Living As Bachelor: First Moment

I just walked Steph to the threshhold where she is a passenger on a vacation and I'm a faux-bachelor for 5 days or so. This is something people do all the time, but you don't realize how weird it is to say goodbye to someone you are so used to seeing everyday. I know that I will be doing a lot of talking to myself as I roam around the house these following nights. Nigra and Raible are going to get an earful, I'm sure.

When I worked a journalism workshop for a week a few years ago, Steph spent the week alone. We were also only 30 minutes away from each other, so if need be I could jet home. I think she even came up and met me for dinner one of the nights. I lived alone in a dorm room, but the other 16 hours during those days was spent with high school kids and journalism teachers. So, that doesn't really count in my book.

I tend to rely on Steph with decisions, since there's always two of us. Especially when driving on 465. Hopefully, I make it home.

Here I go! Living alone for the first time in my own house! Let the adventure BEGIN!

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Harry Potter: OK, so the journey continues

I didn't realize that after the books, there was more obsession to follow. 

Oops. 

How dare I forget that the movies are just as much a part of the journey through the magical landscape that Rowling created. Reading books 1, 2 and 3 weren't as exciting because I had seen the movies, thinking in my anti-bandwagon-jumping way, "I'm never going to read a series of books everyone else is reading, because that is sooo beneath me, but I will stoop just slightly in my pop culture uppity-ness and see the movies." 

Who was that person I used to be? I don't see him in the mirror anymore. Thank God he left. What a downer. 

I am now going to rock my Sunday with some Harry Potter movie viewing, and rock it I will. While Steph is on vacation, I can gorge myself on all the Potter movies, guilt-free, and then do it all over again. Lucky enough, I have 1, 2 and 5 ready to go, but I'm desperate for 3 and 4. I'm not as excited to watch Sorcerer's Stone and Chamber of Secrets because I remember them, and they were more kiddish when they were created. I'm sure they'll still be enjoyable to watch again, since I've read all the novels now, but what I really can't wait to watch is Goblet of Fire, Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince because they are all darker. I enjoy the darker tones that novels ended up taking on. 

Maybe I'll even "live blog" while watching them. 

Ha ha. 

Oh, stop groaning, will you?

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Corn Maze!

We went through a corn maze at Tuttle's apple orchard. It was a bit muddy that day, but we conquered it. Hannah also found a few prizes.

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I'm reading about a teddy bear that's mistaken for a terrorist

I go from "Harry Potter" so something, well, different. We've been shopping in the $1 section of Half Priced Books, because when teachers get 20% (or more) and you're buying books for $1, well, you do the math...

Sometimes we find some goodies. I've picked up the  Stephen King classics "The Tommyknockers" and "Misery" that are in near-perfect condition. I never really thought about reading them, but for $1, why not? I have even come across paperbacks of books I had read before, and for $1, why not own them, too? Only decent ones, though. I'm not going to go and pick up any Anita Shreve book, but I really liked "The Last Time They Met" and owning it is a good choice. 

Steph found a novel where the sheep, as a herd, are trying to figure out who killed their owner, and they don't trust people. There's even on black sheep named Othello. 

I found something similar, sort of. Similar only in it's "strangeness" I suppose. My book is "Winkie." A teddy bear who's mistaken for a terrorist. 

Really?

Really.

I'm only 20 pages into it, but the little guy breaks your heart already. It's not a children's story, though. He's cute, but the adults that are dealing with him are not -- and therefore they've dropped a few F-bombs.

Oops. Watch out for those. It's like stepping through a cow field.

Or a sheep field. 

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Harry Potter: The Journey is Over

My journey started in July and ended this past Tuesday. I have just soared through 4,100 pages of a seven-book series that I'm sad to see over. I don't normally read that much during a school year, but it helps that I had the audio versions for the last four books and listened for 30 minutes in the morning and 40 minutes in the afternoon, as well as other random times when I washed dishes, rode the elliptical, did yard work and mowed the lawn. 

A good reader makes predictions and thinks through the book as they read, evaluating what's happening and trying to place different key elements together. By the time "Deathy Hallows" is over, everything has fallen into place, and even the more boring elements of "Chamber of Secrets" is vital, since Rowling introduces the Horcruxes in "Half-Blood Prince" but, really, she introduced them all the way back in book two. Especially the Sword of Gryffindor, which is vital in the last two books. It's great to see how all the elements fit nicely into each other. They started off small and easy to read, and then they become these big, overstuffed stories that hurt my creative brain, wondering, how did she have all of this figured out? 

