No Name Post

Helllllloooooo.

Welcome to the I-don't-know-what-number of CMF iterations. Lovely to have you here. So glad you could make it.

You know how sometimes you see a road titled "No Name Road" or there's that grocery brand called "No Name Brand"? And do you ever think to yourself, "That's kind a witty - they couldn't think of a name, but then their lack of name became their name!? And you think about how it was a super smart idea? Well that's what I've done here. Because my brain is exhausted. And also because I'm super smart.


The First: Even If It Breaks Your Heart by Eli Young Band

Just throwing it way back (even though it's not Thursday) to this song that I forgot about. When it first came out I tried to learn it on guitar and failed miserably, despite the efforts of my ever patient guitar-playing father to teach me. So perhaps subconsciously I stopped listening to it out of fear of being reminded of that experience. But then it came on the other day and I haven't been able to get it out of my head. And what do I do with things that get stuck in my head? I lovingly pass them along to all of you on Fridays.


The Second: Running for You by Kip Moore

I thought I would share with you the entire monologue that happened in my brain when I first heard this song on the radio a few days ago. Allow me to set the scene: Monday morning. Let's say it was approximately 8:49am. I'm in my car, driving to work. Still a little sleepy because I thought tea would suffice on what was clearly a coffee morning. The song starts to play...
"Is this Johnny Reid? It sounds like it might be Johnny Reid... How in the world did Johnny Reid manage to come out with a song that I am actually kind of super into? This can't be JR... can it? Either way, I'm loving this song. Way to redeem yourself after years of (in my opinion) subpar music, Johnny!!"
Parked my car, and because my curiosity got the best of me, I looked up the song on my walk to my office...
"Oh. Nevermind. It's Kip Moore. Yes, that makes more sense."


The Third and Final: Head Over Boots by Jon Pardi

I've been head over boots for Jon Pardi's music lately, so here I am to shamelessly share yet one more with you. I'm fully aware it's because of his intense twang.
One thing I am not a fan of: the questionable CGI animations throughout this video (for example, why a tiny hat? Why is the tiny hat only twice as big as the abandoned playing cards? That seems highly inaccurate.).
One thing I am a big fan of: "You're the rock in my roll. You're good for my soul, it's true. I'm head over boots for youuuu."


So I don't personally celebrate Halloween (mostly because I dislike dressing up in costume) but I do wish a happy and safe evening to all of you who do! I will likely be at home watching Gilmore Girls and eating halloween candy I pretend to buy for trick or treaters to save face with the cashier in Safeway, even though we both fully know that that box of 94 chocolate bars will just be for me.

Thanks for listening,
Karla

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Dreams

I am currently being a lazy bones on my couch eating a peanut butter cup or two (okay actually three, if we're being honest), drinking a peppermint tea blend called "Christmas Eve" (which I drink 12 months out of the year because it's delicious,) and listening to country music (big shocker there). It's really nice be back home.

I feel it is important for you to know that I blame my extreme spike in peanut butter cup intake on the fact that you can find large quantities of individually wrapped ones in stores for Halloween and that I have an inherent need to exploit the convenience provided by this time of year. These lovely little wonders are essential to my happiness (because peanut butter and chocolate is the best flavour combination) and getting them in their current snack-sized state makes every day feel a little bit like Christmas (which makes the tea seem a little less out of place, doesn't it?).


The First: Ain't No Trucks In Texas by Ronnie Dunn

This may be a kind of sad song if you listen too closely to the lyrics, so I advise you to not do that if you are currently in the midst of some sort of lost love heartache. Personally, I'm just a big fan of Ronnie's voice and that's the reason I'm sharing. Because sharing, as we all know, is caring. (You're welcome.)


The Second: Rocket by Josh Dorr

Do I love the grainy-ness of his voice? Yes.
Do I like the melody of the chorus? Of course.
Am I super into the way he sings "rocket" like he's throwing it away? Absolutely.
I hope you do too.
And if, for some crazy reason, this song wasn't good enough for you, I strongly encourage you to listen to Save Your Breath which just might make you literally fall in love.


