What's up
What's up is that I'm enjoying the end of my time in Montreal. I've begun to feel a bit melancholy about leaving. That feeling rarely strikes me before the last weeks prior to my departure. Perhaps it's a coping strategy; I'm used to moving, and the idea of being "settled down" in one place seems strange to me. I suppose I might like it one day, but right now I can't quite imagine it.
The weekend before last I went to visit some relatives in Vermont. Mom is there for much of July, before her new job starts in August, and we had a family-and-friends celebration for her birthday, which was a significant one (she's 39, of course). That was wonderful. We didn't do anything terrifically exciting, just a lot of long walks and hanging out at the wonderfully rustic camp (Vermont-speak for lakeside vacation house). The great-"aunt and uncle" (they're related to me by marriage) who originally owned it had eleven children. It would have been fairly small for them, especially with their "cousins" visiting (one family of five children, one of seven, one of eight), but it was rather big with only me, my mother, and my aunt. The cliff on which it's situated has eroded considerably over recent decades, which is lots of fun in a way that's not actually fun at all. But the old swing and glider are still in fine working order, which I was quite pleased to discover.
Everything's been quiet for me in Montreal. I know you're thinking, "But it's festival season!" True, but I'm such an unbelievable philisitine that - brace yourselves - I don't enjoy jazz. Sad but true, and probably especially disappointing for my dad, who's an enormous jazz fan. But there it is. So I haven't been to the jazz festival, and I'm not willing to brave either the lines or the ticket prices for Juste pour Rire (Just for Laughs, a comedy festival). That said, the few fireworks shows I've been able to catch have been good, and I'm looking forward to tonight's. The gym is fine as usual (
dithie, I recommend the new elliptical, #14, when you get back - it's awesome), and I've been doing a lot of walking on Mont-Royal, the site of many wonderful plants and animals. One of the few housemates who's here for the summer was dying to see Transformers on Monday, and since it was her birthday, I felt obligated to go along. I was expecting to hate it, but the first hour and a half was actually (deliberately) hilarious and very cool in terms of the effects. Low-brow, of course, and somewhat offensive, but hilarious nonetheless. The last hour was agony, but if you're in need of air conditioning, I suggest sneaking a bit of vodka into a matinee and getting roaring drunk at the ninety-minute mark.
I've been doing a lot of getting ready for Durham, although I'm not actually going over there for another two months - yikes! So much to do still, much of it complicated because the U.S. student loan office is insanely slow right now and I kind of need that documentation to get my student visa, kthxbai. Anyway, I'm going "home" to Florida on the 31st of this month, but I'm going to try and visit Montreal around the weekend after Labour Day. I'm also going to try to go to New York around the weekend before Labour Day, so I will see people then. That, and if you know what you're doing, transport to New York is often cheaper from England than from Canada. Sad but true. Anyway, I'm in the all-graduate college in Durham (they do the old-fashioned college system, which is kind of cool). Most of that residential complex is by a farm site, which suits me beautifully. It's a lovely walk from there to the university itself, which is even better, although of course the college also has a gym that I fully plan on using. The university has what seems to be a very active, and cheap, equestrian club, so I'm also excited about looking into that. Riding is available in Montreal, theoretically, but it's both inconvenient and quite expensive, so I haven't really had much chance to do it. I miss the horsies...
And, of course, I'm going insane waiting for Harry Potter. Movie 5 served only to whet my appetite for Book 7. I mean, by this time in the Half-Blood Prince countdown, we had three chapter titles and a couple of excerpts to tide us over. Now there's nothing but massive spoilers, which I've been avoiding as assiduously as possible. I understand the impatience, but come on, people! I would of course be remiss if I didn't provide a final list of personal predictions. They're under the cut.
Deaths - definite:
Bad guys: Voldemort, Bellatrix, Narcissa, Pettigrew, Snape (dead even if he turns out to be good), miscellaneous "walk-on" Death Eaters.
Good guys: Hagrid, a few Weasleys (see below), miscellaneous Order members and Hogwarts staff and students.
Deaths - possible:
Bad guys: Draco, Umbridge, Rita Skeeter
Good guys: Neville Longbottom; Arthur, Molly, Charlie, Fred OR George (not both) and Percy Weasley; Mad-Eye Moody, Horace Slughorn, Oliver Wood, Lee Jordan
Survivals:
Bill, Fleur Delacour, Fred AND/OR George, Ron, and Ginny Weasley
Harry, Hermione, Lupin, Tonks, McGonagall, probably Luna Lovegood
The Horcruxes:
The Peveril ring, Tom Riddle's diary, Hufflepuff's goblet, Slytherin's locket/reliquary, Voldemort's wand, and Harry or his scar (created inadvertently when the spell backfired; the yet-unknown Ravenclaw or Gryffindor object was probably the intended item)
Snape:
Either working for Voldemort outright or just out for his own interests, which, as Rowling has noted repeatedly in interviews and the books, include sadism, cruelty, and the Dark Arts.
Possibly evil:
Percy Weasley, Ludo Bagman, Ollivander (I hope not), maybe Rufus Scrimgeour
Hogwarts:
Will probably re-open, with the Trio nominally enrolled but usually absent. A private visit by just those three is likely over the summer or Christmas holiday. They will either take the NEWTs or be given waivers after the heroic defeat of Voldemort. If I'm wrong and Hogwarts doesn't re-open, I'm guessing the Ministry will decide to excuse that year's class their NEWTs and allow them to apply for jobs on a case-by-case basis and in light of their OWLs.
