In the mood for love (songs)

♪♫♪ If you’ll be my star, I’ll be your sky / You can hide underneath me and come out at night…

In the midst of midterm season, I find myself procrastinating in new and creative ways, one of which is creating playlists on my phone. Instead of browsing social media or checking email, I find myself always opening up the music app of my iPhone and just crafting a bunch of playlists for anything that comes to mind — studying, running, sleeping, people I know, things I felt and done lately. I don’t even end up listening to a fraction of them, but I like the idea of commemorating something or someone with a list of songs. Back in middle school and high school, I used to make “mix CDs” for friends, but now I just stick to making countless playlists that I hoard in my iTunes. Even if I only listen to a handful of them, making my own playlists is more appealing to me than finding a pre-made playlist off Spotify (although I’ve discovered a lot of great, new music that way too).

With Valentine’s Day last week, I have been in the mood for love (songs) despite the fact that I had no plans with anyone and spent the entire day studying for my neuroscience midterm and watching the season premiere of The Walking Dead (it was explosively awesome). I had a lovely, snowy Sunday to myself enjoying some of my favorite love songs while studying, singing, and dancing around in my room…and in case you are looking for some heartwarming, romantic tunes, behold a snapshot of my recent, most sappy playlist with some of my favorite lyrics thrown in:

• You Are In Love – Taylor Swift

“You understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars / And why I’ve spent my whole life trying to put it into words”

• The Words – Christine Perri

“And all that you need to say to make it all go away /

Is that you feel the same way too”

• What Can I Do (But Love You) – Joy Williams

“There you were and there I was / Was it fate from above?

Either way I found just what I need”

• Intermezzo Sinfonico from Cavalleria Rusticana – Pietro Mascagni
• Enchanted – Taylor Swift

“Please don’t be in love with someone else /

Please don’t have somebody waiting on you”

• Longest Night – Howie Day

“So here we are set into motion /

We’ll steal a car and crash in the ocean”

• Romantic Flight (from How To Train Your Dragon) – John Powell
• Light Years– Xenia

“Anywhere you go, only to be close /

Believe me I will roam light years to find you”

• Midway – Bad Bad Hats

“The words you were not saying nearly filled up the room /

But God I could have kissed you, God I could have kissed you”

• Saltwater Room – Owl City

“Time together is just never quite enough /

When you and I are alone I’ve never felt so at home”

• Your Type – Carly Rae Jepsen

“And I break all the rules for you /

Break my heart and start again”

Just leave me your stardust to remember you by / Stardust to remember you by ♪♫♪

(Boats and Birds – Gregory & The Hawk)

Sarah Lee is a senior studying neuroscience and Russian in the GPPA Medicine program at UIC. She’s still trying to figure out exactly what she wants to do, but some of  life goals include running a marathon, exploring Eastern Europe and becoming fluent in Russian. In her free time, she loves running, playing piano and guitar, and reading. A Naperville native, Sarah is a peer mentor in the Courtyard residence hall.