The Gamekeeper and The Antihero

This topic was actually fairly difficult for me.  I love Harry Potter, if not for the genius that is J.K. Rowling and her marvelous ability to turn a plot, then for her awesomely believeable yet magical characters.  In other words, I have many "favorites", but these two stand out:

Rubeus Hagrid.  The Keeper of the Keys and Grounds and Hogwarts  :)  Rubeus Hagrid is one of my favorite characters, for starters, because of his unbending loyalty.  I am not surprised at all that he was originally sorted into Gryffindor, where dwell not only the brave at heart but also the just and loyal.  He willingly puts his life on the line for those who have shown him kindness, and to those he feels the need to protect.  It all seems to start with Dumbledore.  Because Dumbledore showed Hagrid the ultimate kindness of keeping him on as gamekeeper after he was expelled, Hagrid would do anything for him.  For instance, when Dumbledore asked him to please bring the infant Harry Potter to Privet Drive, he jumped at the chance.  Not only did Albus Dumbledore ask him for assistance, but he also knew that there could be a baby in trouble, and a baby who was the offspring of two other people that he admired.  And don't ever think of insulting Albus Dumbledore in front of him.  He may just turn your kid into a pig  =P

Another reason that Hagrid is one of my favorite characters is his comic relief.  Hagrid is morbidly hilarious because of his love for all things dangerous.  What makes it even more funny is that Hagrid legitimately doesn't see how dangerous most of the creatures are.  He hatches a baby dragon in his hut and keeps it there, convinced that Norbert will be safe even though he's very quickly outgrowing the place and slowly demolishing it from the inside out.  He was expelled from Hogwarts for a similar reason when he harbored a deadly Acromantula in the castle.  Granted, he was expelled because he was framed by Riddle, but still, he shouldn't have been keeping that creature in the castle.  He also brings dangerous and unsettling creatures into his Care of Magical Creatures classes - Blast-Ended Skewts, Hippogriffs, and Thestrals come to mind.  Students often don injuries as a result.  I can sympathize with Hagrid on this because I often feel that people look at me funny when I watch a shark attack a seal and exclaim, "Look how COOL!"  I mean, I feel awful for the seal, of course, but in general, the more dangerous it is, the more I'm going to think it's awesome.  It's good to know someone else like that exists, even if he's fictional.

Draco Malfoy.  Ah, the class asshole.  Everyone knew one in school, and for Harry, it's the self-important, arrogant son of the even more self-important and arrogant Lucius.  I did a paper studying Draco's character for our HP class with Dr. Diehl, and one of my topics was the reasons why Draco became and stayed such a jerk throughout his seven years at Hogwarts.  The first reason was his parents.  They let him get away with anything, indulged his every whim, and treated him as if he was a gift to the entire world.  The result was a child who expected others to treat him in the same way.  When Draco then arrived at school, he found Crabbe and Goyle, who took all of Draco's crap and acted exactly as he wanted them to act - like his lackeys.  No one in Slytherin - the only group of people whose opinions Draco really valued - gave him any reason to not act the way he always had growing up, so why should he stop?  When he saw that Harry Potter - another young wizard of fame - was nothing like the way Draco thought he should be (i.e., like him), yet still gets attention, Draco retaliates with bullying and derogatory remarks.  I think Draco is fascinating.  From the first time he walked into the book in Madame Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, I hoped that we would see more of him.  I love a character in need of redemption  :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HARRY POTTER!

Happy Birthday Harry

So in honor of Harry's birthday this past week this week's topic is your favorite character in Harry Potter.  Who, why.  Is there a tie?  Is there a difference between book and movie?  It's Harry Potter so I know that these will be fantastic posts :)

A friendly reminder to take things one day at a time

This topic isn't exactly easy for me either, but for different reasons. If you're going to write down the lyrics of your favorite song, it really helps if your favorite song HAS LYRICS. I'd guess at least 95% of my "favorites" are instrumental works. Yep, I'm a music nerd.

That said, there is one I've been listening to a lot lately, because the message is one I need to hear right now.

"Story" by Sam Tsui

You're stressin' me out, the way you obsess,
And worry about what happens next.
Can we just enjoy the here and the now?

