Music on the Mind

Current top love/romantic songs:

1. All I Want is You by U2 (this will never leave the list)
2. First Day of My Life by Bright Eyes
3. The Luckiest by Ben Folds
4. Love Song by The Cure
5. Say Yes by Elliott Smith
6. Passenger Seat by Death Cab for Cutie
7. Queen Bee by Taj Mahal
8. A Case of You by Joni Mitchell
9. She's a Jar by Wilco
10. Heartbeats by Jose Gonzalez

Songs that I've recently been enjoying:

1. Is this love? by Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah
2. Silver Lining by Rilo Kiley
3. Set Out Running by Neko Case & her Boyfriends
4. Should I Stay or Should I Go by The Clash
5. O Valencia! by The Decemberists
6. Keys to the City by The Go! Team
7. Righteously by Lucinda Williams
8. From Blown Speakers by The New Pornographers
9. Here Comes Your Man by The Pixies
10. Judy is a Punk by The Ramones

Future

Five things I'd like to do in the next 5 years (in no particular order):

1. Look around and realize that I am lying on a beach in a warm and tropical place...relaxing...and looking hot in my bikini.
2. Learn how to meditate. Even if that means repeating in my head over and over the following: Think About Nothing. Sshhh.
3. Grow vegetables and eat them when then are still warm from the sun.
4. Hear some little person call me 'mommy' (and it isn't a lost child in the mall).
5. Try that whole marriage thing again. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Gratitude

I am working on being a more positive and grateful person. According to The Secret, gratitude can bring great happiness. I tried Prozac and that didn't really work...so we'll see about the Law of Attraction :)

Here goes... A preliminary list of things I am grateful for:

1. ...for feeling love for another and knowing in my deepest parts that I am loved back.
2. ...for my cats. Even the one who is acting crazy right now.
3. ...for the opportunity to be receiving a wonderful education in a city that I love.
4. ...for a car that starts when it is -30 degrees and gets me around.
5. ...for family that loves me and wishes me happiness.
6. ...for my new shoes and ipod and all of the creature comforts that I am able to provide for myself by selling tacos and Lonestar beers.
7. ...for friends that think of me and check in every so often
8. ...for the willingness to think about gratitude and consider living life in a different way.

There's more, but I am going to work on that graduate education of mine for a bit now so that I may continue to enjoy it until May (18th)!

If I gave myself the time and permission to read...

Books I'd Like to Read:

1. The Secret - by Rhonda Byrne (I know that it is self-help AND Oprah-endorsed. But if it can help...)
2. Beautiful Children - by Charles Bock
3. Lolita - by Vladimir Nabokov
4. Atonement - by Ian McEwan
5. The World Without Us - by Alan Weisman
6. Never Let Me Go - by Kazuo Ishiguro