As with almost every year 2013 had a lot of ups and downs
for me. I figured I’d focus on the positives and highlight the five best
moments of my 2013.
5. Conversations with Friends
This is the only one of these moments that almost happens on
a daily basis and the one that I most cherish. I love all of the conversations
I have with my friends, most of which take place with my friends at work. These
conversations are often the smartest, wackiest, absurd, funniest and important conversations
I have. My favorite thing about this job and the thing that keeps me strong and
interested every day are these conversations. I truly love how a really good
conversation can go from one topic to another to another in the span of just a
few minutes and consistently be the most riveting thing of my day. These
conversations and these people are immeasurably important to my day-to-day
life.
4. George Strait Farewell Concert
When I first heard that George Strait was retiring from
touring and going on a farewell tour I knew that I had to get tickets for when
he came to Verizon Arena in Little Rock one last time. I had seen him a few
years previously, but when King George says he’s giving up touring you just
have to see him, after all if there was a Mount Rushmore of country music
voices he’d be on it. Aprille and I had a blast watching Strait thoroughly
entertain the packed crowd with many classics and also some deep album cuts
that he probably hadn’t played in 30 years or more. It was a magical night.
3. Small Venue Concerts
Jason Isbell, Turnpike Troubadours and Kacey Musgraves all
helped to revitalize my passion for new music today, even though you won’t (or
rarely) hear them on the radio. All released albums or music this year that ranked
among the best in their genres (country or Americana) and helped prove that
while what you hear on country radio is mostly redundant, stereotypical and
incredibly stupid good music is being made by immensely talented artists, even
though they may be harder to find. I had the great opportunity of seeing Isbell,
the Troubadours and Musgraves all in 2013 at small, intimate venues like The
Rev Room and Juanita’s in Little Rock where the sound is great and the
atmosphere is highly energetic and fun. These were among the best shows I’ve
seen all year, and the fact that I was introduced to another great band, Dawes,
who Isbell opened for at the Rev Room was just icing on the cake.
2. Talladega
Aprille got a new job in 2013 writing for The Trucker
newspaper in Little Rock and the job came with some great perks, which included
free tickets to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway in
Talladega, Ala. Talladega is one of my absolute favorite NASCAR tracks and was
the next track on my bucket list, after having knocked Daytona International
Speedway off of my list in July of 2009. Despite it raining almost the entire
weekend and sitting through one of the longest rain delays in NASCAR history
they got the entire Sprint Cup race in and it included one of the most epic
races that I’ve ever seen in my 12 years of watching the sport, as it provided
a true underdog winner in David Ragan winning for the underfunded Front Row
Motorsports team in a mad dash toward the checkered flag as he and teammate
David Gilliland drafted out of nowhere to nip Carl Edwards at the finish line.
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1. Nashville
One of my big bucket list things was to go to
Nashville and see all of the sights, most notably the Country Music Hall of
Fame. I had intended to go to Nashville over Spring Break in 2010, but
contracted staph infection and had to have surgery which required a wound in my
stomach being packed for an entire month. Aprille and I decided to take a long
weekend to Nashville this year to finally see the town and it was better than I
ever expected it would be and the best few days of my entire year. Downtown
Nashville is one of the greatest places I’ve ever seen, and probably one of the
nicest and most fun places there is in this country. I frankly can’t wait to go
back again.
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