Old Is New Is Old...I Think

May 19, 2008

My good friend Steve borrowed my copy of Kansas' Point of Know Return CD a couple weeks ago - which caused me to pull out all my Kansas stuff (yeah, I have just about all of 'em) and start listening again.

I had Point in the CD player in the car and was listening to it when Rachel got in.

"What's this?"

"It's a band called Kansas from when I was a kid."

"Is that a violin?"

"Yep."

"This is neat."

Rachel has a very open mind, musically. Yeah, she loves Hannah Montana (bleah) but she also likes classical and some singer/songwriter stuff (like Scott Phillips) and, well, Kansas now. She sings along with me (heh, she doesn't know the words yet - and sometimes the lyrics on old Kansas stuff can get...um...obscure, so it's fun listening to her sing) "How far...to the point of know return...to the point of know return?"

Of course, when I showed her this video yesterday she thought they were all wearing wigs - and that a blonde girl was playing keyboards... It's hard to explain the 70s - and I lived through it...(man, what a cheesey video)

It hit me how impressionable she is. I guess it's disarming to her that I like something, so it must already be safe, or something (heh, she's well aware that that doesn't mean something is good...). So, I try to be careful what I tell her I like - 'cause I like some junky stuff, too.

Yeah, it's great (to me, Mommy's not so sure) that the girls love watching Star Wars with Daddy - but I have to keep Saving Private Ryan on the high shelf - 'cause they're not ready for that, of course.

On a slightly related note (maybe - well, you decide):

I was pretty grumpy last night when I finally got home from church (about 8:45) and Rachel still had to eat dinner. Lori wasn't feeling well so I was trying to get things moving and Elie had the Disney channel on. Now, there's not too much on the Dinsey channel that bothers me, but Lori hates a show called Wizards of Waverly Place and the girls know it. Guess what was on. Yep. And Rachel (who knows every household rule and enforces it with the zeal of a junk-yard dog) grabbed the remote and said, "We're not allowed to watch that." Now, I was in the middle of three things when Rachel yells, "Daddy, we're not allowed to watch this. What should we watch?"

So I said, "Just watch it."

"But Mommy said we're not allowed."

"Yeah, but just watch it anyway." (Yeah, I know, Mr. Consistency)

"But we can't..."

Me: argh....grumble, grumble...grab the remote, find something else that's animated on TV... finish what I'm doing all the while not setting the best example...

So? Well, I'm really glad that Rachel understands that some things are right and some are wrong - that some things are appropriate and some aren't. And I'm glad that while I may influence her taste in music and sci-fi movies in questionable ways, she is learning to stand on her principles - especially when I'm wrong.

So, I'll choose another 70s band to foist on Rachel's unsuspecting ears soon (Lori's got her listening to Heart and Foreigner - I'm thinking Boston - you know Michael Sweet from Stryper is their new lead singer? No lie - check it out...).