Birthdays
Ah, to be one year older. I gotta say, I had a pretty good birthday. I slept in till around eight (yeah, that's sad, isn't it?), woke up, and decided to open my mom and dad's gifts. One of them was a really cute little garden gnome playing the flute. Being both a musician and a gnome collector (and no, I'm not kidding), this was a super gift.
But the BEST gift I received was a WACOM graphics tablet! WOO! Needless to say, I spent the entire morning piddling around on it. How have I lived so long without one? These things are great! I will share pics in a later post.
I also got the Shins' "Oh Inverted World", Sufjan Stevens' "Come on Feel the Illinoise" and a Brian Urlacher jersey, and the second season of The Office (!!!1!!1). I guess there was a sort of midwestern Illinois nostalgia theme to my birthday. And yes, I'm a Bears fan, and yes, I still think Rex Grossman is a tool. They should send him back to Florida.
Also, I started writing the tenth chapter of APoE. randomneses, I'm sorry I haven't read your update, yet. I'm planning on getting to it later.
And because I like giving gifts as much as I do receiving them, I've decided to post a snippet of APoE chapt. 10:
* * *
“Old Filchy has a soft spot for you, eh?” asked Wilkes with a sly grin.
“He has a warm heart,” replied Severus sardonically, lifting an eyebrow at the implication.
“If you have four legs and a set of whiskers,” Fulton added, chuckling.
“He does love that old, manky cat, doesn’t he?” remarked Rabastan. He shoved his hands into his pockets and ambled along, staring out at the pathway ahead. “One time Rodolphus caught her and stuffed her into a pillowcase.” He gave an amused, sidelong glance at his companions. “He suspended her from the ceiling. Filch was seething-and he actually fetched a ladder to rescue her. S’pose he didn’t want to hurt her with magic.”
The boys chuckled appreciatively. Severus imagined Mrs. Norris yowling in fear and Filch collapsing from heart palpatations.
“Come to think of it, I’ve never seen him use magic,” mused Avery.
“I think I did once,” Fulton said slowly. “I can’t remember when it was, though.” He shrugged a shoulder. “But how else is he going to keep a castle clean? I mean, it would be difficult without magic.”
Lestrange let out a short hiss of air between his teeth. “That’s what house elves are for, isn’t it?” Kicking a stone across the cobbled path, he turned to Fulton. “I always figured he was related to some old benefactor who donated a lot of money to the school. Scholarship funds or something. Headmaster Dippet was so grateful he had to keep Filch around, and now Dumbledore’s stuck with him.”
“He doesn’t really look like he’s from an old estate,” mused Snape. Frankly, Filch looked like he belonged under a park bench, covered by a blanket of newspapers.
“That’s likely because his relatives donated the estate. Or something.” Lestrange scratched the back of his head uncertainly.
“I’ve yet to find the Filch wing,” murmured Severus, “and I know this school fairly well.”
“It probably smells like a litterbox,” said Merrick decidedly. “It’s probably good we haven’t found it.”
But the BEST gift I received was a WACOM graphics tablet! WOO! Needless to say, I spent the entire morning piddling around on it. How have I lived so long without one? These things are great! I will share pics in a later post.
I also got the Shins' "Oh Inverted World", Sufjan Stevens' "Come on Feel the Illinoise" and a Brian Urlacher jersey, and the second season of The Office (!!!1!!1). I guess there was a sort of midwestern Illinois nostalgia theme to my birthday. And yes, I'm a Bears fan, and yes, I still think Rex Grossman is a tool. They should send him back to Florida.
Also, I started writing the tenth chapter of APoE. randomneses, I'm sorry I haven't read your update, yet. I'm planning on getting to it later.
And because I like giving gifts as much as I do receiving them, I've decided to post a snippet of APoE chapt. 10:
* * *
“Old Filchy has a soft spot for you, eh?” asked Wilkes with a sly grin.
“He has a warm heart,” replied Severus sardonically, lifting an eyebrow at the implication.
“If you have four legs and a set of whiskers,” Fulton added, chuckling.
“He does love that old, manky cat, doesn’t he?” remarked Rabastan. He shoved his hands into his pockets and ambled along, staring out at the pathway ahead. “One time Rodolphus caught her and stuffed her into a pillowcase.” He gave an amused, sidelong glance at his companions. “He suspended her from the ceiling. Filch was seething-and he actually fetched a ladder to rescue her. S’pose he didn’t want to hurt her with magic.”
The boys chuckled appreciatively. Severus imagined Mrs. Norris yowling in fear and Filch collapsing from heart palpatations.
“Come to think of it, I’ve never seen him use magic,” mused Avery.
“I think I did once,” Fulton said slowly. “I can’t remember when it was, though.” He shrugged a shoulder. “But how else is he going to keep a castle clean? I mean, it would be difficult without magic.”
Lestrange let out a short hiss of air between his teeth. “That’s what house elves are for, isn’t it?” Kicking a stone across the cobbled path, he turned to Fulton. “I always figured he was related to some old benefactor who donated a lot of money to the school. Scholarship funds or something. Headmaster Dippet was so grateful he had to keep Filch around, and now Dumbledore’s stuck with him.”
“He doesn’t really look like he’s from an old estate,” mused Snape. Frankly, Filch looked like he belonged under a park bench, covered by a blanket of newspapers.
“That’s likely because his relatives donated the estate. Or something.” Lestrange scratched the back of his head uncertainly.
“I’ve yet to find the Filch wing,” murmured Severus, “and I know this school fairly well.”
“It probably smells like a litterbox,” said Merrick decidedly. “It’s probably good we haven’t found it.”