My car radio dial is permanently set to NPR. So, quite often on the weekends as I am running errands, or during the weekday as I sit in traffic to and from work, I hear completely random stories about musicians on NPR. As it so happens, a few weeks ago, while driving to meet up with some friends, I heard a story about a young Mexican musician named Ximena Sariñana.

I absolutely love it when I find music that is fabulous. My old Spanish TA buddies know quite well how much I love music. They relied on my steady supply of new music for all Spanish TA parties! (Ha ha…I still have all those CDs ladies)!!!  Although Ximena’s music isn’t the type to which you’d bust out your best salsa or meregue moves, it is very easy to listen to. Think of Norah Jones, only more upbeat. I have to say my favorite song so far is ‘Vidas Parelelas’.  O.k. so, go and discover the music of Ximena already! Listen to the NPR report online.

‘Dirty Dancing’, ‘Flashdance’, ‘Footloose’, ‘Take the Lead,’ ‘Dance With Me’, ‘Save the Last Dance’…the list goes on and on. Pick a movie, any movie about dancing; and I’ve probably seen it. And to be absolutely honest, I’ve probably watched all of these movies more than 3 times each.

When I was younger, I took every single type of dance class that you could possibly take: tap, jazz, ballet, etc. My mother always tells me that I used to jump around the house to the ‘Nutcracker’ ballet when it would play on TV at Christmas. She always feared that I would accidentally leap into the fireplace. Fortunately, there were no catastrophes!

My friends still call me the ‘Dancing Queen’ as they know that when I hit the dance floor, I will not stop unless I need water. So, I believe that I had a secret passion to become a dancer. Obviously, it was a passion that went unserved; but at least I can live out my dreams through movies.

http://www.erikawatters.com/

One thing that I find to be completely bizarre in my life is that I love music, yet I cannot think of one single song that reminds me of any of the men I’ve dated in my lifetime. Aren’t you supposed to have that special song that brings back fond memories of the high school prom? Or of a romantic date? Or heck, just a romantic car ride. Yup…can’t think of a single song that correlates to any of those events.

Still, I love dancing, singing in the shower, and opening the windows in my car and singing full blast as others travel by. Ok…so maybe I don’t remember any songs that remind me of Mr. Right, but I certainly have songs that remind me of amazing moments in my life. During my daily torture session (aka…my daily workout), I started thinking about all of those fabulous songs. I was hoping that some of them would pop up on my ipod as I fought hard to make it through just one more minute on my ellipictal trainer.

Wake Up Little Suzie – Everly Brothers

My father used to sing this to me in the mornings to get me to wake up. He would then proceed to flip on the light without warning. Nothing like waking up to dad singing at 5:30am with lights full blast!

Conga – Gloria Estefan

My Aunt Sherry (may she rest in peace) first introduced me to Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine when I was about 10 years old. I’ve been Gloria’s biggest fan ever since. Whenever I am feeling down, I just listen to the Conga and dance around the room. Don’t know why…but it reminds me of my Aunt and all the positive things she stood for.

People are People – Depeche Mode

I guess I’ve always liked all types of music; from moody to upbeat. You name it, I’ve probably listened to it and enjoyed it at least once. In my early teens I took a liking to Depeche Mode. Must have been all the cool older teens that I was hanging around at summer camp that forced me to listen to it too often. It finally just sunk in.

Life is a Highway – Tom Cochrane

Ahhh…car rides and summer trips to the beach with my very best friends. This song brings back all of those fabulous memories. I remember driving down the road, windows rolled down, hair getting tangled in the wind and all of us singing as loudly as possible!!!

Ooo She She Wa Wa – Apollonia 6

No other person on this planet has as much fun with this song as my dear friend Lori. It is almost ridiculous that both of us know all the words to this song by heart. We must be the weirdest people on the planet for even listening to this song. We had the best time blaring this song while driving down Tennessee Street in Tallahassee after FSU football games.

Blister in the Sun – Violent Femmes

College came, all of my friends went their separate ways, but we still wouldn’t let go of fun times together at a moments notice. My dear friend Lori and I always managed to start off any dance floor. We didn’t care who was watching, we’d just dance. Miraculously, people followed. And of course, if we had heard ‘Blister in the Sun’ at least once, we knew if was a good night!

Zoom – Soda Stereo

Ok…so there are far many more songs that bring back fond memories, but this is the final one that I will write about today. That would be Zoom by Soda Stereo. It is no secret that I love Latin American music. In fact, I have an entire case of CDs dedicated to Latin American music. I don’t know what it is about this song that just draws me in every time that I listen to it. The words are even kind of bizarre, but it just sticks with me like no other.

Feel free to share new songs with me. You never know what my next favorite will be!

http://www.erikawatters.com/