The Third and Final: Johnny Cash by Jason Aldean

I really don't have a reason for choosing to feature this song today other than it came on the radio yesterday and I just thought, "Why not throw some love at Jason Aldean?" (Yes, that's right. I sometimes throw love at people.) I like the run-on-sentence style of this song, which you may remember is not the first time I've been a fan of poor grammar in country music.


I wish you all a marvellous weekend full of chocolate and peanut butter! Unless you're allergic, in which case I am desperately sorry and certainly do not wish for you to have a peanut butter and chocolate-y weekend. Anaphylaxis does not seem like a good way to spend your weekend.*

*It's important for you to know that I fell asleep but continued to type here and instead wrote "anaphylaxis does not seem like it loved me" What? I don't know. It's a good thing we're at the end because my brain is clearly in need of some sleep. And probably some more Reese Cups, just for good measure.


Thanks for listening!
Karla

A Cat Lady in Kenya

This past week in Kenya has been a wonderful whirlwind. We've met a lot of family, visited with friends, and took a mini trip out to the coast to a town called Mombasa for two nights. Also, jet lag is my nemesis. I have yet to sleep through the night because of it and on top of that I'm a very light sleeper, which really doesn't help. When I was younger, my little brother, Stevie used to sneak into my room in the morning to try and scare me awake (what an angel, right?). I always knew he was there though and, with my eyes closed, would greet him as he was halfway to my bed with a "Good morning, Steve." He hated this because it messed with his life goal of being the stereotypical pestering brother not unlike Shia Labeouf in the Family Channel Original Series, Even Stevens. (I love you, Stevie!)

Back to the trip. So far, I have befriended no less than six cats that have found me along our travels. This is important because it means that if I wanted to move to Kenya in the future, I wouldn't have to give up my life-long dream (aka the inevitable) of being a crazy cat lady.

You can see three photos of our trip so far at the end, but I'll tell you what they are now. One is from lunch on our first day in Nairobi, a picture of one of my many new cat besties (I named him George and he was the only one I loved enough to take a picture of), and the last one is of a coconut backdropped by the Indian Ocean. Because, where we were staying in Mombasa, if you wanted a coconut, all you had to do was go talk to one of the gardeners at the resort and they would climb a palm tree and get you one. What?? Yes.

I have no idea what's new in country music this week, but here are a few songs that are relatively recent and I was enjoying before I left. (All I've listened to since I left Vancouver is whatever was on my iPod that I last updated approximately three years ago. #throwbackfriday?)


The First: Crushin' It by Brad Paisley

This song reminds me of my friend Kali. Not because she is incapable of being a contributing member of society like Brad Paisley narrates himself to be in this song (because let me tell you, she's a rockstar who could probably build a spaceship, fly to Mars, find the life-sustaining water NASA's been searching for and save the earth if she wanted to - that's the kind of human being she is.) No. This song reminds me of Kali because she uses the term"crush/in' it" literally every day.


The Second: Painkiller by Little Big Town

This is a public service announcement that the LBT concert in Abbotsford is basically a month away and if you don't have tickets you should get some. I have no idea if there are any left because I haven't been listening to the radio this past week, but I'm sure you could manage a quick google search. This song is great.


The Third and Final: Hole in the Bottle by Canaan Smith

Have I ever introduced you to my friend Canaan? No? That's because I've been hiding him from you because I was being selfish. But I've decided that's no way to live so here you go. Enjoy your Friday!

Thanks for listening,
Karla

Leaving on a jet plane.

And by jet plane I really just mean a regular sized plane.