You're livin' your life like something you read
Always just a couple lines ahead.
You're dyin' to know if it all works out.

Chorus:
Oh, what's the point of reading the last page before you can even start?
Just have faith that gettin' there can be the best part
Can we write our story? Take it one page, baby, at a time.
What's the point if we're only gonna worry how it ends?
We can take it fast, we can take it slow, if we just take each step as we go.
Our story, our story... one page at a time.

You figured it out. You wrote it in pen.
You know how you want our plot to end.
You said it was so no room for surprise.

Try letting it go, live for now, live for this,
Not the same old lines, from the same old script.
And maybe you'll find you'll enjoy the ride. 

Chorus

Go on predict the clock while I sit right here wonderin' where you are.
What good's a perfect ending if you just pretend to see that far?
I'm on your side don't get me wrong. I want to write this story too,
Not one you've already written. No, I'd rather make it up with you.

Can we write our story?

Chorus (to end)


It should come as no surprise that I love the reading imagery in the lyrics. The music is upbeat and happy, what my family would call "Get Goin' Music" (something you put on when you have to do something you're not that excited about and need a mood booster to get it done). He also does some clever things relating the song to others on his album, using phrases from other tracks and using the exact same motives with them. And I really like the message - I'm the kind of person that he could be singing this too, especially right now with so much upheaval in my life.

For some other of my favorites, have a listen to the Sherlock and/or Doctor Who soundtracks - both are written by geniuses, and I find something new that's really cool on every listen!

(In other news, who decided it could be August already? Nobody asked me!)

Easy topic is Hard

This week's topic was actually a struggle for me because my favorite song changes weekly if not daily. I also have a problem of getting bored with the radio because they tend to play the same songs over and over again, so I have these periods where I don't listen to music. And I'm currently in one of those periods.

Anyway, I was in the ice cream shop today and two songs came on the radio that I really like, and I couldn't choose between them. So you get both.

The first song is "A thousand years" by Christina Perri. I know it was written for Twilight, but I can't help myself. It's a very pretty song. I love the tune, the melody, and Perri's voice. I'm not very big on the lyrics, but I love the sound of the song. It moves me every time I hear it. It reminds me a lot of the "The Call" by Regina Spektor, which I also love for pretty much the exact same reasons.

The second song that came on the radio is "50 Ways to Say Goodbye" by Train. I love this song for the lyrics. It's just hilarious and fun. Instead of posting the lyrics, I'm going to give you the music video (with lyrics) because  it's just as fantastic as the lyrics themselves.

Just keep living...

So I'm cutting it close (as I tend to do) but here are the lyrics to yet another Jason Mraz song, also from his album "Love Is a Four Letter Word."

"Living In The Moment"

If this life is one act
Why do we lay all these traps?
We put them right in our path
When we just wanna be free

I will not waste my days
Making up all kinds of ways
To worry about all the things
That will not happen to me

So I just let go of what I know I don't know
And I know I'll only do this by
Living in the moment
Living our life
Easy and breezy
With peace in my mind
With peace in my heart
Peace in my soul
Wherever I'm going, I'm already home
Living in the moment

I'm letting myself off the hook for things I've done
I let my past go past
And now I'm having more fun
I'm letting go of the thoughts
That do not make me strong
And I believe this way can be the same for everyone

And if I fall asleep
I know you'll be the one who'll always remind me
To live in the moment
To live my life
Easy and breezy
With peace in my mind
With peace in my heart
Got peace in my soul
Wherever I'm going, I'm already home

I can't walk through life facing backwards
I have tried
I tried more than once to just make sure
And I was denied the future I'd been searching for
But I spun around and hurt no more
By living in the moment
Living my life
Easy and breezy
With peace in my mind
With peace in my heart
Got peace in my soul
Wherever I'm going, I'm already home

I'm living in the moment
I'm living my life
Just taking it easy
With peace in my mind
Got peace in my heart
Got peace in my soul
Oh, wherever I'm going, I'm already home

I'm living in the moment
I'm living my life
Oh, easy and breezy
With peace in my mind
Peace in my heart
Peace in my soul
Wherever I'm going, I'm already home
I'm living in the moment

I'll tell you why I love it and it's because to my mind this song is all about trusting God.  

