Some thoughts on The Sorcerer's Stone

A few weeks ago I finally finished "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling, much to my sister's delight. Having only skimmed the book when it first came to the states, I couldn't remember much of what had happened when the I went to see "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the theater. I really enjoyed that movie and the sequels I've seen so far (I haven't had the opportunity to see "The Goblet of Fire" yet!), but my sister kept insisting that I read the book. "You have to read the book," she said. "If nothing else, I'll have someone to talk to about it." So I did.

It was much better than when I'd skimmed through it the first time. There's something to be said for actually reading a book and not simply skipping through the pages to get a sense of it. *g* I was expecting to find in the book a lot of extra material that couldn't be in the movie; there's always more information in the book form of a story. I noticed two things (the most). First, I think they did a great job making the book into a movie. Most of the parts that were changed didn't differ greatly from the book; they were more of a summary of what was going on. That said, I have to mention the second thing I noticed. There was a fundamental change in the frequency that one character appeared in the movie as compared to the book. I was really surprised that Neville Longbottom had more of a role in the original story than we were led to believe in the movie. He was present when the students performed their detention in the woods with Hagrid, not Ron. My sister tells me that Neville plays a growing role of importance in the books that follow. I find this very interesting. Just what is the significance of Neville Longbottom? There must be a reason for it. Hm.

Soon I'll be adding the next book to my To-Read list.

Traveling the Silk Road

While surfing the net last night, I found a wonderful site called Riversleigh Manor. It's a collaboration of websites and blogs meant to inspire, and inspire they do. I really enjoyed looking at 2005 The Silk Road Advent Calendar; each numbered day is a link to a "map" of the silk road with creative projects, writings and a little bit of history.

Mentioned (and pictured) often were altered books. They looked really cool, and so I searched online for more on altered books. It turns out there's a whole society of Altered Book Artists, The International Society of Altered Book Artists (ISABA). There's a wonderful site showing how to make mini altered books. More on altered books can be found here. I want to make one now! :)

A sampling other sites connected to the ones above:
Soul Food Cafe
Cave of Enchantress
Hermitage Publications
Nina's Treehouse
Riversleigh and The Lemurian Faraway Tree

Have fun exploring!


*(I added the labyrinth pic to emphasize the way I see these sites interconnecting. The way they link up makes surfing through the sites an artistic journey of sorts. Too cool)

St. Valentine's Day

My little neice called earlier to wish us a happy Valentine's Day or, more precisely, "Happy Christmas Tree Valentine's Day"! *g*

I actually didn't remember it was Valentine's Day for most of the day except when others reminded me. I've never been involved with anyone on this holiday so I've never really celebrated it. My mom, however, gave me a box of chocolate. :) So yay for chocolate! :D

I thought I'd post a few links on the history of Valentine's Day for anyone who's ever wondered. The History Channel's site has fun trivia facts among other things. Did you know there were 192 million Valentine’s Day cards exchanged annually? Well, according to The History Channel's site, there were.

This site has interesting tidbits, too, including a section on Valentine traditions. For example, in Wales wooden love spoons were carved and given as gifts on February 14th. It doesn't say when this was a tradition so it might not be in practice anymore.

AmericanCatholic.org gives a little history as well.

Of course, Wikipedia has a section on St. Valentine's Day, too.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Booked by 3: Children's Books

from February's Booked by 3

Name your 3 favorite children's series.

1. Alice in Wonderland books
2. LeGuin's Earthsea books
3. The Chronicles of Narnia books

*runners up might be Mary Norton's Borrowers books and the Choose Your Own Adventure Series

Name your 3 favorite non-series children's books.

1. The Velveteen Rabbit (Margery Williams)
2. The Rocking Horse Secret (Rumer Godden)
3. Where the Wild Things Are (Maurice Sendak)

*"The Velveteen Rabbit" is a definite favorite. I love the other two as well, but since I can't think of any other books at the moment, I'm not sure if they're really favorites or just in the top 10-25 favorites. *g*

Name 3 favorite children's book characters.

