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July 27 Deathly Hallows review - massive SPOILER alert!I went with my daughters to get our copies of the latest installment of the Harry Potter franchise - HP and the Deathly Hallows. We got ours at about 12:40AM and went home to read. I instituted a 3AM curfew, so we could all get some rest. We all read, on and off, on Saturday and finished on Sunday.
I was of mixed emotions when I finished the book. I felt as though the ending was to "nicey-nice" and the epilogue was too cliched. I was disappointed that so many possible threads in the series were not followed up on. For example, at the end of Half-Blood Prince when Harry is chasing after Snape and attempting to curse him, Snape flicks his curses aside and repeatedly tells Harry that he must do wordless magic to face Voldemort or any truly powerful wizard. So, since this is included, I thought JKR word definitely follow up on it in Book 7 (but, no).
Also, so much is made of Lily - her powerful potion-making, her charm, her great spells, and - most importantly - her EYES and how they resemble Harry's. Why no more background on Lily? The only thing we get is Snape's pensieve memories. That "flashback" chapter was powerful, but it seemed a bit cheap to put the entire Snape unrequited love bit into one memory chapter.
As the book has sunk in and I have talked to others about it, I like it more and more. It was brave of JKR to depart from Hogwarts and the school calendar year to go on the Horcrux/Hallows quest. I liked the way it lent focus to Harry and his journey.
OK, here's my list of dislikes followed by likes:
Disliked:
* Snape's quick death and his little time in book
* Hagrid was shorted in the book
* Ginny was left out of the fight!
* A bit too much of the traveling campout with the trio
* Needed more info in the epilogue
* the ending was to tidy - I wouldn't have minded if Harry had died. It would have been bold and powerful.
* seemed mean to kill Fred and not kill George too.
* the Gringott's break-in was way too easy.
Liked:
* Battle of Hogwarts was OUTSTANDING.
* Dobby's sacrifice made me cry like a baby.
* Loved going to Malfoy mansion
* Ron and the sword scene
* Kreacher becoming good.
* McGonagall kicking a$$
* Molly taking out Bella
* Seven Harry's escape
* Dumbledore family background
* Section with Harry walking to his death with parents, etc. Big time emotional!!!
* Super creepy Nagini in Godric's Hollow section!
* Crazy flying Voldy!
* Seeing the Ravenclaw Common Room
I am part way through a reread and, like I said, I am digging it more with time. It will make an AMAZING movie.
When it comes down to it, I love the series SO much that it will be very hard for me to dislike the last book. My kids and I have enjoyed this series so much and we have been able to bond with it. Thanks, Jo! You have left us all a great gift. Thanks to you, Harry. I would have killed you, but you deserved a happy ending, mate.
For the love of Merlin's baggy Y fronts - it's been a great ride. Talking about Worst person:  Ann CoulterOnce again, pure evil has raised it's ugly head! Just when we thought the world was safe - what with Voldemort dead and all - Ann Coulter opens her cake hole to spew a little venom. Thank goodness for Keith Olbermann and the Order of the (Countdown) Phoenix. Check out the video!!! Quote Worst person:  Ann Coulter June 26 Podcasting is GOOD.I have been listening to some good podcasts and want to highlight one for now (more to come). It's Lars Brownworth(sp?) and his history of Byzantium as seen through twelve rulers. Good stuff.
June 23 W is for "Worst Ever"There are a lot of reasons why I could say that, in my opinion, George W. Bush is the worst President ever. There is the ill-conceived and, imo, illegal war in Iraq. There is his wanton abuse of power and infringement on civil liberties by spying on Americans conversations and records and the suspension of habeus corpus. There is his horrible handling of 9/11, allowing members of the Saudi royal family and even of the Bin Laden family to leave the country after the attacks. Also, his loading of cabinet positions with oil, coal, and lumber execs who have raped our environment.
But, I want to talk about something more personal.
It's Bush's SECOND veto of stem cell research. When he vetoed the bill this time he said (I papaphrase): "It is crossing a moral line to take lives to save lives." AND "In America, we have a history of respecting life." OK, where to begin on this hypocrisy.
First, if we don't take lives to save lives, what the hell is going on in Iraq?!?! We have lost over 3,500 U.S. soldiers and the estimates of Iraqi dead are in the hundreds of thousands. What did they all die for, Mr. Bush?
