Last Post of 2006!

Our revels now are ended. These our actors,
As I foretold you, were all spirits and
Are melted into air, into thin air:
And, like the baseless fabric of this vision,
The cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The solemn temples, the great globe itself,
Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve
And, like this insubstantial pageant faded,
Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep.

---William Shakespeare, the Tempest,
Act IV, Scene i, Lines 148-157

Happy Christmas!

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole world should be enrolled. This was the first enrollment, when Quirinius was governor of Syria. So all went to be enrolled, each to his own town. And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.

While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear.

The angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger."

And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests."

When the angels went away from them to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go, then, to Bethlehem to see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us." So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known the message that had been told them about this child.

All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds. And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told to them.

• Luke 2:1-20

"For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord."
"Song of the Angels" by Bouguereau

Happy Christmas to the world! Christ is born! Alleluia! May Christ's love warm your hearts and souls this Christmas and all the days of your lives.

Lady Jane

Christmas: 24 Style

HP Book 7 Title Announced!

Finally, we have the title for the last book in the Harry Potter series!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows!!!

What do you think of it?

AP: Final 'Harry Potter' title announced---

NEW YORK - We now have a title for Book VII: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows."

But if you want to find out for yourself, visit J.K. Rowling's Web site, jkrowling.com, and play a little game of hangman.

Rowling's U.S. publisher, Scholastic, Inc., released a brief statement Thursday announcing the name of the world's most anticipated children's book, the finale to her phenomenally popular fantasy series.

No publication date or other details were offered. Rowling is still working on the book, she wrote on her Web site in an entry posted early Thursday.

If you want to play the game, go to JKRowling.com and use these instructions from the article (if you can't figure it out yourself):

If you go to her home page, click on the eraser and you will be taken to a room — you'll see a window, a door and a mirror.

In the mirror, you'll see a hallway. Click on the farthest doorknob and look for the Christmas tree. They click on the center of the door next to the mirror and a reef appears. Then click on the top of the mirror and you'll see a garland.

Look for a cobweb next to the door. Click on it, and it will disappear. Now, look at the chimes in the window. Click on the second chime to the right, and hold it down. The chime will turn into the key, which opens the door. Click on the wrapped gift behind the door, then click on it again and figure out the title yourself by playing a game of hangman.

I just did it.

I am curious about the title. Does it have something to do with Godric's Hollow where Harry lived with his parents and where they were killed? Obviously, the spelling is not the same, but they were murdered by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named (aka Lord Voldemort!) on Halloween. Halloweens have always been featured in the HP books. Really, though, I think it must be something to do with Godric's Hollow. I have always believed Harry would have to go back there, to where his parents died, where he managed to live after Voldemort tried to kill him, to face the past, the truth, and his enemy.

Curious!!! No publication date has been announced.

I am so excited!

Technorati Tags: Harry Potter, Deathly Hallows, JK Rowling, Book 7,

Happy Birthday to Jane!

Today is Jane Austen's birthday! Jane is my favorite author and one of the greatest novelists of all time.

Jane Austen
Happy Birthday, Jane!
Some Jane Austen links:
The Jane Austen Centre in Bath
Jane Austen Society of North America
Austen.com
Jane Austen E-Texts
Bibliomania: Austen E-Texts
Jane Austen's House
Republic of Pemberley
AustenBlog

Send a birthday card in honor of Jane's birthday at Mollands.

My favorite Jane Austen novel is Pride and Prejudice.

Technorati Tags: Jane Austen,

I am a Dedicated Reader

What Kind of Reader Are You? Your Result: Dedicated Reader You are always trying to find the time to get back to your book. You are convinced that the world would be a much better place if only everyone read more.
Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm
Literate Good Citizen
Book Snob
Non-Reader
Fad Reader
What Kind of Reader Are You? Create Your Own Quiz

Josh Alert!

Josh Groban Fans: Josh will be appearing on the Oprah Winfrey show on Monday, 11 December. I saw a commercial earlier this evening and I am excited to see it! Don't forget!

AND, you can hear Josh sing "I'll Be Home For Christmas" here. Do enjoy!

You can buy Awake here.

Technorati Tags: Josh Groban, Awake, Music, CD,

POTC: DMC Out Today!

I'm quite excited, as Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is out today on dvd! If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend buying or renting it (Use my Amazon link to purchase anything at Amazon and I get a small percentage).

Also out today, 24-Season 5. Hooray!

Plus, shopping through my Amazon store (for anything Amazon sells) will give me a tiny bit of revenue. Please consider it! :)

Thank you!

Special Episode of the Closer

A special two hour episode of The Closer (official website with great stuff here) is on TNT tonight. It starts any minute and I am SOOOO excited!

Kyra Sedgwick is awesome as Brenda Johnson!

If you haven't seen the two seasons The Closer, you can buy the first season dvds or watch the second season on TNT. Season 2 will begin reairing Tuesday, 5 December at 10pm (and will be every Tuesday at 10pm). The show is fabulous!

Technorati Tags: The Closer, TNT, Kyra Sedgwick, TV, LAPD,

Happy Thanksgiving!

I wish you all joy and blessings on Thanksgiving. May you be surrounded by family, friends, and good food!

I am thankful for God, giving me life

for the United States of America

for the United States Military (say thanks to the Military here)
for President George W. Bush

for my family and memories of my dogs

for my friends

for books :)

for my blog friends and readers

and for Faith and Freedom.

God bless you all!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Josh on Leno

Josh Groban is on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno tonight! Don't forget to watch or set a tape!

