Speaking of reading, I think it is wonderful how much B loves to read. When we first started dating (1997 to be exact), he deplored reading. Perhaps it was the reading selections that were offered in high school or the fact that reading was required. Either way, B didn't enjoy reading at all. Then he started working in the cafe  at the B&N in college and suddenly he was surrounded by books, lots and lots of books. And soon enough books started showing up in his dorm room and he started to read. Ironically, he reads far more books than I do these days. He's still waiting for me to finish the Harry Potter series so we can discuss them at length. I don't think that is going to happen in the near future..oh well.

Congrats to The Olio Folio, the reviews are great!

And I'm adding more titles to my forever long list of books to read.

The new Harry Potter and the Half Blooded Prince movie will be shown in November 21, 2008.

I remember when my son Seandy was just about 2 years old; he really loved to watch Harry Potter (second to Barney). He would say, “Potter-potter”; and then point to the television, which means we have to stop watching whatever we are watching and put Potter on screen.

Everybody knows what's the story is all about - Hogwarts, witchcraft and wizardry. I myself enjoyed the movie and I have already finished the book “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” years ago. Well, I did not buy the book but someone just gave me a copy of it.

I know people, especially Christians, have different views about this. Some are really opposed to the story; while some would say that it’s basically good versus evil. I have read this one article about Harry Potter “What’s a Christian to Do with Harry Potter?

While most kids will see the Harry Potter story as clearly make-believe (flying motorcycles, dragon eggs incubating in the fireplace, phoenix feathers in every wand, etc.); you need to make sure you communicate that you are not endorsing real-world occult practices.

Therefore, go over the following with your children, so they know that some of the things they see used on both sides — good and evil — at Hogwarts, are not to be toyed with in our world.

The easiest way to explain this to a child who already knows the Harry Potter story is to say, “In our world, the Bible says that all witchcraft would equal the Dark Arts at Hogwarts. Getting involved in any form of witchcraft or other practices the Bible forbids would be like opening yourself up to Voldemort.” Make sure your kids know what the Bible forbids in our world.

Below is a basic checklist against occult practices from Deuteronomy 18:9-14. If you need help explaining these to your children, you will find help in “What’s a Christian to Do with Harry Potter?” Chapter Seven, Protecting Kids from Real-World Occult Practices, is written in kid speak, to be read aloud by a parent to a child No human sacrifice — hopefully not an issue! No practicing divination (any attempt to get guidance or foretell the future from any supernatural source other than God). This includes astrology and horoscopes. No sorcery (using magic powers). No interpreting omens (trying to discover hidden knowledge through signs or superstition like reading tea leaves, or — in Bible times — the liver or entrails of animals. No casting spells No consulting or being a medium or spiritist (those who contact spirits and allow the spirits to communicate through them) No trying to consult the dead No engaging in witchcraft (appealing to occult powers — any supernatural power or spirit other than God, the Holy Spirit) Witchcraft is also associated with the use of drugs, incantations, spells, potions, charms, amulets and so on, to experience something supernatural or to ward off evil spirits. Known today as Wicca, modern-day witchcraft is a pagan religion in which nature and goddesses are worshiped.

They even come up with an acrony:
P - erspective
O - ver come evil w/ good
T - actful treatment of others
T - raining in Righteousness
E - ffectiveness
R - elationship to God and Culture

Now my son, Seandy does not watch it anymore. But he is still interested with it. He even told me recently that he wants us to call him “Kuya Adie Potter”. I asked him why he wants to be called that name, he just said “Because I am a boy”. (My son is now at the stage where he is trying to figure out the difference between a boy and a girl. That is why he also ask me now questions like: ”Mommy are you a girl?”, or he would say, “I am a boy, partner ko girl. Mommy partner mo ba boy?”)

I may not allow my son to watch Harry Potter movies anymore but I know he should still be educated about these things. I always tell Seandy that he should trust God even at an early age. Whenever he would like to have something, I would ask him to ask God to give it to him. It is very important for us parents to know and to have a firm foundation on how we should raise our kids.

Parenting is not easy, which is why we need to ask the one who knows everything about being our Father. Let us continue to ask God for wisdom to help our kids be the person that God wants them to be.

"A morte é apenas uma travessia do mundo, como os amigos atravessam os mares. Continuam a viver uns nos outros, pois não podem deixar de estar presentes. É este o consolo dos amigos: embora sejam mortais, a sua amizade e companhia estão todavia, no melhor dos sentidos, sempre presentes, porque imortais."

William Penn, More Fruits of Solitude

citado no início de "Harry Potter e os Talismãs da Morte"

Cheguei ao fim dumas das viagens literárias mais envolventes de sempre. E nem o facto de a ter iniciado com 11 ou 12 anos e a ter acabado já com 20 me retirou a avidez de saber o final. E ao contrário do que esperava, acho que não podia ter gostado mais.

Growing up I adored Mary Norton's Borrowers books. Recently I was wandering the streets of Victoria, determined not to be home for a whole afternoon, and to divert myself I bought Bed Knob and Broomstick from Shepherd Books which is owned by the jolliest and most unruly couple in the Victoria used book scene.

