With a massive snow storm having plowed through the middle of the country, and excessively cold temperatures hitting my neck of the woods, it's safe to say that most everyone is dreaming of warmer temps. Except maybe you folks down in Australia. Sorry about that.
Did I mention it was cold here? Over the past week we have seen temps touch the -25 F range, and round after round of snow. It's actually a crap shoot each morning trying to decide if we should take my wife's car to work or my 4WD truck. Today we took the car and as the snow was coming down I started to wonder if I had made a mistake.
When I dropped 
As I said though, the cold temperatures and snow have had many people dreaming of warmer climates. I think in the past week alone I have heard at least three people lament the fact that they are not in Florida right now. Better yet, what about Hawaii? I've never been there myself, but as we travel through the fifty states, our #threetunetuesday post this week sponsored by 
Like I said, I have never been to Hawaii myself, but I do love me some macadamia nuts. They are actually pretty fascinating in the fact that it takes a tree 7 to 10 years to actually bear fruit (nuts). I guess that kind of explains why they are so expensive. Since I haven't been to Hawaii, the photos I am sharing in this post are from beaches in Michigan. We may not have the warm temperatures right now, but we do have plenty of beaches.
So yeah, Hawaii. This one was actually a lot harder than you might think. If I were happy to stick with just Beach Boys songs or Elvis songs, it might have been a little easier, but to be honest, I think the Beach Boys are too on the nose, and believe it or not, I've never been much of an Elvis fan. While I appreciate what he did for the landscape of music as a whole, I just never got into him like people clearly do. That being said, as I grow older, I have started to tolerate more of his songs and there are a few that I enjoy. I hated In The Ghetto for a long time, but thankfully South Park made me kind of enjoy it.
Anyway, like I said, it was kind of hard finding three songs that have Hawaii either in the title or lyrics. Well, finding three songs that fit that criteria and aren't all by the same person. I think I found a few though and while a couple (if not all) of them I have actually never heard myself, I am going to share them anyway. This will be a new experience for all of us!
I absolutely love Old Dominion, they are one of my most favorite country groups right now. I remember when they first came on the scene, they just had a really unique sound that hit on pretty much every note. Their story is actually quite interesting, they were just a group of songwriters in Nashville who had worked together occasionally, and they decided to get together and form a group. The rest is history. They have had countless hits and they continue to put out amazing music. I got the chance to see them a couple Summers ago when I was in Colorado and it was probably one of the coolest concert experiences I have ever had.
I couldn't tell you which album their song "Hawaii" is off of, but it's one of their slower jams. They do a pretty good job of creating ballads as well as absolute bangers. I have their debut album on vinyl and it is still probably my favorite offering from them.
As soon as I saw there was an ABBA song that had Hawaii in the title, I knew I had to include it here. I actually can't recall having ever heard this song, but I sure I must have at some point because I think I have the album Arrival on vinyl. There's really not too much to say about ABBA, I mean they are absolutely iconic. I'd even argue that more than just being a musical group, ABBA are basically a phenomenon. One that continues to touch lives and imaginations even today.
I've been digging into them a little more and outside of the amazing harmonies, the females in the group actually had pretty fantastic voices. I'm talking crystal clear tone and everything. It's beyond words to be honest. It makes me understand how even metal heads like 
Finally, it only feels right that I should include a song by Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwo'ole called "White Sandy Beach". While he is more famously known for his rendition of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow", this native son of Hawaii also sang a number of other songs. Many of them referencing his homeland. Sadly, he was take far too young in 1997 at only 38 years of age.
So there you go, even if we can't be in Hawaii right now, maybe these songs can do a little bit to warm you up!
Or Check out my Grilling and Smoking Community on HIVE
All pictures/screenshots taken by myself or