1. Alice from Lewis Carroll's Wonderland books
2. Laura Ingalls
3. Nancy Drew

* runners up: Pippi Longstocking, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Gandalf (from "The Hobbit"), Winnie the Pooh, the pokey little puppy (hee!), and Anne of Green Gables!

****
"A good book is the best of friends, the same to-day and for ever." - Martin Farquhar Tupper (1810 - 1889)
quote from Book Quote of the Month

Reason to Blog

from Question of the Day

Why did you start blogging in the first place?

It happened suddenly. I'd heard about blogging for awhile, and my sister kept telling me how cool it was. I didn't quite understand how it was different than any other website until one of my friends sent me a link to her blog. From there I followed a link to another (mutual) friend's blog (on Live Journal). So I was lurking at some friends' blogs and suddenly the blogging-bug hit me; I wanted a way to share online finds, thoughts that plague me during the day, fun tests & quotes, without bulk-mailing my friends. *g* I started my own blog (this one) and realized that weblogging is a bit addictive. lol Since then I've started other blogs as well. *g*

Somehow the world of web logs fascinates me. I might actually starting video-blogging soon. ;-)

"Interlopers" Audiobook and Paperback (signed by Ben Browder)

There are only three days left to place your bid in the special Farscape Webmasters Association auction.

From the website:

You may remember that Ben Browder did the reading on the Buzzy Multimedia
audio book of Alan Dean Foster's novel, Interlopers. Ben signed an audiobook
set for the Farscape Webmaster's Association to auction off as a fundraiser,
and to our surprise and delight, he included the paperback copy of the novel
which he read in preparation for doing the audiobook! Both items are signed by
Ben, and the book has a great note on the title page. The books are now up
on eBay in an auction that ends Feb-11-06 10:17:26 PST.

All proceeds of this auction go to the Farscape Webmaster's Association's "To
Be Continued...." Fund to support fan efforts to promote Farscape, including
fan tables at conventions this coming con season!
Check it out:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6603060541_

Genius Test

But the fact that some geniuses were laughed at does not imply that all who are laughed at are geniuses. They laughed at Columbus, they laughed at Fulton, they laughed at the Wright brothers. But they also laughed at Bozo the Clown.

-- Carl Sagan (1934-1996)


** I happen to like this quote a lot. (hee!)

Oscar Nom for Dave Elsey!

Congratulations to Dave Elsey (Farscape alum!) and Nikki Gooley for their joint Achievement in Makeup nomination for “Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith” (20th Century Fox)!

“Crash” (Lions Gate) got a nomination for Best Screenplay (Screenplay by Paul Haggis & Bobby Moresco and Story by Paul Haggis), Film Editing, Directing (Paul Haggis) and Best Picture (Paul Haggis and Cathy Schulman, Producers). I haven't seen this one, but Paul Haggis is the man who brought us "Due South"! *bg* I will forever love Paul Haggis, Paul Gross and Jay Semko in much the same way that I get warm and fuzzy over Chris Carter, David & Gillian, and Mark Snow. Just like I will forever adore David Kemper & Brian Henson, Ben & Claudia, and Guy Gross.

Yay for the Wallace and Gromit nomination! :D

I'm curious to see who ends up winning the Oscar for Visual Effects, too. The competition seems tough in that category:
"The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”
“King Kong"
“War of the Worlds”

To see the complete list on nominations, click here.

* cross-posted from my live journal

A Killer Within on Lifetime!

Next week's a treat for Ben Browder and C.T. Howell fans. "A Killer Within," the independent murder mystery film by Brad Keller, comes to Lifetime this Tuesday. This suspense/thriller stars C. Thomas Howell, Sean Young, Ben Browder, Dedee Pfeiffer and Giancarlo Esposito. I'm both a Ben fan (no, really? *g*) and also a fan of independent films (and filmmaking) so this is a cool combo for me. =)

"A Killer Within" premieres on Lifetime this Tuesday (1/17) at 9pm est and repeats on Wednesday (1/18) at 4pm est.

* Please pass the word and tune in Tuesday night!



The movie's site is really cool, too, if you want to check that out as well. ; )

101 in 1001 Days

from 101 in 1001 days.

