10 in '11: Music

My look back at 2011 begins with the 10 best songs I heard this year. As in years past, that doesn't necessarily mean all 10 songs debuted in 2011; this was just the first year I heard them. To be honest, I spent a lot of time this year listening to Robyn's excellent Body Talk, but since she topped last year's list, I couldn't justify including her again. That said, these entries certainly live up to her high standards. My best musical moment of 2011 occurred the day before my 25th birthday. I was in a cab crossing the Queensborough Bridge as a techno remix of Adele's "Someone Like You" came on the radio (thanks to the driver who turned up the volume). I was very hungover and wearing the previous night's clothes (I had passed out on my friend's couch, I swear), but damn if that song, the view from that bridge, and the beautiful weather that day didn't make me love New York. 

PS: Thanks to the lovely Becca Marsh for having awesome music taste. I technically stole 1/5 of this list from her list from last year. In other words, if Becca writes a Best of 2011 series, go read that instead. 

To do list.

Watch: Happy Endings

Why: Because Casey Wilson as Penny and Adam Pally as Max (above) are killing it on this show. Watching Happy Endings is like hanging out with all of your best friends at their funniest and most adventurous. It makes you feel like that time you all went to brunch and randomly decided to get champagne drunk on a Sunday (and it was awesome).

Reintroducing the Beverly Hills Housewives.

One of my favorite things about the Real Housewives franchise is discovering the new introductions the women fashion for themselves in later seasons. The first season opening credits always feature boring statements along the lines of "I love being rich," and "My life is awesome." Every credits sequence thereafter finds the women doing damage control in regards to their previous performance - the mean are really nice, the crazy are really sane, everyone loves divorce, etc.

Game of Thrones with Mom and Dad.

Over Labor Day weekend, I convinced my parents to subscribe to HBO. I did this for purely selfish reasons: so I could watch the first season of Game of Thrones in HD (since finishing A Dance with Dragons, I have been obsessed with all things Westeros). Mom and Dad joined me in viewing all ten episodes in under two days. Below, I have compiled their best analysis.

Song for you.

This might be my favorite thing Robyn has done.

Also: the dubstep remix of this song (talk about an earworm).

On Bossy.

Below, you'll find my favorite quotes from Tina Fey's funny, non-fiction book Bossypants (is it a memoir? I say no. It kind of reads like an episode of Saturday Night Live, if that makes any sense. It jumps around a lot both topically and chronologically, and is smart and funny*).