I'm currently on a plane to Nairobi, Kenya for a wedding reception (for these two) and I'm super excited! I'm also most likely sleeping, but past Karla (she seems really lovely) decided it would be nice for you to still enjoy CMF this week and, with the help of some internet magic, that dream has come true. What a world. The last time I left North America, I was five and my whole family was off to live in Chile for a year and a half. So, needless to say, it's been a while. I'm excited for all that I'm about to experience, the memories I'll make with dear friends, and hopefully the giraffes I'll see if we go to a park. I really love giraffes.

In celebration of this adventure, I thought a travel theme would only be appropriate for this week's CMF. So pack your bags.

The First: Run by George Strait

A classic! And one of my all time favourite songs. There are no graphics or lyrics or storyline accompanying the video I chose because it doesn't need it. Just listent to Mr. Strait's smooth twang and let him take you away (literally).


The Second: Greyhound by Ashley Clark

Does anyone else remember Ashley Angel from the MTV (maybe?) show "Making the Band"?? As an eleven year old, I was convinced that Ashley and I were made for one another and I thought it was super progressive of him to have the name Ashley. But mostly was really looking forward to the day we would meet and obviously fall in love immediately. Too bad there was a significant age gap, geographical gap, and now, I would argue, a significant number of other issues with that fantasy relationship. Thank goodness for age, geography, and life guiding me away from that plot ending.

Anyways, this is not the same Ashley, but he sings about distance and travel and needing to desperately get to his loved one, so it fits and it's fun.


The Third and Final: Anywhere With You by Jake Owen

I don't feature a lot of Jake Owen, but I do love this song and feel it has a place on CMF, so here we go. It is also on theme, so that's a bonus.

Also, our bestie from last week, Jon Pardi, has a kind of hilarious song that fits with this week's selection, although the "love" part of it takes a slightly different route (< punny). You may enjoy it here.

Finally, a big birthday shout out to my oldest sister, Claire, who celebrates her 31st tomorrow! Love you, lady.

Thanks for listening,
Karla

There are sadly no references to majestic animals this week.

But I do feature some Dallas Smith, which some may say is the same thing.

PS (Which in this case I've decided stands for pre-script, not post-script, since I haven't actually gotten into the thick of it yet): I love it when you all respond to CMF like so many of you did last week. It totally makes my day/weekend/life. Thanks! Your reward is that I won't bore you with a super long introduction and just get into the musak.


The First: Missin' You Crazy by Jon Pardi

This man is basically the epitome of southern twang, in my books. And I obviously love it. A song of his that I have been desperado wanting to feature for the last few months is called Over My Head and every week I check the YouTube hopeful it'll be available and it just doesn't seem to be a thing that's going to happen. But when I do search for it I am always reminded of how good Missin' You Crazy is, and so I figured I might as well share it with you. Also his hair is all fluffy in the video which is, fortunately/unfortunately, not how he styles it anymore. So you have that to enjoy. Having said that, I also encourage you to explore Over My Head on iTunes or Spotify or something because it's really great.


The Second: Move On by Clare Dunn

I like this song for two reasons:
1) The title makes you think it's about something totally different and then she gets all wordplay-y (< english) with the lyrics.
2) Clare seems like a lady not to be messed with and I appreciate that. She completely just owns the stage in this video. Like a Miranda Lambert apprentice.
3) Because I lied when I said I had only two reasons: basically this song is my anthem.


The Third and Final: A Girl Like You by Dallas Smith

Because it's been a reasonable amount of time since I've gushed over this man, so I thought why not today? Mostly I just wanted to make sure that you were reminded that Dallas Smith is still talented and wonderful. This song has been out for well over a year and I still love singing it - particularly the second verse. And by that I really just mean to instruct you to never interrupt me when I'm singing the second verse of this song because I will become unreasonably angry with you if that happens. You like the whiskey in me, I dig your classic thinnng...
If you know Dallas (not in the close personal way I do, of course) you will know that this is definitely not his current single, but you are welcome to check that out too, if you would like (the lyric video features stop motion... so...)


Thanks for listening!
Karla