Wednesday, June 30, 2010

You can't tell that I've been on holidays lately can you? The record number of posts for this month doesn't give that away at all.
'She can't have been a spy. Look what she did to her hydrangeas!'
- A woman in the Sydney Morning Herald, neighbour to the woman in question. I don't know what she did to her hydrangeas, but it's obviously solid proof. Obviously.

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Trailer

Gosh, they picked the right music, didn't they? Makes it sound absolutely epic. Also, looks like, after 3 films, Daniel Radcliffe finally got Harry's hair sorted out. It was getting there in the sixth, I admit, but it takes a while to rebound from that awful cut he had in OoTP. Hooray! I'm so excited for this to come out =D

True

The more you read and observe about this Politics thing, you got to admit that each party is worse than the other. The one that's out always looks the best.
- Will Rogers

Monday, June 28, 2010

Following on from the last post I was going to try and find this awesome picture of a section of a library I've seen which was huge and sectioned off by glass. Couldn't find it, and my description skills fail, so I settled for Trinity College's library, which I actually like more.

Islands

I just finished watching the last episode of a series called Islands of Britain. It was really interesting, and i thought you ought to know about some of the ones mentioned in this last episode. South of England there's a small island called Sark, which is the last feudal state around. All the farmers rent their land from the baron, and there's no cars or motor vehicles allowed on the island, except tractors (and that's only if you need them for work). It's a really interesting island.
Then there's bishop rock, allegedly the smallest island in the world, and the most south-westerly point in Britain. This picture speaks for itself - the only way to get there is by a small helicopter.
So there you have it. Something to have learnt for the day :)
*Jaw drops*

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Bear With Me

Finished good old GoF after having not read it for years I think.
The bell was due to ring at any moment, and Harry and Ron, who had been having a sword fight with a couple of Fred and George's fake wands at the back of the class, looked up, Ron was now holding a tin parrot, and Harry, a rubber haddock.
What is a haddock anyway? I've never even found out, just always imagined some weird fish-bird thing. Turns out it's just a fish. Oh well. This little scene is quite amusing.
Yes. He'd [Moody] probably blast us through the door if we wake him at the crack of dawn.
Harry is actually quite funny. No one ever mentions it, but he's got more than a few funny one liners.
You fail to recognise that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be!
Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open.
Oh, classic Dumbledore. Such wisdom. I actually quite like these, because they are true. And that is all.

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Ramblings

I spent a few hours this week putting together a slideshow of photos for my grandma's 80th today, and it was really interesting! I've only really known her from her mid-60s on, so it was really cool to get a look into when she was young, had little kids and all that. Weird to see my dad as a little boy with ears that stuck out as well! Haha.
My grandma has a twin sister, and when I showed the slideshow to mum, I'd say for a few photos, 'not sure who any of those people are but grandma is there so...' And mum would say, actually that's her twin sister. And all those people are her other sisters and their husbands, or pop's relatives. And it's like....those people are actually quite closely related to me but I had no idea some of them existed! So all in all that task was worth it.

Friday, June 25, 2010

Ok so I'm sorry about all the Harry Potter posts and I promise I won't bore you with many more, but I had to post this.
The Scene: Dumbledore, Fudge and 'Moody' are discussing the disappearance of Senior Barty Crouch. Fudge throws a subtle insult at Madame Maxime and Dumbledore simply says he believes she is a very able Headmistress. Directly following is...
The Problem: 'Dumbledore come!' said Crouch angrily.
Say who? Crouch just popped up! [Crouch should be Fudge in this instance] That's handy, their conversation can now come to an end. It's odd because I've never heard this typo mentioned before and it's actually quite an amusing one.
And that was a little event from my day. Hope you enjoyed.

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Sorry I know you're sick of these but...

I read approximately 200 pages of my book yesterday - and that is why babysitting is so good. But it is odd, reading so much in one day. I have in my time read a 600 page book in less than 48 hours, and the amount of time you read through in the book compared to the time you've actually lived makes for a weird contrast. Yesterday, for example, Harry went from seeing the Dark Mark to hearing about the Yule Ball, which is like over three months, in a few hours. Weird.
I forgot how much I like the fourth book. Humour starts to really kick in in this one, and we get given another character to hate. However, I've always wanted to know how Dumbledore's joke ends...
'I am not joking Mr. Weasley, though, now you mention it, I did hear an excellent one over the summer about a troll. a hag and a leprechaun who all go into a bar-'

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Oh...

