Thoughts on Endings
I don't have a lot of words about Norway or Amy Winehouse as any death is a loss and so many deaths at once is hard to comprehend. The thing I find scariest is how quickly the world turns these deaths to their own use instead of mourning and allowing time between death and anger. That's one of the dangers of how fast our connected world moves, a version can be written that says one thing no matter if its true as long as it satisfies someone. I hope that some justice can be found and those who lost someone will find time to heal.
Today I finally saw Harry Potter and I enjoyed it. The theater was almost full, which was a really nice surprise though it was a quiet audience. I was one of maybe five or ten people who clapped at various points.
I got into Harry Potter rather late, it wasn't until my sophomore year of college that a friend who knows what I like to read recommend them. This was the same person who got me reading the Vorkosignan books and was the only one of my friends who was also in the Classics' department. She had the first four books with her and when she'd heard a lot of us hadn't read them, she lent them out. My roommate and I read them at about the same time and I was completely caught up. Then I think I went to talk to Danii who showed me how to find fanfic and I was amazed. Before this I'd been aware of fandom, I once very briefly played on the Star Trek online chat game and was quite involved in White Wolf and Larping but I hadn't known the world out there. In that first year I read some good fic, bad fic and strange fic but it provided another option of things to do when I needed a break from all my classes.
When the movies came out, I'm pretty sure I saw them with school friends. My mother was actually interviewed when she went to see the first one as she was one of the older people in the line, it came out on her birthday.
Fast forward to my last year in New Zealand, I'm studying in Wellington and the last book is coming out. Thanks to the weirdness of timezones, I actually get Deathly Hallows the day it comes out since midnight was equal to about 11 am in Wellington. Somewhere I still have the purple bag that I got with my book that says the date and everything on it. I went home and I read Deathly Hallows until I finished it and I remember how much it stuck with me, it was the end of a journey. When my parents came to visit that year, I lent them the book and they took turns reading it.
I wasn't able to see the first part of Deathly Hallows in the theater due to a schedule that was far too busy so I finally saw it Monday night on my little tv and was impressed. When it comes to books and movies that share a source, I try and keep them separate as the mediums are so different. I haven't liked all of the Harry Potter movies, but they've all had things that worked and transformed the books.
The final movie felt like the right coda. I appreciated how it was clearly a war and no one came out of it without scars. The whole pensieve thing with Snape was pretty but I still don't like him. Alan Rickman redeems Snape a lot but for me he's someone who never learned how to move on. In the memories we saw, Lily is rather passive which to me shows that he didn't understand her. He had his idea of Lily that he loved but he didn't know her, but his idea of love helped Harry.
I liked how the dueling magic was done and the battle of Hogwarts. Ron and Hermione made me happy with how they drew together and the sense of all the untold stories of those there and taking care of those they love. Neville and Luna were amazing. In terms of the final confrontation, I enjoyed that circle around Harry and having a moment with each of them. It might not have been the honor guard but it was beautiful. King's Cross was lovely, I really do love Gambon's Dumbledore. I could have done with less flailing about for the last fight, but that was a movie choice. I loved the epilogue, it was quiet and lovely and felt like the right end. I probably will watch this again when I'm not worrying as much about money, but it felt right for me.
After the movie, I walked into a drenching rain to get a not so great pizza at a restaurant called Carlyle's that was trying to be much snazzier than it is. It was all dressed up like a really nice steak house but the food I had was just okay.
Another ending I just realized I should mention is Borders, which I keep hearing more and more about since this is their home base. They were my first big bookstore that I could walk to and buy my own books. Its fascinating to get all these emails on my SI listserve of students and faculty talking about Borders and what it meant to them and what their closings means. At some point I will go shopping as I walk by them all the time, its going to be hard to see that big store empty.
Now I'm home, my stomach hurts and the heat has lifted slightly. Life is feeling quite full at the moment. In about two weeks, I have my last class at Michigan and then I dive fully into job searching. At the end of August, my brother gets married and hopefully in not too long, I will find a job and make my next step.
Today I finally saw Harry Potter and I enjoyed it. The theater was almost full, which was a really nice surprise though it was a quiet audience. I was one of maybe five or ten people who clapped at various points.
I got into Harry Potter rather late, it wasn't until my sophomore year of college that a friend who knows what I like to read recommend them. This was the same person who got me reading the Vorkosignan books and was the only one of my friends who was also in the Classics' department. She had the first four books with her and when she'd heard a lot of us hadn't read them, she lent them out. My roommate and I read them at about the same time and I was completely caught up. Then I think I went to talk to Danii who showed me how to find fanfic and I was amazed. Before this I'd been aware of fandom, I once very briefly played on the Star Trek online chat game and was quite involved in White Wolf and Larping but I hadn't known the world out there. In that first year I read some good fic, bad fic and strange fic but it provided another option of things to do when I needed a break from all my classes.
When the movies came out, I'm pretty sure I saw them with school friends. My mother was actually interviewed when she went to see the first one as she was one of the older people in the line, it came out on her birthday.
Fast forward to my last year in New Zealand, I'm studying in Wellington and the last book is coming out. Thanks to the weirdness of timezones, I actually get Deathly Hallows the day it comes out since midnight was equal to about 11 am in Wellington. Somewhere I still have the purple bag that I got with my book that says the date and everything on it. I went home and I read Deathly Hallows until I finished it and I remember how much it stuck with me, it was the end of a journey. When my parents came to visit that year, I lent them the book and they took turns reading it.
I wasn't able to see the first part of Deathly Hallows in the theater due to a schedule that was far too busy so I finally saw it Monday night on my little tv and was impressed. When it comes to books and movies that share a source, I try and keep them separate as the mediums are so different. I haven't liked all of the Harry Potter movies, but they've all had things that worked and transformed the books.
The final movie felt like the right coda. I appreciated how it was clearly a war and no one came out of it without scars. The whole pensieve thing with Snape was pretty but I still don't like him. Alan Rickman redeems Snape a lot but for me he's someone who never learned how to move on. In the memories we saw, Lily is rather passive which to me shows that he didn't understand her. He had his idea of Lily that he loved but he didn't know her, but his idea of love helped Harry.
I liked how the dueling magic was done and the battle of Hogwarts. Ron and Hermione made me happy with how they drew together and the sense of all the untold stories of those there and taking care of those they love. Neville and Luna were amazing. In terms of the final confrontation, I enjoyed that circle around Harry and having a moment with each of them. It might not have been the honor guard but it was beautiful. King's Cross was lovely, I really do love Gambon's Dumbledore. I could have done with less flailing about for the last fight, but that was a movie choice. I loved the epilogue, it was quiet and lovely and felt like the right end. I probably will watch this again when I'm not worrying as much about money, but it felt right for me.
After the movie, I walked into a drenching rain to get a not so great pizza at a restaurant called Carlyle's that was trying to be much snazzier than it is. It was all dressed up like a really nice steak house but the food I had was just okay.
Another ending I just realized I should mention is Borders, which I keep hearing more and more about since this is their home base. They were my first big bookstore that I could walk to and buy my own books. Its fascinating to get all these emails on my SI listserve of students and faculty talking about Borders and what it meant to them and what their closings means. At some point I will go shopping as I walk by them all the time, its going to be hard to see that big store empty.
Now I'm home, my stomach hurts and the heat has lifted slightly. Life is feeling quite full at the moment. In about two weeks, I have my last class at Michigan and then I dive fully into job searching. At the end of August, my brother gets married and hopefully in not too long, I will find a job and make my next step.