Harry Potter and Some Ridiculous Theiving Christians

I'm a fan. I've read the entire series and enjoyed it all immensely. They're fun books with engaging storylines, interesting characters and have a little morality thrown in to boot.

Back when the books were relatively new I remember a bunch of Christians getting super pissed about them. "They're teaching children to worship witchcraft" is something that one of them was likely to say. This is stupid on so many levels. I mean I hate to break it to you but there is no such thing as witchcraft. To believe in witchcraft you'd have to believe in, that's right, witches! I mean yes, I know there are people out there who claim to be witches or wiccans or whatever they're calling it. Basically they are either an earth worshiping deists or they just like to wear a lot of black. Either way, they can't perform magic because, that's right, magic does not exist. So let them play with their stupid little ouji boards or crystals or amulets because they're not really accomplishing anything, much less anything "evil". So if the little children try to perform any of the magic in a Harry Potter book the worst that will happen is that they will become really disappointed. On the upside, they may learn some Latin.

Apparently however in the years since that great calamity (although I believe J.K. Rowling still gets death threats) it seems several Christians bothered to read the books and realized that the books are actually quite moral. Some of these people have now started to claim them as Christian tales and that Harry is clearly a Christ figure in them.

I find that so freaking obnoxious. Harry Potter is not Jesus Christ. The books are not about religion. Why must they decide to retrofit something to their own philosophy? What's wrong with enjoying a great adventure series? Does everything have to be about JESUS? How boring is that?! Why can't something be about somebody/something else? You know, FOR FUN!

Wait a minute, Voldemort was killed and came back (resurrected), he had a group of loyal followers, he was betrayed by one of the ones closest to him. His biological parents were not of the same ilk. Wait a dying for your sins minute! Maybe Voldemort is the Christ figure! I wonder why they haven't been making that argument?

I mean you could glean meaning out of the directions of a packet of instant soup mix but isn't it kind of a waste of time?

Questionaire time again

* Worst way to die?
Any way which is painful and I see it coming.

* What is the worst injury you've ever had?
Cat scratch disease. It made a lymph gland in my arm swell and stay swollen(painfully so) for months. It was pretty damned gross when it erupted and issued forth brown (yes brown) liquid. Maybe this should have been the grossest rather than worst and I guess it's not technically an injury. Oh well, it's all typed out now.

* What is your favorite thing about thanksgiving?
Duh, the food!

* What makes an awesome party?
When the guest list is limited to my closest friends.

*What's something most would consider an insult but you enjoy having said about you?
That I'm weird.

* Favorite kind of dog?
A cat.

* Favorite carnival food (everyone has one)?
No we don't.

*Are you a morning or night person?
I must admit that I love the morning, if I've had enough sleep. It's so beautiful.

* Worst drunken/drugged up habit?
My only real drunken habit is to discuss how drunk I am.

*What bill do you hate paying the most?
Rent! Money down a hole, purchasing nothing but time. It kills me.

* Last time you puked from drinking?
Only time I puked from drinking is the first time I got drunk. Went way too far on the rum & cokes.

*When is the last time you got drunk and danced on a bar?
Never.

*Name of your first grade teacher?
Mrs. Adams

*What do you really want to be doing right now?
Reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

* What did you want to be when you were growing up?
An astronaut.

*How many colleges did you attend?
Two, Ventrura College (a junior college) and then San Jose State University.

* If you could move anywhere and take someone with you...
I'd like to live in St. Ives for a while. I'd take my hubby, as long as he doesn't cross me.

* First thought when the alarm went off this morning?
Snooze

* Last thought before going to sleep last night?
Not Dobby.

*Favorite style of underwear??
Semi-granny. I'm sorry but I don't like stuff riding up my crack!

* Favorite style of underwear for the opposite sex?
Boxers.

* What errand/chore do you despise?
Kitty litter & taking out the trash.

* If you didn't have to work, would you volunteer at an art gallery?
Does a community theatre count?

*Get up early or sleep in?
Get up early.

* Favorite NON sexual thing to do at night with a girl/guy?
Just hang with the hubby. We watch tv and make a lot of jokes.

* A secret that you wouldn't mind everyone knowing?
I don't think I have anything. I'm really not that interesting.

* How many joints pop when you get out of bed in the morning?
Right ankle, just before I get out of bed.

* Do you think marriage is an outdated ritual that was invented by people who died at 20?
No.

* Do you cheer for the bad guy?
Depends on the bad guy.

* What Hollywood star do you think resembles you best?
According to a face recognition program I resemble Juliette Binoche the most but I don't really see it. I don't really think I look like anybody.

* Norm or Cliff?
Feh! Cheers was totally overrated.

* The Cosby Show or the Simpsons?
Duh! Simpsons. How old is this freaking questionaire?

* Do you like the person who sits directly across from you at work?
Yes.

* If you could get away with it, who would you kill?
No one. I couldn't kill anyone. I could take away their liberty by condemning them to prison but never death. There are too many shades of grey in this world for that degree of certainty.

* Have you ever had to use a fire extinguisher for its intended purpose?
Nope.

* Strangest place you have ever brushed your teeth?
Is the shower strange?

* At this point in your life would you rather start a new career or relationship?
Career.

* Do you go to church?
Of course not.

* Pencil or pen?
Pen.

