Tonight I am finally going to see the Harry Potter movie!  I must admit I am looking forward to it, but not as much as many have.  Most of the movies have disappointed me.

I started reading Harry Potter back shortly after the third one (Prisoner of Azkaban) came out.  I can’t recall if this was over Christmas break or summer vacation.  I was visiting home and my mother encouraged me to read the books while I was there.  Being ornery, I naturally resisted.  But she kept talking them up and I was visiting for several days.  I started the first one one night when I was bored, and I was HOOKED.  I read all three books in the next 24 hours, and then (if memory serves) I reread them all before I went back to wherever I was living (Cleveland, I believe).

I had to wait almost awhile for the next book though…I pre-ordered it to arrive when I was in Breckenridge, Colorado, the next summer, as a member of the National Repertory Orchestra.  It arrived ONE day before the actual release date.  Go figure.  I was preparing to solo with the orchestra (Saint-Saens Havanaise) but the piece was short and naturally I was having mild playing problems so I took it easy on practicing and read Goblet of Fire instead.  AWESOME.  It took quite the dark turn, didn’t it?

Then it was a long wait for Order of Phoenix.  According to Wikipedia THREE years passed.  It was an awful three years.  By then (2003) I was living in Charlotte, NC, playing with the Charlotte Symphony.  I had had such good luck pre-ordering Goblet that I did the same.  It arrived at my doorstep on the day of the release and I naturally shut myself in to read it.  Intense.  And long.  If you can’t tell, I am an incredibly fast reader, so I really appreciate a long book.

By the time Half Blood Prince came out I was back in Cleveland.  Got that one mail order as well, but I recall I had to interrupt my reading to go play a wedding gig.  I was up late into the night finishing it.  When Snape killed Dumbledore, I was sobbing like a baby.

Then the end:  Deathly Hallows.  I was in the Bahamas when it came out so upon our return to Florida (we were on a cruise) the first stop was a bookstore.  I spent the rest of the day reading it, and then as usual, rereading it.  It was a fantastic ending to the story.  And in my mind, that’s when the story ended.  Though, it never really ends, because you can always start it again from the beginning (and I do, at least once or twice a year.)

So that brings us to the movies.  Since I know and love the books as much as I do, the movies have always disappointed me.  I enjoy them (for the most part, except HBP has some parts that really bug me, and so does OoP) but I don’t love them.  So while I’m looking forward to tonight’s movie (and I am, I truly am) and while I will likely cry every time Dobby gets killed, I will never feel them with the same voracity that I do the HP books.  And it’s not that I don’t appreciate movies, because the Lord of the Rings is just amazing, and I prefer the movies to the books.

I know a lot of {younger} people that grew up with Harry Potter.  I feel like I grew up with Harry Potter as well, except it was my early adult years.  That’s what I find most interesting.  Those years at the end of school and at the beginning of my career and my adult life…that’s when I had Harry Potter.  Like many other musicians, I haven’t exactly followed a direct path anywhere, and I still don’t know where I’m going.  Sometimes it feels like no matter what we do, we still just have to wait for something to happen to us. 

Kind of like you are a young boy, living under a cupboard.  Okay, no.  No that’s not the same at all.  I’m sorry for even attempting to make that analogy.

But still…I remember being young so well.  I still feel young a lot of the time.  In fact, maybe I didn’t grow up with Harry Potter.  Sometimes I feel like I am still waiting to grow up.

Do you feel that way too?  Like you are still waiting to grow up and any evidence to the contrary is simply you faking it?  Do you also wonder why Harry and Ron can’t ever learn anything without Hermione’s help?  Is that just a guy thing?

What’s most amazing to me is that Chris and I have been dating the entire time I’ve been reading Harry Potter.  And that until we got engaged people found that to be a bad thing.  Why is it so horrible to have dating somebody since 1999?  Doesn’t that show a certain level of fortitude and commitment?

Last word for today:  A friend messaged me a link to a blog that I wanted to share with you about balance and exercising.  She suggested that I was too hard on myself sometimes.  (I know.)  That’d be a whole ‘nother blog entry, about my lack of balance and how I seemingly cannot pursue anything half heartedly.  BUT I must publish so I can practice another hour before teaching while standing up straight with my chest up (when in doubt, chest up) and I will tell you all more about posture another day.

P.S.  If you haven’t done so, introduce yourself in my last entry!  I’m so pleased to hear from some of you and I’ll be checking out your blogs (if you have them, it’s not at all required) later tonight or tomorrow.

P.P.S.  I feel a little manic today!  Sorry for all the blog posts, I just have so much to share.

