Let’s just say that I would really rather not have this week repeating over and over; it kinda sucked.

Lots of stupid work drama, an unpleasant flirtation with the illness that the rest of my family was dealing with last week, a bunch of disappearing mp3s, and a bit of self-inflicted stress as we prepare for this weekend.

That said, I am really looking forward to this weekend. Saturday, as you might know, is my lovely spouse’s birthday. We are both celebrating a major milestone birthday this year, and she’s up first. Given that we have this big new house, we’re hosting a reasonable-sized to-do, which is actually rather large for us, to celebrate. We’re getting it catered by our favourite local food truck, having some good friends play some tunes, and generally hoping to have a good time with friends and chosen family who make us happy.

It’s gonna be a big deal.

We’re gonna need it to forget the garbage from the rest of the week.

Anyway; tunes. More alt-country/Americana (I haven’t had much chance to listen to music this week), though this list is hitting a nice lefty sweet spot for me, and I guess we could call it a “fathers and sons” set with #1/#11 and #4/#5

1. “Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other” – Willie Nelson
2. “Duane Allman” – Amy Ray, Susan Tedeschi
3. “Before I Go” – John Hiatt
4. “Sparkle and Shine” – Steve Earle
5. “Maybe A Moment” – Justin Townes Earle
6. “How Many Women” – Lydia Loveless
7. “Smile” – The Bottle Rockets
8. “(I’m Gonna Get Over This) Someday” – Logan Ledger
9. “Devil’s Got My WOman” – Andrew Combs
10. “Back Against The Wall” – Son Volt
11. “Turn Off The News (Build A Garden)” – Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real
12. “Mountain Girl” – Blue Mountain
13. “I’m Over You” – The Silos
14. “Excuse Me If I Break My Own Heart” – Whiskytown