Name 5 Things: Looking Back at 2016

Have you ever played "Name 5 Things"? We do it on long car trips, trading questions and counting each other's responses—examples: "Name 5 rivers in Europe," "Name 5 British actresses," "Name 5 other words for blue." Today I'm applying it to this crazy year 2016.

Music I've heard that seems to be new:

I don't listen to the radio anymore, or go to clubs or shows, or read music blogs, so if new music filters through my workaday-mommyhood haze, it must be really good, right? (Or maybe really overplayed).

1. Cheap Thrills, Sia (so catchy. SO CATCHY.)
2. Hold Up, Beyonce (nice "Can't Get Used to Losing You" sample)
3. Shut Up Kiss Me, Angel Olsen (great rollerskating video!)
4. Kolmanskop, Will Healy (incredible orchestral composition I saw premiered at Juilliard in April, complete with a solo violinist on a high balcony and percussion imitating the sound of moving sand)
5. Closer, The Chainsmokers (I'm not sure I like this song, but I hear it constantly)

Books I've read:

1. Uncommon Carriers, John McPhee (trucking, river barges, coal trains, canoes, told in McPhee's wonderful prose)
2. The Dog Who Wouldn't Be, Farley Mowat (I re-read this to make sure it was really that funny. It was.)
3. Swallows & Amazons series (1-4 so far), Arthur Ransome (sharing this with my children by reading aloud each night)
4. Riverine: A Memoir from Anywhere But Here, Angela Palm (memoir of growing up on the other side of the tracks--in this case a river--in Indiana)
5. Love, Nina, Nina Stibbe (hilarious letters home from London nanny in the early 80s. Thanks KG!)

Races I ran:

1. West River Trail Run (11 miles), 1:57
2. Vegan Power 25K, 3:12
3. Pisgah Mountain Trail Race 23k, 2:55
4. Maple 5k, 0:24:23 (3rd female)
5. Hamsterwheel 6-hour race 32 miles in 6:15 (2nd female)

Personal experiences:

1. Singing lessons, ending with singing live at a jazz bar (I sang "Summertime" and was SO NERVOUS)
2. Visiting Costa Rica, including ziplining over the rainforest
3. Starting strength and conditioning class (trying to be fit more holistically, not just running)
4. Starting therapy (I like it!)
5. Unplugging from Facebook (mostly)

Family experiences:

1. Beach vacation in Old Lyme, CT
2. Old Sturbridge Village excursion on July 4
3. Visiting friends in northern Vermont and lounging on the shore of Lake Champlain
4. My daughter going to sleepaway camp for the first time
5. Our 12th wedding anniversary (heart heart heart!)

What about your 2016--memorable experiences? New music I should know about? Leave a comment and let me know!