The End of an Era

Day: Three Hundred and Fifty

Photo taken on Sunday, July 17, 2011 after watching the final installment of Harry Potter in the Farmingdale Multiplex at 1030pm. (Pictured from left: The bad guys: Steve throwing a curse, Jenn pointing, and Heather channeling her inner Bellatrix. Neutral wizard: Mike. The good guys: Jon as Neville, Justin deflecting Steve's curse, and a hyperactive Hufflepuff.)

Ten years.

Pottermania has been in my life for an entire decade. And I have loved every single second of it.

I am aware of the Harry Potter books but thinking they are for children, never pick one up until I learn that it is story that anyone can enjoy. One day after hockey practice, my coach offers a movie excursion to Flatirons for Friday, the day Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is scheduled to come out. The majority of the team wants to go as well as my roommate, Sam, who upon hearing I am going, begs to come along. She even runs into her room and retrieves the three books out so far, telling me she's a huge fan. So on Friday, she joins me and the rest of the CU Women's Ice Hockey Team to see this flick. I have no idea what to expect but I am open-minded since I know most of the Hogwarts staff from other movies and enjoy these actors. My reaction? I think I forget to breathe through the entire thing, completely enchanted with the magical world J.K. Rowling has created. I love the story, the characters, the school, the food, the EVERYTHING! I want to stand in front of the Mirror of Erised. I want to sit under the sorting hat. I want to join in the fight against Voldermort.

And so begins the ten years of obsessing over one of the greatest stories of all time. As the years go on, I learn of more friends that share my deep love for Potter: Maeve is a fellow student but not in my house (she's a Gryffindor) though we hit Hogsmeade all the time together; Naughty, EJ, Dormmate Chris, and I play drunken Harry Potter on the original Playstation ("Potter NO! Potter MOVE!"); Naughty breaks out her books on tape while we live in the hockey house; Cameron even comes down from MA to see Goblet of Fire with me; Annie and I get together after the sixth book comes out to discuss what we thought (I bring two pages of notes), Christine brings me to the Wizarding World, and the list goes on. It's the second time this year I am writing about a trip to Potterland but I am afraid this time it will be my last.

I struggle with the ending of Book 7, maybe because it is time to say goodbye to the favorite characters that stole my heart (and then DIED, leaving me all alone to wallow in my sadness over them, and what the hell? Out of my top five-technically six because the twins are a package deal-four die?! So not fair.) Book 7 means it is finally complete, that there is no more yet I still have the movie to look forward to. And when I hear they are dividing it into two I think, that's not necessary but I'll take it! Why not extend this for a few more years?

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II is bittersweet. My heart gets ripped out during the Snape montage because he is such a complex character and tortured soul. How much he endures for the sake of saving Harry, the dark front he has to keep up in order to appear faithful to Voldermort, the way he stands there and accepts his fate he knew was coming all along, and how he buries his love for a woman he could never have. He keeps hatred in his heart for Harry because he wants to make him his father but when he demands Harry look at him, he sees the green eyes of Lily as he passes on. So moving, so heart wrenching. How could one not love Severus?

I had been looking forward to the scene in the room of requirement-the fire dragon-I had a feeling it would be freaking cool! Though I am very saddened by the fact that two of my favorites, Fred and Lupin, are not paid the noble death sequence they so rightfully deserve. I have trouble swallowing the fact that out of all the Weasleys, Rowling chooses to split the twins. If I have learned anything from this troublesome duo is that one would never leave the other, even in death. In my world, Fred returns and can rival Peeves anyday!

I admit, I cry when Dobby leaves us. The red hot anger I feel when Sirius dies at the hand of his cousin keeps me awake at night. The tears that are almost endless when everyone lights their wands and raises them in the air for Dumbledore breaks me. But I am not prepared for the emotion I feel bubbling to the surface when the snitch "opens at the close". This is why I love the series so much. This is why Harry is redeemed from Book 5's constant whining (thank you film adaptation for changing that in the fifth movie) and holds a very special place in my heart. He is brave and honorable and chooses to sacrifice himself for the greater good. It's a poignant scene that makes me want to be a better person, makes me want to be more like Harry: a defender, determined and fearless.

