My Top 20

The year I moved to New York City I bought my first iPod and it forever changed my music life. Gone were the days of carrying around a Discman with a stack of CDs. I took my iPod with me everywhere. I remember scrolling through my entire music library in amazement during my freshman year classes and spending hours downloading each and every disc from my CD books into iTunes.

With my iPod also came the freedom to make unlimited playlists. Since 2003 I have made countless playlists for workouts, flights, road trips, seasons, holidays, and moods. And these twenty songs, my personal top twenty, are on almost every playlist I make. Most of these songs have streamed through my headphones for over fifteen years, with one or two new additions along the way.

1. Wildflowers, Tom Petty 
2. Gimme Shelter, Rolling Stones 
3. Cornflake Girl, Tori Amos 
4. Say It Ain't So, Weezer 
5. All I Want, Toad The Wet Sprocket 
6. Where Does the Good Go, Tegan and Sara 
7. Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town, Pearl Jam
8. Learning to Fly, Tom Petty 
9. Beautiful Girl, INXS
10. White Blank Page, Mumford & Sons
11. Swan Dive, Ani Difranco 
12. Optimistic, Radiohead
13. Wonderwall, Oasis  
14. Gypsy, Fleetwood Mac 
15. Just Like Heaven, The Cure
16. To Build a Home, The Cinematic Orchestra 
17. The District Sleeps Alone Tonight, Postal Service
18. Porcelain, Moby
19. Bittersweet Symphony, The Verve 
20. Silver Springs (The Dance), Fleetwood Mac 

What songs are on your personal top twenty? Please comment with your favorites below! 

Perfection.

The evening of July 29th was perfection. The air was cool, the skies were clear, and my friend Rebecca and I exchanged summer travel stories over Vietnamese salads and spring rolls in the middle of Central Park. And if that weren't heaven enough, after we finished our meals Ben Howard took the stage and played his entire album as the sun set and stars began to pop up across the nighttime sky. It just doesn't get any better than that.

Date nights rock.

A few weeks ago, Brian and I had an exciting date night out in Manhattan. After a delicious dinner at Josie's, we walked to the Beacon Theater for an evening with Grace Potter & the Nocturnals. We saw Grace perform at the Life is Good Festival a few years ago, and couldn't wait to see her on stage again.

The Stepkids opened up the show and impressed Brian and I both. Even if you didn't care for their music, you couldn't help but watch their performance due to the amazing visual effects projected on the band and a white screen behind them throughout the show. Lucky for us, we liked the music, too. They were awesome!

When Grace and the Nocturnals walked on stage, it sounded like the Beacon Theater was going to explode! If you have never seen Grace live, you need to as soon as possible. Grace. Rocks. Out. She performed with her band for two hours, and was absolutely amazing. Some highlights for me were an emotional performance of Falling or Flying with an acoustic guitar dedicated to all of the Sandy victims, singing along to Hot Summer Nights (one of my favorite songs of the band's) at the top of my lungs, and a cover of Gimme Shelter by the Stones. It was a fantastic show.

Date nights with Brian rock. Especially when we are at a rocking show.

Speaking of date nights, Brian and I are excited to continue our tradition of our 12 Dates of Christmas this season. I am eager to share our 12 dates of 2012 with you all on the blog this month!

Do what you like. Like what you do. Life is good.

Last weekend, Brian and I returned to the Prowse Farm in Canton, Massachusetts for our third Life is Good Festival. The weekend is always full of optimism, laughter, joy, and amazing music. It is our happy place.

100% of the funds raised at the Life is Good Festival go towards the Life is Good Playmakers. The Life is Good Playmakers, formerly known as Project Joy, is a Boston-based non-proft organization that strives to provide children with joyful play experiences to help them overcome life-threatening challenges, including illness, violence, and poverty. For the past three years, Brian and I have fundraised for the Life is Good Playmakers. Thank you to everyone who donated this year to our efforts; together we raised over $1,000 for children in need! This organization is near and dear to my heart, and I am so grateful that with your support Brian and I are able to contribute year after year to their amazing efforts.