Finished the third book on Monday night then realised I didn't have up any quotes from it, when it's one of my favourite. So here you are.

'And we've got a seeker who has never failed to win us a match!' Wood rumbled, glaring at Harry with a kind of furious pride. 'And me,' he aded as an afterthought.
'We think you're very good too, Oliver,' said George.
'Cracking Keeper,' said Fred.

'I don't need help,' Ron whispered. 'It's obvious what this means. There's going to be loads of fog tonight.' Both Harry and Hermione burst out laughing.

'Your parents gave their lives to keep you live Harry. A poor way to repay them - gambling their sacrifice for a bag of magic tricks.' [Lupin] walked away, leaving Harry feeling worse by far than he had at any point in Snape's office.

This last quote always makes me feel really bad as well, for Harry. What a guilt trip from Lupin.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Too Left

The holidays, for me, are a chance to try and give my right brain a little more exercise. Music, sketching, reading and writing (i.e. imagination). Now, to get that statement right, I had to do a little research (lucky I did or this post would be very boring), and I came across these interesting things about the brain.

Experiments show that most children rank highly creative (right brain) before entering school. Because our educational systems place a higher value on left brain skills such as mathematics, logic and language than it does on drawing or using our imagination, only ten percent of these same children will rank highly creative by age 7. By the time we are adults, high creativity remains in only 2 percent of the population.

Such a shame that the education system does that, but I suppose it must be hard to balance both sides. Also, the brain can only focus on data from one side of the brain at a time, and while we can switch quickly between sides, most of the time one side wins out, usually the left brain. So now I feel sorry for the right side of my brain, and I'm going to work even harder on giving it a fair go. Apparently there are ways to stimulate the right brain, which pretty much involve boring the left side into a doze through meditation (repeating a word or mantra) or sensory deprivation. All the mental images coming from this are amusing me. I think I'll go use the imagination of my right brain by reading...

Sunday, June 20, 2010

I'm so glad the socceroos squad finally got their act together and preformed to their usual standard last night. It made me so happy. Just a shame we couldn't get another goal in.
I also love the fact that two of the great players last night, Chipperfield and Wilkshire, are Wollongong guys =D

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Somehow discovered this artist's pictures a few days ago. I just really like the style, and she's brilliant at capturing expression. So, a little Harry Potter fanart for you, which I usually dislike and avoid, but for some reason won me over this time.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Uni has lowered both my discipline and my standards. How is that good for me?

Monday, June 14, 2010

Forgot About this Line

Lockhart ... irritated Harry so much that he yearned to throw Gadding with Ghouls right in Lockhart's stupid face.
That a boy Harry.
Yesterday I posted my 200th post. That's always worth celebrating. So there we go.

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Loathsome Lockhart

Loathsome is a little bit strong, but it was the only word beginning with L that I could think of. But it also sums it all up quite nicely. Lockhart is simply incredibly irritating, so I suppose I wasn't alone is always wishing Harry would just hit him square in the face. But that wouldn't exactly be in character, and would take some of the weight from Hermione's exclamation in the third book: 'we attacked a teacher!' Oh well. In any case, Lockhart provided Rowling with a nice source of humour because of how thick he is, and I'll leave you with a few.
'Yes,' he said dramatically. 'Freshly caught Cornish pixies.'
'She has been Petrified,' said Dumbledore ('Ah! I thought so!' said Lockhart). 'But how I cannot say...'
'I'll make it,' Lockhart butted in... -- 'Excuse me,' said Snape icily, 'but I believe I am the potions master at this school.' There was a very awkward pause.

Saturday, June 12, 2010

I like walking, but I would enjoy it so much more, I feel, if I could just have a chunk of land that wasn't in a city. That was .... just a little like the lake district. Even a much, much smaller version.
I don't know, sometimes, I'd just like to be able to go walk amongst nature without all the buildings, and sit and enjoy it.
Oh ok so Siberia is north of the most northern point in Britain. Sorry for doubting you Martin Clunes, and not knowing my Geography.

Friday, June 11, 2010

My Philosophizing is Done. I'll Now be Delving into some Secrets.

