It's Harry-Freaking-Potter! pt 2

"Back to witches and wizards and magical beasts, 

to goblins and ghosts, and to magical feasts. 

It's all that I love and all that I need at Horgwarts. 

Hogwarts!" 

First of all this blog is taking so long because....

• I am working very hard on it
• Okay so maybe the first point is not entirely true. It is mostly because of POTTERMORE. 
• I was one of the first thousand in!
• I was officially sorted into Ravenclaw (I always felt like a ravenclaw, and now it is JKR official). 
• The wand that chose me is Chestnut wood, 14 and a half inches, unicorn hair core, and hard. 
• Unicorn Core- Unicorn hair generally produces the most consistent magic, and is least subject to fluctuations and blockages. Wands with unicorn cores are generally the most difficult to turn to the Dark Arts. They are the most faithful of all wands, and usually remain strongly attached to their first owner, irrespective of whether he or she was an accomplished witch or wizard.
  Minor disadvantages of unicorn hair are that they do not make the most powerful wands (although the wand wood may compensate) and that they are prone to melancholy if seriously mishandled, meaning that the hair may 'die' and need replacing.
• Chestnut- This is a most curious, multi-faceted wood, which varies greatly in its character depending on the wand core, and takes a great deal of colour from the personality that possesses it. The wand of chestnut is attracted to witches and wizards who are skilled tamers of magical beasts, those who possess great gifts in Herbology, and those who are natural fliers. However, when paired with dragon heartstring, it may find its best match among those who are overfond of luxury and material things, and less scrupulous than they should be about how they are obtained. Conversely, three successive heads of the Wizengamot have possessed chestnut and unicorn wands, for this combination shows a predilection for those concerned with all manner of justice.
• What Ollivander says on flexibity and length... Many wandmakers simply match the wand length to the size of the witch or wizard who will use it, but this is a crude measure, and fails to take into account many other, important considerations. In my experience, longer wands might suit taller wizards, but they tend to be drawn to bigger personalities, and those of a more spacious and dramatic style of magic. Neater wands favour more elegant and refined spell-casting. However, no single aspect of wand composition should be considered in isolation of all the others, and the type of wood, the core and the flexibility may either counterbalance or enhance the attributes of the wand’s length. Most wands will be in the range of between nine and fourteen inches. While I have sold extremely short wands (eight inches and under) and very long wands (over fifteen inches), these are exceptionally rare. In the latter case, a physical peculiarity demanded the excessive wand length. However, abnormally short wands usually select those in whose character something is lacking, rather than because they are physically undersized (many small witches and wizards are chosen by longer wands).Wand flexibility or rigidity denotes the degree of adaptability and willingness to change possessed by the wand-and-owner pair - although, again, this factor ought not to be considered separately from the wand wood, core and length, nor of the owner’s life experience and style of magic, all of which will combine to make the wand in question unique.

• I have also been brewing some potion, and dueling with other first years. Pottermore is amazing, and I truly feel like a Hogwarts' student. 
• Currently Ravenclaws are winning the house cup! Suck it everybody else! We are the smartest and we know it. 
• Life is full of surprises, and sometimes it takes you away from blogging. Utah here we are! 

Some of my favorite parts of the 7th book that are not necessarily important. . .

• When Ron and Hermione finally get together. Dan called their relationship after reading the first book. I did not realize it until during the fourth book, but after rereading the whole series it is obviously always suppose to happen. Their kiss is absolutely perfect because let's all face it... even though we wanted Ron and Hermione to get together, Ron was never worthy of Hermione (I will refer you to this article) until the very end. The precise moment it happens is when Ron worries about the safety of the house elves, and finally proves himself mature and empathetic enough for Hermione. Jane Austen would be proud. I don't love Jane Austen, but her pride still exists. 
• When Cho is about to show Harry the Rowana Ravenclaw statue with the diadem, but Ginny insists that Luna takes him instead. 
• When Mrs. Wesley calls Bellatrix a bitch. That very well might be my favorite part in the book. 
• The taboo on Voldermort's name, and when Harry calls Voldermort, "Tom" and "Riddle." 
• Kreacher appearing at the final battle and fighting Voldermort for Regulus. 
• The death of Fred is still the most emotional part of the book for me, but I am glad Percy came back, and his struggle with Fred's death is powerful. I am still upset that Fred's death was not a bigger part of the movie. 
• Harry digging Dobby's grave w/o magic, and the headstone saying, "Here lies Dobby, A Free Elf." I am so glad they included that in the movie. 
• When Ron uses Wingardium Leviosa to get them into the shrieking shack. First spell ever taught! 
• How nearly every character and place from the first books is in it. I think the only "living" character that doesn't make a reappearance in the 7th book is Gilderoy Lockhart. 

Now what we learn in the book about... 

