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Fifty Years Of Music – 2008

Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth.  In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.

We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 2008, the year I celebrated my 34th birthday.  A mere seven of these songs remain familiar to me today, with just three of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.

#85: Kid Rock – All Summer Long
iTunes stats: N/A

The biggest solo hit of his career, it peaked at #23.

#81: Taylor Swift – Love Story
iTunes stats: 1 play

The lead single from her sophomore effort, it reached #4 and spent 49 weeks on the charts.

#36: Katy Perry – Hot n Cold
iTunes stats: 0 plays

The second single from her second album, it became her second straight top five hit, going to #3.

#17: Rihanna – Don’t Stop the Music
iTunes stats: N/A

Peaking at #3, it was her fourth single to land in the top three.

#14: Katy Perry – I Kissed a Girl
iTunes stats: 52 plays

Perry’s debut single, it spent seven weeks atop the Hot 100, becoming the 1000th #1 song of the rock era.

#13: Coldplay – Viva la Vida
iTunes stats: N/A

Winner of the Grammy Award for Song of the Year in 2009, it spent one week atop the Hot 100.

#1: Flo Rida – Low
iTunes stats: N/A

The most downloaded single of the decade, it spent ten weeks at #1.

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Book 40 (of 52) – She’s Not Sorry

She’s Not Sorry – Mary Kubica

Meghan Michaels, a divorced ICU nurse, cares for a comatose patient thought to have attempted suicide while raising a teenage daughter with a rapist on the loose.  When a witness comes forward that throws the suicide theory into doubt, Meghan finds herself too invested in her patient and her family. Can she keep herself, and her daughter, safe?

Local author Mary Kubica returns with She’s Not Sorry, her ninth novel.  With a number of twists and an unreliable timeline, she weaves an interesting tale.  I guess I will patiently wait another two years or so for her next outing, which I assume will be another winner.

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T Minus 5

Following last night’s loss to the A’s, the White Sox now have 115 loses. just five away from the modern record set by the expansion Mets in 1962.  This was the 18th time they’ve been shut out and their 16th consecutive loss at Guaranteed Rate Field. They would have to go 10-4 over their remaining 14 games to avoid tying the record.  They have won ten games since June 29.

 

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FB10: Week 33

A blah week despite the Labor Day holiday followed by a couple of days off of work.  The week, and month, got off to a slow start on Sunday, finishing with just 3000 steps.  Things improved a bit on Monday as I rose to 3800 steps.  A day off of work on Tuesday pushed me up again to 4400 steps.  Trips to the hardware store on Wednesday to look for a new toilet seat led to my best outing of the week, garnering 5200 steps.  A return to work on Thursday saw a big drop-off, leaving me 32 steps shy of 3500.  A small rebound on Friday pushed me back up to 3600 steps.  The week wrapped up with another improvement on Saturday, as I fell 2 steps shy of 3700.

Total steps: 27,280

Daily average: 3897.1

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T Minus 6

Following yesterday afternoon’s loss to the Guardians, the White Sox now have 114 loses. just six away from the modern record set by the expansion Mets in 1962.  They would have to go 10-5 over their remaining 15 games to avoid tying the record.  They have won ten games since June 29.

Following the loss, team owner Jerry Reinsdorf released a statement, his first of the season, saying that the season has been “painful for all” and that the entire organization “is extremely unhappy” with how the year has played out.  He expects to have more to say once the season has mercifully come to an end.  Unless he has decided to sell the team, which is extremely unlikely, or is willing to admit he made a mistake with the Chris Getz hiring, which is also unlikely, I doubt his additional thoughts will be worthwhile.

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Book 39 (of 52) – The Mayor Of Maxwell Street

The Mayor Of Maxwell Street – Avery Cunningham

Nelly Sawyer, daughter of the supposed richest black man in the country, comes to 1920s Chicago for her brother’s funeral and finds that her parents have committed her to becoming a debutante.  While balancing her newly found social requirements with her desire to become a reporter, she goes after her first, and most dangerous, story: who is the so-called Mayor of Maxwell Street.  She teams with the mysterious Jay Shorey, working to uncover the mayor’s identity while keeping herself out of trouble.  When tragedy strikes during and after the cotillion, Nelly stumbles upon the surprising identity of the mayor, but can she still protect herself and her family?

The Mayor of Maxwell Street, the debut novel from Avery Cunningham, is an intriguing look at the upper crust of black society during the Prohibition era in Chicago.  As a local, it was interesting to see descriptions of areas I know from a century ago, but I don’t know how vivid those descriptions play to someone not familiar with the area.  I’ll keep an eye out to see what Cunningham has coming out next.

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Fifty Years Of Music – 2007

Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth.  In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.

We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 2007, the year I celebrated my 33rd birthday.  Only five of these songs remain familiar to me today, with just four of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.

#74: Amy Winehouse – Rehab
iTunes stats: 24 plays

Peaking at #9, it was Winehouse’s sole US top ten hit prior to her untimely demise.

#27: Kanye West – Stronger
iTunes stats: 32 plays

Spending a single week atop the Hot 100, it was West’s third #1 hit.

#12: Avril Lavigne – Girllfriend
iTunes stats: 33 plays

Lavigne’s first #1 hit, it spent one week atop the chart in May.

#7: Plain White T’s – Hey There Delilah
iTunes stats: N/A

Nominated for two Grammy awards, it spent two weeks at #1 in the summer of 2007.

#2: Rihanna featuring Jay-Z – Umbrella
iTunes stats: 30 plays

The lead single from her third studio album, it spent seven weeks at #1 in the summer of 2007.

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T Minus 9

Following last night’s loss to the Red Sox, the White Sox now have 111 loses. just nine away from the modern record set by the expansion Mets in 1962.  They would have to go 11-8 over their remaining 19 games to avoid tying the record.  They have won eleven games since June 22.