Monday, July 23, 2007

Farewell, Harry


And so, the seventh and final book of the great Harry Potter epic tale, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, arrived this past weekend. My copy, pre-ordered since March, landed in my PO box on Saturday, and I couldn't wait to dive in. I had re-read the previous two books in anticipation, and opened the treasured tome Saturday afternoon, ready to lose myself in Harry's world of magic and adventure, good and evil, honor and mischief, laughter and tears.

Simply because of its popularity, I resisted the lure of the Harry Potter phenom. Until, that is, just after the third book, Harry Potter and Prisoner of Azkaban, was released in 1999. It was then that I finally decided to see what all the hubub was about, since it WAS a favorite genre, and picked up a paperback of the first book, the Sorceror's Stone (1997). I read the whole book in one day. There are books that are so good that when I put them down, they scream out to me so loudly that I can barely focus on anything else. JK Rowling's book was just that kind of book. As soon as I finished it, I went out and bought the hardcover of the next one, HP and the Chamber of Secrets and then the third, and I gobbled them up. Now I had to wait a year with everyone else for the 4th book, but I also had the films (that's for another blog)!

With the 4th, 5th, and 6th books, I tried valiantly to make them last, but read each within a day or two, not having the willpower to put them down for long. Rowling's writing style is very nearly hypnotic. Simple, yet elegant. Easy, yet challenging. Brilliant. As was the intricate, epic, seven-years long plot, not including background and set-ups from several previous generations. The themes are mythic, Joseph Campbell would have been impressed: the hero's journey, good vs. evil, human weaknesses vs human strengths. Wonderful messages imparted, better than in the lame fairy tales we heard as children. "It's not your abilities that make you who you are, it's the choices you make." - one of my favorites from the first book. I hear it's already required reading in some schools. I think that's just a beginning.

And so, here we are at the final book. All the questions over these last few years, the guessing...when Harry finally stands against his nemesis, who will walk away? Who among Harry's loyal friends will die? Is Snape, the seemingly evil Potions Master really Dumbledore's man? Or do his actions tell the truth? So many more questions, but these are at the front of any HP fan's mind. It is a testament to Rowling's talent that we have come to care so much for these characters. She has created such multi-dimensional, REAL people of them that we feel we have lived the last 7 years of their lives with them. We have grown to love them as our own friends and family.

I finished the final 3 chapters and epilogue this morning. I cried a lot during the last quarter of the book...yes, I am emotionally invested. I believe that Rowling ended the book the best possible way. There were other ways she could have ended it, but I am happy with this ending. And it is an ending, I believe. I hope she doesn't give in to the fans who are already starting up a campaign for more HP books. I myself look to the future for what Rowling has to share with us. I am hopeful that there are more wonderful tales from the mind that dreamed up the World of Harry Potter. In the meantime, I plan to go back to the beginning...

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

The Good News and the Bad News...

I know, I’ve been gone quite awhile. I feel like I’ve been sick for months! The day after my birthday, right after my second to last post, I had a very weird episode. For some reason, we still don’t know why, my body became dehydrated (despite the three bottles of water I had already drunk) – my heart rate shot up to the 140s (nearly double normal), my blood pressure was nearly inaudible (they eventually got a reading of 90 over 70), I was exhausted and short of breath. Ended up in the hospital for a couple of days. The good news is, turns out my heart is healthy and strong. What most likely happened is that the dehydration triggered a misfire in my heartbeat that started the whole racing heartbeat and low blood pressure. I'm on medication to keep it that way for now...but we still don't know what made me dehydrated. It's a mystery. THEN I came down with a crummy summer cold last week. So this is why I’ve been MIA. I feel like this week I am finally re-entering the world after a long time underground!

The bad news is...here is something scary I recently learned:

INTERNET DOOMSDAY CREEPS CLOSER

Steve Watson, Infowars.net, Monday, June 4, 2007

“Recent proposals in the U.S. Congress are taking a huge swipe at freedom in America once again by aiming to impose multiple different forms of crippling taxation and restriction on users of the internet.

“State and local governments this week resumed a push to lobby Congress for far-reaching changes on two different fronts: gaining the ability to impose sales taxes on Net shopping, and being able to levy new monthly taxes on DSL and other Internet-service connections. One senator is even predicting taxes on e-mail, reports CNet.”

How did I not hear about this until just now? It's bad enough we have to pay to access the Internet, but now they are going to TAX us to get here? Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

Wednesday, July 04, 2007

YouTube...again

Yeah, I don't mean to harp on it, but since LunaChick brought it up, and since I haven't posted in a bit, I thought I'd just touch on it. Sure, YouTube is certainly a world unto itself. I am writing a story for LI Pulse about the upcoming New York City gathering this Saturday - 7/7/7. YouTubers from around the world are flocking to Washington Square Park to meet each other and have fun. I'm looking forward to it, not only to get enough material for more than one article, but to meet some people I've been watching and corresponding with for nearly a year. Yes, YT is a community, with all the good and bad implications that go with that, but it is even more...I interviewed YT-er from Long Island yesterday for the story, and what a great guy. I'd been a subscriber of his for about six months, and he is just a regular guy who happens to be very talented and loves filmmaking. More than just a community, YT is also a venue for people to express themselves creatively. And people are. And some are getting discovered by more traditional media!

Which brings me to the part where LunaChick said she is more of a music person. YT is a great place to discover musicians who are just starting out! Instead of imbedding bulky videos below, I'm posting links to some of the artists I enjoy, and who you might like. Take notice. You may be hearing them on the radio soon enough!

Ysabellabrave - Maryanne has already been signed by Warner's boutique "E" line

The Velvet Hearts - a duo, piano and guitar, with a Randy Newman-ish-voiced singer who do folky-rock originals. Check out "Peace is a Loaded Gun." It's a powerful war protest song; you may want to just listen - the video images are pretty harsh.

TerraNaomi - she is playing the Live Earth concert at Wembley Stadium. ALso got signed to somebody recently.

That's it for now. But you can always go to the Musician Channels and discover someone on your own. :)