1

Ten Octobers with You
送给 Saoirse · 妻子 · 纪念日 · 木吉他流行
We met on a rainy platform in Cork in 2016. She lent me her umbrella and kept it for a year. Every Sunday she sings to the dog, Murphy, while the toast burns. Ten years this October.
2

Good Morning, Joaquin
送给 Joaquin · 丈夫 · 生日 · 轻快流行
Joaquin turns 40 on Friday. He makes pancakes shaped like dinosaurs for the kids, runs the Brooklyn half marathon every spring, and still texts me good morning from the kitchen when I am upstairs.
3

My Anchor, Nguyen
送给 Nguyen · 爸爸 · 父亲节 · 乡村
Dad drove a taxi in Houston for twenty years and never missed one of my soccer games. He taught me to fish on Galveston pier and to fix a flat tire in the rain. He still calls me kiddo.
4

Sweet Xiomara
送给 Xiomara · 朋友 · 毕业 · R&B / 灵魂乐
Xiomara just finished nursing school at night while working the morning shift at the bakery on 5th Street. She sends voice notes at 2 am and remembers everyone’s birthday. Proudest friend alive.
5

Your Gentle Way
送给 Niamh · 女儿 · 生日 · 钢琴抒情
Niamh is turning eighteen. She learned to swim in the cold lake at Grandpa’s house, paints tiny watercolour foxes, and once talked a whole bus into singing happy birthday to a stranger.
6
The Best Driver in the Passenger Seat
送给 Marcus · 朋友 · 生日 · 嘻哈 / 说唱
Marcus failed his driving test three times and still calls himself the best driver in the group. He orders the hottest wings on the menu and cries every single time. He calls everyone "bro-ski", even his grandma.
7
A Christmas Song for Waffles
送给 Waffles · 宠物 · 圣诞 · 乡村
Waffles is our four-year-old corgi, short legs and a huge fluffy butt. Every Christmas morning she steals one sock from under the tree and runs laps around the couch. She howls along whenever we sing carols.
8
Sweeter Than Cocoa
送给 Claire · 妻子 · 圣诞 · 轻快流行
Claire puts the tree up the day after Thanksgiving, no exceptions. We got engaged at the Christmas market in Chicago in 2019. She makes hot chocolate with way too many marshmallows.
9
Our First Key
送给 Theo · 伴侣 · 情人节 · R&B / 灵魂乐
Our first date was a picnic in a thunderstorm, and we ate soggy sandwiches in his car. Theo leaves sticky notes with terrible drawings on the bathroom mirror. This February we finally move into our first apartment together.
10
Every Thursday with Linda
送给 Linda · 妈妈 · 母亲节 · 钢琴抒情
Mom drove me to 6 a.m. hockey practice for nine winters and never missed one. She still mails me care packages with her lemon bars. Now she babysits my daughter every Thursday and teaches her the same card games.
11
Down the Middle
送给 Maya and Sam · 伴侣 · 婚礼 · 独立民谣
We met queuing for the same sold-out concert in Austin and neither of us got in. Sam proposed on the ferry and nearly dropped the ring. We still split every dessert down the middle.