Letting myself off the hook for things I've done: Romans 8:1 

I let my past go past: Philippians 3:13

I will not waste my days...worry[ing] about all those things that will not happen to me: Philippians 4:6-7

So I just let go of what I know I don't know: Matthew 6:32-33

The idea of the entire song as a whole:  Romans 12:2 and Ephesians 4:23 

It's about paying attention to our thoughts and not letting them rule us.  We can have all sorts of thoughts run through our heads on a daily basis that are unhealthy for us.  We have to choose to let the good ones stick and not give the unhealthy ones room to settle.  We can't stop thoughts from popping through our brains, we can only choose to measure them against what we know to be true and to discard thoughts if they prove to be false. The truth is so much greater than the lies we can let ourselves believe.

Long Distance Sucks

So, I have a playlist on my iTunes that's called "Current Obsessive Listening" and it has, oh, eight or ten songs that I'm currently just in love with. The favorite at the moment is Jason Mraz's "I Won't Give Up," specifically as done by a capella artist Peter Hollens who is brilliant and an astounding musician and you should listen to him here. Like, now.

I Won't Give Up

When I look into your eyes
It's like watching the night sky
Or a beautiful sunrise
Well, there's so much they hold

And just like them old stars
I see that you've come so far
To be right where you are
How old is your soul?
Well, I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up
And when you're needing your space
To do some navigating
I'll be here patiently waiting
To see what you find
'Cause even the stars they burn
Some even fall to the earth
We've got a lot to learn
God knows we're worth it
No, I won't give up
I don't wanna be someone who walks away so easily
I'm here to stay and make the difference that I can make
Our differences they do a lot to teach us how to use
The tools and gifts we got, yeah, we got a lot at stake

And in the end, you're still my friend, at least we did intend
For us to work, we didn't break, we didn't burn
We had to learn how to bend without the world caving in
I had to learn what I've got, and what I'm not, and who I am
I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up, still looking up.
Well, I won't give up on us (no I'm not giving up)
God knows I'm tough enough (I am tough, I am loved)
We've got a lot to learn (we're alive, we are loved)
God knows we're worth it (and we're worth it)
I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up.

I adore this song. It has a lot to do with being in a long distance relationship for the past seven months. This has become my go-to "Things Suck Right Now But They Will Get Better" song. I've just been looping it and playing it over and over.

It's been a very busy weekend, and I hope to be able to tell you about it at some point and the conference I went to in DC. But I'll save that for later.

Are you all impressed that I got Maggie to post yesterday? You're welcome. :)

I'm not Radioactive I swear

Radioactive by Imagine Dragon 

I'm waking up to ash and dust
I wipe my brow and I sweat my rust
I'm breathing in the chemicals

I'm breaking in, shaping up, then checking out on the prison bus
This is it, the apocalypse
Whoa

I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones
Enough to make my systems blow
Welcome to the new age, to the new age
Welcome to the new age, to the new age
Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, oh, I'm radioactive, radioactive
Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, oh, I'm radioactive, radioactive

I raise my flags, don my clothes
It's a revolution, I suppose
We're painted red to fit right in
Whoa

I'm breaking in, shaping up, then checking out on the prison bus
This is it, the apocalypse
Whoa

I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones
Enough to make my systems blow
Welcome to the new age, to the new age
Welcome to the new age, to the new age
Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, oh, I'm radioactive, radioactive
Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, oh, I'm radioactive, radioactive

All systems go, the sun hasn't died
Deep in my bones, straight from inside

I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones
Enough to make my systems blow
Welcome to the new age, to the new age
Welcome to the new age, to the new age
Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, oh, I'm radioactive, radioactive
Whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, oh, I'm radioactive, radioactive

The reason I love this song has nothing much to do with the lyrics.  I love the music and the cords and how it was put together.  Though the lyrics definitely appeal to my love of dystopian and apocalyptic literature.   

Also, HI!!!!!  So I'm really bad at doing these things.  Though with Cassie now living with me I may actually get better. :)