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as new year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Start Date: Friday, January 13, 2006
End Date: Friday, October 10, 2008

My 101
1. Get my ears repierced.
2. Publish this list on the web. (posted 1/12/06)
3. Go to the Chinese New Year celebrations in Boston’s Chinatown.
4. Video some of the Chinese New Year celebrations.
5. Read M.A. Bernier’s “Dragonstone.”
6. Read one of the Pratchett books that Digger lent me.
7. Cook something in my crockpot.
8. Take a dance class.
9. Get my driver’s permit.
10. Spend a day without once going online. (completed 11/24/07)
11. Go on a real, honest-to-goodness date.
20. Take a class through either the BCAE or the CCAE.
13. Complete at least five things on my 2006 New Years Resolutions list. (failed - alas!)
14. Write in my diary at least once a month until the 1001 days are over. (failed!)
15. Read at least two of the unread books on my bookshelf. (failed)
16. Get my driver’s license.
17. Take a film/video class. (completed 6/1/07: Making Media Now)
18. Read a book by Lois McMasters Bujold (the author Mreen always recommends to me).
19. Start an IRA.
20. Get my finances back under control (pre-2004 at least), specifically my credit cards. (failed)
21. Make a dentist appointment. (completed 2/22/06)
22. Go to the doctor’s. (completed April 2007)
23. Go one week without soda. (completed 3/8/06)
24. Go one week without a sweet frozen coffee drink. (completed 3/3/06)
25. Go one week without a sugary sweet junky snack food. (completed 3/8/06)
26. Go for a walk after I get out of work at night at least three times a week come this Spring. (failed! - it's already June, and I haven't been getting out of work early enough this Spring to go on any walks)
27. Take a Tai Chi or martial arts class.
28. Try one new thing every month, no matter how small, for at least six months. :)
29. Take a cruise.
30. Visit Missy.
31. Visit Martha’s Vineyard.
32. Visit Canada.
33. Take a Boston Duck Tour.
34. Go to Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. (completed 8/2/07)
35. Visit the Quincy Tea Room.
36. Finish a cross-stitch project.
37. Go on a picnic.
38. Go snorkelling again.
39. Take the MENSA test.
40. Buy Sims2. (completed 06/08/06)
41. Complete (and then post) the WIP meme that I saw on someone’s LJ awhile back.
42. Attend a fancy, dress up event in Boston or NYC (other than the Emmys).
43. See a play or musical. (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe)
44. Take a tour at the Day House.
45. Get a pen pal. (I used to have many. *g*)
46. Work on the possibility of an Escapade 2007/2008 convention. (it's not a financial possibility)
47. Get the Boston Scapers site up and running.
48. Look into having a FS or a film table for Norwoodopia Day.
49. Attend another Farscape convention.
50. Work on a film with Solonia.
51. Make another music video.
52. Submit the above music video to the 2006 Farscape Creation Con in Burbank. (completed 10/6/06)
53. Complete the NaNoWriMo 2006 challenge. (failed)
54. Finish at least one of my written works in progress. (failed)
55. Submit one of my finished stories for publication in a magazine.
56. Submit one of my finished stories for publication with a book publisher.
57. Film a movie of my own.
58. Submit the film to at least three festivals.
59. Finish my torturemazes website.
60. Work with S. on her video web series or make a video web series of my own. (failed)
61. Participate in the 26 Things meme.
62. Make the FS commercial I’ve wanted to make.
63. Produce something for the purpose of airing it on my local cable station.
64. Write a screenplay. (failed)
65. Organize Ella photos in an album.
66. Replace at least five of my VHS tapes with DVDs.
67. Make a plan for a family reunion.
68. Catalogue all the CDs I own.
69. Catalogue of all the DVDs I own.
70. Catalogue of all the VHS tapes I own.
71. Copy all least ten pages from one of my old diaries (from elementary school)
72. Put the VHS tape my aunt & uncle had made for my grandmother onto DVD.
73. Make a list of all the books I own. (in progress)
74. Get my old LCIII files onto my current laptop .. somehow. (in progress)
75. Buy a back up hard drive. (one was actually given to me as a gift; I'll consider this item completed)
76. Watch at least two of the Chinese videos my dad sent me. (completed 4/1/06)
77. Transfer T.’s vids to digital form as she had requested.
78. Write an actual letter (not an email, not a card) to a friend.
79. Visit M&B and little Liam. (completed!)
80. Go to a film festival.
81. List my top 100 movies. (in progress)
82. List my top 100 books. (in progress)
83. Watch three episodes of Firefly in full. (completed 3/18/06)
84. Watch the new Battlestar Galactica mini series. (completed 4/1/06)
85. Get together with my friend C.T. (technically completed 3/25/06, though the circumstances weren't happy)
86. Call Gno. (completed 3/9/06)
87. Make an audio blog post.
88. Visit my local library and get reaquainted with it since it was re-done.
89. Visit my great aunt Esmeralda.
90. Visit with my living grandmother. (completed 07/11/08)
91. Visit my dad more. (failed)
92. Get better aquainted with all the bells and whistles on my laptop. (failed)
93. Get better aquainted with all the bells and whistles on my camcorder.
94. Get better aquainted with all the bells and whistles on my new digital camera.
95. Dye my hair auburn.
96. See Cyanide Valentine live.
97. Give Laura her Emmy tape back. (completed)
98. Introduce my dad to his granddaughter.
99. Sell 10 items on ebay.
100. Start another 101 things to do when the 1001 days near their end.
101. Complete all the items on this list. (failed *sigh*)

