April 8, 2003
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Mishmosh
The new Harry Potter DVD will be out in a couple of days. I wish I could afford to buy it, so I could see it sooner. It takes a month or two for new releases to make it to Camp Caswell, the little campground, laundromat and general store where we rent our videos. After they get it, on some lucky Tuesday or Thursday (half price rental days), I’ll get to see Chamber of Secrets.
Years ago, reading the book, I fell in love with little Dobby the house elf. Not only is he a sweet, valiant, sensitive hero, but Mary GrandPre’s illustrations are adorable.
The CG anime version, at least in the stills I’ve seen, has lost a bit of that cuteness and charm. I’ll reserve judgment on how well the character holds up onscreen until I’ve seen it. He’s still sorta appealing, isn’t he?
I owe Doug a big one over Harry Potter. He told me about the first book and I didn’t respond. I’d had my fill of kids’ books when he was little. Then he brought home a later book from the school library and I was hooked. I’ve turned several of my adult friends on to the series, against some resistance I must say. Their eventual appreciation was worth the trouble.
The library book I’m reading now, The Devil in the White City, is a very rare treat: a factual page-turner. It is about the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, its director of works Daniel Burnham, and serial murderer Herman Mudgett, AKA H.H.Holmes MD, who was active in Chicago at the time. I’ve been missing sleep for this one, can’t put it down until I doze off and it falls on my chest.
Peacefire’s latest way to fight internet censorship, a circumventor, is available for beta testing.
There’s local Talkeetna color, local indie music, pictures, chat and lots more at Whole Wheat Radio.
Yesterday as I was doing a tedious and tiring task (for a weakling like me with chronic fatigue) in the driveway, pulling the metal studs from an old set of snow tires–saved $78 that way–I listened to the drumming and occasional series of notes from a woodpecker.
After I finished the job, I sat still and watched the trees until I caught sight of her: a female northern three-toed woodpecker.
Last summer, some extraordinarily loud drumming drew me out of the house, and I found one that looked just like this one, pecking for bugs in the wood of the old cabin beside our trailer. It really resonated. I’ve been wondering if it’s the same bird I saw yesterday.
We put out seeds and crumbs for birds all winter here. The main customers are chickadees and “camp robbers”: Canadian gray jays.
This time of year, when the summer birds come back, it is as sweet and cheering to me as hearing the southbound geese in autumn is melancholy.
Welcome back, birds.
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Comments (7)
I bought the first Harry Potter and saw the second in theatres. I like your new profile pic.
As with every book made into a movie much was lost, but I think the movie Dobby had a little more gutsy of a look. Lucius Malfoy is positively sexy he’s so evil! I preordered COS, and am desperately awaiting “The Order of the Phoenix”. My 77 year old Auntie loves Harry Potter too.
-M
I love the Spring/Summer birds too!
Harry Potter is cool, love the books and I love watching the movies too.
I love Harry Potter! Please tell me you’ve read all the books, even if you haven’t seen all the movies. Don’t get me wrong, the movies were good, but the books are still much better.
I allowed my son to buy all of the Harry Potter books in hardcover first American editions, and he’s keeping them as an investment…. I wish the U.K. first editions weren’t so ludicrously hard to come by.
we got piliated woodpeckers which look like smaller redheaded ones. they’re noisy but neat.