Author: Heather Meadows

Kentuckians can bid a cheerful farewell to the smiley-face license plates. Yay!

I was given to understand that I would be in need of tissues…but so far, the only tears I have come remotely close to shedding have been tears of laughter. Some of these scenes are just fantastic…and of course, Dumbledore’s lines are almost all ROFL worthy. During several places I have literally been unable to keep reading, due to laughing so hard.

Things just don’t feel as…desperate, I guess, as they did in Order of the Phoenix, even though some really heavy things are, in fact, occurring.

BTW, it’s looking like it’ll be Harry and Ginny after all…or at least, Harry wants it to be Harry and Ginny. But at least the movement down that path has been fairly realistic, although I think Harry’s blossoming feelings seem a little out of the blue.

Oh, and someone needs to smack Ron and Hermione.

That is all.

Well, I love you, Dumbledore!

Brooke and I were eating Subway and had gotten through an episode or two of Kyou Kara Maou when the mailman knocked hard on the door. I went to open it.

“Meadows?” he asked. I looked at the package in his hand, which was different from most Amazon boxes. It was white, with green text asking “Who is the Half-Blood Prince?” and warnings to “Please Do Not Open Until July 16! Please Do Not Deliver Until July 16!”

“My Harry Potter book is here!” I cried gleefully. The mailman grinned and handed it over.

Oddly, I did not immediately kick Brooke out of the house and get to reading. Instead, we watched more episodes, getting through episode 5 and the giant skeleton made of garbage. I would have watched more, but Brooke had to go meet her mom.

Kyou Kara Maou is that damn good, people. It’s good enough for me to put off Harry Potter.

But now! Now, I read.

See you in quite a few hours ;>

I know, man; I’m totally shocked too.

;P

Snopes: Rubber Johnny

Hai disagrees with the summary cited on Snopes; he says, “the summary should be ‘what looks like a mutant child locked in a basement is actually a really bad music video.'”

Brooke and I decided to meet up with Mari, Mari’s family, Chris, and Jeannie at Borders for the Harry Potter release party. (Of that group, only Mari and Jeannie had actually preordered the book!)

Before we went over there, I tied Brooke to a chair and forced her to watch Kyou Kara Maou episode 1 on DVD. She claimed to enjoy it, but you never know with coersion…;> Shibuya Yuuri Harajuku Furi, Brooke! It’s hilarious I tell you!

Anyway, after Wolfram showed up and stared disdainfully at Yuuri for the first time, we tore ourselves away and headed over to Borders, where much hanging out was to be had.

Someone had brought extra witch hats…

Here’s a picture of everyone.

As you can tell by the timestamp on this post, Brooke and I left before people started getting their books (at midnight, obviously). This is mainly because Brooke was tired, but also because I didn’t want to stand around coveting my neighbors’ wives…err possessions.

In any case, it was neat to see all the kids dressed up in costume (of course, I didn’t get any pictures of that) and to think about buying some Harry Potter-themed snacks. They had rice krispie treats in the shape of a lightning bolt, with thick purple frosting. They had chocolate frogs (toads, technically, according to Jeannie). And they had butterbeer (non-alcoholic). However, the line extended halfway through the store, so I contented myself with looking and imagining.

Mostly, we just stood around and talked, and took pictures of each other wearing the witch hats. I also leafed through a book of Drew Struzan‘s movie posters, which was nice. It had my favorite Star Wars poster and my favorite Indy poster. (Drew also did the Harry Potter posters. Because he is the man.)

After that, Mari disappeared, and shortly thereafter Brooke and I did the same ;>

Observe (1, 2, 3):

Somehow, his face seems to change shape, too.

AJ sent me to this video, Rubber Johnny.

According to the site, it’s “the creepy video everyone is talking about.”

I’m not sure I would call it creepy. I think it’s just weird, and a little gross, and fairly stupid in places.

I’m not really sure what the point is. Any film critics out there have an idea? Luke?

I kind of liked the beginning of it, but after the title was shown it just got…ridiculous.

From Slashdot:

“Engadget has an interesting article regarding a new feature in Longhorn entitled PVP-OPM (Protected Video Path – Output Protection Management) which detects the capabilities of the display devices you are using and manages how (and if at all) content is sent to it. In short, this means that if Longhorn detects that your monitor is not “secure” enough, then your premium video content won’t play on it until you buy one that is. Who gets to decide? The content providers of course.”