Dumbledore

• Dumbledore leaves the trio different things in his will. Hermione gets  DD's copy of "The Tales of Beedle the Bard." Ron gets the deluminator (crafted by DD, himself). Harry gets the first snitch he ever caught, and the sword of gryffindor (the ministry doesn't know where it is, but says it wasn't DD's to give anyways). 
• These three things say a lot about what DD knew about the trio and their personalities. 
• The deluminator brought Ron back once he left, so DD assumed that Ron would have the hardest time on the quest, and that he would need something to keep him in touch with the other two even if he walked out on them. 
• Hermione was left with the kid's story book that references the deathly hallows. This is very crucial to how DD wanted Harry and the others to see the hallows. If DD wanted Harry to find the Hallows, I don't believe that he would have given the book to the skeptic. He definitely wanted Harry to know about the hallows, and possibly for more than one reason, but he never wanted to Harry to chase after them. He knew Hermione would doubt their authenticity and keep them on the path to the horcruxes, so he gave her the book that would allow the trio to discover the hallows. 
• He of course leaves Harry the sword because that is what can destroy the horcruxes. Then the snitch ends up being the resurrection stone, so Harry can have his family/friends who have passed close to him as he goes to sacrifice himself. What he leaves Harry is fairly obvious and Harry figures it out quickly. 
• We learn A LOT about DD's past in the book, and it is hard to learn that he wasn't always a perfect loving guy.
• He was power hungry 
• He chased the Hallows
• He was actually close to Grindewald when he was young, and they were planning on creating a Wizard run society that put muggles in their place "for the greater good."
• He also lived at Godric's hallow
• His mom died when he graduated from Hogwarts
• His dad was arrested for killing 3 muggles
• his sister was "frail" and kept in the house. She later dies under DD's watch. 
• His brother, Aberforth, had a strange affinity for goats, and broke DD's nose at their sisters funeral. 
• All of that comes together when Aberforth explains that his sister was severely abused after she exhibited magic, by three muggle boys. Their father ends up killing these three boys. The sister goes crazy and cannot control her magic after this so she is kept in the hosue by the mother and family. The sister can't control her magic and accidently kills the mom. DD comes back to take care of the sister, and Grindewald is visiting his aunt (Bathilda Bagshot) at the same time and they become great friends. Aberforth gets mad because DD is planning on going off with Grindewald when he needs to stay with the sister. They all fight around the sister (Grindewald, DD, and Aberforth) and one of their spells accidently hits the sister and she dies. This is why Aberforth is mad at DD, and why DD quits hanging around Grindewald. 
• We FINALLY learn what DD would have seen in the mirror of erised, and that is his curse not being the one that killed his sister. 
• DD understood Harry was going to be the one to destroy Voldermort in the end from when he was a baby. That is why he allowed Harry to tackle greater things from the get go. DD was raising up a sacrifice until the 4th book (why he has a gleam of triumph in his eyes). 
• DD possessed the Elder Wand and figured that Voldermort would go after it (remember that Olivander was kidnapped in book 6), so the plan that Snape kills DD with DD meaning to be killed was suppose to stop the transfer of the Elder Wand, but Malfloy foils this plan (in the end it makes it better). 

The Hallows

• DD along with Grindewald were obsessed with the Hallows, but few other witches/wizards believe they are real. 
• The Hallows consist of the Elder Wand, the Cloak of Invisibility, and the Resurrection Stone. 
• DD has the Elder Wand
• HP has the Cloak 
• The Resurrection stone was an heirloom that Gaunt had, a horcrux, and eventually ends up with HP thanks to DD's genius. 
• Voldermort does NOT know about the hallows. 

Voldermort

• Learns of the Elder Wand, but not of the deathly hallows (Ollivander knows nothing of the hallows in the book. Only of the Elder Wand). 
• He then hunts it down, so that he will finally have a wand that can beat Harry's. 
• Voldermort ends up making the same mistake twice. His lack of belief in love and sacrifice is eventualy his demise. He doesn't understand the importance of a "pure" soul. 

Snape

• Snape is "good." 
• Most people love the story of Snape and claim him to be the true hero of the book. While I love his story... he is still something of an "anti-hero." He only protected Harry because of his love for Lily. Not because he wanted to see the Voldermort defeated nor because he was worried about the prejudice that was a huge part of Voldermort's philosophy. It was strictly based on his love for Lily. Yes, this can be seen as romantic, but in the end Snape was never the man for Lily because of this. She wouldn't fall in love with someone just because they had an unending love for her. No, she fall in love with that prick, James, because he not only loved her, but he fought for what was right. 
• Snape is the one that brings Harry the sword, and in the end is the one that tells Harry that he has sacrifice himself because he is the final horcrux. 

Why Harry survives AGAIN

• Harry survives again because of DD's "gleam of triumph in his eyes" in the 4th book.  This is also when Harry Potter blows your *bleeping* mind. 
• That happened when Harry told DD that LV used his blood to get his body back. 
• Why did that help?
• We knew that the "bloodline" protection helped Harry before. LV couldn't attack the Dursley's house because Lily's sacrifice carried on in Petunia's blood until Harry reached age. 
• We knew that the "bloodline" protected Harry from being killed by Quirell/LV in the first book because he wasn't able to touch him due to Harry having Lily's blood in himself. 
• LV continued Lily's protection when he used Harry's blood that night. He tethered HP to the earth just like he had tethered himself with the horcruxes. 
• Harry's tether was more powerful though because it came from sacrificing yourself for another instead of killing others for your gain (Ayn Rand is so pissed at JKR right now). 
• It was beautiful because in the end when Harry "dies" but is still tethered he has a choice to die or go back. When LV "died" at the beginning he had no choice to go on to the next life. He was forced to live as an insignificant creature living off of the bodies of snakes. 
• Harry survived because he chose sacrificing himself for the cause instead of beating LV to the deathly hallows. He survived because not one inch of him was selfish or power hungry. Harry survived because he had a "pure soul." In the final battle the only person LV could fight was Harry because he had sacrificed himself for everyone else, and thus the killing curse would not work for LV once again. 

All about "The-Boy-Who-Lived" pt 1

Some important things to consider before you read...