Bed Knob and Broomstick is actually the combination of two novels, The Magic Bed Knob and Bonfires and Broomsticks. They are about the adventures of three children sent to live with their maiden aunt in the country for the summer, as their mother works--an unusual situation, I think, for a mother in children's literature, at the time. They meet a spinster who the children discover to be a witch. To encourage the children to preserve her secret, she enchants a brass bed knob which, when screwed into the bed frame, has the power to transport the children anywhere in the world, or to any time in the past.

Misadventures of course arise, though they are not the main delight. The main delight, for me, is the delightfully practical, prosaic depiction of the magic in the book.

The witch, a Miss Price, is a knobbly woman of indeterminate age (as is fitting from a child's perspective) with very clean hands and a very long nose. In the midst of a glorious countryside of hay and swallows and streams and fields, Miss Price practices a very prescribed form of Magic.

A quote from when the children are shown around her workroom:

The room must at one time have been a larder. There were marble slabs and wooden shelves above the slabs. The first thing Carey noticed were the glass jars, each with its typewritten label. Miss Price, a spot of proud pink in each cheek, ran a hand along the rows.

'Toads, hares' feet, bats' wings--oh, dear!' She picked up an empty jar to which a few damp balls still clung. 'I'm out of newts' eyes!' She peered into the jar before she stood it back upon the shelf; then, taking up a pencil, she made a note on a memo pad that hung upon the wall. 'They're almost impossible to get nowadays,' she said with a sigh. 'But we mustn't grumble. This is my little filing cabinet where I record results, successful--and unsuccessful, too, I'm afraid. my notebooks...

Carey, leaning forward, saw these were stout exercise books, neatly labeled.

'Spells...Charms...Incantations,' she read aloud.

'And I don't suppose any of you know,' said Miss Price brightly, 'the difference between a spell and a charm.'

'I thought they were the same thing,' said Charles.

'A-ha,' replied Miss Price darkly, but her face was alight with hidden knowledge. 'I only wish a spell were as easy as a charm.'

She lifted a spotless piece of butter muslin, and the children peered, not without a shudder, at what appeared to be a greenish slab of meat. It lay symmetrically in a gleaming porcelain dish and smelled faintly of chemicals.

'What is it?' asked Carey.

Miss Price eyes the dish dubiously. 'It's poisoned dragon's liver,' she said uncertainly.

'Oh,' said Carey politely.

Paul pushed up close. 'Did you poison the dragon, Miss Price? Or just the liver?' he added.

'Well,' admitted the truthful Miss Price, 'as a matter of fact, it came ready prepared. It's part of the equipment.'

'It all looks very hygienic,' ventured Carey timidly.

'My dear Carey,' said Miss Price reprovingly, 'we have progressed a little since the Middle Ages. Method and prophylactics have revolutionized modern witchcraft.' Carey felt Miss Price was quoting from a book, and she longed to know a little more. 'Could I just see Lesson I?' she asked.

Miss Price glanced quickly at a pile of folders on an upper shelf, and then she shook her head. 'I'm sorry, Carey. This course is absolutely confidential. 'Any infringement of this regulation,' ' she quoted, ' 'entails a fine of not less than two hundred pounds and condemns the offender to chronic, progressively recurring, attacks of Cosmick Creepus.' '

Paul looked pensive. 'It's cheaper to spit in a bus,' he announced, after some seconds of silent thought.

Gradually, the children discovered other treasures: a chart on which the signs of the zodiac were nicely touched up by Miss Price in watercolour; a sheep's skull; a chocolate box full of dried mice; herbs in bunches; a pot of growing hemlock and one of witch's bane; a small stuffed alligator, which hung by two wires from the ceiling.

As you can see, there is a whole world at the back of Miss Price's praxis. I am sure JK Rowling would like this book, and if she has read it, and if she liked the sillyness and magicalness of it, she would surely have wanted to know more, or to make more--though I fully honour her innovations in the genre and the force of her unique vision when creating her own world

I read the first chapter in the cavernous stony quietude of the Anglican cathedral downtown. Sometimes I just crave old school Britishness, with all its little flower prints and the smell of wool and the air of order and age. (Other times I crave bonfires and heavy metal. I am convinced it's all down to the tesseracts of personality.)

The second novel in this collection, Bonfires and Broomsticks, happens two years after the first. It has just a touch melancholy, in the best Mary Norton fashion, as things and people are always changing, and forgetfulness creeps in. In this book, the children travel back in time to just before the great fire of London, and meet a Necromancer who isn't very good at his job. They bring him back and clean him up--he is at first very suspicious of baths--and of course Miss Price and he fall quietly in love, though the children don't notice this very much. He goes back to his own time, alas, where he is caught and sentenced to death for practicing magic--he is to be burnt to a crisp on a bonfire.

Perhaps I shouldn't say any more, in case it spoils the ending for someone. But I will say that at the very end of the book is another fine example of Mary Norton's ever so slightly mystical style--for Carey, the oldest child, has for a moment a vision of the past in the present, and it is a quite perfect ending. And as Annie Dillard says, good endings are difficult and few indeed.

Dude is building a castle. Kind of awesome.

Headline: "Fandom's Rising Price." It's not what you think: they're talking about sports.

Awesome things about Sarah Palin, for people who disagree with her on every issue: (1) She's bringing the hypocrites out of the woodwork. (2) Her office is decorated with dead bears. (Stephen should be thrilled.)