Days Left: 0
Tasks Remaining: 69

Happy New Year!

I wrote for more than an hour in my diary today. I feel semi-accomplished. Before I return to either video editing or playing with my Sims families, I decided to skim the Daily Meme for some posting inspiration and found one I liked.

My first meme of the new year. :)

Don't think of them as Resolutions. Think of them as Goals or even just "Things You'd Like." But list up to seven things you hope to accomplish before 2006 draws to a close.

1. Make a dentist appointment.
2. Start an IRA or another such retirement plan for myself.
3. Get my finances back under control (pre-2004 at least).
4. Finish at least one of my written works in progress.
5. Film. (either on my own or working with someone else)
6. Complete the 2006 NaNoWriMo challenge.
7. Submit one of my finished stories for publication. (hopefully for publication)

Posted as part of this week's Sunday Seven challenge.

Happy New Year!



May everyone's New Year's Eve celebrations be fun and safe. May 2006 bring much health, happiness and success! :D

Fun in Flash

For your surfing pleasure, may I suggest the following (click the links!):

1. The War of the Worlds in 30 seconds with bunnies
warning! spoilers! *g*

2. The Excorcist in 30 seconds with bunnies
warning! spoilers! *g*

3. Angryalien.com (Here you'll find a whole host of little animated movies in Bun-O-Vision, including the ones above.)

4. http://samorost2.net/ .. no, there are no bunnies at this one, but it's a really cool Flash puzzle game (hee!)

5. Treasure Box is back! Yay! :D

Merry Christmas Tree

I think that'll be my new holiday wish/greeting for people. Have a merry Christmas tree. My little niece wished us that this weekend. She was so excited. Christmas trees, lights, people smiling, lots of joy, especially for her. At the annual Christmas eve gathering, she was a hit with all the relatives who hadn't seen her in two years. They commented on how happy and polite she was. *g* When anyone asked, she would say she wanted a Christmas tree from "Santa comin' to town." Sometimes she sang "Jingle Bells" though not to the "guys upstairs." On Christmas day she was given a little kitchen set from her parents and trains, books and a baby doll from us. She also received a vacuum cleaner which she *loved*. She was busy cleaning up the living room most of the day. *bg* We also watched "Polar Express." (more trains! yay! *vbg*)

We learned a very valuable lesson though. Too many gifts equal an overwhelmed child. Also, assemble the toys and put the batteries in *before* you wrap the gifts. You'd think we would've learned this on her birthday, but no. :p

Somewhere in there the meaning was lost, too. My niece had been excited about the day we remember Jesus' birthday (that's how we had all explained Christmas to her), and she was still excited when the day came, but it seemed so rushed, like a blur. I wish we'd taken a little more time to slow it all down for her .. and stressed more quiet moments. She didn't even have a chance to listen to the Christmas record I was playing in the background. I used to love listening to the music on the record .. and the stories. *sigh*

It was a good day but a blur, like I said. Saturday night, I'd gone to bed without heading out to midnight mass. Sunday morning we finished some wrapping, some cleaning, got dressed, and my sister and her family arrived. A blur. A very nice blur .. but a blur.

