My 31 Day Song Challenge

I have seen a few people doing a 30 or 31 day song challenge.  Now, I don't really have the patience or effort to do this for an entire month, but I do have the effort to do this now.  Basically, the challenge is picking songs you know of that fit each day best.  You can see the post here.  

As you will see, I'm a big fan of oldies and classic rock, but there will be some newer stuff on here.  If there were any other songs that came to mind, I will mention them.

Day 1 - A song you like with a color in the title: Crystal Blue Persuasion by Tommy James and the Shondells
Tommy James and the Shondells are one of the most underrated oldies bands of all time.  I love this song.  My runner up song would be "Red Rubber Ball" by the Cyrkle.

Day 2 - A song you like with a number in the title: Eight Days a Week by the Beatles
It's the first one that came to mind.  This song always confused me as a kid because there are only seven days a week, but now I realize it's meant to show just the extremes to which the singer professes their love, as they would love someone eight days a week if they could.

Day 3 - A song that reminds you of summertime: Summer in the City by the Lovin' Spoonful
It was either this or "In the Summertime" by Mungo Jerry.  But Summer in the City just makes me think of hot weather and the summer.  Also, really any Beach Boys song would have worked here as well.

Day 4 - A song that reminds you of someone you'd rather forget: Counting Stars by One Republic
I'm lucky that I don't have many people in my life I'd rather forget.  I'm not going to say who, but I remember listening to this song with someone from my past.  I think about them when I hear this song.  This was the hardest one to think of so far.

Day 5 - A song that needs to be played loud: I Love Rock N Roll by Joan Jett
This song has to be played loudly when it comes on.  Otherwise, it doesn't have the same effect.  One of the best rock anthems of all time.

Day 6 - A song that makes you want to dance: Dancing in the Moonlight by Toploader
This is one of my favorite songs of all time.  I literally could put this song under half of these days, but I chose this one.  It's just a casual dance song.  I never get tired of listening to it.  Now King Harvest did this song first, but the Toploader version is honestly easier to dance to.

Day 7 - A song to drive to: Magic Carpet Ride by Steppenwolf
I could swear there's a movie where this song plays while someone is driving.  Anyway, it just is such a great song to listen to out on the open road.  

Day 8 - A song about drugs or alcohol: Cocaine by Eric Clapton
Uh, could it be more obvious? 

Day 9 - A song that makes you happy: Happy by Pharrell
I know a lot of songs make me happy when I listen to them, but this was the first one that came to mind.  I remember it was such a huge hit when it came out.  The parody of it by Weird Al, "Tacky", is also fun to listen to.

Day 10 - A song that makes you sad: I Want a Mom That Will Last Forever by Cyndi Lauper
This was for the Rugrats in Paris movie when Chuckie was on the plane, wishing he had a mom.  It breaks my heart every time.  I feel so bad for the kid.  It's not a song I'll listen to outside of the movie, but it's a sad one nonetheless.

Day 11 - A song you never tired of: Higher Ground by Stevie Wonder or the Red Hot Chili Peppers
There's never a time when I hear this song that I grow tired of it, whether it be the Stevie Wonder or RHCP version.  Heck, Chris Daughtry covered it on American Idol and his version is awesome, too.  

Day 12 - A song from your preteen years: Bye Bye Bye by N*Sync
I remember watching the music video for this song as a preteen when it first came out.  It's a memory that's stuck with me all this time.  

Day 13 - A song you like from the 70s: Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd
This song has one of the best guitar solos ever.  It's got two halves, the slow build-up and the rockin' guitar solo.  My love for this song was renewed when I heard it in the movie "Kingsman", background to one of the greatest solo action scenes of all time, in my opinion.

Day 14 - A song you'd loved to be played at your wedding: You're Still the One by Shania Twain
My girlfriend introduced me to this song and it kind of became our song in the early stages of our relationship.  I would definitely want this played at our wedding, so long as she does too.

Day 15 - A song you like that's a cover by another artist: American Woman by Lenny Kravitz
Lenny took Roy Orbison's song and made it even cooler.  I think this is one of the rare instances where the cover is better than the original.  

Day 16 - A song that's a classic favorite: September by Earth Wind and Fire
Is there anyone that doesn't like this song?  I think the only people that don't like it only dislike it because it might be a tad overplayed.  And best of all, it's liked by all ages and races.

Day 17 - A song you'd sing a duet with someone on karaoke: Stop Draggin' My Heart Around by Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty
This is another classic I don't get tired of listening to.  What made me really discover my love for this song again was Elaine Testone and Phillip Phillip's cover of it on American Idol.  They killed it.  Would love to sing this with someone at karaoke.  My runner up song would be "Islands in the Stream" by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton.

Day 18 - A song from the year you were born: Right Here Waiting for You by Richard Marx
The year 1989 doesn't have too many classic hits, but I really like this one.  It was either this or "My Prerogative" by Bobby Brown.

Day 19 - A song that makes you think about life: Ob La Di Ob La Da by the Beatles
I grew up listening to this song, and now that I'm old enough to understand the meaning, I see it's about life.  It makes me think about growing up, meeting someone, having kids, working, and just... living the life.  

