Evolution of a music listener

Usually, as you grow up, your taste in music evolves. What you listened to as a child, you gave up as a teenager. What you listened to as a teenager, you gave up as an adult. Or maybe you never gave up any of the old music but just added more variety to what you listen to. Whatever the case, your taste in music has probably changed over the years. So what did you listen to...

1. As a child
2. In middle school
3. In high school
4. In college
5. Now

So our son is a bookworm too...

...for more funny pictures of eli, go to the story of eli (link on the right).

Now I'm stealing Jenn's idea...

...about discussing music. Actually, I was planning to anyway, this just reminded me that I really wanted to do it. So I hope YOU don't mind, Jenn. :) To see Jenn's music discussions, go to A Musician's Musician blog in my links. Anyway, I have fallen in love with Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova. They are the stars/singers in the movie Once, which I am still dying to see. I was already a fan of The Frames (Glen Hansard's band from Ireland), Now I'm a huge fan of he and Marketa Irglova. The soundtrack to the movie (as well as another CD they did together, called Swell Season) is absolutely some of the most beautiful music I have ever heard. They do the most beautiful harmonies together just play music that you fall in love with. They are true musicians and I get chills listening to them. Go check them out on Itunes and tell me what you think.

So I can't have a book blog without mentioning Harry Potter

I am a HUGE Harry Potter fan. I really am a Harry Potter nerd. I read all of them 3 times (except for the last 2-the sixth book I read 2 1/2 times b/c the last book came out before I could finish the 6th one for the 3rd time) and I just haven't gotten a chance to read the last one again. But I will! And I'm sure I'll read them many more times throughout the rest of my life. They are that good. I think they get better each time you read them. J.K. Rowling just has a way of creating this whole other world that you get totally wrapped up in. It's a world you love full of characters you love and adventures you love.

So, for any other Harry Potter nerds out there, here are some questions (IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE LAST BOOK BUT ARE PLANNING TO, DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER)

1.What did you think of Snape in the end? Did you still hate him, did you think he redeemed himself, or do you think he only partially redeemed himself since he still had so much loathing in him towards Harry?

2. Should Harry have died? Or do you think the ending was as it should have been?

3. What did you think of the epilogue? Should she have left it out or did you like how it wrapped everything up?

4. Is J.K. Rowling the greatest storyteller of our time?

Short survey

1. What are you reading right now (and would you recommend it?)

2. What was one of your favorite books as a child? As a teenager? Why?

Here are my answers:
1. The Glass Castle-definitely yes so far!
2. Hop on Pop because it was funny/Anne of Green Gables b/c I always loved the character in the movies immensely, and the books were just as great (I know that's backwards, but I saw the movies first).

Ok, I want to hear from you!

My book blog

I just started this new book, called The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. I've only read about 38 pages of it and I am already hooked. There was a really cool quote in it that I wanted to share with people, and it made me think, "Hey, it would be really cool to start a blog where all I do is talk about books I'm reading or have read, or what others are reading." So here it is. And here is the quote that inspired me:

Background: This author's mom (the book is a memoir) decides to paint various paintings of a Joshua tree where they live. Apparently these trees grow in the direction the wind pushes them, so they lean so far over they seem "ready to topple, although, in fact, its roots held it firmly in place." The author (as a little girl) thought it was ugly but her mom thought it was beautiful. When the author finds a Joshua tree sapling, she wants to dig it up and plant it near their house. She tells her mom she will protect it from wind and water "so that it could grow nice and tall and straight."

Now I'm finally at the quote:

"Mom frowned at me. 'You'd be destroying what makes it special,' she said. 'It's the Joshua tree's struggle that gives it its beauty.'"