Second, anyone who studies American History knows that we built this nation by exterminating one people and enslaving another. C'mon, George! Cut the spin.
Last week, my ten year-old who has had Type 1 Diabetes for five years, laid in the hospital bed almost completely unresponsive. She got a flu bug and because of her illness she almost ended up in a diabetic coma. We owe it to her and millions of others to do the research to cure these diseases. Instead, we play politics and hold hope hostage to the desires of a small religious minority in the country. The votes show that this is a bi-partisan issue that most Americans are in favor of.
If we have a right to refuse to have our tax money spent on unethical killing, then give me back my share that was spent on this horrific Iraqi debacle! June 02 Dumbest of the dumb.Here's what I love to see: macho men teaching their boys to be macho too! Yep, let's learn 'em up right by showin' em what a real man does - shoot animals and be a poser.
When I began to read the story of the Monster Pig, I thought they were talking about this fella below ...
but no; this is this story about how this brave eleven year old went out in the wilds of Alabama and put a bullet in a farm animal ... very nice.
I really like that it took him, his daddy, and two "guides" to track the beast down. Call us strange but here in Iowa we put these fantastical beasts in a cage called a "pen." We feed 'em and such and then we eat 'em. Guess we're missing out.
I have included the previously mentioned "poser" photo for your viewing pleasure. May 19 Who's the Sicko, now?Folks, I am getting excited. This summer already brings such HUGE anticipation with the premiere of the 5th Harry Potter movie and the 7th - and final - Book in the same series. Both debut in July and both are going to be incredible.
 Now I have something else incredible to look forward to - SICKO, the new film from Michael Moore. It debuts in Cannes today and will be released in the states on June 29th. Get ready for huge controversy again - it's already being attacked by the Bush admin. and those politicians and powerful folks that are in bed with our corrupt health care industry.
Mike has already challenged former Senator and puffed-up actor Fred Thompson to a health care debate! Read more at the following link.
Should be fun; rock on Michael Moore!!!!
 May 17 Day of the DoddTook a lunch hour a week or two ago and went to hear Sen. Christopher Dodd speak. It was a very nice event for a young professional Democrat group in Des Moines.
Dodd came a bit early and mixed with the crowd, shook hands, etc.
Some local Dem personalities were in attendance, too.
On Dodd:
I liked him, as well. Forceful and articulate speaker. The guy knows issues and his two decades of Senate experience are evident. I kind of put Dodd and Biden in the same category. They both make you feel like they could take over tomorrow and the country would be in competent hands (unlike now).
Had Dodd sign my book on Northern Ireland politics after the speech. He asked me if the anecdote about himself and Clinton on the golf course was in the book and I told him it was included. He gave me a little rundown of that which was pretty cool.
Overall, another competent member of a good field of Dems.
One surprise: I did not realize that he has very young children; ages like five and two (approx.)! May 07 Soccer season - coming and going.Well, Natalie and Katherine are back practicing for their spring/summer season. Natalie is in Minnesota Youth under-13 and Kate is under-10 (even though she is going to be eleven in August).
They will be playing games this week and beginning tournaments this weekend.
Now the bad news ...
Chelsea (London) is not going to win the Premiere League this season. I was actually much more upset about their exit from the Champions League, though. The shootout loss to Liverfool, made me sick. But, the team fought SOOOOOOOOO hard all year that I give them and Jose Mourinho all the credit in the world. They won one trophy already this year and I expect them to thrash Man Poo in a couple weeks to take the F.A. Cup, too. Go, Blues!!!!
Someday readers, I will actually play competitive soccer myself. I will find some old-geezer league and give it a go.
I will post some soccer photos on this sight REALLY soon ... promise!
Bye, for now. March 26 how to procrastinate!If you're not doing this, well, you're just not human, are you?
http://www.zefrank.com/theshow/archives/2007/02/020707.html Try that link on for size. I messed up before, which just means that I can really procrastinate and waste lots of valuable time. Hee hee!!!
Is that so wrong? March 03 Rock star v. mijito.I wanted to write again about a few more Presidential candidate visits that I haunted. The first was with a large group of folks who wanted to get out to see Barack Obama. It was a Wed. evening downtown in Des Moines at the County Convention Center. We got there and there seemed to be quite a number of people coming in. There were hordes of young volunteers and staffers that took our tickets and pointed us to an entrance. The interesting thing was that there were different tickets - white(mine), blue, and red. Depending on your ticket color you entered (and were eventually seated) in a distinct area.
