This weekend I was working hard at cleaning out my bedroom which had become a virtual dumping ground for most of what had been downstairs while my hardwood floors were being installed. The ultimate goal was to get the piles of crap organized and out of the room so then I could concentrate on painting.  I’ve become bored with the terracotta, color-washed walls I painted 3 years ago, so I picked out a great color combo from Sherwin Williams with a blue accent wall (color name: Distance) surrounded by lighter blue walls (color name: Icicle).

But I digress…

In the midst of this cleaning frenzy, I came across some fun memorabilia – trinkets of the past, if you will – including (but not limited to):

  • A photo taken of me & Jel the week I moved from Alaska – good times
  • A coffee mug with the words “Safety First” from my trip to Thailand
  • My last handwritten notebook journal and
  • A bunch of “mix CDs” (which were post-mix tapes from high school, but pre-iPods & playlists).

Because music is a great thing to have on when you’re cleaning, or doing anything that keeps you from focusing on something steady like a TV screen, I popped in the CDs I’d found and let them play themselves silly.  I had no idea what was on them (I wasn’t much for labeling back in the late-90’s and early 2000’s when they were apparently made) and so I likewise had no idea what a ride I was in for.

I never cease to be amazed by the power that music has to evoke memories. Like smells, music can put me back in time and space to a particular place in an instant. As the CDs worked their way from beginning to end, I found myself completely transported – barely aware of the furniture, books, and boxes I was surrounded by.  I was at the mercy of the tunes.  The music had taken over.

Suddenly, I was…

  • In the car with my sister (Jo) at Great Adventure in the safari, the giant head of a giraffe poking through the sunroof (Rusted Root – Send Me On My Way)
  • Dancing in the snow with Jel at Beluga Point in the middle of the night (Depeche Mode – Personal Jesus)
  • Working out at Dragon’s gym in Leamington Spa when I lived in the UK (Robbie Williams – Let Love Be Your Energy)
  • Sailing through the Greek Isles in July 2001 (U2 – Beautiful Day)
  • Camping with my sister outside of Denali National Park (Counting Crows – Round Here)
  • Driving through Anchorage in the snow my first winter there (REM – Leave)
  • In the beach bar on Relax Bay in Thailand (Dido – Here With Me)
  • Hanging with my friends at the Willow Grove Mall in Junior High (Def Leppard – Pour Some Sugar On Me)
  • Running around the reservoir with Jennifer in Central Park (U2 – Veritgo)
  • Rockin’ out with Kristy in the car while driving around really cool places like Quakertown, Pennsburg, and East Greenville, PA (EMF – Unbelievable)
  • Watching TV n the UK with Kristin when she came to visit (Element 4 – Big Brother Theme)
  • Doin’ the dance with Jel in the car or at The Last Frontier…and most recently at her house in Edmonds (Will Smith – Men In Black)
  • Seeing U2 in concert with Es in the post-9/11 “Elevation” tour (U2 – Elevation)
  • On the Youth Group retreat up at Kutztown University, summer of 1989 (Cheap Trick – The Flame)
  • Sailing in Thailand (Coldplay – Clocks)
  • Seeing REM live from the front “row” in Seattle during the Bumbershoot Music Festival with Jel in 1999 (REM – Lotus)
  • Hanging out in Memphis with Es (Live – Selling the Drama)
  • On the Amtrak ride from Philly to Seattle when I moved up to Alaska in 1996 (REM – How The West Was Won & Where It Got Us)

I could go on and on and on.

In looking at that list, I can’t help but wonder where on earth the time goes.  Seriously – it just flies.  But that aside, I know that no matter what, I need to hang onto these CDs (or at least the playlists) so that when I’m old and gray and sitting in a retirement home somewhere, all I’ll need to do to relive the best moments of my life will be to play through one of these bad boys.  Pop in a CD (or put on a playlist) and my mind will be off and running.

Of course I’ve got a lot of years left and since I’m still collecting memories this way, I figure I’m going to have some crazy long-ass playlists by then…

Hopefully the technology will be able to keep up.

In case you’re interested, here is an interesting article I found which discusses music’s other superhero-like capabilities: http://www.livescience.com/health/081015-music-power.html

Apparently in addition to provoking memories, it can ease pain, influence mood, boost immunity, overcome fatigue, increase intelligence, reduce stress, anxiety, and depression…to name a few.  I don’t know if I can think of anything non-drug or alcohol-related that can claim all of that.

So what’s everyone waiting for?  Pump up the jam!