•  If you do not know who that is then this blog is going to be incredibly boring for you.
•  If you have read all the books, but like me (2 weeks ago) hadn’t read them for a while, and were a little confused about certain parts of the last movie since you hadn’t read the books for a while then I hope this blog addressed those points of confusion.
• If you have only seen all the movies, then I am amusing that this story already confuses the hell out of you, and maybe this blog can clear some stuff up for you. I would instead recommend that you read all the books. It is never cool to not read a book. I promise you that, I have read Twilight (It sucked, and I don’t pride myself on reading it.  If I hadn’t read it, I wouldn’t pride myself on refusing to read it either though.)
• If you have neither read the books or seen the movies, but are reading this blog so you never have… well you suck, and I hope this confuses you.

I had not read the seventh book for over a year when I went to see the movie. At the end when Harry doesn’t die after sacrificing himself. I couldn’t remember the EXACT reason why he lives. Dumbledore does not explain it in the movie like he does in the book. I was thinking it might be because he was “The Master of Death” since he was the rightful owner of all three hallows, but he dropped the stone in the forest, and didn’t yet possess the wand.  I chalked it up to being the Hallows because I couldn’t figure out what other reason there was.

A day or two later I remembered something about the bloodline, so I Googled it and asked a few friends.  It of course was the bloodline protection (I will explain this in a later blog), and not the Hallows. The question that followed that realization then was, “What the freak was the purpose of the Hallows then?” Why would the seventh book be named after them, and why would DD (Dumbledore) give Hermione The Tales of Beedle the Bard the book that included the story of “The Three Brothers” (the Deathly Hallows)? Wouldn’t it just distract them from their main responsibility (finding the horcruxes)?

I was very annoyed and wishing I could ask JKR these questions. I was Googling for answers and the best that people had come up with was because it was the final test for Harry from DD to make sure he was truly the selfless person that he would need to be to defeat LV.  Another answer was that other magical ways to be “immortal” were not new to the book. The first book is all about a stone that does just that, and that is the main purpose of horcruxes. Immortality is nothing new in the HP series, so the deathly hallows don't need to be incredibly important. They are just showing you that there are other selfish magical means to immortality. 

Both those answers are acceptable, but I still don’t believe they are a sufficient answer to the question. The book is named after them! They have to be more significant than “just another thing.” This of course was leading to more discussions with friends, and after an hour-long video chat we still had no idea.  Later I came up with a small addition that I think would be a sufficient answer along with the two other reasons. I will discuss that in the second blog also, but first we will have to look at the other books and certain plot points to discuss that. 

I decided to read all the books, and tried to read them before Pottermore (got in the first day within 5 minutes of it opening) was released, but only made it to the fifth book (Boy, is that book grueling, but great). Anyways, I am going to give a quick summary of the important points/questions we can gather from books 1-6, and list the best Harry and the Potters song for each book IMO.  Also if I miss a point 

tell me… I am not going to repeat points that are brought up in every book. Later this week I will write a blog about why I believe the Deathly Hallows are significant, why Harry survived due to the bloodline, and other important things that happened in the 7th book (Snape, and LV's eventual death). 

1- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.  Best Harry and the Potters' song: “I am a Wizard.” 

• Why is it important for Harry to stay with the Dursley's? Especially after we find that they are abusive. DD at the beginning says that it would be too much to be raised in a world where you are famous before you can walk/talk
• Snape seems to be quite the douche, but he still protects Harry. He obiously has a problem with Gryffindors, but the way he treats Harry is ridiculous. Dude is mean. DD says it is because James saved Snape's life. 
• Harry looks like his father, but has Lily's eyes. 
• Harry survived because of his mother's sacrifice.
• Why didn't LV die? 
• Why did LV target the Potter family?
• What does DD see in the Mirror of Erised? We all know it isn't a pair of woolen socks. 
• LV can't physically touch HP because of Lily's sacrifice. 

2.   Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.  Best Harry and the Potters' song: “Save Ginny Weasley from the Basilisk."

• How can Harry speak parseltongue? DD pretty much tells HP he is a horcrux, but we do not know they even exist yet. He says it is because part of Voldy is in Harry. 
• How exactly did the diary work? All we know is that it was extremely dark magic.
• Why is there a jinx on the DADA job? This is mentioned 3 times in this book, and I believe mentioned in every book afterwards. 

3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Best Harry and the Potters' Song: “Gryffindor Rocks” or “My Teacher is a Werewolf.”

• This is the only book that LV doesn't play a significant role. You only hear about him, but never see or hear from him. 
• What was the 1st real prophecy Trelawny ever made. She makes the prophecy to Harry about LV returning, and DD says she has made one before that. 
• DD believes Sirius very quickly and send HP and Hermione to save him? Showing his belief/trust in people, and second chances. Also showing once again his belief/trust in Harry at 13. 
• Wormtail is in debt to Harry now. 
• On that note it is now especially obvious that magic is something more than just spells and wands. There is a natural order law to magic. This was of course first introduced with Lily's sacrifice, but we see that that wasn't some unique thing that happened. That and Wormtail's new debt follow the laws/order of magic.  
• We learn Snape hated Sirius, Lupin, Peter, and James. We also learn that James saved Snape's life, but it was Sirius that put his life in danger in the first place. 

4. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.  Best Harry and the Potters' Song:  “The Yule Ball.”

• Why does DD have a gleam of triumph in his eyes when Harry tells him that LV used Harry's blood to gain back his body, and now LV can physically touch him.
• Harry learns that Snape used to be a deatheater. Why does DD trust him? 
• DD asks Snape to return to LV as a spy. 
• Why the freak doesn't Fudge believe DD that LV has returned? And what kind of havoc is that going to create? 
• What is up with Harry's connection to LV in his dreams? 
• Harry and LV's wands are connected, and do not like battling each other. 
• You-Know-Who is going to try and get those on his side that he had once more (giants, dementors, and other wizards). 
• There are probably ten thousand more questions that I cannot think of. This book is where a lot of important stuff starts happening.