Just thinking of our weekend makes me smile. We listened to countless hours of amazing music, met new friends in the VGP area, and talked to the artists as they wandered through our section. And most importantly, we were constantly reminded of how good life really is.

In anticipation of the festival every year, I scan the line-ups repeatedly and familiarize myself with any unfamiliar artists. This year's line-up was the perfect mix of old favorites, like Eric Hutchingson and Sara Bareilles, and amazing new bands, like The Infamous Stringdusters and Air Traffic Controller. Brian and I caught every single show and loved everything we heard. I even got to dance on stage with Michael Franti! 

Katie Herzig

Allen Stone

Ryan Montbleau Band

Sara Bareilles

Orange Television

Air Traffic Controller

Sarah Jarosz

Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds

The weekend concluded with a two and a half hour performance by Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds, which will go down as one of my top concert experiences. It was the perfect way to end a perfect weekend. 

Do what you like. Like what you do. Like is (so) good. 

Check out our other festival experiences here: 

Life is Good Festival 2011

Life is Good Festival 2010

A glimpse into my Africa playlist...

Before I left for Africa, I thought long and hard about my playlists. I knew that I had several long flights and bus rides ahead of me and that my music would be essential while traveling. I scanned thousands upon thousands of songs in my iTunes library, searching for my favorite tracks that I could listen to again and again.

Little did I know that I would listen to my iPod so much during my travels that I would develop blisters in my ears from my ear buds. I popped in my headphones every night before bed while I recorded my thoughts and memories from the day in my travel journal. I listened to slower tracks when I woke up in the middle of the night and needed a distraction to fall back asleep. And music streamed through my headphones during my 40 hours of bus rides through Malawi and Zambia. These songs will forever remind me of my travels throughout Africa- the dusty roads, the small roadside villages, the breathtaking sunrises and sunsets, and the smell of smoke in the air.

Here is a small sampling from my Africa playlist. Enjoy!

Oh, we are so in love.

Brian and I are so in love with Guster. We have seen them in concert several times over the past year (we saw them here and here and here and here), and every time we leave a show we are both repeatedly saying, That was the best show. I think that was the best they have ever sounded. Every show is the best show. And last Saturday was no exception.

A few months ago, we found out that Guster was playing a two-day show with Brett Dennen in Montclair, NJ over Thanksgiving weekend. We looked at our schedules and decided that we probably wouldn't be able to make it. Then, a few weeks ago I got a text from Brian on my way to train with him at the gym. He said that he had some exciting news to tell me. I assumed that he got a new client or made some changes on his website, and was eager to hear all about it. When I arrived at the gym, I met Brian and asked him about his news. As soon as I heard the words, We are going to see Guster and Brett Dennen, I shrieked. And then I clapped and jumped up and down. I was over the moon excited.

Brian, his nephew DJ, and I arrived in Montclair a few hours before the concert and ate dinner at Elevation Burger. We got to the Wellmont as soon as the doors opened and staked out the perfect spot right behind the sound guys. We were a step above floor level and had a perfect view of the stage. We also had a direct view of the song lists, which made me even more excited for what was to come.

Brett and his band were great, and I loved watching him do his signature dance moves throughout his set. By the time he sang Sydney, I'll Come Running, I was singing and dancing right there with him. And I have to say, my moves are just as awkward and awesome as his.

Guster played songs from all of their albums, and we belted out every word during their two hour set (well, Brian sang every word... I might have made up a few...). And I swear, I think it really was the best they ever sounded.

4, 3, 2, 1, went out the barrel of a gun. 

Start to finish, it was a phenomenal show.

After their encore, both Brett Dennen and the guys from Guster came back out for one more song. The lights were dimmed, guitars and mics were unplugged, and they played Jesus on the Radio. It was the perfect conclusion to a perfect concert.

We will never forget our night at the Wellmont with Guster and Brett Dennen.