Things country musicians like

Had this random thought the other day listening to my music mix and started jotting down lyrics. If you listen to enough country music, and I don't mean the Justins and Jasons in what passes for today's country, you begin to sense a theme. There are certain things the old musicians have an affinity for:

Tom T. Hall - Old dogs, children and watermelon wine; as well as younger women, older whiskey and more money.

Waylon - Guitars that are tuned good and firm feeling women.

Hank Jr. - Good friends, good whiskey and good lovin'. He's also fond of cold beer, hot lips and a ride in the country.

Even some of the new(ish) singers jump on board:

The Derailers - Cold beer, hot women and cool country music.

But perhaps the best song that includes so many "likes" is from JB and the Moonshine Band. They get real particular about the Perfect Girl:

Yeah she gotta be five foot eleven, she smells like heaven

She was born in eighty six or maybe eighty seven

She got full intentions of getting her P.H.D.​

She got a big old dually, a countrified booty

She's a certified, bonafide, cold blooded cutie

I can't argue with any of those, though I deleted the alcohol a couple decades ago, and if I have a type it is short women, particularly a 5-foot-2 one for the past 35+ years.

Finished: 'The Silent Patient' by Alex Michaelides

 "The Silent Patient" is the inaugural book by Alex Michaelides and was so good I immediately ordered the two he has written since.

Alicia Berenson’s life is seemingly perfect. A famous painter married to an in-demand fashion photographer, she lives in a grand house with big windows overlooking a park in one of London’s most desirable areas. One evening her husband Gabriel returns home late from a fashion shoot, and Alicia shoots him five times in the face, and then never speaks another word.

Alicia’s refusal to talk, or give any kind of explanation, turns a domestic tragedy into something far grander, a mystery that captures the public imagination and casts Alicia into notoriety. The price of her art skyrockets, and she, the silent patient, is hidden away from the tabloids and spotlight at the Grove, a secure forensic unit in North London.

Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist who has waited a long time for the opportunity to work with Alicia. His determination to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of why she shot her husband takes him down a twisting path into his own motivations -- a search for the truth that threatens to consume him.

This one was recommended to me by my eldest daughter, a voracious reader herself, who appears to know what kind of books her father likes (kind of a scary thought).

I really enjoyed the ending. I didn't see it coming, yet it wasn't one of those contrived, forced endings where you're going "no way." It also wasn't sprung on you at the last second to tie up loose ends. It was wonderful.

Amazonians liked it too, giving it a 4.4 of 5, Goodreaders a 4.2, and me an 8 of 10. It was one of the best books I've read this year.