Being a writer, myself, I get how the plot devices and characters fit all together. None of the stories I've even considered writing have that much going on, but the creative subconscious just creates and keeps creating this world, and all the pieces fit inside it and it all makes sense to the creator. Rowling probably was overwhelmed sometimes with how much all of pieces would work out. I'm sure she has notebooks filled with just connections and notes. If not, then her brain must be super-organized. 

No wonder we haven't seen anything from her lately. She's probably still tapped out. It would be great to see another series of books from her, but her first seven books were a magnum opus, and therefore, I wouldn't care if she ever wrote another thing again. Nothing she would write again would probably hold a candle to the wind of Potter, and it would constantly be compared. 

I guess that's the blessing and the curse of writing a modern classic. I can see this series living on for eons. But, since it's so great and so vast, and the world she created was so real, it's also the curse in which everything else will be judged, if she continues writing. I don't think that's what people intend to do, but the public has fallen in love with it so much, that they can't help wanting another set of Potter. They can't help comparing it, even if the next pieces she writes/publishes have nothing in common with it. 

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Harry Potter: The Journey VI

I'm about 300 pages into the last installment of the book, and it's heartbreaking. The bad guys are gaining ground, Hogwarts is under the rule of hook-nosed Snape, and Hermione, Harry and Ron aren't there.

Although, reading the books in succession made the constant return to Hogwarts a bit monotonous at times, there's a hole in me as I read the last book. They are not there, nor do they plan on even going back. And I'm concerned for the characters? Why is that?

"Won't you be able to get a wizarding job? You haven't completed your N.E.W.T's!"

It's weird those thoughts that I have, isn't it? Not that they should even go back, though. I wouldn't want Snape and Harry in the same building anymore. Snape's a muddy apple fartbucket (a term I coined a couple weeks ago).

So, as I travel with Harry, Hermione and Ron, it's in complete suspense, but I also feel a bit disjointed since I'm used to them being/acting out part of their adventures at Hogwarts. What I am looking forward to, though, is the next chapter that takes place in Godric's Hollow -- where more than just Harry's parents used to live.

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A Spookily Wookily

Meet the Gourd Witch of Halloween 2009. She's warty, and happy to be celebrating the coldest fall ever!

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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Bella and Tara

These two animals are best friends. On a day that's unseasonably cold and dreary, you need something to warm your heart sometimes, and this is it. I think it might be one of the best stories I've seen lately.

 

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Harry Potter: The Journey V

I figured it might be important to at least let my beloved peoples know where it is I stand with the current volume of "Harry Potter."

I think "The Order of the Phoenix" might be my favorite one yet. I'm not far enough in "Half-Blood Prince" where it's exciting, yet. Sure we met Voldemort's relatives and his mum, in a interesting chapter of history, and I'm sure we see more, of course, but I think I enjoyed the darkness and the unknown in "The Order of the Phoenix." I was more engaged with Harry when he couldn't control his temper. I enjoyed being at 12 Grimmauld, a new setting that wasn't Hogwarts, the Dursley's or the Burrow.

I think what tends to bore me a little with the books, and just a little, is when they are in Hogwarts. Rowling does a good job with new teachers and focusing on different aspects of the school in every book, but I'm getting the feel of the listlessness that I felt when I was reading "The Goblet of Fire."

But I wouldn't want her to have changed it. I think I'm also burnt out a tad because I am reading all 7 in a row. Probably not the smartest thing. Those who read the series as they should have, with the pauses in between, probably enjoyed going back to Hogwarts each time. They had years and life experiences in between each book.

My life experience right now is the book.

Reading a set of books like this creates positive memories, and so returning to a familiar place in the imagination probably felt comforting.

I have that same feeling, but it's been watered down to a place where I'm comfortable with the characters.

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Harry Potter: The Journey IV

I don't think I've ever read two 600+ books in a row before. In the past, books so long have always been intimidating. Even my sister-in-law, who's an avid bookworm, is tormented by the idea of reading many 600+ page books in a row.