Cats are growing 'wings'. I'm looking forward to the macros.

Headline: 2 [college presidents] Withdraw From Petition To Rethink Drinking Age. Second sentence of the article: "But 15 more from across the country have signed on."

Animated West Wing, written by people who evidently Know Fandom.

Say what you like about Maureen Dowd; this is funny.

Is anyone else disappointed by the cheesiness of the graphics in the new Star Wars interquel? Lucasfilm should have the tech and the cash to do better. Especially when we've finally clawed our way up out of the Uncanny Valley.

Harry Potter compared to Left Behind. Best line: "Left Behind is Protestant and Harry Potter is Catholic." And they're right.

Harry Potter star Emma Watson was the August covergirl for Starpics Magazine.  The now 18 year old young woman says its been difficult for her to grow up in the spotlight.

"In a way, it's hard to grow up inside a film. I lived a period of my life that is full of lessons and changes under the spotlight. People have the strange feeling of knowing me intimately because they have seen my transformation from child to woman, albeit only on screen."

Don't worry though, Emma says she wouldn't change a thing.

"(I) wouldn't want my childhood in show business to have been any different. Some days I wish my life were simpler but the rest of the time I feel like the luckiest girl in the world."

[gallery]

http://oglobo.globo.com/cultura/video/2008/7699/

A curiosidade é que, neste link acima, há a opção de assistir ao trailer tanto na versão legendada quanto na dublada. O filme tem estréia prevista para 17 de julho de 2009.

Na mesma janela, trailers de "Mamma Mia", de "Canções de Amor" e de "Hellboy II - O Exército Dourado".

El actor de las famosisimas peliculas de Harry potter en las diferentes versiones ha dicho en un revista estadounidense Details, que le gustaria interpretar un personaje de una reina travesti.

El actor le gustaría usar vestido y optar cualidades muy semejantes a la de una mujer, puesto que ha despertado un gran interes al respecto, diciendo que a una parte de él, le fascinaria este cambio.

Daniel Radcliffe ha pesar de ser un chavo netamente diferente en cuestiones de hobby, ha hecho que en el mundo del espectáculo las camáras volteen a verlo. No se si recuerdan cuando actuó totalmente desnudo en Londres en la obra teatral Equus. Y si esto fuera poco también causó algo de polémica tras haber besado a su presentador del cual Daniel recibiría una grata distinción.

La verdad, creo que si en él hay muchisimo talento, pues no está demás explotar el potencial que un joven con propuestas diferentes quiere aportar a la sociedad espectadora de cine.

[dailymotion id=k34WdV9oP8VtSLvXwR]

Disclaimer: I don't own all these characters.

There Comes An End

Snape sat at the teachers' table, staring at the black decorations of the great hall. Another year had passed. And this was the fourth year where the end-of-term feast became a remembrance day. A few hours later, after the students' gathering, the funeral would be held at the edge of the forest. This time, it was Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew--the remaining Marauders.

Dumbledore stood up, wave his hand to silence the students and started his speech. He explained everything to the confused students-how Sirius Black and Remus Lupin battled with the most evil wizard in the world and how they died doing so; how Peter Pettigrew regretted at the last moment of his life and launched all his remaining strength to save Harry and his friend from Voldemort's last attack; how Harry had finally defeated Voldemort…

Harry, sat at the Gryffindor table, surrounded by all housemates, was simply staring blankly. Why should it be Sirius and Professor Lupin who were killed? Shouldn't he be Voldemort's target? Shouldn’t he be the one to die? And Peter? Why? Why he regretted at the last moment? Was it because at the last moment of his life, there was nothing that could scare him anymore so he became so much braver?

Ron, scared by Harry's blank look, or scared by what happened a few nights ago, or maybe scared by the thought of the death of Sirius and Professor Lupin alone, kept drinking from his already empty glass.

Hermione laid her head on the table and sobbed silently.

Snape thought he was supposed to be happy about this. His long time enemies and tormenter-the Marauders, had all gone. All died. Yet he wasn't as happy as he would like to feel. He felt something remarkably like grief seizing him, albeit grudgingly. Voldemort was gone, the war was over, but something was lost, forever. He was not very pleased with himself for all these feelings. Yet he still thought he might actually miss the days when he was at Hogwarts with the Marauders. He missed the fights with the Marauders. Without them, whom should he put his wrath and revenge onto?

Dumbledore finished his speech moments later. He looked at the students thoughtfully. These boys and girls were finally safe. Next year's end-of-term feast would be a normal one, thanks to the sacrifice of all those who fought the Dark Side bravely, the Marauders being examples of them. No more sacrifice was needed, but how could the wounds in everyone's heart heal? Most of the students didn't know much about the Marauders, but he was sure that Harry, Ron and Hermione were going to tell their fellow students about them. And their stories were going to be retold over and over again.

*****************Break******************

Harry, Ron and Hermione stood silently in front of the three coffins. They had to bid farewell the last time to their beloved friends-well, maybe not very much for Peter, but still, he regretted finally, didn't he? That must count for something.

