List# 228: Songs for 2013

2013 has been a whirlwind. It's the year I worked hard and wondered what was next, visited far away places with friends, worried about money, and kept my cat happy. But it was also the year I met a man and fell in love, welcomed a baby into my life, moved into a new home, and felt really lucky.

Like many years that had come before it, 2013 was a tough one at times. But unlike many years that came before it, 2013 was kind of filled with a lot of the magic I was hoping it for. And these are the songs that will forever make me remember it all. Actually, I'd say that these albums really remind me of 2013, as I think I played them all more than once or twice. But these are the songs that define them all will forever be rooted in my brain when "this thing happened in 2013."

Blurred Lines ~ Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams , T.I

Not everyone is a fan of this song, and I respect that. But to me, it summarizes the summer of 2013. It's the trip to North Carolina along side the boyfriend. And hot workdays spent inside the library laughing with a good friend. And conversations with a long-distance friend about what we would actually want to hear whispered in our ear. It's dorky dance moves and recording it all on video. It is the happiest song I can think of to describe a stellar summer.

Thrift Shop ~ Macklemore and Ryan Lewis Featuring Wanz

Winter 2013 was the time I took up yoga for a few months. With good friends in a heated room in the middle of a cold night, I was challenging my body. I should get back into this practice, as I lost it when the weather got nice, but during those nights when I had to force myself to stay in uncomfortable positions for longer than I thought possible, I would sing this song to be motivated. And then again, when I met the boy and we had fun around our city singing, discussing Macklemore's Instagram, and talking about how much we'd love to be friends with him. 

Hopeless Wanderer  ~ Mumford & Sons

I first watched this video in a hotel room in Nashville, TN. It was hot, humid, and I was exhausted from a week of intense library training, and I was getting dressed for another long day. It kind of combined all of my favorite things: men with guitars, laughs, and Jason Sudeikis. Plus, a few weeks later I would convince the boyfriend on a random Thursday that we should buy lawn tickets to their Pittsburgh concert. It was spontaneous, something our schedule doesn't always encourage, and really just topped off the rest of the summer. They aren't his favorite band, this isn't his favorite type of music, but he was game for me. And then, we found my brother at the end and laughed hysterically for hours as we battled traffic on the way home.

Royals ~ Lorde

Let me be clear, more than any other song or album, I played Pure Heroine on repeat from start to finish over and over and over again during the later part of the year. I'm talking there were hours of the day when I would sit at my desk, with one headphone in my ear, plugging away at work listening to this teenager. There aren't too many people who are underage that I would want to be for a day. But I would definitely be Lorde. Or I'd at least like her hair.

I guess you could say I had a pop-y year.


So, dear readers, what songs will have you remembering 2013? Share them in the comments.