Four Songs for a Road Trip

VCR // The XX

A conversation between two lovers - on repeat in a carload of conversations down the Pacific Coast Highway.

Lovesong of the Buzzard // Iron & Wine

Big Sur offers a number of hikes, each culminating in a half mountain range / half Pacific view. The trail we chose was called Buzzard's Roost, on top of which we basked in the California sun, shouted Ginsberg to one another, and hummed this tune.

Slow Show // The National

No matter where you are, which coast you are looking out from, no matter how much you are laughing and how many moments you have with your traveling companions and the people you find along the way, there is always someone to hurry home to. Always someone to think about, as you're watching the waves crash on rocks, the windows down, the sun in your shades.

The Cave // Mumford & Sons

This trip has been encompassed by Mumford and his sons... we have each crawled out of our caves, opened ourselves to the vastness of the west, screaming this song into the wind.

What Not To Do

They had a few great laughs, a lot of delicious meals, a quiet Halloween. They'd moved somewhat slowly, but faster when she needed someone to take care of her when she fell of her bike and broke her elbow. She trusted him, and he trusted her, but his feelings grew too strong, like a balloon filled with too much jello. She'd spent the night at his apartment a few times, and he was gracious enough to clean his sheets for her, make her coffee in the morning, and they sat out on his porch in the sun. He bought her a toothbrush and placed it next to his. She wasn't used to this, she liked it but knew that it was too much all at once. She asked for space. She asked to have a little breathing room. He asked to be exclusive. She backed away further, slowly, like a kid backs away from a thought-to-be-ghost in the night. He thought the best way to test her, the best way to know, would be to make her think there was someone else. To trick her, like a mad hatter. He placed a toothbrush next to the one he had given her, between hers and his own.

She found it soon after, she saw it in the cabinet behind the mirror, closed the cabinet, and looked up into the mirror, her eyes wide. She considered herself, considered the thought of the toothbrush, and like James and Lily Potter he suddenly appeared in the mirror behind her. "Do you want to talk about it?" he smiled.

She couldn't get her shoes on, couldn't get down the stairs, out the door, down the quiet and dark avenue, to the A train, fast enough.

Two Songs for a Friday, Special Guest: Weston Shepherd

Ooh La La // The Faces with Rod Stewart

With contents having to do with the passage of time, the knowledge that comes along with that time, and the inevitability of a life jam-packed with experiences that build into something hopefully enviable. It's an oldie, but of course, a classic one for a Friday. Careful, though. It gets in your head.

Elias // Dispatch

This one goes out to those who rode around in a rusty white Pontiac with me in the begrudged and beautiful years of high school. This, among a few others, screamed from the aged speakers with an intensity that only hormonal late teenagers can feel. These lyrics flew freely, speeding down Mequon Road, towards grown-up-hood, loud and free.

2 Songs for a Friday

Nantes // Beirut

Compliments of a jazzy friend of mine, this song & video have made my week. Reminiscent of one of my favorite movies of all time, Amelie, this tune also screams the act of moving on. Getting out of something which will eventually be lost in the sea, and starting fresh. January is over, bitches!

Red Right Ankle // The Decemberists

In honor of their new album, although this is from a rather old one, here's a favorite from the wonderful, the talented, the prolific Decemberists. This song follows the life of a girl who has lived a life of discovery, of love and loss, of tattooed memories and twisted sheets. No particular reason for this one, other than the fact that it is absolutely beautiful.