Gift highlights: (that I received)
- a little photo puzzle with my niece as the picture
- a digital camera
- more Alice
- a faster notebook with more HD space (we transferred all my files, preferences, programs, etc., last night)
- a new Sims game
- a cute hat and scarf, some socks & tights (yes, I like these things! I walk to work so they keep me warm)
- a jewelry box

Mostly Music Musings

We finally put our tree up last night. No, it's not real; it's a fake tree but looks quite nice. The best part is that there are no needles on the floor. Also, it doesn't make me sneeze. :P

My little neice has been saying she wants a Christmas tree whenever someone asks her what she'd like for Christmas. She's easy to please. Give her some crackers, some fruit, maybe a few berries, and my little neice is in heaven.

I'm off to do some Christmas shopping in a bit. I'm actually starting my shopping today. (see my problems with procrastination) Hopefully, I'm not required to do much talking on this trip because my voice is on the verge of leaving me. It left me Friday around 8pm and Saturday around 5pm. I'm hoping I can make it last until 8pm again, at least. *sigh*

There was a Christmas meme on Live Journal that I wanted to do and post here, but I can't find it right now so instead, I'll mention the three bands that are on My Space that you should have a listen to. Cyanide Valentine has a cool MySpace page, including a blog there (and on the main site). I was showing my mom because she adores Jake Z., and I think, after the holidays, I'll pick myself up the "Let It Riot" CD. So far my favorite song is Freaks; I can imagine it in a cool indie film with the lead strutting down the street as his fellow "freaks" posse join him one by one. :P Of course, I haven't listened to all the tracks yet, so there might be another favorite on there, *and* there will be a new album coming out sometime next year, I guess. :)

I also showed my mom The Slackers page on MySpace which I recently discovered. I showed her a pic of G., and she kept asking me if he sang in Portuguese and was amazed & impressed they were wearing suits. *bg* I played the music samples to give her an idea of the style of music. That's another one I want a new CD of. I have "Question" and downloaded the song Have the Time from online (such a cool song), but I want to check out their other stuff as well.

Last but not least, Signal Room has joined MySpace. Check them out here and add them as a friend if you're a MySpace member. They are a great up&coming band out of Australia. I have their latest CD "The Day You Ran Away" and am hoping they'll do another soon. I was lucky enough to attend an accoustic performance in NJ last year (2004); it'd also be nice if they did more shows though, especially stateside, but I suppose that's all costly and time consuming so I doubt I'll get to see them perform live again any time soon.

I don't know what it is about me, but for some reason, people tend to give me coats as gifts. Maybe I look like I'm chilly a lot of the time? I suppose that's possible. It's also winter in New England, and today's weather chilled me to the bone. *brrrrr* I can only imagine how frozen I looked today as I walked to various destinations and back again, but I have to say, for the record and for anyone who might be thinking of getting me another coat, that I'm the type of person who wears a coat until it's worn out. To make matters more complicated for coat-giving friends and family, I already have two long winter coats (one wool) and at least three short coats. I guess one can never have enough coats for the winter, and some people aren't even lucky enough to own one really good winter coat so I can't really complain, and I'm not complaining, just noting this peculiarity out loud.

Copied from many people:

A lot has been said about how to prevent rape.