They could never see them again. Harry asked himself and those around him again and again, why must it be them the ones who died? Yet all of them knew, the answer was obvious. War casualties didn’t favour anyone over the other. And they should be proud of the Marauders. What could be more honorable for a Marauder than die fighting Voldemort? Especially when one of them had already done so fifteen years ago? They just went to look for their long lost friends, weren't they?

Snape stared at the Marauders' faces. They were smiling, weird. At last, the Marauders could reunion again, in the heaven. In there, they might be able to live a better life; a life had only pranks and laughter but no Voldemort and Dark Arts. He even felt a bit jealous towards them.

Mundungus and Arabella walked pass slowly. Arabella could barely keep herself from collapsing. It hurt so much to see Sirius and Remus closed their eyes, lying there lifelessly. Mundungus bit his lips to bleeding and swore under his breath, "Little liars never keep their promise." Sirius and Remus still owed him a dinner, 10 sickles and a book. And now they were gone. Such little liars.

*****************Break******************

Harry, Ron and Hermione stared at the Marauders' faces once again, muttered, "Farewell, Sirius. Farewell, Professor Lupin. ... Farewell, Peter Pettigrew."

Snape didn't want to stay until the funeral ended. He turned to glance his enemies and turned away quickly. He strode off silently, never sparing another glance.

Mundungus and Arabella stood motionlessly, forcing themselves to look at their friends' faces one last time. They muttered together, "Farewell, my friends."

Arabella sobbed, "Hope you are all happy in the heaven."

Mundungus placed a hand on Arabella's shoulder, "They will be."

Finally, the covers of the coffins were closed and the coffins were lowered into the ground.

*****************Break******************

"Mummy, tell me a story, please!" a little girl cried when she was asked to go to bed.

Her mother tucked her in her bed, sat next to her and said, "Look, you are so sleepy. You should go to sleep."

The little girl whined, "I want a story first!"

Her mother asked, "What do you want me to tell you?"

The little girl said, "A really, really wonderful one!"

Her mother smiled and said, "All right. Tonight, I'll tell you a remarkable story, a very famous one."

The little girl was excited, "Tell me!"

Her mother started to tell her a story, "Many, many years ago, there were four boys, whose names were Remus Lupin, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew and James Potter respectively. They met each other on their way to Hogwarts. They became wonderful friends very soon..."

The little girl slowly fell asleep while listening.

Her mother stood up, tugging the sheets around the little girl softly and then look out of the window. There was a full moon shining outside in the sky. From somewhere afar, she thought she heard a faint howl.

End

"Oh no, someone has stolen my baby"

It was the first thing Jack Stone heard after leaving his home that morning. He turned to face the direction from which the exclamation had orginated, and saw a man running his tits off down the street. Little did the man know that he was running directly towards Cucumber Kid, and boy would he regret it. He did regret it, as a huge cucumber'd fist came smacking into his face a second later. But oh no! As a result of such a mother of a punch, the baby had flown 50 feet into the air. Cucumber Kid was never any good at catching, and the baby was heading very much towards the floor.

"Never fear, I'll catch that flying baby!"

You'd have expected that to be the voice of Cucumber Kid, suddenly full of baby-catching confidence. But it wasn't. It was someone else entirely. Cucumber Kid looked on in amazement as the person from which the voice came leaped into the air to meet the screaming baby. *catch*

"Woo. Woo. Woo. Yeah. Woo. Yeah!", the crowd screamed. "All hail baby-catcher man, who saved baby from baby-snatcher man". Now Cucumber Kid was angry, and he pushed baby-catcher man with all his might. But oh no! The man was falling into an unfortunately placed table of knives. They cut through his flesh like daggers, but amazingly not one drop of blood escaped from his veins.

However, the man was understandibly very upset with Cucumber Kid, and said,

"That really hurt. I'm going to get you Cucumber Kid!"

***

Four days had passed since "Mr Chop" (as the Press labelled him) had sworn to get revenge on Cucumber Kid, and in that time he'd developed then perfect plan. When Cucumber Kid wasn't looking, he'd sneak up behind him and chop his arms off. Certainly it was the most fiendish of all plans. How could it fail?

Cucumber Kid was running in the park when he had a sudden fit...

... of laughter. It was not at anything in particular, but it was amusing nonetheless. He decided he really want to get something to eat, but he was unsure what to have. One one hand he could have an ice-cream, but a hot dog also sounded really tasty too...

Right kids! This is the part where you decide where the plot goes. Does Cucumber Kid decide to have an ice-cream or a hot dog? You decide!

He has an ice-cream.

He has a hot dog.

Choosing an option will download the rest of the story to your computer. But choose wisely, as it'll seriously affect the conclusion of this story! *Gasp*

O ator Daniel Radcliffe, intérprete do bruxo Harry Potter nos filmes da saga, confessou à revista Details que gostaria de interpretar uma drag queen nas telonas.

Quando o repórter perguntou a Radcliffe sobre quais papéis gostaria de interpretar, o jovem milionário afirmou: "Parte de mim adoraria interpretar uma drag queen, só como uma desculpa para usar muita maquiagem nos olhos".

Radcliffe, além de Potter, interpretou Maps em Um Verão Para Toda a Vida (2007) e John Kipling no drama produzido para TV My Boy Jack (2007), sobre a Primeira Guerra Mundial. O ator também foi recentemente escalado para participar de um filme sobre o jornalista Dan Eldon, morto em 1993 na Somália.

