They say that smart people take good ideas and reuse them to make something original of their own. In that spirit, I’m taking a fantastic blog post idea by Andy Budd and using it here on Eloquation. It’s fun. In fact, I encourage you all to do the same.

Just like Andy, “I tend to associate specific events in my life with specific songs” and there have been several events this year that have come with their own appropriate theme song. This doesn’t mean that they are my favorite songs, or that I listen to them regularly; all it does mean is that I have come to associate certain parts of my life with certain songs, and this is that list for 2007:

January: “Shut Your Eyes” by Snow Patrol
January was a weird month: I was preparing for my new gig in Europe and was also dealing with a few things on the personal front. Sometimes, I just felt like shutting my eyes and disappearing, but still wanted to be surrounded by the snow around me that kept me calm.

February: “Way Back Into Love” by Hugh Grant and Haley Bennett
The highlight of February was definitely my trip to Montreal, where I got to hang out with some of my favorite people, play in the snow, sing karaoke in a mall, and watch Music & Lyrics on Valentine’s Day.

March: “One Word” by Elliott Yamin
I’ll admit it, I was a little addicted to American Idol earlier this year. I promise I’ll do better to fight my Idol addiction in 2008, but with the WGA strike going on, it might be tough to find alternatives.

April: “French Tattoo” by The Fugitives
In April, I saw The Fugitives perform, I met a lovely French woman while I was in Brussels, and was in a very artistic mood. And I slept in a lot.

May: “Fragile Wind” by Nitin Sawhney
My grandmother was diagnosed with gastric cancer in May and subsequently spent over 14 weeks in the hospital following her surgery, reminding me just how fragile life can be, but how strong my grandmother really is.

June: “Here (In Your Arms)” by Hellogoodbye
I’m not going to say much about June, because it was a special month, and the person that made it special knows who they are and what they did. So thanks. That’s all.

July: “Extraordinary” by Mandy Moore
July was a month was my month of exploration: I tried new activities, and I actually excelled at several of them. I launched new projects, I took on new work, I lost eight pounds. I felt unstoppable.

August: “Umbrella” by Rihanna
I think I heard the words “ella ella eh eh” more than the word “hello” in August. Some things just stick in your head — and in the head of the collective consciousness — and never really become dislodged.

September: “Anyone Else But You” by The Moldy Peaches
The highlight of every September is clearly the Toronto International Film Festival. There, I had the chance to see the phenomenal film Juno — which also had a fantastic soundtrack — and make some new friends.

October: “Julia” by Taken by Trees
I traveled to Halifax in October for the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word and not only got to meet some of the best poets in the entire country, but had the chance to eat lobster and brave a rainstorm with an amazing friend. Thanks for letting me crash at your place!

November: “Get It On Tonite” by Montell Jordan
I had the chance to travel to Uganda with one of the nicest people I have ever met, and many an evening this month were spent partying and dancing in the Pearl of Africa.

December: “I Made A Resolution” by Sea Wolf
December is a month of resolution-making. For me, December has also been a month where I have been reevaluating a few of my career, relationship, and life choices.

So that’s my list. Funny enough, they were all easy choices except for August. I really struggled with August, mainly because I don’t remember most of it for some reason.

Not sure what the list says about me other than the fact that I love cheesy love songs. Going through this exercise was a great way to recollect some of the high points and low points of the year, and I highly recommend you all do it as well. Thanks again to Andy for the inspiration.