5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.  Best Harry and the Potters' Song: “Human Hosepipe” or “Cornelius Fudge is an Ass” or “Stick it to Delores”

• Petunia Dursley gets a howler from DD that yells "Remember my Last!" His "last" was the letter that explained to the Dursley's that HP must stay at the house while he is underage because he is protected there since the "blood-line" protection of his mom extends to her sister. DD did some enchantment to extend it.
• We learn that someone heard half of the prophecy that Trelawny gave to DD, and that is what caused LV to attack Harry when he was baby. He thought he was stopping the prophecy from coming true, but he was only making it true. We also learn that the prophecy could have also met Neville, but LV picked Harry. 
• We then learn the FULL prophecy from DD, Harry has been marked as LV's equal, and LV essentially gave HP the power he needs to beat him. Harry also knows "love" and that is what makes him so special. One of them will have to kill the other. 
• "The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not.. And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survived... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies." 
• We learn that there are not just good and evil people. There are people across the while spectrum... Dolores Umbridge. 
• The Ministry sees  LV and has to admit he has returned. 
• LV uses Harry to do his bidding, but realizes he cannot possess Harry like Harry can possess him. This is because of Harry's ability to "love" according to DD. 
• Some deatheaters escape from Azkaban including Bellatrix Lestrange (one of those who tortured Neville's parents). 
• LV wants to kill Harry on his own. 
• LV is good at legilmency (mind reading) so is DD, and Snape is an accomplished at occlumency (closing your mind so it can't be read). 
• Harry's dad was mean to Snape. Snape has memories he doesn't want Harry to see. 
• DD says death is the next great adventure, and it is something LV is scared of. 
• Harry tries the Cruciatus curse but it doesn't work on Bellatrix because you have got to mean it. 
• This is the book of answers.

6. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. Best Harry and the Potters' Songs: "This Book is so Awesome" and "Save Ginny Weasley from Dean Thomas." 

• Ollivander (the wandmaker) is gone. 
• What we learn about Snape
• He is one of LV's favorite 
• Makes the unbreakable vow with Narcissa Malfloy to help Draco in his task assigned by the Dark Lord
• He is the one who overheard half of the prophecy and told LV.
• He was remorseful, and DD said he trusted him without a doubt
• He is the Half Blood Prince
• He kills DD at the end. 
• Even after all that he did there is still the question of whether to trust him or not? Because DD says he absolutely trusts him, DD and him are arguing once about Snape having to go through with something, DD hints to HP that he knows what is going on with Snape/Malfloy, and you want to trust DD. 
• What we learn about LV... A LOT ;)
• He never had friends nor wanted them, only followers/admirers.
• He liked to collect items that were related to harm he inflicted on others. 
• He was a charismatic/handsome/smart/talented student, but DD always watched him since Tom didn't know to hide his bad traits when they first met. 
• He was obsessed with Hogwarts and happy to finally find out what made him special (being a wizard). 
• He loved anything to do with magical history, and was very proud of his own magical history. 
• He created horcruxes because death meant weakness, and LV wanted to show his strength. 
• He went farther than any wizard with the horcruxes and created 7 (1 by accident, but we find that out later). 
• He "wanted" the dada job, and because he was refused it was jinxed. 
• What we learn about the Horcruxes
• To create one you have to split your soul, and put it in something else. The only way to split your soul is by killing (this once again shows the natural order/laws to magic. Doing something evil splits your soul, and DD says LV underestimates the power of a complete/pure soul). 
• There are 6 (we know of) in the 6th book. Diary, locket, ring, goblet, snake, and something from ravenclaw/gryffindor. Although we can almost count out grffyffindor since the sword is the only known relic. 
• LV will have not made something meaningless a horcrux, and not put it somewhere meaningless. He wants it to be in something very magical and important to him. 
• Although LV made it difficult for people to find his horcruxes. He never believed anyone would ever find them or know that he created them. LV's biggest flaw was that he felt invincible and undeniably powerful. He never thought ANYONE would be able to beat him because of the lengths he had taken for immortality.  This is why asking questions like why didn't LV make an old boot a horcrux, or why didn't he hide them anywhere outside of the UK are stupid. It wasn't LV's personality to do that. That is why we look back in his memories in the first place. 
• Dumbledore makes mistakes (he says it himself). He is still a man of "second chances" as we see when he offers Malfloy an escape route. 
• Dumbledore tells Harry that the only people he can trust with all this information is Ron and Hermione. 
• We do not hear at all from the actual LV in this book, because he has locked off his brain to Harry. 

Once again there is probably a whole lot more, but these points should be sufficient to my theory for the next blog. 

Fun Harry Potter facts:

• Aberforth (DD's bro) and his goat problem is first mentioned in the 3rd book then either him or the Hogs head barkeeper is mentioned in every other book. 
• Darren Criss who plays Harry Potter in AVPM and AVPS is now going to be replacing Daniel Radcliffe in HTSIBWRT.
• Qudditch is CRAZY dangerous! HP is almost killed while playing every year. 
• It is quite odd that wizards don't take advantage of internet or cell phones.  
• Rowling is the first person to become a billionaire from writing books. 
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows sold 11 million copies in the first day.
• Rowling said her patronus would be an Otter (Hermione's patronus). 
• In a few weeks I am going to be sorted by a Quiz that JKR wrote, and I can't wait! 

The Future King of Heaven and the Anti-Bella

"NO! NO! NO! NO! NOT ANOTHER BLOG ON BOOKS! WE WANT TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR LIFE ALEXIS! NOT ABOUT THE BOOKS YOU READ!" 

Well too bad, but I will give you a little bit of an update to make this blog more bearable.....