Leia mais clicando aqui.

Harry Potter fanatics are raging against Hollywood for Warner Bros studio’s decision to push back the release date of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, but Warner Bros is lashing out at their own enemy—who are literally on the other side of the globe.

Warner Bros is suing the movie producers of Mirchi Movies, who are releasing their latest flick, “Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors,” claiming that the new film’s title infringes upon their multi-million dollar franchise.

I guess this is true in a way; Harry Potter sounds similar to Hari Puttar but while the muggle-raised wizard makes me think about Patronus spells, Hari Puttar just makes me hungry for some paneer.

The producers from Mirchi Movies claims that their Hari Puttar film has nothing at all to do with our beloved Harry—and I’m going to have to agree. A quick read of the film’s description on IMDB reveals that their Puttar is really about an Indian boy with an imaginary friend in the UK who gets left behind when the family leaves for vacation. (At least, that's what I could get from the super complicated and meandering synopsis.) Meanwhile, two “bumbling burglars” try to break into Puttar’s house and…WAIT A SECOND, isn’t this the plot to Home Alone????

This is blasphemy! How dare they try to pass off the ingenius story of Kevin McCallister outwitting Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern during the holiday season??

That’s it. I’m suing these producers myself.

And if I'm not the last person to succumb to the HP experience, then I'm in a group with a very small membership. I've seen a couple of the films and read all about the legal fracas over who has the right to talk about the books and who hasn't. Like everyone else, I've been aware of the phenomenon of Harry Potter for years.

But until now, I had resisted reading any of the books. Not sure why, really. I guess deep down I just felt, as my husband always says, there are some forms of virginity that shouldn't be tampered with. Well, I've finally shed the innocence and read the book and become an initiate. And it wasn't at all painful.

So, for any other Potter virgins out there orbiting Jupiter, the bare (and I mean completely skinned) bones of the story are these. Harry Potter is a young English orphan who lives with his aunt and uncle and cousin Dudley – the Dursleys. The three Dursleys mistreat Harry and force him to sleep in a cupboard under the staircase. As Harry's eleventh birthday nears, he begins to receive mysterious letters which his uncle attempts to hide. But on the eve of his birthday, Harry is visited by a giant named Hagrid who is there to bring Harry his admissions letter to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry finds out for the first time that he's a wizard, and the son of wizards – a fact his aunt and uncle have kept from him all these years.

A month later, Harry makes the journey to Hogwarts and on the way meets two other young wizards-in-training, also just arriving – Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. The three soon become fast friends and have many adventures and fun times learning the ins and outs of wizardry. Harry eventually tangles with the evil Voldemort, the "Dark Lord" who killed Harry's parents when he was just a baby (that's when Harry was a baby, not Voldemort – is this making any sense?), and who is seeking the Sorcerer's (read: Philosopher's) Stone in order to restore himself to power. After their struggle, good triumphs over evil, Voldemort is vanquished after nearly killing Harry, and the Stone is destroyed (or said to be, anyway). After that, the school term is over and everybody goes home for their summer holidays.

I know I haven't said anything about Harry's owl, or his magic broomstick, or the sorting hat, or Professor Dumbledore, or Snape, or Quirrell, or quidditch, or Fluffy the three-headed-dog. Or Voldemort drinking the unicorn blood. And there's a lot more to be discovered. Ms. Rowling does have an imagination – you have to give her that.

I never really understood why the publishers thought they needed to change the book's title for the American market – why "sorcerer's stone" should be any more acceptable or convey any more meaning than "philosopher's stone." I assume they wanted potential readers to make the connection with Tolkien's Ring trilogy, where sorcerers play a mighty role. And I suppose the term "philosopher's stone" does have a slightly less romantic sound – unless you're a student of alchemy.

I must admit I enjoyed the book more than I thought I would. Well, I've always liked fairy tales and stories that involve magic, so I suppose that's not so surprising. And I can see how once a kid reads the first book, he/she would want to go on and read the whole series – I'm a series addict myself. What I don't understand is what makes these books so special to young readers. As I say, it was enjoyable, but certainly no better than any of Lewis's Narnia books, and nowhere near as interesting as Susan Cooper's The Dark Is Rising sequence (I'm on the third book in that series and Harry and Hogwarts pale by comparison).

So while I'd definitely recommend it as a good read, I can't say I'm making haste to read any of the other Potter books. I certainly have no plans to buy any – if I do read another, it'll have to come from the library or a book swap. Given the evidence of her recent behavior, I'd say Harry and his friends have already brought J.K. a lot more money and fame than is good for her. She doesn't need my $8.99.

Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin, totally looks like Sabretooth from X-Men

American Idol Clay Aiken totally looks like Chucky, the evil doll from the Chucky movies

Rapper Ludacris totally looks like Red Fraggle from the television show Fraggle Rock

Zac Efron of high school musical totally looks like Yagami Light of death note

Ricky Rubio, Olympic basketball player from Spain, totally looks like Harry Potter

Singer Bono totally looks like actor Robin Williams

see famous look-a-like faces

"Cloaking is an important problem since invisibility can help survival in hostile environment," said Huanyang Chen of Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China.