I have taken much from this series and I can spend hours of your time talking about it. There are many religious and spiritual themes laced within this story as well has humanity guidelines. I am happy to say I agree with what Rowling is trying to teach us: that love really does conquer all, that loyalty and standing up for what you believe in is important, and that friendship is a treasured gift that can last a lifetime.

These past ten years have been a glorious and wonderful adventure for me. I hope that my love for Harry Potter continues and I thank you all for putting up with my incessant chatter about the series.

"I want you to listen to me very carefully, Harry. You're not a bad person. You're a very good person, who bad things have happened to. Besides, the world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters. We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That's who we really are."-Sirius Black

Talking T-Shirts

Day: Two Hundred and Eighty Five

Photo taken on Friday, May 13, 2011 in the Manga Dining Room in front of our DVD collection at 1150pm.

This shirt was spotted at ICon and immediately purchased. Need I say more?

Mr. Q

Day: Two Hundred and Two

Photo taken on Saturday, February 19, 2011 outside of the Helen Hayes Theater on 44th Street in NYC at 334pm.

It is late August 2003 and my cell phone is ringing. It is sitting in front of me on Christine's coffee table and Christine is poised on the couch to my left looking at it wondering if I can hear it too. I let it go to voicemail and keep watching the SNL rerun on Comedy Central as I eat my lunch in between classes. Suddenly our landline starts to ring and it too sits in front of me on the coffee table but I don't budge. Christine sits forward and points at it, "Are you going to get that?"

I swing my eyes over to her and very casually state, "Colin Quinn is on." My eyes then swing back and I continue to eat quietly. Christine sits back on the couch and just accepts that her new roommate of two weeks is absolutely insane. By the end of the month she orders another cable box so I can tape Col and still lead a normal college life by going out with her at night rather than sit at home watching Tough Crowd at 1230.

I love Colin Quinn though some people may see it as an unhealthy obsession.

I seriously think my world would end if I missed an episode of Tough Crowd and since I don't watch the news, I find Colin and the gang's views on top stories to be sufficient enough to stay current. I absolutely adore him and his writing. I even enjoy when he delivers a joke terribly because it leads to him ridiculing himself which makes it even funnier. I like him so much that whenever I am home from college, I make it a mission to get into the city to catch a live recording of his show. I even wear my "Save Tough Crowd" tee shirt to the last taping even though it doesn't help save it in the end.

I am so mad at myself on January 8th because in the five months that his Broadway show Long Story Short has been out, I did not get my ass down to the theater. And I even work in the freaking city! I saw Colin Quinn more times in The Cellar when I lived 2,000 miles away then I have now that I live back home. I ought to be ashamed of myself.

But on Valentine's Day Eve, Steve hands me an envelope that says:

February 19, 2011! FRONT ROW!!!

As I open it I try to think of different musicals I may have mentioned. I know I told him about the Alan Rickman play showing in Brooklyn, maybe it's that-

I pull out a paper and all I see is my boy in one of his awkward stances and I am beside myself talking a mile a minute. "Ithoughtthiswasover?!OhmyGod,Iamsosurprised!Youtotallygotme!Wait-this ended over a month ago, how did you get tickets?"

Apparently it has been extended to March and if you are available this week and live in the vicinity...GO! Go NOW! I'll telling you, I have never been so impressed with Quinn as I am in the 75 minutes it takes him to do the history of the world. He is clever and funny, the writing has a fluidity I haven't seen in a long time from a comedian, and he's just all around GOOD!

But there is one tiny thing that gets me. As I'm watching him walk all over the stage and holding my breath as he clumsily climbs the stairs, he seems familiar. I'm following his flamboyant hand gestures which are so utterly Colin Quinn but something finally occurs to me. After he does his final bow I turn to Steve to get his take on the play. "Besides you liking it did you notice something about his gestures and the way he acted out his story?"

Steve completely hits the nail on the head. He totally spots it too. I just substituted one while the other was absent.

I think I finally understand my unhealthy obsession with Cal Lightman.

Normalsauce

Day: One Hundred and Ninety Five

Photo taken on Saturday, February 12, 2011 in Great Neck, NY at 1124pm.

