62. Lucky - Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat
63. Lullabye (Goodnight My Angel) - Billy Joel
64. Make You Feel My Love - Adele
65. Many The Miles - Sara Bareilles
66. Misery - Maroon 5
67. More of You - MoZella
68. New Soul - Yael Naim
69. The One I Love - David Gray
70. The Only Exception - Paramore
71. Only The Good Die Young - Billy Joel
72. Orange Blossom Special - Scythian
73. Paperthin Hymn - Anberlin
74. Rain Night in SoHo - Bogside Rogues
75. Rebels of the Sacred Heart - Flogging Molly
76. Secret - Maroon 5
77. Secrets - OneRepublic
78. Semi-Charmed Life - Third Eye Blind
79. She - Green Day
80. She's Got a Way - Billy Joel
81. SING - My Chemical Romance
82. Smile - Uncle Kracker
83. So Contagious - Acceptance
84. Somebody to Love - Queen
85. Stuck Like Glue - Sugarland
86. Stutter - Maroon 5
87. Sunday Morning - Maroon 5
88. Take Me (As You Found Me) - Anberlin
89. This Love - Maroon 5
90. This Year - The Mountain Goats
91. To The Wolves - Anberlin
92. Toxic - A Static Lullaby
93. Turn Me On - Norah Jones
94. Undisclosed Desires - Muse
95. Uptown Girl - Billy Joel
96. Walk This Way - Aerosmith feat. Run DMC
97. Witchcraft - Frank Sinatra
98. You and I - Ingrid Michaelson
99. You and I - Lady Gaga
100. You Belong Here - Anberlin
101. You Shook Me All Night Long - AC/DC

#54- “Best Picture” Oscar winners- "Broadway Melody" (1929)

Today I set out to watch "The Broadway Melody," as a part of goal #54 (see every movie that's won a “Best Picture” Oscar, rewatch ones I've already seen 1/85).  Now, I thought, this one has to be right up my alley- the poster itself says "Talking, Singing, Dancing!"

And true to its word, it was full of talking, singing, and dancing.

I have to admit, I kinda liked this movie, even though the bad stuff was really bad.  I think it's best if I just list the pros and cons, because I had a lot of differing thoughts through this one.

Cons:

TERRIBLE musical numbers- My husband and I were trying to figure out why they were so bad. Was if that the sloppiness in the dancing and singing was the style left over from Vaudeville acts?  Was it because film was expensive to shoot back then so they "dumbed down" the performing so they'd have to take as few shots as possible?  Or worst of all, was that actually what passed for good back then?! Whatever the reason, it quite seriously was worse than any high school show I've ever seen.

Awful cutaways- It was painfully obvious and even jarring every time they made a cut to a different take of the same scene. I know, I know, it's an old movie.  Obviously they were still getting the hang of things. But even so, as a viewer it was distracting.

The portrayal of women- The women in the movie were often weak-willed, submissive, and subservient.  When they broke those conventions, they were portrayed as little girls throwing temper tantrums. And of course once one of the female leads gets married, she quits her career immediately. It rubbed me the wrong way, but I supposed it's to be expected for this period of time. 

MORE AWKWARD KISSING- Seriously what is with this?  Was this a thing back then?  People kissing other people on the mouth that they really shouldn't be?
Exhibit A- Dude kissing his girlfriend's sister (yes that's also an awkward subtitle for it):

Exhibit B: Same sisters kissing:

WTF is all I have to say.


Pros:

Funny- The satirical view of broadway politics had us cracking up.  There's a hilarious catfight and the heroine stands up for herself and gets in the producer's face like a little wildcracker. And yes, some serious parts that weren't meant to be funny had us laughing as well. It was obvious to me that these were actors that were used to "big" (aka "over") acting.  There were always huge expressions and gestures. Overall it was entertaining.

Touching- At the climax of the film, the heroine performs a very generous and selfless act by convincing her boyfriend that she really doesn't love him and that if he loves her sister he should go for it.  She really is in love with him, yet, knowing how much it will pain her to see them together she urges him to go after her sister. I was moved by the scene, even through all the overacting and exaggerated gestures.

