A Few of My Favorite Things

The Sound of Music premiered on Broadway fifty years ago (November 16th, 1959), but I discovered it again for the first time last week.

My three-year old son was busy playing trucks when I popped in the DVD, but as soon as Julie Andrews came bounding over the horizon and opened her mouth to sing, his little head swiveled around like a periscope.

What is that exquisite sound?

Who is that beautiful lady . . . and why isn’t she my mother?

He planted himself directly in front of the TV and gazed on with rapt attention for a good half hour.

I was riveted by the fairytale plotline, the boundless optimism, the yodeling . . . and Captain Von Hawt, whose smokin’ good looks had somehow evaded me for these past thirty-six years.

So in honor of the Sound of Music’s fiftieth anniversary, here are A Few of My Favorite Things:

1. Coffee (touch of cream, no sugar)
2. Sushi
3. The Daily Show
4. Lithuanian folk songs
5. My attached garage
6. The iTunes Store
7. Leonard Cohen lyrics
8. Built-in bras
9. The Star-Spangled Banner (straight up, no soul)
10. Cosmic signs
11. Musical harmony
12. Reading in bed
13. White linens
14. Lost
15. Chamomile tea
16. Aveda Inner Light dual foundation
17. The combination of buttered movie popcorn with Skittles
18. Hot showers
19. Good lip balm
20. Lavender lotion from L’Occitaine
21. Striped tights
22. Black boots
23. Cinnabon
24. Cabernet Sauvignon
25. Guinness beer
26. Christmas Eve
27. Tylenol PM
28. Jello pretzel “salad”
29. Order and symmetry
30. Airplane Coke
31. The sun on my back
32. Abba
33. Geico caveman commercials
34. The smell of pipe tobacco
35. Foot rubs
36. Comments
37. and The Sound of Music, of course.