He and his colleagues have proposed a theoretical "anti-cloak" that would partially cancel the effect of the invisibility cloak, which is another important problem as it turns out.

If this sounds like more movie magic, it's no accident. From the 1933 classic The Invisible Man to the more recent instalment in the Harry Potter series, devices that achieve invisibility have long been the stuff of film fantasy.

In recent years, however, scientists using special types of "meta" materials have shown that these Hollywood fantasies could one day become reality after all.

These materials are effectively invisible because of the way they interact with light. All materials scatter, bounce, absorb, reflect and otherwise alter light rays that strike them.

We perceive colour, for instance, because different materials and coatings interact with light differently. Transformation media cloaks are special materials that can bend light so much that it actually passes around the object completely.

In 2006, scientists at Duke University demonstrated in the lab that an object made of metamaterial is partially invisible when viewed using microwaves.

Sounds cool? Not so fast. Invisibility as it has been achieved so far in the laboratory is very limited. It works, but only for a narrow band of light wavelengths.

Nobody has found a way yet to make an object invisible to the broad range of wavelengths our eyes are attuned to seeing, said Chen, and doing so would be a challenge.

An even greater problem for anyone who has aspirations to be concealed in public one day is that invisibility achieved through transformation media is a two-way street.

With no light penetrating a perfect invisibility cloak, there would be no way for an invisible person to see outside. In other words, invisible people would also be blind-not exactly what Harry Potter had in mind.

But now, Chen and his colleagues have developed way to partially cancel the invisibility cloak's cloaking effect. Their "anti-cloak" would be a material with optical properties perfectly matched to those of an invisibility cloak.

"With the anti-cloak, Potter can see outside if he wants to," said Chen, who conducted the research together with his colleagues at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Have you heard that the newest movie in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, has had its release date delayed by more than half a year? Due to be released December 2008, it has been set back to July 2009!

To make the wait a little easier, take a look at JK Rowling's website and check out all the great links.

Cindy McCain is...

A poor man's Argus Filch.

Pretty sure they both hate the shit outta wizards too.

 

...he's a total gaywad.

I know gay-face when I see it, and I am calling it. In the new issue of Details Radcliffe says he lost his virginity at 16 to a much older "woman". I know that it's just hearsay, but according to Andy from Digging to China little Harry Potter has a much older, male live-in-lover. I trust Andy, and frankly this makes perfect sense to me. Perhaps it's just a case of thinking anyone you're crushing on is gay. It's true that Radcliffe is quite the little fox, but have you ever seen him interviewed? He seems awfully swishy.

On another note, how is it that he appears night after night completely nude on stage in Equus and nobody has gotten a legitimate picture of his wang yet??? That shit should have been all over the internet months a go! I guess security must be really tight because if we could see what we wanted online no one would have a reason to go see the play.

Harry Potter himself, well Daniel Radcliffe has admitted to losing his virginity in this month's Details magazine. Young Harry admits that he lost his virginity at 16 and  to quite an older woman (whom he says people would be embarrassed to hear about).

Damn. . . how old was the chick? Maybe it was Maggie Smith (89,000 years old) from the movie?!?!?

Această vrăjitorie "domestică" nu este altceva decât reînvierea într-o nouă formă a păgânismului ce întunecă mintea şi înrobeşte voinţa oamenilor spre a-i conduce în cele din urmă la venerarea lui Satan.

HARRY POTTER Este un orfan isteţ şi atrăgător care locuieşte cu nesuferitele lui rude. Pe când era copil, Voldemor, vrăjitorul cel rău, i-a ucis pe părinţii lui - vrăjitori şi ei, încercând să-l ucidă şi pe el. Dar Harry Potter, având puteri supranaturale, a reuşit să scape. La vârsta de 11 ani a primit o invitaţie pentru a studia la şcoala de vrăjitori Hogwarts. Acolo descoperi, după o scurtă pregătire, faptul că şi el de asemenea, este vrăjitor, chiar unul de calitate. Treptat este iniţiat în lumea vrăjitoriei care se prezintă cititorului ca una plină de provocări, fascinantă şi misterioasă.

Această nouă lume aparent inocentă este zugrăvită în cuvinte de Joanne K. Rowling, care într-un interviu dat ziarului Times a declarat că este membră a bisericii lui
Satan din USA şi că donează jumătate din venitul ei acestei organizaţii. Astăzi, mai mult de 14.000.000 de copii din toată lumea aparţin bisericii lui Satan în principal datorită propagandei personajului Harry Potter.