And to think, I was a bit Pottered-out toward the middle of "Goblet of Fire." I remember thinking, "Maybe I'll take a break and be done with it for a bit before revving up with three 600+ page books in a row."

But, people, that's a sign of weakness!

That and the fact that I travel 50 miles a day in my car, and some days, more, so it becomes an exciting escape when I can drive and be read to. I'm like a child, sitting in my favorite seat, having some British man do his best impressions of characters. It never gets old. What gets me most about Jim Dale (narrator of the series) is how he can whip out a voice just. Like. That.

Today, I'm listening to a part, when a character, who hasn't been written about since the second book (Professor Gilderoy Lockhart), comes out of nowhere and tada! There is his voice.

Or. So, I'm assuming.

I didn't listen to "The Chamber of Secrets," but I'm sure it's the same voice that Mr. Dale pulled out of nowhere. Positive! Of course, the man could listen to himself and hear the voice he did and then mimic it.

I can do that, too. I've watched puppet shows that I've performed with voices and I can access those voices instantly again once I've heard them.

How does the human mind do that? I wonder about that a lot.

Just today, though, I was discussing "The Order of the Phoenix" with a co-worker who's re-reading the book, and we both keep getting excited with...

...sorry about this interruption, but "Where the Wild Things Are" the movie looks mind-blowing...

...and so, I told him we should get together over tea and discuss the book sometime.

Ha, ha.

What?

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Birthday Par-tay

My brother and sister-in-law just celebrated their 16th birthday. Not only did I man the grill, but I was able to get some photos taken. Here are a few of my favorites. If you like, check me out at www.refridgeratorart.net.

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My Design Savvy

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09-10 Call Out poster 4.pdf (424 KB)

Sometimes, I like to pretend that I'm a designer. I'm come from a family that has artistic roots, for the most part. They aren't beatnik types that smoke pipes, wear weird clothes, or protest against crazy, right wing Republicans. Nah, that's not them. They don't really create, create, create and hold shows at the local art gallery, either. Basically, Dad has an eye for photography, brother does graphic design work on the side and Mom, well, Mom works at the vet -- OK, she sews. 

Being a journalism teacher, I need to understand the elements of page design (mainly for information's sake). Although, there are times when my inner artist breaks free and creates something I'm just too damn proud of -- a poster for my club.

By the way, they're the best looking club posters you will see in the school hallways, I guarantee it. 

Totally. Awesome.

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Harry Potter: The Journey III

Listening to the story instead of reading it is almost more enjoyable. I've mentioned before that I don't ruin it for myself now, because I won't peak ahead. Also, I react outloud in my car while driving:

"What? Harry, you need to shut your mouth because Professor Umbridge can and will do anything to get to you!"

Or.

"My blood pressure is rising!"

My actual outbursts are usually yelling outloud at it and going, "No way!" or "I knew it!" or "Aaaaarrgh!"

This morning, while listening to my current book of "The Order of the Phoenix," even though I didn't say it outloud, I really did feel my blood pressure rising. I don't when I got angry at a character in a book like this before. Usually, I know that the author has a plan and so I don't blow up and get all invested, but listening to it is a completely different experience.

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Latest Sewing Project: Reversable Bag

I present to you, the bag of many faces:

The gray is a charcoal faux-denim poly-blend that feels like dress pants. It's was wrinkly and very difficult to iron out. It's got a giant pocket on the outside, so deep that no pick-pocket could be successful in stealing anything out of it.

The inside (or otuside?) is a cobalt blue fleece. When using fleece to make bags the way I do, well, put it this way -- I probably won't use fleece that way again. It becomes enormously thick, and then my sewing machine sounds like it's going to die as I force it through. I won't be doing that again. Fleece projects, in bag form, will need a new format.

Evan Potter and the Goblet of Audio

I've been listening to the book, more than reading it and I find that I'm better for it. I skim ahea when I read and get caught up sometimes about being a fast reader that I'll skim ahead randomly and see important splices of dialogue before I'm ready for them. With the audio book, there is no skimming ahead and therefore I am completely at mercy to the narrator.

The best part is listening to it while working on mind-numbing tasks. Like mowing the lawn or driving home from work, or, thank God, washing dishes...the most heinous act of all.

My students saw the audio case the other day and they say, "you're cheating!"