A couple in my group - two very attractive Brazilian women and another attractive, though a bit older BRazilian woman - were picked out to get blue tickets and moved up closer to the stage. I believe, out of the three of them, one is an eligible voter. But, I am sure they all looked great on camera. Attendance was somewhere in the 2,000 - 3,000, which I found out later from volunteeers was a disappointment to the Obama camp.
Barack was late (candidates almost ALWAYS are) but I felt he was quite impressive. He is a calm and confident speaker. He seems very natural answering questions; Town Hall style. One of my Brazilian friends felt he was a bit too quiet, maybe a little cerebral. I found him to be cerebral in a good way, I guess, but others mentioned that they wished he'd "pump it up" a little.
Next, was my attendance at a Bill Richardson event. This was about the opposite of Barack and Hillary. It was politics on a more intimate level that we Iowans have come to expect (and enjoy; in my case). It was a very ugly, snowy day on the Drake campus - in fact, all classes were cancelled. Attendance was about 50-100 folks, mostly students. Gov. Richardson got a really positive introduction from the Drake Dem leader - kid must be angling for a position on Richardson's staff.
 In the interest of disclosure, I came in wanting to like Richardson. His credentials are awesome and I'm not ready to concede a Barack/Hillary two horse race.
After his meeting, I AM impressed with him. He's qualified, personable, and real (or seemingly so). Will I caucus for him? There's still a long way to go. I expect to make that decision in about 6 - 8 months.
February 15 Talking about This hole in the ground - Countdown with Keith Olbermann - MSNBC.com
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February 02 Fate vs. ChanceI'm not a big believer in fate. It doesn't feel right to me. Was I fated to sell beauty supplies for a living OR did I happen to take that path because my mother was in that industry? Seems pretty straight-forward on that one. Well, maybe my Mom was fated to become a hair stylist so she could influence me to sell nail polish. Hmmm ...
Could my gorgeous little daughter Katherine have been fated to get a life threatening disease - Juvenile Diabetes - or did she get it because it runs in the family (which it does, by the way, on her Mom's side)?
What about that is fair? That one, I think, does not even enter the equation. I'm not a believer in God in the traditional sense and I doubt that the spirit of life or universal force worries about what is fair to one little family on our itty-bitty planet. It seems as though life happens and we deal the best we can. I have to say, though, that I do not begrudge anyone else their faith or belief set - how can I when I don't have all the answers? We each take our own path/journey ...
So that's what we're doing and it's fundraiser time again. The Central Iowa JDRF Walk for the Cure is March 3, 2007. It's a great event - very positive for Kate and all of our group. Life happens and we deal ... and hopefully we all have some fun along the way! January 29 1st impressions.The Clinton appearance (kick-off for her campaign) in Des Moines was good and bad. As expected, the turnout was crazy. We arrived just after the doors were set to open and the place was already SRO.
Lot's of people - and I assume many political neophytes - jockeying for good spots.
We were moved at the last minute to an overflow room. Hillary came and spoke to our group for about five minutes. She was gracious and fully competent in person. No opinion yet on her candidacy, although it's almost a definite that she will be the front runner. Her star-power will knock out some folks right away. It's really hard to see how Biden, Richardson, and Vilsack can compete. I think the voters would give them a chance, but the media WILL NOT.
Press and money make SO much difference now and those three will get neither in sufficient amounts. January 20 Talking about Clinton: 'I’m in and I’m in to win' - Politics - MSNBC.com
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November 24 Satisfaction.The song by the Rolling Stones (and Devo!) goes, "I can't get no; satisfaction."
Well, I can. After the last election on November 7th, I finally have a little satisfaction and peace of mind. It had seemed like the people in my country had lost all reason for the last six years. It was bad enough that Bush (I won't say won election, because the Supreme Court gave it to him) was elected in 2000, but his re-election made me sick and sad and more than a little concerned.
There is now proof that people do pay attention and if things get screwed up bad enough there are repercussions. I still believe that the Republicans did everything wrong more than the Democrats did anything right, but at least now there are officials in power who are not beholden to the wacked out religious right. If there is one thing I hope to see in politics it's the realization by the general public that the religious right is destructive for this nation and should be marginalized. Churches and church communities can be held with dignity and praise, but our country is a secular country.
That's it for now. I have a smile on my face and hope in my heart. John Edwards in 2008! |
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