Women should learn self-defence. Women should lock themselves in their houses after dark. Women shouldn't have long hair and women shouldn't wear short skirts. Women shouldn't leave drinks unattended. They shouldn't dare to get drunk at all.

instead of that, how about:

if a woman is drunk, don't rape her.
if a woman is walking alone at night, don't rape her.
if a women is drugged and unconscious, don't rape her.
if a woman is wearing a short skirt, don't rape her.
if a woman is jogging in a park at 5 am, don't rape her.
if a woman looks like your ex-girlfriend you're still hung up on, don't rape her.
if a woman is asleep in her bed, don't rape her.
if a woman is asleep in your bed, don't rape her.
if a woman is doing her laundry, don't rape her.
if a woman is in a coma, don't rape her.
if a woman changes her mind in the middle of or about a particular activity, don't rape her.
if a woman has repeatedly refused a certain activity, don't rape her.

if a woman is not yet a woman, but a child, don't rape her.
if your girlfriend or wife is not in the mood, don't rape her.
if your step-daughter is watching tv, don't rape her.
if you break into a house and find a woman there, don't rape her.
if your friend thinks it's okay to rape someone, tell him it's not, and that he's not your friend.

if your "friend" tells you he raped someone, report him to the police.
if your frat-brother or another guy at the party tells you there's an unconscious woman upstairs and it's your turn, don't rape her, call the police and tell the guy he's a rapist.

tell your sons, god-sons, nephews, grandsons, sons of friends it's not okay to rape someone.

don't tell your women friends how to be safe and avoid rape.
don't imply that she could have avoided it if she'd only done/not done x.
don't imply that it's in any way her fault.
don't let silence imply agreement when someone tells you he "got some" with the drunk girl.
don't perpetuate a culture that tells you that you have no control over or responsibility for your actions. You can, too, help yourself.


If you agree, repost it. It's that important

"In almost all of the above, inserting the words "have sex with" instead of rape apply. Because so damn many people don't realize having sex with someone who is unable to give legal consent or legally not allowed to do is rape." - uisceboo

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone's day was wonderful. I have so much to be thankful for.

L_squaredd posted a list of what she's thankful for so I thought I'd do the same (in no particular order). Last year's list is here.

- my family
- my friends
- my health and the health & happiness of my family
- the clothes in my closet
- the roof over my head
- the food on my table and in my fridge
- that I have a job
- my books
- my boss who lets me take time off to go on silly trips and to help my sis at her daycare
- my cat Tigger who, despite his age, still acts like a cuddly, playful kitten at times
- that I live in an area of the U.S. where the seasons change
- my iBook
- moments I get to spend with my family
- the ability to walk, to see, to hear, to speak, to write, to breathe
- my camera and my camcorder
- chocolate
- the people in my life who make me smile
- a working sink
- my safety
- my life

Today, I feel blessed.

Procrastination Update

A few posts back, I wrote a bit about my procrastination woes of late. I've since ticked a few items off that list.

- I got my hair cut on Friday. It's now skimming the tops of my shoulders. So, it's still long enough for the cold weeks ahead, but it's short enough to feel weightless, which is nice. =) Since I had around two years of growth being chopped off (hehe), I donated my hair to Locks of Love. They make wigs out of donated hair for children who have lost theirs (for example, cancer patients).

- I finished all my con book entries before the deadlines. Yay!

- I burned my music vids on DVD before the Creation Farscape video contest deadline for this year's Burbank convention. I hadn't heard anything though, so I assumed that none of mine were chosen. After all, why would they be when there are so many talented vidders out there already with so many beautiful vids to their names? Creation announced at the con that they received 60 entries and chose 20 of them to show at the convention. Jo notified me over the weekend that one of my vids actually played at the convention! Herdthinner was at the con, saw the vid, and called Jo who then emailed me. :D

Although I'm still trying to figure out why they did pick mine and why that particular one out of the two I submitted, I can't help but be excited and pleased. Anyway, if you want to watch my video, it's online here: Happy Happy Joy Joy.

There's a lot wrong with it and that needs to be redone, but I think it gets the point across regardless, and I hope it's entertaining. Comments and criticism (if it's constructive) are welcome because that's how I learn what to keep, what to do differently, etc., for the next time. ; )

I feel semi-accomplished. *g*

Welcome, Baby Liam!

Congratulations to M. and B. who welcomed a precious new life into the world on November 14. May health, happiness and a good night's sleep be yours. ; )