Court rejects teachers’ plea over ‘Kimigayo’ issue

I keep seeing stories about Japanese teachers not singing the national anthem, and how they are reprimanded. I do not, however, see any explanation as to why they don’t want to recognize the national anthem. Why don’t the news sources tell us their reasoning? What is the purpose behind these teachers’ protests?

Takarazuka Revue to perform “The Rose of Versailles” at University in South Korea

BeruBara! Lady Oscar!

I want to see it performed!

Japan to promote animated films, video games, music abroad

Because, you know, there aren’t enough anime fans abroad o_O;;

Seriously, maybe this will help us get uncut versions of anime. (Or maybe this harkens the end of fansubs, as Japan cracks down on them so it can profit on exported media…)

Here are two Hiroshima stories.

Rare Hiroshima photos to be shown (one day only)

The panoramic photos were taken Aug. 10, 1945, by Hajime Miyatake, a photographer with the The Asahi Shimbun’s Osaka bureau.

Miyatake, now deceased, entered Hiroshima on Aug. 9 and took the first panoramic photos of the scene from the roof of the three-story Hiroshima-Higashi police station.

Drawings of U.S. soldiers killed by A-bomb given to Hiroshima museum

Dumbledore’s death in the style of Geoffrey Chaucer

The Poppynge of the Clogges

At Hogwarte’s, schoole of wizardrye,

Unfoldeth drede folle tragedie!

Yonge Ron Weasleye, and classmayt Pottyr:

Fallen preye to ‘tvylerottyr,

Who, throughoute Harry’s sadde lyfe,

Hath been the source of muche stryfe;

Hys parente’s lyves, rendyred shorte,

By naughtie manne: Voldemorte!

Pottyr and freynd, in’t towyr trapp’d,

At mercie of thyss eevil ratte!

What woe! What payn! Unluckiness!

To looke upon poor boye’sdystresse.

“Fore all thysse tyme, my plans you’ve foyled,

Designs divertyd, and schemes despoyled!”

So began the Dark Lorde’sawfolle gloatyng,

And standarde baddeguy show?boatynge,

“But not todaye, you little shytte!

Payn’s true meanynge, thou shalt wytte!”

And so commenceth vyle torture,

Whose detayle here ’tis harde to utter,

Arms asunder, Fingeres chopp?d,

Elbowes burned, and thynges off-lopp?d!

The outlook bleake for our hero,

But survival’s chaunce is not yette zero!

In darkest cornere, unknown to’t villayne,

Creeps Dumbledore, to sayve yon children!

Evil’s wand is raysed for’t fynalle tyme,

To finyshoff thysse horrid cryme:

‘Farewelle Pottyr, we’ve had some jokes,

But now thou shalt be with thine folks!’

At thysse, yon Darke Lordesends a shotte,

To putte the ende to Pottyr’slotte,

But ‘fore the blast can Harry ice,

Brayve Dumbledore makes sacrifyce::

In Black Magyck’s pathe he jumpes hedelonge,

For Pottyr’s lyfe to helpe prolonge.

‘It styngs! It burnes! Mine de this come!

From bolt of lightnynge up my bumme!’

Though Pottyr’s sayved, his trusted friend,

Hath in this towyr met hys ende.

Yesse, Dumble’s Done, as is mine narratyv,

Of old lyfe, gonne, for yonger lyfeto lyv.

Tom Richardson

But not todaye, you little shytte! XD

When I asked Mari, Kelly, and Chris whether or not they’d seen Batman Begins, Kelly laughed and said, “We haven’t even seen Star Wars yet.”

My first inclination was to say, “Who cares about Star Wars? Go see Batman!” This struck me, because I had thought I really enjoyed Revenge of the Sith (other than the unbelievable Dark Side shift that is halfway explained by the idea that Anakin is suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome/insanity). When I think back on it, though, it would seem that I don’t really care if I see Sith again, but I would like to see Batman at least once more.

Ah well.

All day, when I’ve tried to post, Blogger has timed out during the “read” process. Thinking that there was something wrong with index.html, I removed it entirely and tried republishing again. Then Sean took me out for lunch.

Hope you enjoyed the lovely view of my directory structure while I was gone.

When I got back, I uploaded Google’s cache of the page, then republished, and it worked.

Here’s hoping this post won’t break it again.