Last year when the book was coming out, I heard several interviews on NPR with Rebecca Skloot and thought it sounded like a really interesting read.  But I generally read fiction…even though some of my favorite books have been non-fiction!  I finally got around to reading this book…and it was fantastic.  If you haven’t read it, I highly recommend you do so as soon as possible.  I spent several hours yesterday (during the super bowl…) reading the book, and I just couldn’t put it down.  It’s both well written and a fascinating subject matter. 

And no, I did not watch the super bowl.  I decided to spend the evening relaxing and resting up, and of course finishing my book.  Now I’ve moved on to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, which I realized is a very short book.  The one thing about the Kindle is that you don’t know how many pages a book is!  Once you get started it tells you what percentage you have read, so it’s easy to tell after a short time whether it is a long or short book, but you don’t know until you start. 

I had a great time listening to tonight’s Saint Louis Symphony concert.  Well, listening and watching.  Schubert’s 2nd Symphony, Shostakovich 2nd Piano Concerto, and Beethoven’s 7th Symphony.  Fabulous!

Great day overall (gym, lunch with Melissa, shopping, which included getting running tights at Target, and dessert/drinks at Franco with Chris), but I’m tired now and going to bed.  Tomorrow I get to sleep in,  then run, two gigs, and hang out with my friend Sarah.  Fabulous 🙂

I started reading “Free For All:  Fixing School Lunch in America” by Janet Poppendieck last night.  It’s VERY nice to be reading something other than “War and Peace” (sorry, Tolstoy).  It’s got a lot of numbers, but it’s still a relief to be free of Napoleon (and frankly, after Prince Andrew died, I just didn’t care anymore. )  I generally read fiction, but it’s nice to read non-fiction on occasion, plus I do genuinely enjoy learning new things and knowing they are true, unlike fiction where you read new things that might actually be historically accurate but you just aren’t sure (yes, I’m again referring to War and Peace.  Damn you, Tolstoy!)

I have a ridiculously wonderful reading list right now. Thanks to my Kindle, I’ve got TONS of free classics on there.  I have started to read “War and Peace” first…am I crazy?  Since my resolution was to read one classic a month, I thought I’d start big, plus Gretchen Rubin (of “The Happiness Project”) recommended it.  It’s pretty overwhelming.  However, the kindle tells me exactly how far I am.  I’m 18 % done already!  (I am a fast reader).  I think some of the war stuff is going over my head though, and I wish I had a bit more historical reference.  (Any suggestions to help?)

What else is on the list?  Well, the Ed Kreitman books I’ve mentioned before about teaching violin.  Next is the book for the book club  Mrs. Q on “fed up with school lunch” is starting—“Free For All :Fixing School Lunch in America”.  I’ve also added two books from a recent Gretchen Rubin post to the list:   “The Truth About Grief…” by Ruth Davis Konigsberg and “The Year of Magical Thinking” by Joan Didion.  After that (unless it’s February already) I’ll probably read some light fiction—I love mysteries and got a few free kindle books.  I also got “The Hunger Games” for $5. 

If it’s February I’ll be onto my next classic and my next career related book (to be determined). 

I really love to read–if you hadn’t picked up on that.  I will read anything and everything, and I read quickly.  I have always loved to read, and I imagine will always love it.  The Kindle is great because it fits in my purse and I can have several books (many, many) with me at all times.  I don’t have to worry about finishing a book and not having something else to start on.

Random thoughts:  I recall we were supposed to underline book titles.  I presume it’s okay not to do that now, as I hardly ever see that online.  Perhaps it’s still required for formal papers.  I hear that you aren’t supposed to double space after periods anymore.  Did you know I learned to type on an actual typewriter? 

Do you love to have a reading list or a stack of books waiting to be read or does it stress you out?  I’d love to hear from my readers.

Prompt: Gift. This month, gifts and gift-giving can seem inescapable. What’s the most memorable gift, tangible or emotional, you received this year?

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I’m back on track!  This is today’s prompt

Most memorable gift that I received this year? 

Well, I just got it, but I think it will be life changing—my Kindle.  I didn’t know I wanted one until my mom suggested it. Suddenly it seemed like a fantastic idea!

It is lighter than a book and I can read lying down in bed without my hands going numb.  That in itself is enough to sell me on it.

If only all the books I currently own were on it.  I have three bookshelves full plus stacks on the floor.  Then again, some of the space on the bookshelves is sheet music.

For a few years I had said, oh, nothing could escape turning a page.  I am easily swayed.  No more bringing five books on a long trip.  Now I just need my kindle.