Music Monday: What's your favorite soundtrack?

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I am a big fan of movie soundtracks. No matter the genre, no matter the movie, I love soundtracks. I find myself constantly listening to my soundtracks while at work: Grease, Footloose, The PowerPuff Girls, Mamma Mia! and many more are always on shuffle. My favorite soundtrack, however, belongs to what is also my favorite movie. The Dirty Dancing soundtracks (yes, there are 2!) are my favorite movie soundtracks of all time. Whether I'm grooving to "Johnny's Mambo" or singing along at the top of my lungs to "(I've Had) The Time of My Life," I simply can't get enough. Here is a compilation of my favorite songs from the two soundtracks.

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(I've Had) The Time of My Life - Bill Medley & Jennifer WarnesBe My Baby - The RonettesWill You Love Me Tomorrow - The ShirellesThese Arms of Mine - Otis Redding Do You Love Me - The ContoursBig Girls Don't Cry - Frankie Valli & The Four SeasonsWhere Are You Tonight - Tom JohnstonLove is Strange - Mickey & SylviaLove Man - Otis ReddingWipeout - The SurfarisHey! Baby - Bruce ChannelYes - Merry ClaytonDe Todo Un Poco - Michael Lloyd & Le DiscIn the Still of the Night - The Five SatinsHungry Eyes - Eric Carmen
Don't these songs bring up such good memories of the film? What is your favorite movie soundtrack?

On giving him a second chance.

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You can't change someone. It's a lesson that I have yet to learn, although I know the idea all too well.

I feel like I have to 'save' the people I love: if something happens to them, I need to make things better. If they are stuck in a rough spot, it's MY responsibility to get them out. I know that it shouldn't be that way. But it's how I feel. It's a habit I need to break. You can't change someone.
I'm not saying that people don't change.

In the past, I was set in stone on the idea that people could never change. But since then, I've seen proof firsthand that they can. Unfortunately, something major has to happen in order for a person to realize that something needs to change. Something has to scare them, frighten them, really. Something important has to be put on the line. Or if they're really blind, the consequences have to be painted out in black and white. But if they are supposed to make the change, they will. Sooner or later, it WILL happen. And it's your choice if you're going to stick around and wait for the results, if any.

A few months ago, I took a leap of faith. My heart was on the line; I was a mess inside and out. I really cared about someone, but he was one of those people that just wasn't changing. It was frustrating; it hurt. I felt like I wasn't worth the effort. And although I tried and I tried to make him change, to make things right, it just wasn't working. No progress was happening. But as soon as I backed off and let him be, he woke up, so to speak. And the loss and confusion hit him hard.

People question my decision to this day. Why wait around on someone that has hurt you? People don't change, and if he didn't change before for you, why would he now?

What they DON'T see is that I never asked him to change for me. What he was doing was only hurting himself. I couldn't change what he was doing, he had to want it for himself. Maybe I helped move the process along by disappearing. But when he made that change for himself, when he made his life better, I only cared about him more. He was doing what he needed to do, not what he should do, and I respect him for making that choice. That's why I feel comfortable being with someone who yes, has hurt me. Sure, things were tough before. But if someone is willing to make amends, try harder, and give 110%, maybe they do deserve a second chance. I stand by my decision. If you cannot respect my personal decision, please do not comment. It has nothing to do with you and it never will. But I am a grown woman and I know what is best for me. If it all goes to hell within time? We simply weren't meant to be. I made this choice consciously, and I am going to follow through with it with everything I have in me.

I'm starting to learn more about change. It's terrifying, it's intimidating, it's difficult sometimes. But change doesn't always have to be bad. Sometimes it's exactly what you need.

Friday Flicks: THE AVENGERS Nerd Rant

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I only watched one movie this week and it was the only movie that I needed to see. To say that this is now one of my favorite movies wouldn't even do my excitement and passion justice. I sat in my seat, squirming, bouncing up and down, and beaming with joy as I endured one of the greatest cinematic experiences of my life. Yesterday, I watched THE AVENGERS.