Costumes- They were sometimes outrageous, sometimes fantastic. I have to admit I would like to do this show with an amazing costume director just to get to wear stuff like the costumes in this movie.

All in all, I enjoyed the movie.  Not the best I've ever seen, but it was fun to watch. And I'm glad I have seen it, given that it was the first musical to win an Oscar. Cross this one off the list!

Starting #54- “Best Picture” Oscar winners- "Wings" (1927)

 Last night I began on goal #54 (see every movie that's won a “Best Picture” Oscar, rewatch ones I've already seen 0/85) with the movie Wings. I got the movie all ready to go on my computer and got ready to press play.

I was super excited- I've always wanted to see more old movies and this was the perfect opportunity to do that while beginning on a Day Zero goal!

I was unstoppable, an Oscar-winning-movie-watching Day-Zero-goal-achieving HERO.

I started the movie and settled back to watch.  I had tried to convince my husband to watch with me and was surprised by his reaction:

   Me: I'm going to begin on my day zero goal to watch all the best picture winners tonight with the movie "Wings." It's a war movie, you'd probably like it.
  Him: I think my mom made me watch that. Isn't it in black and white and several hours long?
  Me: What? No. I mean... the poster is in full color. They wouldn't do that if the movie was black and white... right?

Wrong.

Ok, I thought, so it's in black and white.  That's fine, black and white movies have a certain romantic quality, and I'd wanted to see more of those anyway!

A couple minutes more into the movie the characters starting talking but I couldn't hear the audio.  I started fiddling with my sound settings, trying to make the voices come out.

Then I realized that it was a silent film as well.

 

Um ok... ok, that's fine.  After all, I'd wanted to see more silent films too! I even have that listed as goal #56! 

About a half hour in, the ever-present pipe organ music started grating on me and I turned the sound to half.  But the movie was kinda cute so far- a couple cutesy romantic scenes had caught my interest already, and a love triangle was forming. Jack and Dave were in love with Sylvia but Sylvia loved Dave.  Meanwhile Mary is in love with Jack and Jack has no idea!

Then the war part set in.  Both young men decided to become fighter pilots for WWI and the next 45 minutes was all pilot training, flying, and shooting things with very little actual plot progression.

Now, I'm not opposed to war movies.  And I'm sure this movie had a lot of resonance for people who were watching it only ten years after experiencing WWI.

But dear God, if I had to watch another hour of fighter planes swooping around in the sky and shooting at one another, I might actually chuck the computer out the window.

I looked at the time left on the movie.  Relief! There was only 15 more minutes left!  I finished the 15 minutes and thought that it was weird that the movie had cut off and ended without any resolution and right in the middle of a scene.

Then I realized... that was Part 1.

 

I took heart- Part 2 couldn't be that long, right? I mean how many more shots of fighter pilots shooting at enemy planes with bad pipe organ music playing in the background could they possibly have afforded in 1927?

Turns out, lots.  

Maybe I should have watched the trailer before starting on this goal so that I would have known what I was in for:

"Whopping air spectacle," indeed.

I started Part 2.  And five minutes in...

I was out cold.

So this morning when I woke up, I vowed I would finish the damn movie if it killed me.

And I did.  I made it through. Despite the cheesy "oh gee golly mister!" moments,  awkward mother-son and bromance kissing scenes, I made it through. 

And I have to say, I was impressed by the amount of feeling these actors were able to portray without speech.  I even shed a tear when one of them died.

I'm proud of myself for enduring and finishing "Wings." But here's hoping that the next one isn't a two and a half hour long... black and white.... silent.... WAR MOVIE!


Other goals in progress:
51. Make a list of 101 things that make me happy (7/101)
63. Make a playlist of my 101 favorite songs (83/101)
74. Hug at least one person every day for a month (4/31)
94. Keep a “my day in 6 words” blog every day for a month (4/31)

#15 - Write my will

Of course I complete the weird and slightly morbid one first.