When Steve comes across this 30 Rock TGS "Liz" hoodie two Christmases ago, he has to purchase it for me. I have been a Tina Fey fan since her early writing days on SNL and have always admired her skillz. In college I think it would be cool to do my internship as an apprentice to Ms. Fey but I never even work up the courage to write her a fan letter let alone ask her if I can follow her around for a summer and totally not in a stalkerish way at all.

So when I start watching 30 Rock, Steve finds himself enjoying the program right along side me (the Dr. Space Man episode has him hooked!). Naturally he loves Jack Donaghy and I adore Jack's relationship with Liz Lemon. Though sometimes, I find it eerie how the things that come out of her mouth (or what goes into it) is very much something I would say (or eat) and Jack's reaction to it is very much how Steve would react to me:

Liz Lemon: I believe that all anyone really wants in this life is to sit in peace and eat a sandwich.
Jack Donaghy: How surprising that your world view is food-based.

Seems like we have the key to world peace right there.

Supplies!

Day: One Hundred and Seventy Six

Photo taken on Monday, January 24, 2011 in the living room at 930pm.

Not only am I fan of Cal Lightman, I totally dig the title sequence to Lie To Me. It has a House feel to it, cool song as well as interesting lighting choices and camera angles. When recalling the opening, I see the images in hues of blue and yellow in my mind. My favorite expression is of the freckled-nosed little girl that shows surprise. When the music matches with the editing, her face should light up on a chord change but sometimes the DVR sets it off a tad.

I don't like surprises whether they're big or small, good or even fun, it just doesn't sit well with me. I like to know where I am going or what I am doing at all times. I am open to changes in plans just as long as you give me a heads up a few minutes beforehand (at the latest). That is why my bridal shower day had to be run by me first. Could you imagine? I would wake up around 7 to start preparing for a race that Saturday and Steve, in a panic, would try to convince me to go to a nice brunch. I would immediately suspect something because why would Steve be up this early on a Saturday? I would then demand to know what the meaning of this is and he would come up with a slick answer. He'd get me on the fence for the meal over going to the run until he told me that brunch would be in the city. Then I would know for sure something is amiss. There has to be some big-ass event in the city to get me to go there on the weekend so then I would figure it out. Then I would be pissed that Steve didn't tell me in the first place but then I would feel guilty for being pissed because my mom and bridesmaids did a nice thing for me.

Or I'd just ignore Steve at the beginning and leave for the race anyway.

So instead of a series of unfortunate events, they told me the date and place and I acted surprised when I walked into the lovely shower.

Lie To Me, Love

Day: One Hundred and Seventy

Photo taken on Tuesday, January 18, 2011 in the dining room at 739pm.

I have finally hit the point in my self portrait project where it is time to start playing with the image. I have wanted to do this for awhile but I could not find my Photoshop 7 disk until today (for some reason it was residing in a pile of CDs to be burned into iTunes). Once I load the program onto Miles I begin to play around, changing the shape, distorting the image, just all around fun stuff until I hit a brick wall. I want to do an ode to Cal Lightman (since I'm a little bit in love with him...okay...A LOT a bit) but I have forgotten how to blur the background. Luckily, I have Mai, one of my hockey and advertising friends from college, just a text away. I pose the question and she calls me immediately, talking me through my different options. As we chat away about her awesome job in the creative industry, Steve tools around with the picture and by the end of the conversation he has accomplished the above effect. I owe Mai and Steve for my selfer today; thanks for helping me out! Great job guys! ^_\

I have been toying with this idea for awhile so it means a lot to me to finally get it out there. I think I really like Lie to Me because the one thing I don't really do is lie. I would be the worst person that Cal could interrogate. I like how he will phrase the same question ten different ways until the person bursts into tears and admits to killing their daughter. Though with me it would be like:

SHOW STARTS

"Did you burn those patients' charts? Didja? Didja set fire to the medical records room? Was it you? You burned all those files in that room, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"Did you-ah...oh."

CREDITS

Popping up a Sidewalk

Day: One Hundred and Eleven

Photo taken on Saturday, November 20, 2010 by the butterfly table at 904pm.