"You Will Lose Everything."

Over at Mugglenet interested Harry Potter fans (or people who might be interested!) can see the first poster for the fifth movie, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. The film comes out 13 July 2007.

You can see the terrifingly creepy poster here. (It features He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!!!)

Curtsy to Lady Lori for the news!

Technorati Tags: Harry Potter, Order of the Phoenix, Mugglenet,

Happy Birthday, GB!

Today is Gerard Butler's Birthday!

I'm a big fan of Gerry's work, especially his films The Phantom of the Opera, The Miracle Match (aka The Game of Their Lives), and Dear Frankie. Watch one today, in honor of GB!


Happy Birthday, Gerry!




Don't forget to visit GB.net!

Technorati Tags: Gerard Butler, The Miracle Match, Phantom of the Opera, Movies,

I Do Like It

Your Old Fashioned Name Is...

Rose Beckingham

What's Your Old Fashioned Name?

Josh On Regis & Kelly!

Today, 10 November, Josh Groban is scheduled to appear on ABC's Regis & Kelly! He'll be a guest and sing a song.

You can buy Awake here.

Technorati Tags: Josh Groban, Awake, Music, CD,

Josh on GMA!

Tomorrow morning, 8 November 2006, Josh Groban will be on Good Morning America, on ABC. According to his website he will be performing 2 songs!

It also looks like Josh's webpage has a new look! You can find some wallpapers and buddy icons here.

Buy Awake here.

Technorati Tags: Josh Groban, Awake, Music, CD,

Awake!

Finally, today's the day that Awake comes out!


I'm off to work and then to buy it and listen all night!

UPDATE-4:15pm: I have my cd and almost got in 10 car wrecks on the way home, while listening! Ok, I wasn't close to having a single wreck, but I just wanted to close my eyes and be dreamy!

What do you think of Awake?

Technorati Tags: Josh Groban, Awake, Music, CD,

Congrats!

I love country music. Brooks & Dunn and Brad Paisley are among my favorites, so I was happy to see they won awards at tonight's Country Music Assocation Awards Show.

AP: Brooks & Dunn Among Early Winners at CMA Awards---

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Brooks & Dunn's inspirational song "Believe" won three awards, including single and song of the year, during the 40th Annual Country Music Association Awards Monday night.

The duo, who hosted the show, also won music video of the year for "Believe" and opened the night by performing "Building Bridges" with guests Vince Gill and Sheryl Crow.

"This has been another huge year for country music," Kix Brooks said. "Tonight, we're here together to show off what it's really all about, and that's the greatest music on the face of the earth."

Brad Paisley, who was shut out last year despite six nomination, went into the night with a win this year. Before Monday's show, he and Dolly Parton won musical event of the year for their spiritual song "When I Get Where I'm Going." It was Parton's first CMA award since 1996.

Both "Believe" and "When I Get Where I'm Going" are beautiful Christian songs. I am so glad to see that one musical genre still honors those.

Technorati Tags: Country Music, Brooks & Dunn, Brad Paisley, CMAs,

Thursday Thirteen #7: Josh Groban Style

Jane's Thirteen Favorite Josh Groban Songs In Honor of the Arrival of Awake, Josh's new cd on 7 November 2006!
I LOVE Josh Groban's music. Have you heard him? Gorgeous voice. Gorgeous man. I think he looks like Lord Byron reincarnated and sings like one of God's Angels. His new cd comes out on Tuesday, 7 November, so I thought I would honor him with 13 of my favorite Josh songs. These are listed in no particular order. AOL has all 13 of the songs on the new album for you to listen to, if you can't wait until Tuesday (I can't wait!).

So, without further ado, here are 13 of my favorite Josh Groban songs (some of the song links take you to clips, the ones from Awake are the full song):

1. Romeo and Juliet, from Awake. It is the song from the old Romeo & Juliet film starring Olivia Hussey. Josh sings it in Italian. Time to faint!

2. You Raise Me Up From Closer. When I sing along with this song I consider it a prayer to God. He always raises me up.

3. You Are Loved (Don't Give Up) from Awake. This is a beautiful reminder that we are all God's creatures and we are all loved.

4. Alla Luce Del Sole From Josh Groban. Italian! His voice is so gorgeous on this one.

5. Remember When It Rained From Closer. Very powerful.

6. Mi Morena From Josh Groban Live at The Greek (CD/DVD). In English. I just love the way he sounds in this one and the music.

7. Cinema Paradiso From Josh Groban. In Italian. Beautiful!

8. Remember From the Troy: Music From The Motion Picture (Score) Soundtrack. Very haunting.

9. Canto Alla Vita From Josh Groban. In Italian. Full of life and joy.

10. Per Te From Closer. In Italian. What can I say? I LOVE listening to Josh sing in Italian.

11. All Improvviso Amore From Closer. In Italian.

12. Believe From The Polar Express Soundtrack.

13. Un Amore Per Sempre From Josh Groban. In Italian.

BONUS I keep listening to Lullaby. From Awake. It is so gorgeous and soothing! I want to listen to it as I fall asleep tonight.

What is your favorite Josh Groban song?

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants


Technorati Tags: Josh Groban, Awake, Music, CD,

Listen to Awake!!!

You can listen to some of Josh Groban's new album Awake streamlined on the internet here. The cd comes out Tuesday, 7 November.

And AOL has a Josh Groban Listening Party! All the songs. Videos. More!

I'm listening to Romeo & Juliet in Italian! I think I'm going to faint!


Technorati Tags: Josh Groban, Awake, Music, CD,