"No, no, no!" I said in a great, profound British accent. "Merely making it so I can be with the book wherever I go."

The New Singer

Here it is, fitted nicely on my bookshelf. It's twice the size of my old machine, but two-times smaller than my mom's that I was borrowing. It does everything my mom's Singer did, and then some. Sadly, the carrying case Target was giving out for free with it was all "sold" out at all the Targets I called, but it has a handle that flips up for easy carrying. This is the Singer: Tradition. It's good for those who are wanting to learn how to sew. I'm kind of past that point now, and I'm not so much an amateur anymore. I think the purchase of this machine has vaulted me up a few rungs on the tailor ladder.

My great-grandfather was a tailor. I learned that when I realized sewing came very naturally to me. Granted, with the help of a machine, it's easy, but not anyone "gets" it, I'm sure. Although some of my first projects are rejects, it doesn't take me long to figure out how to correct them, so by the second time, the process looks improved. You can see it in the product.

I haven't made any new bags to sell on Etsy, lately, but I think with the addition of my very own Singer, that will change. Stay tuned for those bags to be posted.

Listening to the "Harry Potter" Series, Part I

I haven't sat down to work on "The Goblet of Fire" lately, but at the urging of a co-worker, I went ahead and got the audio version of the book. That way, I can go between the two media. I've never sat down and split my "reading" between actually reading a book and then listening to it. I'm from the school of thought that the audio version isn't really "reading," even though it kind of is.

The other times I've sat down to listen to audio books were random stories I've picked up that had promise. One was the "Devil and Miss Prym" by the guy that wrote "The Alchemist." I also listened to "To Kill a Mocking Bird" which I never read in high school -- I need to pick up more "classics" on my own, really.

I've never sat down with something that I've been so involved in as a reader, though. Listening to a series is nice because you already know the story and visualize a lot of the characters, so it's just a matter of listening to it. I'm already on Chapter Eight, which is 80 pages into the book. I think I'm also getting a lot more detail by listening to it. I'm forced to hear all the details. When I read, I tend to skim through parts sometimes, or get caught up in a section and reread it over and over again.

Luckily, the guy that's reading it, Jim Dale, does a good job. It's not corny and weird to listen to him. He's also British, so I'm repeating half the things he says. He won a Grammy award for the "Deathly Hallows," if that gives you anything to compare it to.

Could this post have been anymore boring?

Stella Rides Shotgun

It's always good when the dog you're babysitting knows how to sit properly in the front seat.

The Gas Station in Sheridan

In order to go to Purdue in West Lafayette, we take a back way that winds through Sheridan. During this particular trip up to the WL, we were following Steph's sister because she was leading us to her new digs. For her senior year at Purdue, she is renting a condo with two others. We drove up so Steph could hang pictures and other random objects on the walls, and I needed to hem curtains.

On the way there, we stopped at a gas station in Sheridan and waited for Kendra to get gas. During, a giant truck pulled up. Inside was a little boy in the front (don't worry, folks, he was strapped in a car seat) and a big dog that was wearing a giant plastic cone around his head.

The little boy was sobbing, and constantly covering his face with his hands, while the giant dog, cone included, was very excitedly bounced back and forth in the small space he had. The little boy kept crying, and the dog tried to move. A man in a neighboring truck came and led the little boy to his truck, probably to get away from Cone Dog.

It was just a mess. Then, Steph's phone rang. Apparently, we were so engrossed in the scene, wondering what was happening next, that we missed Kendra's departure.

Oops.

Harry Potter: The Journey II

I've been finished with the first three books for a while, now, but then school started and we lost a car to old age and have been out looking for a new one since. I think it's good that I'm taking a short break before I dive head first into Book 4 (even though I'm actually 19 pages into it).

I think one of my more favorite things about good-old Harry Potter is that bad things happen.

Sorry, kids.

Sure, the good wins in the end, as it should, but bad things happen on the way. To me, that's fairly realistic. My belief with fantasy is that it needs to be grounded in some way, otherwise it's just a crock. Without the bad, there is no good, right? Plus, without the trials, the really good parts of the novels wouldn't be as satisfying.

The kids get detentions and are punished for not following the rules (even though they are working against the rules to save people, but still, you've heard the term "no good deed goes unpunished..." right?).