Sorry for the plethora of quotes, but I wanted to share, and there were so many to share! I tried to cut them down but I couldn't. And, if this was book one I can't imagine how many I'll have for the others. There's not even really that many quotes I love from Philosopher's Stone. Anyway, I'll just aim to be ruthless and selective and pick the best ones in the future. For now, please try and enjoy this avalanche of Harry Potter.
'You haven't got letters on yours,' George observed. 'I suppose she thinks you don't forget your name. But we're not stupid - we know we're called Gred and Forge.'
I think I read their names normally the first time I read this line, because I remember having a '!' moment a few years ago and finding this line suddenly hilarious. Either way, it's classic Fred and George humour, and who doesn't like that?
Harry suddenly turned to Ron. 'Charlie,' he said. 'You're losing it, too,' said Ron. 'I'm Ron, remember?'
Another bit of humour. Lines like this add that little bit more character to the books which is so appealing.
So now they had something else to worry about: what might happen to Hagrid if anyone found out he was hiding an illegal dragon in his hut. 'Wonder what it's like to lead a peaceful life,' Ron sighed.
Sorry Ron, you won't know what that's like for another six years. I also just love how nonchalantly this line adds the hiding of a dragon to the worries of 11 year old kids. But then again, that's the whole Harry Potter story I guess.
'Oh, I'm so glad we know what it's called, that's a great help,' snarled Ron.....'Have you gone mad?' Ron bellowed. 'ARE YOU A WITCH OR NOT?'.....'Yeah,' said Ron, 'and lucky Harry doesn't lose his head in a crisis - "there's no wood," honestly.'
These lines have always been a favourite. Why did they change them in the movie? They are fine as they are in the book. In fact, they're fantastic.
'Alas! Earwax! ... To the well organised mind, death is but the next great adventure.'
Classic Dumbledore. Cliche, but I had to put them in somewhere.
Ron and Hermione were a very good audience; they gasped in all the right places and when Harry told them what was under Quirrell's turban, Hermione screamed out loud.
I don't know why I like this line, but I always have. I guess it's the just the mental image of Harry teling a story to a rapt audience with exaggerated reactions that makes it for me. Either way, thought I'd share.
Also, can't find it now but there's a sneaky little reference to Snape mind reading in this book. 'Harry had the feeling Snape could read minds' or something of the like. Love that foreshadowing.
One little further observation. Has anyone else ever noticed that in book one Hogwarts only makes up half the book? 100-ish pages out of 200-ish. But I guess it takes quite a while to orient the reader to a world where magic is real....

No Coward Soul is Mine - Emily Bronte

No coward soul is mine,
No trembler in the world's storm-troubled sphere:
I see Heaven's glories shine,
And faith shines equal, arming me from fear.

O God within my breast,
Almighty, ever-present Deity!
Life--that in me has rest,
As I--undying Life--have power in thee!

Vain are the thousand creeds
That move men's hearts: unutterably vain;
Worthless as withered weeds,
Or idlest froth amid the boundless main,

To waken doubt in one
Holding so fast by thine infinity;
So surely anchored on
The stedfast rock of immortality.

With wide-embracing love
Thy spirit animates eternal years,
Pervades and broods above,
Changes, sustains, dissolves, creates, and rears.

Though earth and man were gone,
And suns and universes ceased to be,
And Thou were left alone,
Every existence would exist in Thee.

There is not room for Death,
Nor atom that his might could render void:
Thou--THOU art Being and Breath,
And what THOU art may never be destroyed

Thursday, June 10, 2010

On Quidditch and Friendship

But from that moment on, Hermione Granger became their friend. There are some things you can't share without ending up liking each other, and knocking out a twelve-foot mountain troll is one of them.
I love this quote - it marks the beginning of the trio. Up until this point it's just Harry and Ron, and if you're re-reading, it gets a bit lonely without Hermione around. I've known this quote virtually off by heart for years, not because I sat and memorised it, but because, as a fantastic little quote about friendship with an anomalous reference to trolls stuck on the end, it just sticks in your head somehow.
'Jordan, I'm warning you -' / 'All right, all right. Flint nearly kills the Gryffindor Seeker, which could happen to anyone, I'm sure.....hit hard in the face by a Bludger, hope it broke his nose - only joking, Professor...'
My mum has always said she's a little bored by all the Quidditch matchs in Harry Potter, but it's one of the defining things about the books! I always find it harder to pick up books two and four simply because there's no Quidditch in them (well, one match in two). And a great part of Quidditch is the commentary. The banter, for want of a better word, between Jordan and McGonagall is always amusing, and definitely part of the appeal for me.
As an aside, I wanted to just revisit the whole mis-reading affecting your imagination thing. The Quaffle is described as being about the size of a football in this book. Unfortunately at the age of six/seven I was completely oblivious about the fact that soccer was actually known as football in the UK, and so happily imagined an AFL or rugby type ball for years, still do, and was again puzzled when the movie came out. It would be easier to catch anyway, I imagine.