I kept scouring my list for something I could easily complete in a day so that I could complete at least one goal in the first week of this blog, and my eyes kept catching on this one!  So I decided to bite the bullet and get to it.

The reason this goal is on my list is because my last living (natural) grandparent, my grandmother, just passed away this fall.  It continually amazed me how easy my grandmother made everything for us.  Not only did she have her will in order, she had complete lists of how she wanted everything done upon her death.  To say she was meticulously organized would be an understatement. In our moments of profound grief, we did not have to make any important decisions because an elderly woman with severe arthritis in her hands sat down and hand wrote every tiny detail out for us. It was an incredibly thoughful gift that she was able to give us, even after she was gone.

As I started writing it, I was bored by all the legal mumbo-jumbo.  Then I got to the part where you write down what you want to leave to whom. At first I was at a loss... I mean, I don't really think I have much of value.  Then I began to imagine what belongings of mine might mean something to my loved ones, should something happen to me.  Ideas came pouring out onto paper, and I had to add several sections for more people after the allotted 4.

The end result was that I realized how much I love my family and friends and how much I believe they love me.  If something happened to me, I think they would want things of mine that meant something to them and that they could remember me fondly by. Imagining them smiling and thinking of me every time they wear a piece of my jewelry was quite an experience.  Morbid?  Maybe.  But the fact is that death is a part of life and something that everyone will face eventually.  I love the idea that even when that moment comes for me, I might still give my loved ones a reason to smile.

I did this because I aspire to be as thoughtful and generous a person that my Grandma Bray was. So this goal completion is dedicated to her, Julia Frances Bray, a woman who accomplished anything she set her mind to.

Time to start doing

If you're like me, you come across several things on a daily basis that make you think "I'm going to do that one day," or the more pathetic version, "I should do that some day... but I probably won't."

With inspiration from my dear friend LoveMuffins, I've decided that today and the next 1000 after it will be the days that I finally do those things. It's called the Day Zero Project and the idea is to make a list of 101 things that you will accomplish in 1001 days.  Sort of like a bucket list... but to be completed in less than 3 years.

When she told me about it, I thought that it sounded like a lot to take on.  Huge (not to mention expensive) life goals popped into mind... like visiting every country in Europe or buying a house.   Then I looked at her list and others and found things like "kiss in the rain" and "make ice cream from scratch." And even better, many goals to improve your community or random acts of kindness like "volunteer for Earth Day" or "put change in someone's expired parking meter."

So here's my list, to be updated as I achieve my goals:


Health/Sports:

1. Go ice skating
2. Go horseback riding
3. Get a massage completed 12/7/11
4. Eat vegetarian for a week (0/7)
5. Go to the gym 3 times a week for a month (0/12)
6. Complete a 5k marathon
7. Do 20 push ups
8. Drink eight glasses of water every day for a week (0/7)
9. Abstain from alcohol for a week (0/7)
10. Go on a hike
11. Go to a driving range
12. Take a dance class

Finances:

13. Eat in for 2 weeks (0/14)
14. Pay off all credit card debt
15. Write my will completed 11/15/11

Relationships:

16. Take my nephew on an outing of his choosing
17. Make a birthday cake for someone completed 3/6/12
18. Go on a family vacation (Booked for May 2012)
19. Have friends over to my place and cook them dinner completed 2/29/11
20. Host a theme party completed 12/17/11
21. Host a potluck dinner completed 12/23/11
22. Have my parents and in laws each over for dinner and cook for them (0/3)
23. Give a friend or family member a gift for no reason

Travel/Outings:

24. Go camping
25. Visit the Mediterranean (Cruise, booked for May 2012)
26. Go on a road trip with no specific destination
27. Visit a state or country that I've never been to completed 12/29/11
28. Go on a picnic
29. Visit a local winery
30. Take a tour of DC
31. Visit a friend out of state
32. Pick a pumpkin at a pumpkin patch, carve it, then make pumpkin pie and roasted seeds out of the insides
33. Visit 3 museums I've never been to before (2/3)
    

