Blogging from the Couch

Phew! That was close!! Bela, the little stinker, just reached over and pushed the power button on my laptop. She was quite pleased with herself, too. I told her it was rude, but had to suppress a laugh. She and Griffin are wild and crazy kids.

It's friday and I am in a good mood. Brett picked up oberon on the way home. After burgers on the grill, we went to Video-to-Go, where 14 years ago I was hired to be a clerk, back in the days of laser discs. We checked out Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Little Einsteins Trip to Outer Space (or something), and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo. I was a bit worried that all the stoners had already checked out all the copies of H&K Escape, but Brett tracked down one copy. Woohoo!

HP#3 is the last one in the series that I think is appropriate for Griffin to watch for a while, and actually now I'm not so sure. The dementors are boarding the Hogwarts Express. Like his hero, Griffin is only afraid of the "tomentors." Bela is freaked too. (I know, I know, who lets there 2 y.o. watch Harry Potter?!?!) Anyway, all is well now.

Sometimes when the weather is bad, or when I'm feeling depress-y, I think that maybe J.K. Rowling was onto something with her description of dementors. Obviously, that is what makes her such a special author; she is able to make something that is so personal accessible to a wider audience who feel as if they experience it together. No?

Prisoner of Azkaban may be one of my favorites in the series. Check out this discussion from MSN. The trailer for Half Blood Prince is now available. I wonder if Mike Newell directed this one. Ten years ago I had the opportunity to meet him during a study abroad in London. He, Ken Loach, and John Madden were tops. Just checked, it was Alfonso Cuaron.

I swear that Jim Tavare from Last Comic Standing is the hunchback at the beginning of the movie. Brett thinks that is nuts! We'll see during the credits.

This is perhaps the most mama-lovin' of the movies. I emphasized to all who would listen here tonight that Aunt Marge was blown up like a flatulent balloon b/c she insulted Harry's parents; you don't mess with a boy's mama! Now, he has heard a woman's scream that the audience knows is a memory of his mother being killed by Voldemort when he was just a baby. I always tear up when I talk to Griffin about Lily's sacrifice.

We (ok maybe just me, G, and Grandma Beth) cannot wait until the opening of the Harry Potter theme park at Walt Disney World. There is a serious lack of information on the web about the new park, else I'd link. My mom, who is a convert, knows a lot about the opening, and she has a plan for our trip in a year and a half. Griffin just told me that if we see an owl that is really crazy at Harry Potter land, we'll know it belongs to Ron Weasley. haha.

Something that I dig about the Harry Potter series is the comparison of Harry, who is heroic and resilient with Dudley Dursley, who is spoiled and helpless, and Draco Malfoy, who is a spoiled bully. The NYT's female blog stars wrote this week about two sides of this coin. Judith Warner's post, analyzing the story about sleepaway camps and helicopter parents that I cited earlier this week, shot to number one on the list of most emailed articles today. The other article was from Tara Parker Pope's health blog, which looked at a study that showed children of domestic violence affect the ability of other children to learn in a school setting. Both of which prove, in a way, what my father-in-law has always said: that morals don't exist at the top or the bottom of the economic scale. Harry Potter is a triumphant rejection of that notion. He's a middle class hero.

Professor Trelawney is a loon! I have to admit, though, that I have had some strange extra-sensory moments that are very similar to hers (really, did we have any doubt this was the case? :) I really need to add some photos to The Jolly Mama; it's starting to look a bit wordy and boring. Sorry 'bout that.

One new bit of exciting news, related to our family's other obsession, is that Angelina Jolie is in talks to become Catwoman in the next Batman movie! How perfect is that. Now, her partner needs to star in The Fountainhead. I've always thought he would be perfect for the role; I actually think he may have been in his own development talks about this plan (but I may have dreamt that bit of news).