You've got heinous Draco Malfoy and Professor Snape. They are both awful people, and you wish you could just slap them both, but you can't necessarily slap a teacher, right?

Okay, so Potter blasted Snape back toward the end of "Prisoner of Azkaban," but the dude had it coming.

Still, though. They're always getting in the way, and you know what? There are people out there like that. Especially Draco. Snot-nosed kids like that just plain suck, especially in real life.

Going back to "bad things happen," I liked how the bad guy got away in the end of Book 3. Oops, I spoiled it, didn't I? Not really. If you haven't read the series, then you've seen the movies. If you've stayed away from both, you probably will continue to stay away. If you did plan on reading it, and you think I spoiled it, eh, well, maybe I did, but not really.

Anways, I wasn't satisfied with the ending (well, I was, but you get my point). But, that's when you realize you're emotionally involved with the story when you get frustrated about things like that. Plus, that would be pretty sad for the writer if she tied up every story with a neat bow every time. If the writer isn't making the reader mad at times, she's not doing her job.

(I personally love to take the characters in stories where the reader may not want them to go)

I also liked how Rowling showcases the bureaucracy of education in the books. What? I know, weird, but there seems to be some parallels to how schools are fun (kind of). We have the Lucius Malfoy, who seems to have great pull in some decision making, and also has much influence over some of the decisions (or tries to), even though he has no idea about teaching. Sounds like public education to me!

Now, I begin Book 4. I like how she changed things up in this one and started with Voldemort. Nice touch.

"The Vampire Diaries" by L.J. Smith

Long before Edward and Bella's love story made young people swoon from the "Twilight" series, there was an author making love to the page with horror-romance eons before: L.J. Smith.

I have owned these books for a while, and I still have all the L.J. Smith books I bought as a teenager, but I hadn't read the "The Vampire Diaries." I'm not sure why not. Last summer's marathon event of "Twilight" made me realize that it would be fun to read more horror-romance.

And even better, they're from the 90's, so the characters have narrowly escaped feathered hair, tight-rolled jeans, and poofy bangs. They're still wearing blouses with jeans, however. I'm sure their jeans snap, too, instead of button. I'm also thinking the characters like to rendezvous with their high top sneakers, and their tapered jeans, when no one is looking.

So, yes, these books were published in the early 90's, long before Stephenie Meyer had her dream about vampires and started writing them down.

We've got Elena, who's a heinous b-- , at the beginning of the series, but she has her loyal friends, Bonnie and Meredith, and she becomes drawn to the new boy. Always the new boy, isn't it? Someone is always new in these vampire-romance books, right?

"Ooh, he seems to be European!"

The Awakening. The first book in The Vampire Diaries started out a little slow, but picked up. Lucky enough, it's such a fast read, that before my first night of reading was over, I was already on page 165.

I read Night World and The Dark Visions Trilogy when I was in high school, and I enjoyed the romance + horror aspect. The love they feel in these stories is just so intense and it's all or nothing and totally unrealistic. Now that I teach middle school kids, that's just how it is with them. It is all or nothing with that age group. Throw in the supernatural, tough choices, and things you can't tell adults and then you've got a whole reasoning behind "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

Of course I'm going to keep coming back to stories like this!

I think my favorite part about this series so far is that Smith is going where Meyer did not. There's tons of blood in places. There's a really mean vampire out there that's not afraid to be mean (unlike the PC Volturi). It takes place in a town called Fells Church, where the ghosts of the Civil War haunt. There's a cemetery that's visited often in the first book. There's ominous fall weather. There's a big Halloween sequence. Sure, some of those places are very cliche, but isn't that why we go back to certain stories over and over again? That's why the romance genre lives on -- the formula works.

It's the same thing with certain horror pieces -- it's spooky, it's a little bit cliche, but it's a formula that works and that's why we return to it.

The Struggle. "The Vampire Diaries" continues on in the second book to create the guilty pleasure it is. It's like L.J. Smith threw the contents of the first book in a blender and put it on high! By the end of the book, it's such a fast whirl wind that you can't help but fly through it, wondering where it's going.