• If you remember the last blog that is now deleted, here is an update, we took care of the issue in a humane way. 
• Our life is really up in the air right now. Our lease ends in two weeks, Dan is not completely happy with his job, I need a job, and who knows where the world is taking us. 
• Chaz hasn't gotten to go to parks as much, and that has resulted in him howling at us a lot more. I am scared because there are supposably rattle snakes at the parks, and I can imagine curious cute little Chaz peeking his head in at them, and getting bitten. It makes me anxious/sad. 
• I know everyone is sad that the final Harry Potter movie is coming out, and that it is now the end to the hp era, but I disagree. I experienced this with the final book, the movies don't mean as much to me. What does mean a lot to me is that new information, and a new form of experiencing the books is being released at the end of this month to a select few, and in October to everyone. This is exciting! Harry lives on. 
• Dan and I are both sad, but especially Dan, that Friday Night Lights is ending. This is a GREAT television series, and we recommend it to everyone. Also congratulations to the Taylors for their emmy nominations!
• Chaz also officially has a facebook. You can find him under his full name, Chaz Lopez-Hilker

Alright enough updating... I want to make this blog title make sense! 

My last blog was about Josh Ritter's new book Bright's Passage, and how excited I was to read it. This blog is a review of that book, and three other books. I recommend this book to people who love Josh Ritter. It is written so similarly to his songs that if you don't enjoy them then you will probably only find this book to be so-so then again you might be surprised. 

Bright's Passage is about a man named Henry Bright who is a WWI soldier, and his experiences in the war, and after. Bright's horse has started talking to him because it is an angel incarnate who Henry brought back from the war in France. This angel would be fine except it convinces him to do a lot of interesting things like kidnap the girl who is to become his wife then conceive the future king of heaven with her. After she gives birth and dies in the process the Angel convinces Henry to set the house on fire and get out before her dad, the colonel comes to kill him and the future king of heaven. 

Don't worry none of that ruined the book. You find it all out in the first few chapters. The rest jump around in history to when Bright was in the war, a young man with his mom, and back to him making his escape from the Colonel. It is a quick read (only 200 pages) and is a suspenseful and unique story. 

***Warning this review might contain spoilers***

That is right! After all the hype I finally decided to read the Hunger Games series. Last year I bought the first book of the series because I finally got curious. I started reading and was intrigued, but stopped because I was in this zone where all I was reading were American Classics, and books written at at least a high-school reading level, so I couldn't really immerse myself into a book written at a 4th or 5th grade level (Not that there is anything wrong with that. I love lots of books written at lower levels. I am OBSESSED with Harry Potter. It just wasn't working for me at the time).

About a week ago my dear friend, Isaac text me and asked if I had read the series. I said that I had not, but I have the first one on my bookshelf.  He told me that the way the main character, Katniss, talks/thinks reminded him of me. That made me want to read the books. Plus I was finally craving a break from the classics, and an easy read.

I took Hunger Games of my shelf and started reading. I finished it that night. I wasn't convinced that I loved the story, but I did love Katniss. There was something about her I could relate to.After I had finished the first one Isaac asked me who of the two boys I was rooting for. I said, "I didn't know and liked them both." He said he was a Gale supporter, and I finally told him that I really like Peeta because he reminds me of Dan. I was scared to admit that because I was scared Katniss (the girl I felt so similar to) was going to pick Gale, and then the "Dan" in the book wasn't going to work out. I know! I am silly.

A few days later I went and bought the final two books, and read them. I loved the stories of the final two a lot more than the first one. In the first one I struggled with all the violence especially that it was all little kids. Reading about children dying is hard. I know the author wasn't trying to glorify it, and was trying to show the true destructiveness of war, but I have never been one to love violence in books. The other two are not much better when it comes to violence, but the story isn't all about the games anymore.

Here is the true reason why I love this series. Katniss is the Anti-Bella. It is no secret that I HATE Twilight.  Katniss is an intelligent, independent, logical heroine. Bella is anything but that. Her life revolves around Edward, and that is the only thing she finds happiness in. Katniss will do anything to keep her family safe whereas Bella is willing to sacrifice her family to be with Edward. This is a book that I will recommend to my kids or read with them. Although it is violent the female character is a good role model. I personally thing the best female character in any of these popular series is Hermione. She encompasses everything a female role model should have, but I digress. Hunger Games is great, and I love Peeta!

That is all! Now if you made it this far here is an extra treat! Chaz gets scared by a bear statue. 

An Amazing Story-Teller

I am so stoked! Today, I picked up Bright's Passage by Josh Ritter. I have talked about Mr. Ritter mutliple times on this blog. He is a folk singer, and my favorite musician. He can tell the most beautiful story in a 4 minute song, I cannot even imagine what he can do in 200 pages. Here are a couple of my favorite "stories (songs)" he has told me over the years. Enjoy! Hopefully by tomorrow I can write a post about the actual book. I will be starting it tonight, and I suspect it will keep me up.

Oh and in other book news I finished Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. It was beatiful.... I cried, and laughed out loud. I FINALLY read Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (my literature idol), and it was exactly what it claims to be... a classic.

The Cure for the Unemployed Blues

I have been married and in Colorado for almost 4 months now. I love love love Denver, but did find myself very jobless and very bored. I know, I should probably lower my expectations, but I feel like I have a bachelors degree and deserve a good paying, and fairly enjoyable entry level job. It isn't happening! After going crazy for 3 months, I found an old love of mine.... READING. I have read 7 books in the last 2 weeks, and suddenly am loving being unemployed. I have lost my motivation to find a job, and instead would rather read a book every 1-2 days. Is this bad? Are you jealous? You should be. Don't get me wrong I am still looking for a job, but I am no longer stressing over it. I have also been leaning more towards more schooling, so maybe that will happen soon. GO SCHOOL! Anyway here is a quick review of the last few books I have read with some of my new/old favorite quotes. I am on an amazing streak where every book I read is well written, and a completely captivating story. I am loving it, and hoping this streak never ends.