This is really cool

Random

I miss having a real phone. Although I'm not fond of talking on the phone in general, I hate cell phones. I only acquiesced to getting one when it became a necessity, as I did not want to make a lot of calls on someone else's phone when I was a house guest. Then we were locked into a 2-year contract and then we hung on to them because I'll have to admit, they're dashed useful things. But still I really don't like cell phones. For one thing, they're too small. Everyone seems to like the smaller ones but I don't. Not that I want the 1984 six-pounder, but one with a little more volume would be nice because I can never find it in my bag and then having to press this little thing against the side of my head while feeling like I have to yell because my mouth isn't anywhere near the thing. Another thing, the radiation. Information is dangerous in the hands of some, in mine it's merely annoying. I invariably get a psychosomatic headache if I talk on one for longer than ten minutes. I'm lame, I know. Lastly I find them aesthetically displeasing and then people take it one step further and bling them up making them more hideous. Oh well. I know they're here to stay. I'm just saying.

Not Following the Crowd...

My sister was my guru growing up and she instilled in me not only my love of particular types of music but also a sense to recognize things I'm not supposed to like because the masses like them. I became quite adept at singling out those things over the years. In general she was right about most of those things. Every once in a while though poo-pooing something made me enjoy it more. For example, music by Journey. I LOVE music by Journey. Those tremendously cheesey, and insincere power ballads make me giggle ever so. That's some quality cheese.

Of course I'm my own person now and although I've joined the fold on a few things, I still evaluate them on my own before I do so. I'm still shamed to admit that I really enjoy American Idol, something my sister has resisted. And I'm not at all shamed to say I've joined the Potter camp something my sister rails against. What can I say? She's wrong. HAHAHAHAHAH! Ok, to each her own. She doesn't have to be interested in them. All I have left to say about that is I think the lady doth protest too much.

Here are a couple of things that I cannot stand that others seem to love...

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The Lord of the Rings movies - I only saw the first two because I wasn't going to let that string of movies steal three more hours of my life away. I just don't understand the interest in them. THEY'RE MISERABLE! I'm not fond of any of the characters and was never compelled to care whether or not they completed their task. Some may say this is because I didn't read the books. That is true. I did read The Hobbit but didn't enjoy it very much. What I did enjoy was The Belgariad. Same middle-earth kind of world but much more interesting characters and there's quite a lot of humor. The Belgariad is a collection of 5 or 6 books in two volumes. I highly recommend.

The Godfather "saga"

BORING! Now this is something my sister seemed to like. I saw the first movie, the one that started it all, the one that everyone craps their pants over and I was bored. Once again, I didn't care. Why on earth should I care about these nasty thugs? I'm extending this to The Sopranos without ever seeing it. I don't care about the mafia. They're nasty, horrible, selfish, amoral, ignoble subhumans. I don't care what motivates them, I don't care what they're feeling, and I'm not compelled by their power struggles. Such blatant immorality disturbs and offends (yes, offends) me deeply.

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Small Talk

Dear god (if I believed in you), deliver me from small talk. We have a new person in our office and he's chatty. He's not been a total imposition but how I do dread the small talk. How was your weekend? Good morning, how are you today? And other barely scratching the surface, filler chats. I find these so wearing. I really do. If people are discussing something I'm interested in, I'll join in otherwise I really like to be left alone.

You don't want to get mixed up with a guy like me, Dotty. I'm a loner, a rebel.

Well sort of.

Skip, skip, skip to my lou

My sis complained that I haven't blogged due to the play. Well, I'm busy but I also haven't really anything much to say. Here's a quick catch up.

Meet Me in St. Louis- We're half way through the run now. We have three more weekends of performances left. I haven't had a full day off in three weeks and so I'm kinda tired a lot. The show is going well. Hell week (the week preceding opening) was indeed hell and very unfun. Most of the cast is wonderful but I'd love to kick the shit out of a couple of them. The show itself is very cute and fun. We've received good reviews (see link), the numerous scene changes are going much more smoothly, but I'll be glad when it's done. I'm really kinda done with theatre for a while. This show has not been a very good experience.

I don't think I've done so great a job on this show and oddly enough I keep getting told how great I am as a stage manager. I'm even being courted by Contra Costa Civic Theatre to do more stage managing for them next season. I have to say CCCT has not been the problem with this production but I think I'll probably decline. I can't do this anymore when I have a full time job. I really need rest. It hasn't all been horrible, I like seeing how far the show has come, I like running the performances, I'm just tired and severly unenthusiastic.

David, Dana & Rick were supposed to see it last Friday but due to a major error in judgement that was called off so they're going to attempt it again this Saturday. One of my bosses is going to bring her kids to the penultimate performance.

Road Trip- My company applied for a grant and I had to drive the paperwork to Sacramento before the deadline last Friday. I would have totally been psyched for an assignment like this except I had a performance that evening so I ended up being more tired. Grrr! But it wasn't so bad. Sacramento wasn't too hot and I like breaking from the same old, same old.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Rick and I saw it last night. The movie was interrupted by a fire alarm (good old Bay Street) about 15 minutes in which provided me with a convenient bathroom break. It was pretty good, the movie not my bathroom break, although that too was a success. As per usual they changed things quite, and didn't round out a single character but I still enjoyed it. My copy of Deathly Hallows should arrive next week. (squeal!)