The brothers, Damon and Stefan, continue to act like a-holes to each other. Elena is still dreamily and unrealistically in love with Stefan. Smith continues to force Damon on Elena. This part is even more unrealistic because Damon comes out of nowhere and just decides he'll have Elena because Stefan wants her. This is a little brash, isn't it? The only pull is their attraction to each other. Why turn some girl into a vampire when you hardly know her? Just based on hormones? That's sooo high school. Damon could've totally found Elena to be annoying. Just to "get back" at your brother, whom you're not even sure why you hate him in the first place?

Whatev.

The minor characters of Bonnie, Meredith and Matt continue to shine. They wag their tongues in the direction of Elena, doing anything for her. And they continue to trust Stefan, but they're not sure why... We all need friends that would do our bidding, regardless.

But, I'm not reading these books because they're seeped in realism. I'm reading them because cheesy vampire novels are my guilty pleasure. They're also a lot more gorier and scarier than the Twilight series. And the romance parts last only a paragraph or so, not ten pages a piece.

Technically this is a trilogy, but I'll be looking for the fourth book. That's what you get when you (can't say it and spoil the book), and then make rabid fans mad.

Reading this book was like pushing fast-forward. The minute you open it, you can't put it down until you know what happens and it's finished.

The Fury. There's something bigger, badder and more eviler haunting the small town of Fell's Church, VA. What is it? The Undead and Alive join forces together to figure out what's actually giving the town a run for it's money. Is it the Vampire Brothers?

People aren't what they seem in this book, and major explanations happen tying up any loose ends Smith created. Just like any trilogy should have -- it ends in a neatly tied bow.

Which doesn't explain book four: Dark Reunion...

I hope I don't pick up the fourth book later and have it completely RUIN the story.

"The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nightime" by Mark Haddon

Steph suggested that I read this, once I finished a previous book. I was sitting on the couch, with a load of books surrounding me and I couldn't choose one. I'm trying to be daring and actually read the books I have bought that are currently sitting on my bookshelf. Instead, she offered a book from her bookshelf.

It was also short, and my goal during the summer is to read a butt-load. I also want to read literature and "thinking" books, but when I sit down with them, I'm not as pleased as I thought I would be. During the summer, I want quick reads and good stories. If the writing is well-done, then that's an added bonus.

Lucky with this book, I had both.

One of my all-time favorite things an author can do is create a first-person account that a reader cannot fully trust.

Christopher, the narrator of the novel and also a 15-year-old with autism, is writing a book (which is what we're reading) about his detective work of a murdered dog.

Do not think you are going to be reading an interesting take on a mystery. A mystery, it is not. Half-way through the novel, everything is given away in one fell swoop, which leaves you a bit dazed. Instead, you grow to love Christopher as a character and how he sees the world. He enjoys his maths and physics, and also gives you equations, drawings and maps to look at. But his thinking, although he may see it as logical, isn't always so -- and that's what gets him into trouble. You've read it elsewhere, and you'll read it here, it's a dangereously fast read. So fast, you might miss things if you aren't careful.

I enjoy a book that I can get through in no-time-flat. I wish I could soar through all my books that way.

"A Lion Among Men" by Gregory Maguire

It's been a while since I've sat down to write a review of a book I've read. I've got about seven to catch up on.

Gregory Maguire returns to Oz with his third installment of what is now going to be known as "The Wicked Years."

I'm a fan, so it's not hard to please me. Looking back, now, however, I think I like this book the best out of all three. It tied the other two books together to make them "fit" with each other. I think Maguire felt the need to do this, instead of them just being mere sequels, because if he's going to call this series "The Wicked Years" they should fit together, right? I think that was his thinking... I've got a feeling he's got more up his sleeve, but in order to do so, he wants the books to feel more series-like and less sequel-like, if that makes sense.

In a series, you know there will be more books, and they're comfortable to get back into, but with sequels, who knows what the other has up his sleeve. I think Maguire would like these books to fit seamlessly together, now, and I think this book was written, with some repetition from the past books, to do just that.

"A Lion Among Men" actually follows two characters, however, and not just one. We have Brrr, who's the lion, and then we have an oracle named Yackle. We learn about both and why they were important to either Elpheba's history or the history of Oz.

I enjoyed Maguire's take on the cowardly lion because, just like Elpheba, it was a misconception. He kept being at the wrong place, at the wrong time, and chose poorly, therefore labeled a coward.