Ecranizările celor de la Warner Bros. Company (statistic, 41% din întregul colectiv de 856 oameni poartă nume evreieşti iar compania ce se ocupă cu efectele speciale se numeşte Lucas Digital Ltd.) ţintesc asupra copiilor între 6 şi 18 ani, saturaţi de platitudinea vieţii moderne, de neînţelegerea vieţuirii creştine caracterizată ca fiind învechită, de oprimare şi nedreptate. Orice copil are cel puţin un motiv temeinic pentru a se regăsi în pielea lui Harry Potter. Iar de aici încep toate ispitirile ocultismului asupra sufletului şi a conştiinţei.
Dar iată cum ajung să descrie copii lumea magică din cărţile cu Harry Potter:

1. O fetiţă de 12 ani scrie: "Am citit toate cărţile de trei ori. Când le citesc călătoresc într-o lume magică. Aş vrea să devin şi eu vrăjitoare."
2. Un băieţel de 10 ani afirmă: "Când mă voi face mare as vrea să învăţ despre necromanţie putând în acest fel să invoc marii demoni de pe pământ." 3. O fetiţă de 9 ani zice: "Sunt o cititoare înfocată a lui Harry Potter şi as fi vrut ca în lumea noastră să existe magie." FILOSOFIA ANTIHRISTICã

În primul rând în nici un film HP nu se rosteşte numele lui Hristos şi nici nu se pomeneşte de Dumnezeu. Totul este magie, vrajă, mister, iniţiere, putere. Câştigă cine e mai iscusit în folosirea baghetei şi rostirea formulelor. Ce e Crucea pentru creştin este bagheta pentru cei din "lumea cealaltă". Însă micuţul Harry are o harismă specială: este un mesia, un invincibil, un protejat celest, care după ce trece de toate obstacolele îşi arată adevărata putere: IUBIREA de părinţi şi de cei din jurul său. Iubirea este cea care-l ajută să-l învingă pe Vrăjitorul cel Rău cu mâinile goale, iubirea este pricina pentru care- şi pune viaţa în pericol pentru aproapele. Magia l-a făcut să înţeleagă şi să aleagă iubirea, nu Dumnezeu. Magia este calea către iubire, magia este iubire, magia este pricina a tot binele ce vine din iubire. Restul e o "problemă de alegere" ce nu are nici o legătură cu Hristos şi dragostea Lui răstignită.

Prin orice privitor la aceste seriale, se împlineşte o profeţie rostită la început de Vrăjitorul cel Bun numit Albus Dumbledore (ce seamănă perfid de bine cu Bătrânii Ortodoxiei): "Acest băiat va fi faimos: nu va fi un copil în toată lumea care să nu-i ştie numele." Într-adevăr trebuie să-i dăm dreptate, căci orice privitor sau cititor este transformat într-un personaj ce trăieşte alături de eroul principal, chiar după terminarea filmului sau a cărţii, prin afecţiunea faţă de HP şi pomenirea numelui acestuia. Aşa cum rostirea numelui Voldemort provoacă teribilă frică în lumea vrăjitorească, aşa şi proorocitul nume Harry trebuie să devină o incantaţie bineplăcută copiilor din lumea reală.

Imaginativa lume din inima castelului Hogwards este ispititoare. Acolo totul este magie. Cerul este o vrajă, fantomele bântuie nestingherite, ţi se poate întâmpla orice oricând. Hrana se dă prin vrajă, uşile se deschid prin vrajă, blestemele se dezleagă prin vrajă, micile neîmpliniri tot prin vrajă se rezolvă. Omul vrăjitor şi alchimist este creatorul şi stăpânul acestui demonic univers.
DrãcuSori simpatici

Majoritatea personajelor virtuale, sunt fiinţe neumane cu chip de draci. Chiar dacă arată "bestial" filmele ni-i prezintă a nu fi precum susţine Biserica: trufaşi, vicleni, pizmaşi, hidoşi şi plini de pofte spurcate.

Nu, "micii demonaşi" - goblini, trolli, elfi, fantome cu şi fără cap - nu sunt chiar aşa răi şi urâţi, ci prin binele antihristic "devin" simpatici şi nevinovaţi. Aşadar este de ajuns pentru un copil să creadă că uneori şi demonii pot fi "de treabă" dacă eşti bun cu ei, arătându-se chiar "frumoşi" dacă-ţi împlinesc dorinţele dând inimii bucurie şi că în general "spiritele" nu pot face nici un rău celor care posedă forţe magice.

Recuzita vrãjitoreascã

Ceea ce vedem petrecându-se cu personajele sunt întruparea unor practici vrăjitoreşti: profesoara McGonagall transformându-se în pisică şi invers, mături zburătoare, licori cu putere asupra vieţii şi a morţii, levitaţii de obiecte, incantaţii paralizante. Toate preînchipuie manifestări demonice la care se adaugă un fundal şerpesc terifiant şi puţin sânge negru pentru ca scena să fie desăvârşită şi captivantă, pentru a stârni pasiunea pentru mister, ocult, întunecime. Auzirea şi citirea numelor drăceşti (Draco şi Lucius Malfoy, casa Viperinilor, Snape (snake), lord Voldemort, Salazar (nume de diavol), aleea Diagon-dragon) este o chemare a forţelor răului pe tot parcursul filmului, o permanentă incantare şamanică şi nu în cele din urmă o familiarizare a pruncilor cu macabrul. Sfântul Ciprian, fost vrăjitor, spunea despre trecutul său întunecat că demonii aşa mare putere i-au încredinţat, încât putea amăgi minţile oamenilor făcând în chip real cele de mai sus; şi tot sfântul mărturiseşte că doar cu harul lui Dumnezeu a reuşit să se izbăvească de o aşa mare înşelare.