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My little sister will be the first to tell you that I'm kind of a nerdy girl. The most recent time she proclaimed it, she walked into my bedroom, eyed my shelf and started naming off the items that were on it. "Green Lantern, Spider-Man, the Mach 5 from Speed Racer...you are such a nerd, Jessi." As she rolled her eyes, I just beamed with pride. I love superheroes. While I've always had a huge geek crush on Spider-Man, over the past few years my fascination with all of the other superheroes has only exploded. I can't have enough of Iron Man, Thor and Green Lantern, just to name a few. I sleep on Spider-Man sheets and fall asleep staring at a Spider-Man movie poster. And although my main man wasn't a part of The Avengers movie, it was still absolute perfection. Well, obviously. I can't stop gushing about it to whoever is within earshot.

You jelly?

I love all of the superheroes involved in this movie. Although I was never a fan of the Hulk, this movie and Mark Ruffalo completely changed my mind. The chemistry between Black Widow and Hawkeye wooed me. RD Jr. as Iron Man knocked my socks off for the third time. And who doesn't love the hotties Cap America and Thor? And Loki, even though he may be bad, is one awesome badass. I literally love every character in this movie. And as someone who needs to care about characters to care about the story, I was set. As the movie neared the end, I craved more story, more character, more everything and anything that I could wrap my gushing heart around.
This movie is hilarious. While I love the characters they play, the actors themselves are brilliant together. They all just seem to glow, and I laughed til I cried. I genuinely adore these characters and they just happened to have damn funny things to say.
After all, who doesn't love a superhero? Anyone who doesn't have even a slight interest in superheroes is a liar. They are some of the most fascinating "people" that we "know." We all admire something in them and they are all human enough that we can somehow relate to each one of them. Whether we're cocky, dorky, brainy, or strong, we can relate to superheroes, we respect them, and therefore, we will always love them. So thank you Avengers, for keeping the nerdy girl alive and well within me.

Oh yeah, our emo phase.

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Yep, that was me.

Fall Out Boy. Skinny jeans. Panic! At the Disco. Black eyeliner. Band t-shirts. A.K.A. Freshman year of high school.
Fall Out Boy's "Sugar We're Going Down" came on the radio today, and I couldn't help but smile. My freshman year of high school, Fall Out Boy took the nation by storm. Sure, they weren't great, but we loved them just the same. It was the year of skinny jeans, too much eyeliner, and band t-shirts. It was the year of super straight hair and black Converse shoes. Because of this phase we went through, I met someone who would be one of my best friends when she burned me a Fall Out Boy mix CD. Our friendship was, and is still strong, but oh how silly we looked.
It was the emo phase, and everyone in high school at that time went through it, even if just for a moment. Even if it just meant picking up a Panic! At the Disco album, we all joined in. We thought we were cool; we were just silly. But we have the photos and buried CDs in the back of our closets to prove it.
I'm glad that phase hasn't returned. No more "scene" styles and "emo" haircuts. It may come back sometime far in the future, maybe our kids will bring it back. But for now let's just smile and feel relieved that we no longer think Pete Wentz is "like, the greatest musician ever." We were impressionable and naive, we were young. Even though we may have moved on, we still have a soft spot for that time in our youth, and that one song that still makes us smile every time.

Music Monday: Summer 2012 is Creepin' In....the Playlist

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It's not quite summer yet, but it's quickly approaching as school wraps up and the weather gets nicer. Here's a mix for that "summer is creepin' in" (as Tom Petty put it) feeling...there will be plenty of "actual" summer playlists later. Enjoy! And check out last year's playlist...what are your "summer is almost here" songs? I've been feeling a classic rock vibe lately...