• East of Eden (John Steinbeck). There is not one bad thing I can say about this book. I have quoted or talked about it in my blog... here, here, here, here, here, and finally here. Needless to say, I love it. It is my favorite book of all time. You should probably read it and then read it again! 

• "I believe a strong woman may be stronger than a man, particularly if she happens to have love in her heart. I guess a loving woman is indestructible." 
• "I believe that there is one story in the world, and only one. . . . Humans are caught—in their lives, in their thoughts, in their hungers and ambitions, in their avarice and cruelty, and in their kindness and generosity too—in a net of good and evil. . . . There is no other story. A man, after he has brushed off the dust and chips of his life, will have left only the hard, clean questions: Was it good or was it evil? Have I done well—or ill?"

• Brave New World (Aldous Huxley). This book is based in a futuristic "utopia" that offers "soma" and all other carnal pleasures and no moral repercussions. There are no such things as mother or fathers. Everyone is manufactured and raised to love what they do, and not want anything else no matter where they are in the class system. 

• "A gramme is better than a damn." 
• "All of the advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects." 
• "The greater a man's talents, the greater his power to lead astray. It is better that one should suffer than that many should be corrupted. Consider the matter dispassionately, Mr. Foster, and you will see that no offense is so heinous as unorthodoxy of behavior. Murder kills only the individual-and, after all, what is an individual?" 
• "Our world is not the same as Othello's world. You can't make flivvers without steel- and you can't make tragedies without social instability. The world's stable now. People are happy; they get what they want, and they never want what they can't get." 

• Their Eyes Were Watching God (Zora Neale Hurson) . It is a story about a black woman written by a black woman, but that isn't all it is about, and definitely isn't the issue for Janie (the main character). The book is about the relationship between male and female in the 1930s, and about finding love. 

• "Sometimes God gits familiar wid us womenfolks too and talks His inside business. He told me.how surprised y'all is goin' tuh be if you ever find out you don't know half as much 'bout us as you think yo do. It's so easy to make yo'self out God Almighty when you ain't got nothin' tuh strain against but women and chickens"
• "It's uh known fact, Pheoby, you got tuh go there tuh know
  there..Two things everybody's got tuh do fuh theyselves. They got tuh go tuh God, and they got tuh find out about livin' fuh theyselves"
• "Love ain't somethin' lak uh grindstone dat's de same thing everywhere and do de same thing tuh everything it touch. Love is lak de sea. It's uh movin' thing, but still and all, it takes its shape from de shore it meets, and it's different with every shore" 

• 1984 (George Orwell). A book written about a totalitarian future (although 1984 is now in the past, it was originally published in 1949). Big Brother is (always) watching, no sex except for the purpose of reproducing for the party, and it certainly should not be enjoyable,  kids turning their family in to the thought police, newspeak and last of all unexpected love.

• "Do you begin to see, then, what kind of world we are creating? It is the exact opposite of the stupid hedonistic Utopias that the old reformers imagined. A world of fear and treachery and torment, a world of trampling and being trampled upon, a world which will grow not less but more merciless as it refines itself. Progress in our world will be progress toward more pain."
• "Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past."
• "If there us hope it lies in the proles."

• The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams).  Hilarious! It starts with Arthur Dent's house being demolished to make way for a bypass. His friend Ford Perfect (an alien/editor of the book hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy/pretend earthling looking for work as an actor) comes and gets him because the Earth is about to be destroyed to make way for a hyperspace bypass. This book is incredibly eccentric and will have you laughing through the whole thing. You find out the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything is 42, but then you must find the what the ultimate question really is. 

• "Nothing travels faster than the speed of light with the possible exception of bad news, which obeys its own special laws."
• "Ah, this is obviously some strange usage of the word 'safe' that I wasn't previously aware of." 
• "Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made PResident should on no account be allowed to do the job." 
• "It is known that there is an infinite number of worlds, simply because there is an infinite amount of space for them to be in. However, not every one of them is inhabited. Therefore, there must be a finite number of inhabited worlds. Any finite number divided by infinity is as near to nothing as makes no odds, so the average population of all the planets in the universe can be said to be zero. From this it follows that the population of the universe is also zero, and that any people you may meet from time to time are merely the product of a deranged imagination."

• Cat's Cradle (Kurt Vonnegut). Initially starts out with a writer who is working on a book about what certain Americans were doing at the precise moment the atom bomb hit Hiroshima. It begins with him writing and getting in contact with the three children of Felix Hoenikke (Father of the Atomic bomb) to find out what they and their father were doing. We further learn of other things Hoenikke invented, and much more about the life of his children (a midget, a giant, and the new right hand man of the President of a Caribbean island) and what they did with his new dangerous invention. Obviously it is and eccentric satire, and it also introduces you to a new religion and the teachings of it.  It might be my new favorite Kurt Vonnegut book. Either this or Mother Night (I know! It is almost blasphemous of me not to say Slaughterhouse 5). 