Prin tot ceea ce face Harry Potter stârneşte uimire şi admiraţie. Lupta lui pentru bine (binele antihristic) este uşa de intrare în sufletul admiratorilor săi a întregii influenţe magico-demonice. De unde are HP aceste puteri supranaturale şi cum le poate stăpâni? Filmele ne răspund că de fapt toţi avem în noi aceste "afinităţi magice" şi "predispoziţii sufleteşti", doar că încă nu ştim a ni le trezi şi le pune la treabă. Harry a fost creat tocmai pentru a apărea ca un nou salvator, chip animat al viitorului Antihrist. El îşi înfrânge duşmanii şi îşi salvează prietenii într-un mod supranatural. Cărţile despre el, treptat şi parcă programatic, învaţă totul despre vrăjitorie şi despre modul folosirii ei pentru a-i influenţa pe ceilalţi şi a te răzbuna pe duşmani. Ele prezintă de asemenea lumea magiei ca fiind de două tipuri: magia albă, considerată ca bună şi magia neagră, privită ca Satanism. Totuşi, în caz că eşti în pericol, pentru a te păzi de niscai probleme, ţi se permite să foloseşti şi magia neagră. Semnul fulgerului de pe fruntea HP este un semn satanist, este chiar semnul fiarei.
În film mai e o parşivenie. Toate scenele în care HP şi prietenii săi ajung la situaţii limită (întâlnirea cu vrăjitorul-vampir, cu păianjenii etc.) apare ca din senin, neprogramată şi neaşteptată, soluţia salvatoare. Dată cu mărinimie de "atotputernicul supranatural", de cel care se lasă în umbră subînţeles a exista şi a conduce totul, de cel care se multiplică în multe şi nebănuite chipuri şi forme în imaginaţia privitorului. Dar nu vă lăsaţi amăgiţi, căci despre Satana e vorba, nu de Dumnezeu-Hristos, carele toate le lucrează la lumină şi toate ale Lui îi poartă întipărite numele, crucea, chipul şi asemănarea.

Amuzament sau batjocurã?

Discutând cu mulţi potterişti, nu am fost surprinşi să aflăm că reeducarea ce li s-a făcut este foarte perfidă şi greu de îndreptat. Pentru mulţi puterea magică e ca o credinţă pe care o doresc pentru a face binele. Şi mai mulţi s-ar lăsa de şcoală şi ar urma iniţierile de la Hogwarts. Dar toţi s-au lăsat vrăjiţi de filme şi s-au amuzat copios de întâmplările scornite. Însă de toţi aceştia, la urmă, s-a mai amuzat cineva. Este cel care nu rabdă lumea aceasta creată armonios de Dumnezeu şi inventează universuri în care mintea să nu mai poată avea oprelişti în Lege sau Cruce, o altă lume în care cuvântul Evangheliei nu are nici o putere. E cel ce plăsmuieşte spaţii "libere" în care oamenii pot trăi mai bine fără Hristos, în care oamenii se fac ei înşişi hristoşi în locul lui Hristos. E acelaşi Satan care-i batjocorea acum 2000 ani pe cei ce huleau Chipul Împăratului Răstignit.

Pentru cei mari filmul este destul de "neserios" pentru a ridica sus-numitele probleme creştin-educaţionale. Este "doar" o relaxare de câteva ore a întregii familii. Ceea ce pe cei mari îi îndulceşte, pe cei mici îi împătimeşte prin faptul că în imaginaţia celor tineri minciuna ia chipul adevărului, faptele magice petrecându-se cu adevărat ca realităţi nemincinoase. Harry impune copiilor un model de vieţuire ce renunţă la valorile tradiţional creştineşti, preschimbându-le oricum şi oricând voiesc. Tutorii refuzând cercetarea ortodoxă a lucrurilor, nu vor mai putea vedea alunecarea spre demonism a copiilor,afinităţile acestora spre ocult, vor privi mai "îngăduitori" micile lor "năstruşnicii magice". Nu vor mai vedea nici un conflict între învăţătura Bisericii şi "aplicaţiile" de la Hogwarts. Astfel de alunecări educative nu vor mai putea urmări nici controla micuţilor dezvoltarea noului "univers paralel" în care libertatea totală, fără legi, interdicţii, dogme sau canoane, este dumnezeul căruia pe nesimţite ajung să i se-nchine.

A vieţui şi a vorbi ca şi cum Hristos nu ar exista, ori a huli în chip vădit pe Hristos, păcatul este acelaşi. A viziona un film erotic, ori o ecranizare potteriană, păcatul este identic: satisfacerea poftelor lăuntrice şi batjocorirea chipului lui Dumnezeu din om.

Iată de ce atragem atenţia fiilor Bisericii Ortodoxe de a se feri de aceste manifestări nemântuitoare de suflet şi pierzătoare de Hristos Dumnezeu.

Martirie Paduraru-despre chipul omului nou

My first ever WRock song was 'Save Ginny Weasley from Dean Thomas' by Harry and the Potters, which I still love, and is one of the most-played songs on my iPod.

I recently discovered The Moaning Myrtles, The Ministry of Magic and the Parselmouths, all of which now have pride of place on my iPod.

I love WRock for its versatility- one band does real bouncy, bubbly pop, and then the next does electro-rock, and then you'll come across the rarities that do some weird kind of music that just sounds like Harry Potter words put to a backing track, but is somehow cool. =]