I'm very hard to define: outwardly I'm not the most feminine creature but I do love earrings, bracelets, and things that are pink. I'm certainly not traditional yet I hold my drumsticks that way. I'm Republican but I agree with the liberals on issues like gay marriage and abortion. I get very sensitive and emotional at times though I understand men better than I do women. I'm very logical with my thinking but irrational with my compulsions.

So when it came time to pick a last name on my marriage license, I struggled immensely. I wanted to honor thy husband and take his and I rationalized it by saying I would only have to change two letters, that it would still be the same initials and length. But then I felt my individuality start to slip and I panicked, asking Steve if I could keep my own last name. His initial reaction was one of hurt and I resigned myself to getting used to my new last name.

A year passed and I still never got used to it. In fact, I hated it. I didn't like to be referred to as Mrs. Reed and continued to make reservations under the name Raab. I then started to compromise using a hyphen and decided to eventually go to the courts to make it official. But then I started to get mail in the new hyphenated name only it had no hyphen. Not only did the hyphenated name sound ridiculous in the first place, it looked ridiculous without a hyphen.

Today after receiving one too many mailings with Raabreed on it, I screamed and Steve conceded.

I'm going back to my roots.

Sawks

Day: Seventy Three

Photo taken on Wednesday, October 13, 2010 on my bed after showertime.

I've broken out the Halloween socks this month and Moma has bought me even more for me to wear! I was then going to write about my favorite Halloween sock moment but it seems I already have back in 2008 in my Livejournal so I won't waste your time retelling it here.

Let It Burn, Kate.

Day: Fifty Two

Photo taken on Wednesday, September 22, 2010 on the living room/dining room border at 743pm.

When we are in Epcot, I purchase a new pair of sneakers in Japan because two years ago I found some awesome ones with swans on them and they have held up pretty nicely. This time around I spot a pair (actually one because they keep the right shoe in the back) of olive green with intricate stitching. Upon returning home with them I realize it's time to let my other green pair (Etnies) go because honestly, they're gross. They don't look it in the picture but the suede is beat to crap.

Actually I really didn't have the heart to throw them out so I donated them instead, though I am sure no one would want to wear them for free anyway.

MOVE!

Day: Thirty One

Photo taken on Wednesday, September 1, 2010 on the LIRR in the Northport area.

As you can clearly see, no one is in the two-seater directly across from us yet this beefy man continues to sit next to me. I am giving him the "WTF?! Hand" which is a gesture I do when I am completely baffled by something. Today, I am baffled as to why this smelly individual has not moved even though many seats on the car are vacant. He is the type of man the exudes body heat too and I accept the fact that I'm stuck with him from Jamaica when he gets on but I can't accept the fact that he is still sitting next to me when he doesn't have to. I'm even staring openly into his face too, with my eyebrows raised as if to say, "You can stop sitting next to me now." I know he can feel me staring at him yet he keeps his eyes forward into the seat in front of him. I then do the "Incredulous Move" which is me sitting forward in my seat, pinning him with a stare, straightening up to look around the car with a loud sigh, pinning him with another stare, then slamming back into my seat in a huff.


He still doesn't move.


Now you're just plain creepy.

I HATE when men do this to me. It makes me overly anxious to be crowded in when I don't need to be. I even asked my dad what he would do in this situation and he said he would move the minute two seats opened up. So I'm starting to wonder why is it I constantly get these type of people that like encroaching on my personal space?


I think I'm going to invest in a bull horn. I think that might do the trick.

Katie The Exterminator

Day: Seven

Photo taken in the afternoon on Sunday, August 8, 2010 outside of our neighbor's apartment on the way to the parking lot.

After watching a DVRed Billy the Exterminator marathon this morning I find it quite fitting to exit our apartment to find a garden snake poised in the dirt by the path to my truck. I giddily run back to tell Steve what I spot but when he rushes over the snake slithers up into a bush. I then feel the need to run back inside and throw on a different outfit to do my imitation of Billy Bretherton. (I'm actually in the middle of yelling, "Aaaah! Snake!" like he does in the credits.) Steve and I are quite fond of Billy and his brother, Ricky, though if we had the opportunity to work with them we would probably turn it down. I definitely do not have the stomach for some of those roach infested houses! Yech!