• "All of the true things that I am about to tell you are shameless lies." 
• "Perhaps, when we remember wars, we should take off our clothes and paint ourselves blue and go on all fours all day long and grunt like pigs. That would surely be more appropriate than noble oratory and shows of flags and well-oiled guns."
• "Tiger got to hunt, bird got to fly; Man got to sit and wonder 'why, why, why?' Tiger got to sleep, bird got to land; Man got to tell himself he understand."
• "People have to talk about something just to keep their voice boxes in working order, so they'll have good voice boxes in case there's ever anything really meaningful to say."
• "No damn cat, and no damn craddle." 
• The Plot Against America (Philip Roth). This book literally gave me nightmares, and I had to keep reminding myself that it didn't happen, and FDR was elected to 4 terms. It was also a propaganda machine for FDR, and I love that.  It is a tale of an alternative history where America has gone fascist and Hitler's allies are in the White House. It is a story about a 9 year old Jewish boy growing up in Newark, New Jersey, and his family. The novel is incredibly plausible, and it will have you freaked out, I promise! 

• "Fear presides over these memories, a perpetual fear." 
• "Nor had I understood til then how the shameless vanity of utter fools can so strongly determine the fate of others." 

• Middlesex (Jeffrey Eugenides). This is what I am currently reading. It is about a hermaphrodite, and her/his family genealogy/history. We are tracing the gene through time that leads to Calliope/Cal. It is undeniably interesting and well written. I am only on page 150, so don't have much to quote, but will write one of the early paragraphs that grabbed me, and made me love the voice of this book. 

• And so now, having been born, I;m going to rewind the film, so that my pink blanket flew off, my crib scoots across the floor as my umbilical cord reattaches, and I cry out as I;m sucked back between my mother's legs. She gets really fat again. Then back some more as a spoon stops swinging and a thermometer goes back into its velvet case. Sputnik chases its rocket trail back to the launching pad and polio stalks the land. There's a quick shot of my father as twenty-year old clarinetist, playing an Artie Shaw number into the phone, and then he's in church, age eight, being scandalized by the price of candles; and next my grandfather is untaping his first U.S. dollar bill over a cash register in 1931. Then we're out of America completely; we're in the middle of the ocean, the sound track sounding funny in reverse. A steamship appears, and up on deck a lifeboat is curiously rocking; but then the boat docks, stern first, and we're up on dry land again, where the film unspools, back at the beginning... 

Blogger Challenge: Days 12-14

Blogger Challenge Days 9-11

Blogger Challenge: Days 6-8

Days 3-5: Blogger Clothing Challenge

Day 2: Blogger Clothing Challenge

Here is Day 2 of the Clothing Challenge. I think I am just going to post every few days with a summary of a couple of days because a video every day will get a little annoying especially with how repititious our life is right now, and then I might spend more than 2 minutes on the video, so it will also benefit your eyes.

Day 1: Blogger Clothing Challenge

Why the "birther" phenomenon is racism.

I know you just rolled your eyes, and thought, "Everyone is a little bit racist. I do not want to listen to Alexis tell me why this is racism just because the president is black, because black people can be racist too."

Individual racism is not the issue that I am talking about. I think everyone should take the time to realize their biases and work to see people as people (No, I am not saying be "colorblind" that in itself is racism. People are proud of their heritages, and it is okay to see that. This is all another topic for another time, so moving on....) The point is I am NOT talking about individual racism.

First a lesson in White Privilege, (here is wiki's explanation) and Institutional Racism.

WHITE PRIVILEGE:

What is the white privilege? It is that the "white" culture is seen as the norm. If it is normal to be white then you have power of invisibility. That is not to say no one notices you, but more no one notices your race. Everything you do and succeed at is attributed to you personally, and everything you fail at is attributed to you personally.

Here are a few examples:

• When you are asked to describe yourself do you ever say "I am white."? Or is that not something that you feel identifies you because you do not understand that there is a white culture. When people ask who I am. I am always a Latina. It defines me, and I am proud of it, but it marks me as different from the "normal" culture. 

• When you get a job no one is going to say it is because the company had to meet their "quota." It is going to be because you were qualified, and the best fit.  Like the countless people that say, "Obama only won because he was black, and had the black vote." 

• It is the fact that donkey-punchers (the tea-party) could march around the capital with guns, and no one care. If any minority group did that they would automatically be seen as a threat, but the tea-party was seen as patriotic. How wonderful! 

• A personal example of "white" being seen as "right": When I was younger and someone would ask about my heritage (this happened more often than you think). I would say, "I am Mexican," and 90%(Remember I grew up in South Weber, Ut) of the time this person would respond back and say, "Cool! I am American." I would then say, "I am American too!"I was completely shocked that this person thought I was Mexican while they were American. We were all American, but my ancestry came from Mexico (Utah, Texas, Colorado, California, Arizona.... ya know, Mexico!), and theirs came from somewhere in Europe. They some how thought they were more American than me because my skin was brown, and my last name was Lopez. That was because an American to them was a white, middle class, christian..... person **cough, man, cough**(let's not kid ourselves). 

INSTITUTIONAL RACISM:

This goes hand in hand with white privilege....

Examples:

• It is the simple fact that Black and Latino males are 2-3 times more likely to have their cars stopped and searched, but white men are 4 times as likely to have the "stuff" in their car. 

• There was a study where job applicants with "white-sounding" names were 50% more likely to get called back than job applicants with "black-sounding" names. Even though everything else on the resume was the exact same. 

• White males with a high school diploma just as likely as black and latino males with a college degree to have a job. 

I will not drag on for too long, about the definitions. I am sure you get it.

I am hoping you can connect the dots, and see why all this birther stuff was really racism, but if not I am going to tell you why, so don't worry.

We have a black president whose name is Barack Hussein Obama, and black is not perceived as American, or successful, and his name does not sound "American" **cough, white, cough**.  So how would a political foe get others to fear him? Easy, all they have to do is use what is already engrained into people's minds, and enhance this fear. Ask yourself, why no other president was harassed and asked to show his birth certificate countless times. Ask yourself why a president would continue to be harassed  even after he did show it. If you don't see white privilege, and institutional racism as the answers then please explain it to me, because it is all I can see.