    1. National Museum of Crime and Punishment completed 12/10/11
    2. Newseum completed 2/4/12

Projects:

33. Make a recipe book of my favorite recipes, including pictures of my homemade dishes
34. Knit a blanket (began Dec 2011)
35. Create a painting completed 2/20/12
36. Make a quilt
37. Go to a paint-your-own pottery shop
38. Take a picture in the same place every month for a year then turn it into a calendar (4/12)

Self improvement/Well Being:

39. Don't complain about anything for a week (0/7)
40. Practice piano for a half hour every day for 2 weeks (0/14)
41. Send a thank you note to someone who has inspired me
42. Learn to drive manual transmission
43. Spend an entire day outside
44. Learn how to meditate and do it every day for 2 weeks (0/14)
45. Be facebook-free for a week (0/7)
46. Have an “unplugged” vacation
47. Complete 7 goals in one week (0/7)
48. Go to church 10 times on a non-holiday (0/10)
49. Write down my worst memories on a paper and then burn the paper
50. Read 20 new books (5/20)
    

    1. Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
    2. Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson
    3. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
    4. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
    5. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
51. Make a list of 101 things that make me happy (16/101)
52. Organize my entire apartment and keep it that way for a month (0/31)
53. Read three biographies or autobiographies (0/3)

Entertainment/Culture:

54. See every movie that's won a “Best Picture” Oscar, rewatch ones I've already seen (6/85)
55. Go to a concert with a band I've never seen (tickets for March 2012)
56. Watch a silent film completed 1/24/12
57. Either attend a live opera performance or watch a movie of one completed 1/21/12
58. Go to a professional theatre performance in DC
59. Listen to a song by a new artist every day for a month (0/31)
60. Eat a type of cuisine I've never had before
61. Watch every Harry Potter movie in order over one weekend
62. See a Broadway show
63. Make a playlist of my 101 favorite songs (101/101) completed 11/29/11, Spotify link here
64. Buy a unique piece of art
65. Re-read the entire Harry Potter series within 3 months (0/7)
66. Go to a live comedy show

Community/Environment/Random Acts of Kindness:

68. Adopt a pet
69. Volunteer in my community
70. Put change in someone's parking meter that's about to expire
71. Donate hair to locks of love
72. Donate 2 boxes or bags of my things to charity
73. Pay for a stranger in line behind me
74. Hug at least one person every day for a month (30/30) completed 12/13/11
    
75. Order food for pickup instead of delivery
76. Compliment someone every day for a week (0/7)
77. Fill a window box full of plants on my balcony
78. Volunteer at an animal shelter
79. Don't drive anywhere for a week (0/7)
80. Only spend money on local businesses for a week (0/7)
81. When voting in the 2012 election, know what all the candidates stand for and be truly informed on every person I'm voting for
82. Leave 5 operation beautiful notes (0/5)

Fun for the Sake of Fun:

83. Make a snow angel
84. Participate in a poker night
85. Jump into a body of water fully clothed
86. Make a pie on Pi day
87. Spend an entire day in my Pjs reading books and eating only junk food
88. Ride a roller coaster
89. Swim in the ocean
90. Bake a Rubik's cube cake
91. Taste ten new wines, photograph and review them (0/10)
92. Go all out decorating my apartment for a holiday
93. Eat at 15 new restaurants within walking distance, photograph and review them (1/15)
    

    1. Jaleo completed 12/2/11

Misc:

94. Keep a “my day in 6 words” blog every day for a month (30/30) completed 12/13/11
95. Take a picture every day for a month (0/31)
96. Wear my hair down every day for a week (0/7)
97. Make one dish out of every cookbook I own (0/15)
98. Have my piano tuned
99. Listen to the CD my grandmother made of her reading her poems
100. Get my nose pierced
101. Take a walk alone for no reason

 To be completed between the dates of November 13, 2011 and August 10, 2014


And off I go to start doing!