Day 20 - A song that has many meanings to you: American Pie by Don McLean
This is a song whose true meaning is about the plane crash in 1959 that killed Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens, but to me, it also is about life in the '70s and how short it is.

Day 21 - A song you like with a person's name in the title: Maggie May by Rod Stewart
This has always been my favorite Rod Stewart song.  I could have gone with "Michelle" by the Beatles, but I have enough Beatles songs on here.  

Day 22 - A song that moves you forward: Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve
This song just sounds like people marching forward.  If I need some motivation to get something done, this song works wonders.  This song was used as the Seahawks entrance song for a while for good reason.

Day 23 - A song you think everybody should listen to: Imagine by John Lennon
I'm sure everyone has heard this, but on the very off chance someone hasn't, I would say this one.  It certainly is a song that inspires hope and wonder and tries to get people to just be peaceful to one another.

Day 24 - A song by a band you wish were still together: It's Gonna Be Me by N*SYNC
I can't think of another band that's not "together" other than ones that have had members pass away, like the Beatles.  Anyway, I wasn't a huge fan of N*SYNC, but if they got back together, I think they could recreate some magic from the late '90s/early 2000s.  The Backstreet Boys are still together, after all.

Day 25 - A song you like by an artist no longer living: Travelin Man by Ricky Nelson
This is like the really old-time version of International Love by Chris Brown.  It's about a guy that travels around the world and... you know, gets around.  Unfortunately, Ricky was taken from us in the 1980s, but I have one of his records and I still listen to it on occasion.

Day 26 - A song that makes you want to fall in love: L-O-V-E by Nat King Cole
I really came to like this song after hearing it in the movie "The Parent Trap".  I watched that many times as a kid, and I always loved the opening scene which included this song.  Makes me want to re-fall in love.

Day 27 - A song that breaks your heart: Happier by Marshmello ft. Bastille
Whether I listen to the song or watch the music video, both can break my heart.  In the music video, a girl grows up with a dog she gets on her birthday and mourns his passing on another of her birthdays.  Just heartbreaking.

Day 28 - A song by an artist whose voice you love: Close to You by the Carpenters
Karen Carpenter had one of the most beautiful voices of all time.  The fact that next to nothing was done to make her voice sound better is amazing.  Her voice is downright angelic.  It's such a shame she was taken from us so soon.

Day 29 - A song you remember from your childhood: Old Time Rock and Roll by Bob Seger
My parents listened to an oldies radio station whenever we went anywhere, and I remember hearing this song quite often and always jamming out to it.  

Day 30 - A song that reminds you of yourself: Sharp Dressed Man by ZZ Top
Now I don't always dress that nicely, but when I do, I think of this song.  Alternatively, when I hear this song I think of all the times I've dressed nicely (put on a suit, tie, tuxedo).  It's the only song I could think of for this.

Day 31 - A song that comforts your soul: Sitting on the Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding
How can this song not comfort your soul?  As a kid, I had a cassette tape with a lot of 70s songs on it, and this was one of them, so I listened to it a lot.  It's such a classic.

Movie May

This month of May, 2014, I will be watching one film each day for all 31 days of the month.  I want to do this for a few reasons:
- I have a lot of movies to catch up on
- A lot of good movies coming out in theaters in the month of May
- Teach myself commitment and determination

The list of films is below, and with there being more than 31 (43 actually) I will not be able to watch all of them.  But they are:

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (May 2)
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
The Arroyo
Blended (May 23) 
The Cabin in the Woods
Delivery Man 
The Dictator
Ender's Game
Flight
Frozen 
Ghostbusters
Godzilla (May 16)
A Good Day to Die Hard
The Green Lantern
The Green Mile
Grown Ups 2
The Human Centipede: First Sequence
Jack Reacher
Kick-Ass 2
The Last Stand
The Lone Ranger
The Lorax
Million Dollar Arm (May 16)
A Million Ways to Die in the West (May 30) 
Neighbors (May 9) 
Oblivion
Oz the Great and Powerful
Pacific Rim
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters
R.I.P.D.
Scream 2
Scream 3
Seattle Superstorm
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty 
Shutter Island
Spring Break
Star Trek into Darkness
Thor 2: The Dark World
Warm Bodies
What to Expect when You're Expecting
What's Eating Gilbert Grape
The Wolf of Wall Street 
World War Z


These films are easily accessible for a number of reasons.  I either already own them (white), they are available on Netflix instant (red), they are available to rent at my work (blue), or they will be coming out in theaters soon (green).  I am also not restricted to just these movies.  If I happen to see a movie at work for rent or appear on Netflix that I want to watch, then I'll watch that.

I want to teach myself commitment so that I can perhaps do June Book Month, reading a good amount each day in the month of June.  I realize that at points I can be pretty busy, so this will mean having to watch some of these films at work on my portable DVD player (on my breaks of course), and perhaps sacrificing a bit of sleep.

After this month is over, I will post quick reviews for each film I watched with ratings and for the fun of it, give awards from all the films I watched, such as best film I saw, worst film, funniest, scariest, best acting performance, etc.  Should be fun!