I apologize that this is a rambled mess of thoughts, but I am frustrated right now, and it is hard to gather all my thoughts. This has bugged me for a long time, and I think I am about to explode.

A book review that quickly became a self-evaluation.

A little bit of a backstory: I have been reading Dan Brown's Lost Symbol, and I want to kill myself. I do not know why I thought picking up a Dan Brown novel was a good idea. Can I even call it a novel? I guess it technically is, but a more appropriate term for it is garbage. I hate his writing style, and the "voice" of his book. If I ever saw him I would call him a pretentious douche, and explain to him that I don't need his characters thoughts in italics especially since most of those thoughts I can assume. Every time I see those italics, I want to scream, "Dan Brown you aren't a genius, and I am not THAT stupid."   He is now second, behind Stephenie Meyer, on the list of authors I want to punch in the face. Thinking about how much I hate this book made me want to write a blog, on an actual novel. I will give you one guess...

East of Eden 

John Steinbeck

If you haven't read it, read it,

and if you have read it, read it again, 

and again, and again, and .... 

A quick review: East of Eden is another book by John Steinbeck about the Salinas Valley, but quite possibly the most important one. As the title suggests it has a Biblical theme, but the overall theme is the battle between good and evil. It takes the Biblical story of Cain and Abel, and portrays it in two different sets of brothers, but unlike the Biblical story it shows you the effect on the other characters, and you get to know the "Cain and Abel" characters much better.  My personal favorite parts of the story are when Lee, Samuel, and Adam are discussing the story of Cain and Abel, and when they come back to it years later. It is beautiful, and brings up the most important lesson of the book, that evil can be overcome because "thou mayest."

The other day I was thinking about that discussion, and something besides the lesson of being able to conquer evil stood out to me. It was a few of Lee's other comments that stood out, and his process in understanding those 16 verses in Genesis.

In their first discussion Lee is interested in, yet confused by the story of Cain and Abel. He tries to understand, but still one part doesn't make sense to him, so he studies it. He looks at different translations, and eventually goes to his family association in San Fran where he asks 4 sages, and they ponder on it for years, hire a rabbi, and learn Hebrew. They are very engulfed in their Chinese tradition, but are still curious about these verses.  When they feel good and ready they translate those 16 verses word for word.

Lee is explaining this process during their second discussion and Samuel asks, "Do you then not think this is a divine book written by the inky finger of God?" and he responds, "I think the mind that could think this story was a curiously divine mind. We have had a few such minds in China too."

Lee then explains to Adam and Samuel what they found, and at the end of his explanation and his praises of these verses, Adam asks "Do you mean these Chinese men believe the Old Testament?" Lee responds, "These old men believe a true story, and they know a true story when they hear it. They are critics of truth. They know that these sixteen verses are a history of humankind in any age or culture or race...." He then goes on to say one of the greatest quotes in East of Eden, "... And I feel that I am a man. And I feel that man is a very important thing--- maybe more important than a star. This is not theology.  I have no bent toward gods. But I have a new love for that glittering instrument, the human soul. It is a lovely and unique thing in the universe. It is always attacked and never destroyed---- because 'Thou mayest.'"

I love that Lee, a man who has recently found himself becoming more engulfed in the Chinese tradition, and the Sages can look at something that doesn't come from their history, and see truth in it. I love that Lee praises the individual human, and sees the beauty in them. I want to be like Lee in these aspects. I want to be able to look at different cultures/beliefs and see the beauty in them instead of just what I perceive to be "wrong."

Isn't that what we should all strive for? I look at different cultures, and see this same lesson. Some of them show it better than others....

• In India the word, "Namaste" is used as a common greeting. This means, "The divinity in me respects the divinity in you." How beautiful that they use this word that represents seeing people in such a light. 
• Christ taught that the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. 
• Confucius said "Never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself." 
• The Qur'an says, "The most righteous of men is the one who is glad that men should have what is pleasing to himself, and who dislikes for them what is for him disagreeable." 

It is "The Golden Rule" and is literally in every belief or culture. It is a truth that has lived on in every way of life, so it must be extremely important, if not the most important truth. 

All this thinking has led me to analyze my life to see if I am applying this to it, or not. I am going to work much harder, and maybe I should start by saying, "Dan Brown and Stephenie Meyer, I may not enjoy your writing, but many other people do, and I am glad that you are helping people learn to love to read because that is important." 

Side note: The blogger clothing challenge will start the first week of May. Unless somehow "No" starts winning on the poll. 

Dan^2 Clothing Challenge

In my Honeymoon & Wedding post, I listed some of the discoveries of married life. One was that Dan and I have so many matching clothes that we could probably wear the exact same or very similar thing for at least a month. That got me curious about how long we could actually go, and maybe it got you a little curious also. I posted a poll question in the right side of this blog, and am curious as to if you would like "A Convenient Truth" to participate in a Dan^2 matching challenge. If you want our daily matching to be documented and blogged then vote for it, and if you would absolutely hate seeing that then vote the other way. Thanks!

Softball Shirts!

The little boy!

When Chaz and I met. 

We decided we must have this puppy!

Dan playing with Chaz in my parents backyard. 

At Dan's SLC apartment

Playing with Noah

He wanted to become a true aggie

as big of a basketball fan as anyone

Saddest day of his male life. 

trying to be trendy

all dressed up 

the first time he ever jumped on the bed. 

Christmas sweater. 

Sleeping cutie. 

Being bored with his mama in Denver.