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Somebody's Baby - Jackson Browne Hot Child in the City - Nick GilderHow Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) - James TaylorYer So Bad - Tom Petty & the HeartbreakersUptown Girl - Billy JoelSave Tonight - Eagle-Eye CherrySweet Emotion - AerosmithSister Golden Hair - AmericaNo Rain - Blind MelonMore Than a Feeling - BostonGlory Days - Bruce SpringsteenMr. Jones - Counting CrowsBad Moon Rising - Creedence Clearwater RevivalRebel Rebel - David BowieSmoke on the Water - Deep PurpleSunshine Superman - DonovanTake it Easy - The EaglesBaby Hold On - Eddie MoneyDo Ya - Electric Light Orchestra

Paramore - Careful

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Paramore, as you may be aware of, is one of my favourite bands. I went to see them live back in 2008 with Tink09 and Hollagram Star. The band consisted, back then, of: Hayley Williams, Josh Farro, Zac Farro, Taylor York and Jeremy Davis. Josh and Zac have recently left. This song didn't do that well in the charts, so it'll be interesting what will be happening in the future for these guys.

"Careful" was written by Hayley Williams and Josh Farro. Again, as most bands do, they wrote their own song, and are easily capable of connecting to the song and flooding it with emotion. It charted highest in Portugal, but still with a low chart rating. As for the UK it got to number 108, but at least it charted.

The music video is a compilation of tour performances, with Hayley having many different hair colours. This is the third tour compilation music video they have done, the first two being "All We Know" and "Hallelujah". So they have created a compilation video for each of their 3 albums, which is clever. But will they do it again in the future? I hope not.

The footage was taken from many different tours, including the Brisbane Soundwave Tour, their 2010 Spring Tour, 2009 Fall Tour and a one-off performance at Festival Hall in Australia amongst other performances. There are also many backstage clips edited in intricately, and I don't think anyone could have done a better job.

There really isn't much else to say, I like how you can feel the vibes that the audience is getting from this band. You certainly get a perfect performance. The song is great also, and when I first heard it on the album, I knew it'd be a single. Cannot wait to see what new sound they make with the absence of the Farro brothers.

Aaron Carter - I Want Candy

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Me, CamCam and a few others decided to watch "Hop" today, and this song is on there, but actually sung by Cody Simpson (who never released a music video). So I was thinking of all the artists who had sung this song, and I came up with Aaron Carter and Melanie C (the latter being not so interesting, and didn't do very well here in the UK). So I chose Aaron Carter, as I remember watching it when I was young.

Aaron Carter was really well-known when he was younger, and was getting many chart hits, but he soon faded out, as many artists from that era do. Recently he went on "Dancing With The Stars" and did pretty well getting to finish in fifth place. So now he has become popular once again, is a new album going to appear? We'll have to wait and see.

"I Want Candy" original version is back in 1965 and performed by "The Strangeloves", it was written by Bert Berns, Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein and Richard Gottehrer. The song has been covered many times by many different people including: Bow Wow Wow, Candy Girls, Melanie C, Billie Piper, and Jedward amongst others. I was just really surprised it was first released in 1965.

This music video is hilarious to be honest, they all look so very young. Aaron Carter was in fact 12 when the song was released. It paints a picture of him liking a girl called "Candy" and they go out on dates, but his friends always shows up and ruins it. He's forever saying sorry.

My question is: is "Candy" boring? She doesn't get into the popcorn fight, she doesn't enjoy anything until the very end... It just doesn't exactly work and doesn't link in that well.

I'm surprised this is all I have to say, but at the end of the day, I think Aaron Carter was too young at that time to actually understand what the song was about, it certainly wasn't about a girl's name, and Cody Simpson is wrong too that it's not about Candy/Chocolate...

Overall a very big story-based music video that just isn't that interesting, it's a typical young music video, that has been done many times over. It looks like Aaron Carter will be returning in the future (he is now 24), and I very much doubt he'll be going down this route again.