I have no idea about:
What we'll learn about Lily or Godric's Hollow
The fate of Harry's wand or scar
The epilogue (apart from R/Hr, H/G, and Harry becoming an auror) - though I think either Ron or Neville, if he survives, will wind up teaching at Hogwarts
The weekend before last I went to visit some relatives in Vermont. Mom is there for much of July, before her new job starts in August, and we had a family-and-friends celebration for her birthday, which was a significant one (she's 39, of course). That was wonderful. We didn't do anything terrifically exciting, just a lot of long walks and hanging out at the wonderfully rustic camp (Vermont-speak for lakeside vacation house). The great-"aunt and uncle" (they're related to me by marriage) who originally owned it had eleven children. It would have been fairly small for them, especially with their "cousins" visiting (one family of five children, one of seven, one of eight), but it was rather big with only me, my mother, and my aunt. The cliff on which it's situated has eroded considerably over recent decades, which is lots of fun in a way that's not actually fun at all. But the old swing and glider are still in fine working order, which I was quite pleased to discover.
Everything's been quiet for me in Montreal. I know you're thinking, "But it's festival season!" True, but I'm such an unbelievable philisitine that - brace yourselves - I don't enjoy jazz. Sad but true, and probably especially disappointing for my dad, who's an enormous jazz fan. But there it is. So I haven't been to the jazz festival, and I'm not willing to brave either the lines or the ticket prices for Juste pour Rire (Just for Laughs, a comedy festival). That said, the few fireworks shows I've been able to catch have been good, and I'm looking forward to tonight's. The gym is fine as usual (
dithie, I recommend the new elliptical, #14, when you get back - it's awesome), and I've been doing a lot of walking on Mont-Royal, the site of many wonderful plants and animals. One of the few housemates who's here for the summer was dying to see Transformers on Monday, and since it was her birthday, I felt obligated to go along. I was expecting to hate it, but the first hour and a half was actually (deliberately) hilarious and very cool in terms of the effects. Low-brow, of course, and somewhat offensive, but hilarious nonetheless. The last hour was agony, but if you're in need of air conditioning, I suggest sneaking a bit of vodka into a matinee and getting roaring drunk at the ninety-minute mark.
I've been doing a lot of getting ready for Durham, although I'm not actually going over there for another two months - yikes! So much to do still, much of it complicated because the U.S. student loan office is insanely slow right now and I kind of need that documentation to get my student visa, kthxbai. Anyway, I'm going "home" to Florida on the 31st of this month, but I'm going to try and visit Montreal around the weekend after Labour Day. I'm also going to try to go to New York around the weekend before Labour Day, so I will see people then. That, and if you know what you're doing, transport to New York is often cheaper from England than from Canada. Sad but true. Anyway, I'm in the all-graduate college in Durham (they do the old-fashioned college system, which is kind of cool). Most of that residential complex is by a farm site, which suits me beautifully. It's a lovely walk from there to the university itself, which is even better, although of course the college also has a gym that I fully plan on using. The university has what seems to be a very active, and cheap, equestrian club, so I'm also excited about looking into that. Riding is available in Montreal, theoretically, but it's both inconvenient and quite expensive, so I haven't really had much chance to do it. I miss the horsies...
And, of course, I'm going insane waiting for Harry Potter. Movie 5 served only to whet my appetite for Book 7. I mean, by this time in the Half-Blood Prince countdown, we had three chapter titles and a couple of excerpts to tide us over. Now there's nothing but massive spoilers, which I've been avoiding as assiduously as possible. I understand the impatience, but come on, people! I would of course be remiss if I didn't provide a final list of personal predictions. They're under the cut.
Deaths - definite:
Bad guys: Voldemort, Bellatrix, Narcissa, Pettigrew, Snape (dead even if he turns out to be good), miscellaneous "walk-on" Death Eaters.
Good guys: Hagrid, a few Weasleys (see below), miscellaneous Order members and Hogwarts staff and students.
Deaths - possible:
Bad guys: Draco, Umbridge, Rita Skeeter
Good guys: Neville Longbottom; Arthur, Molly, Charlie, Fred OR George (not both) and Percy Weasley; Mad-Eye Moody, Horace Slughorn, Oliver Wood, Lee Jordan
Survivals:
Bill, Fleur Delacour, Fred AND/OR George, Ron, and Ginny Weasley
Harry, Hermione, Lupin, Tonks, McGonagall, probably Luna Lovegood
The Horcruxes:
The Peveril ring, Tom Riddle's diary, Hufflepuff's goblet, Slytherin's locket/reliquary, Voldemort's wand, and Harry or his scar (created inadvertently when the spell backfired; the yet-unknown Ravenclaw or Gryffindor object was probably the intended item)
Snape:
Either working for Voldemort outright or just out for his own interests, which, as Rowling has noted repeatedly in interviews and the books, include sadism, cruelty, and the Dark Arts.
Possibly evil:
Percy Weasley, Ludo Bagman, Ollivander (I hope not), maybe Rufus Scrimgeour
Hogwarts:
Will probably re-open, with the Trio nominally enrolled but usually absent. A private visit by just those three is likely over the summer or Christmas holiday. They will either take the NEWTs or be given waivers after the heroic defeat of Voldemort. If I'm wrong and Hogwarts doesn't re-open, I'm guessing the Ministry will decide to excuse that year's class their NEWTs and allow them to apply for jobs on a case-by-case basis and in light of their OWLs.
I have no idea about:
What we'll learn about Lily or Godric's Hollow
The fate of Harry's wand or scar
The epilogue (apart from R/Hr, H/G, and Harry becoming an auror) - though I think either Ron or Neville, if he survives, will wind up teaching at Hogwarts