I read many pedestrian reviews of this book, because I'm always curious to what others think, and many were annoyed that Maguire used such complicated language in this book. There are many sentences in there that threw out three words that I had never seen before, but I loved that. I sat with my iPod Touch Dictionary App handy so I could type in the word and see what it meant. You don't have to dumb down your language, as a writer. People need to up their vocabulary. There are hundreds of great words out there and we're all stuck using the like, totally, you know and littering the English language with unneeded garbage.

*steps off soap box*

It's a shorter read, reaching a little over 300 pages, but Maguire leaves it open in the end to continue his journey down the yellow brick road, but who knows through whose eyes we'll be seeing Oz next time.

Total Eclipse of the Heart, For Shame!

I was introduced to two different versions of the video for this song. The song's an epic in 80's power ballads, and Bonnie Tyler (even though I know only two of her songs) was brilliant with feathered blonde hair. I wanted to showcase the actual video for your viewing:


Original




I want to say that the guy that directed Meatloaf's video "I would Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" directed this one, but I'm just not sure. The video is a train wreck, and I think that's why I love it. It's trying to be epic, but it has shortcomings. Now, I wanted to show you the literal meaning of the video:


Literal




Which one do you like better?

Harry Potter: The Journey

Because I'm lacking some decent content on this, here, blog, I thought it'd be sort of interesting to write about my "journey" with the good, old Harry Potter. I'm starting a bit late, since I'm already (almost) halfway through the third book.

People have been surprised that I hadn't read the series until now. I read "Twilight" but not Harry Potter? What the what?

Sadly, I thought it was just something "everyone else was doing" and I didn't feel like getting all caught up in the hoopla. When I got all caught up with the "Twilight" hoopla, I realized what I had missed out on. The ability to sit and talk about something everyone else was talking about (OK, not everyone, but you get what I mean).

I tried reading "The Sorcerer's Stone" years ago when it first came out in paperback, but for some reason, I stopped at the first 100-or-so pages. I returned to it this summer, and pushed through those 100 pages again, and then I couldn't put the book down. I had slightly ruined it in my head because I saw the movie when it first came out, so I already knew what was going on, but I still couldn't fully remember everything, so I was still surprised with the ending.

The one thing that Rowling confused me on, however, was the use of too many P words and names for my taste: Percy, prefect, and Peeves. Peeves would come around and I would have NO CLUE what Peeves was. I kept forgetting. And, then, I couldn't figure out Filch or Miss Higgins. Was it Miss Higgins that was cleaning up after the kids and Filch was the cat? Or was it the other way around?

For those of you who've read the series about 10 times, I realize now that Filch is the caretaker, Miss Higgins is the cat, and Peeves is the poltergeist.

I'm still trying to figure out and remember all of the names. There are a ton of characters in these books, but when that's the case, I don't tend to pay as much attention to them. I just try to remember the name and move on.

I'll probably care more when one of them dies...

Can I Be Obsessed For a Moment?

This summer has been fast. I was dwelling in that this week, while up in Michigan City at a bed and breakfast. It was peaceful, and I was able to sit on the porch, while the July weather remained unseasonably mild. It just made me want to grab the second "Harry Potter" book and sit and read there for the rest of the week.

Which, by the way, can I become obsessed for a moment?

An aside: Whaat was I thinking for not reading good ole HP? Here I was like, "I'm not going to jump on the band wagon, because it's just sooo everybody else." But, what did I do with that "Twilight" series? I jumped on the bandwagon, and it was nice to know what everyone was talking about and understanding what my students were obsessing about. It was a pop-culture phenomenon that I was a part of and it was so great to be a part of something larger than myself. With Harry Potter, I know it was exactly that. 12 years of THAT, and I missed out on it. The good thing is that I can swim through all 7 books without a pause, if I want. I don't have to wait for it to be sold out and checked out and on and on, just to read it. So, there's that. And, with the recent release of The Half-Blood Prince, as well as two more Potter films to come, I will be all caught up and still a part of the fan-base. I just enjoy LONG stories and books that have the same characters, so they're really easy to get into. That's one of the hardest things about picking up a book -- it's getting INTO it. Reading a series is nice because it's familiar, in a sense. There's obviously new places to go and ways for characters to grow, but you journey with them. I could go on and on, if I wanted, but it was exciting to jump into something else that I knew was bigger than me.