Fleetwood Mac-You Make Loving Fun

Rebekah Lynn Gregg, YOU make loving fun.

2Cellos- Smooth Criminal

I've said it before...I love finding the extraordinary in unlikely places.
2Cellos are Luka Sulic and Stjepan Hauser.
They were both born in Yugoslavia and met in a Croatian master cello class.
They attended music class together in Croatia and Vienna, then traveled to the UK, where Sulic went to London's Royal Academy of Music and Hauser attended the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.
Although they were very successful in the UK,  they created this particular video because of financial difficulties.
It worked.
The video became a hit, with over 3 million views within the first 2 weeks, and over 11 million total views.
Sir Elton John was one of those viewers.
He called Sulic up and asked them to open for him on his current 30 city tour.
Although the debut record contains covers of mainly rock songs, Šulić and Hauser say they still play with orchestras and will not abandon playing classical music.
The cellists say they would someday like to go on tour with both a classical and a contemporary orchestra.
If you like this one, check out their version of  GNR's "Welcome to the Jungle".

Jennifer Hudson- Believe

My Granny Gregg was the sweetest lady that I've ever known.
The entire time I knew her, I never heard a negative comment out of her mouth.
My grandfather died before I was born, so the whole time I knew her, she lived alone.
I remember visiting as a child, she always made sure we had plenty to eat.
She took pride in her cooking, you see, because she grew most of it herself.
I remember picking a basket full of muscadines.
I remember climbing up the big tree in her front yard and reading for hours.
When it came time for us to leave, I remember her sad, lonely smile and wave.
As Jennifer sings in this song, if there ever was a soul that should just get a free pass though the pearly gates, it would have been my Granny Gregg.
But her pass through the gates wasn't a free pass...it came with a price.
And she valued that price.
She raised her hands.
She bowed her head.
She knew the truth of the words in red.
She believed.
If Granny Gregg were alive today, I would say, "Thank you< Granny, for the legacy of belief."

Barney- And The Green Grass Grows All Around

This is probably the only time you'll ever hear me say this...
I love wintertime.
What I really mean is I love this winter in Georgia.
We've been having days mostly in the 60's...today it's 67 and sunny.
I think in all this winter, we've had maybe three or four days in the 20's.
And you won't catch me complaining.
This Southern boy is loving this.
I've heard people say, "We're probably gonna pay for it this summer with the heat and the bugs and the blah, blah, blah."
Man, just stop it.
Let me enjoy my winter for once.
What's wrong with a little sweat?
What's wrong with a few bugs?  Isn't that why God made Raid.
Yes, Barney.
The green grass is starting to grow all around.
And that's perfectly fine by me.
Even in February.

Jimmy Durante- As Time Goes By

Friends asked us recently, "What's the secret to being married for 14 years?"
My wife quickly answered, "Not getting divorced."
Sounds like something Yogi Berra may say.
The more I've thought about it, man, that's the best answer I could ever give.
You could say, "The secret is to spend time together, to be honest with each other, to give each other space, intimacy, selflessness, etc., etc., etc."
But when you get to the point where the tires hit the pavement, no matter how much you attempt all of these things, you've got two imperfect, naturally selfish people, trying to do what's right; trying to keep the plates spinning; trying to keep kids fed, clean, clothed, to school on time with all their stuff; trying to manage a business and a household, all without trying to get too stressed out so that the kids won't need too much therapy when they're older and that you don't end up on the front page.
I guess what I'm saying is that it ain't always a pretty fairytale.
But like most things worth having in life, you have to choose that thing, whatever it is.
My wife is an awesome lady.
She's strong.
She's intelligent.
She's beautiful.
When we got married, we had no idea what our futures would really look like.
But over 14 years later, the song lyrics holds true:
"It's still the same old story,
a fight for love and glory,
A case of do or die..."
Obviously, some days are more of a struggle than others, but it's 'a fight for love and glory' nonetheless.
But, to me, it's a fight worth fighting.
Each day, I still say, "I dew."
And each day, I'll continue to lace up the gloves for "us".

Son House- Levee Camp Moan

So, evidently I'm a day late if I wanted to be depressed.
That is according to British psychologist, Cliff Arnall.
He has declared the third Monday of January "Blue Monday."
He looked at various factors that put people in the dumps and then figured out where they intersected on the calendar.
He cited the come-down of getting back to work after the weekend, gloomy weather, bills from Christmas coming due and regrets over broken New Year’s resolutions.

Dr. Alan Manevitz, a clinical psychiatrist at Lenox Hill Hospital, heartily disagrees because studies show most suicides take place on Wednesdays.

(Am I the only one that hopes there is no grant money surrounding all of this "science"?)

Manevitz also points out that, here in the States, yesterday was MLK Day and many of people were off of work or school, so there is less likelihood of being depressed on a day off.

So we'll celebrate Blue Tuesday today with Son House, acoustic Blues singer and guitarist.

Let the self-pity begin.

The Band- The Weight

It's that time of year.
Time for those resolutions.
Personally, I prefer goal-setting.
I guess it's all the same, but instead of just putting something out there like, "I'm gonna be a better person this year" or "I need to lose a few pounds", goal setting seems more measurable.
For me, I weighed in on January 1, 2012, 8 pounds lighter than I was the same time last year.
Not bad, but I've got 15 more to go. 
I don't necessarily have to get it gone all this year, but I want to see more progress.
In order to achieve success, I've got to create some action steps behind that goal--things that I can do a little of every day to push in the right direction.
Then, I've got to do it.
That's the hard part, right?
Actually, doing the thing.
But, willpower is a force to be reckoned with once you've made up your mind.
That's why, after the kiddos are dropped at school tomorrow, I'll be the one on the track trying to keep up with my hot wife.
Time to take a load off.