Change

Do not think of knocking out another person'as brains because he differs in opinion from you. It would be as rational to knock yourself on the head because you differ from yourself ten years ago, - Horace Mann

My blog now has posts dating back to the end of 2007, when I was in year ten. That's only two and a half years a go, but already those posts contain a few opinons on which I have a very different stance now. So I now see more than ever the sense of Mann's statement.
People are very interesting, are they not? It's just the way we can change so much but also remain the same person. It's really very cool.

Wednesday, June 09, 2010

Physics

Sorry for people who don't like physics. But I have to tell this funny story, which is potentially only funny for physics kids. Oh well.
Was watching QI today and Stephen Fry (the host) said something along these lines. 'This is one of those things I find hard to believe but that I know is true. If you hold a bullet in one hand and a gun in the other at the same height, and fire the gun and drop the bullet at the same time which lands on the ground first?' And all the contestants said the bullet from your hand. Of course.
Except the answer is that they hit the ground at the same time. They all struggled to believe this and appealed to scientists in the crowd to back Stephen Fry up.
Earlier in the show, they mentioned the fact that heavy things hit the ground at the same time as light things when dropped, and my mum found this very hard to believe. I thought everyone knew this, because it's been drummed into me for at least two and a half years now. Fun.
Hooray for Physics and the counter intuitive things it comes up with.

Hogwarts Impressions

'I AM NOT PAYING FOR SOME CRACKPOT OLD FOOL TO TEACH HIM MAGIC TRICKS!'
I like this line. It's got a nice ring to it, and also it reminds me of my first impression of Hogwarts, before it's actually described in the book. I pretty much imagined a whole lot of tables outside on a veranda type thing with adults teaching the kids your basic magic tricks (top hats, frogs, rabbits etc). I'm so glad Harry didn't go there.
However, I apparently didn't pay much attention to the description of Hogwarts when it was given to me, particularly the Entrance Hall.
'A magnificent marble staircase facing them led to the upper floors.' Unfortunately, my Hogwarts is built with a completely different layout to the one in the book, because I imagined the marble staircase to the right. It's made a mess of a lot of scenes in the book for me, and I was puzzled when the movies came out about why they put the staircase in front of the entrance, but there you go. That's one thing I love about reading: everyone imagines it differently. Some more correctly than others, perhaps, but that's a matter of opinion.

Tuesday, June 08, 2010

Currently: Philosopher's Stone

I've begun reading all seven Harry Potter books again for the holidays - I start to miss them after a while. So this is just a heads-up: harry potter quotes may start randomly popping up as posts, because I've come across one I love and want to share.
It's probably not a good idea to read them all before the movie comes out, I know. It's usually a better idea to have nothing to do with the books for a year so you've forgotten the details, but like I said, I miss them. And I'm determined that missing out details/changing significant parts of the plot/making up things/casting characters wrong won't bother me anyway. I'm past all that: as long as we finally get an epic battle at Hogwarts, I'll be content.

Monday, June 07, 2010

Been watching these guys quite a bit lately. They're very funny =)

I was wasting time today, avoiding maths study, by reading tumblrs. One had this, oh Harry Potter Wand Test link which I followed and did. I scored zero for the emotional scale. So thank you test, for simply confirming my long held suspicions that I actually do have no emotion whatsoever.
On the plus side, 0% was higher than 2% of the people that took the test. Go figure.

Thursday, June 03, 2010

Things I have learnt from Physics this Week

1. If you walk off the roof of this building you will hit the ground.
I did have my doubts about this one. Lucky they were dispelled before I tested them out.

2. If you throw your books on the floor and take your clothes out of the wardrobe and put them on the floor, your room is disordered.
Oooh, that's another word for messy. I knew there must be one.

Thanks for those two lessons Rodney. I guess this proves physics does have real-world applications.

Tuesday, June 01, 2010

So this [Foyle's War] is pretty much the best tv show. Well, it's my favourite anyway. I watched the series final today and it was fantastic. Sam finally got her man, there was an epic plot and there's some hope for another series.
Point of the story? An hour and a half of these guys today made me happy. That's all.