I Like Things With One-Word Titles, but This isn't One of Them.

Hello everyone! Happy May 22nd, 2010. There will only be one May 22nd, 2010 --EVER!! --so make the most of this one. Unfortunately, I must do homework and study for finals today >.<; what a terrible way to spend a perfectly good May 22nd. Five of the 6LCF (Lynda couldn't go... she was there in spirit, though!) went to our local Target today to get pretty socks for a very special Curly Fries project. Together, we picked out socks for Lynda... I do hope she likes them. I paid for them. A whole 2 dollars. Generous, no?

Ooh!! People have been talking about this new posting toolbar all week, but I have yet to see it. It's shmancy! There are bullet points and everything!! (...wait, were there bullet points before? Hm...) (That part got highlighted in white and I can't figure out how to undo it >.>)
Today's post is going to be written in parts. I'm not sure how many parts there will be, but you can expect quite a few. If I spend an extended amount of time writing and not doing my homework, my sister (let's call her Katherine) will yell at me. And if there's one thing that will ruin my May 22nd, it's getting yelled at by Katherine. (Actually, it's already happened two or three times, but I don't want to make it four.) So, to appease Katherine, I shall write one part of the post, do some homework, then write some more, do more homework, and so on. We'll consider this little introduction the first part. I'm off to do my maths.
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And I'm back! I finished my maths homework - radicals are fun. When I checked the odd-numbered problems in the back of the textbook, half of them were wrong, but it's okay. Textbooks make mistakes. :) Unfortunately, my method of getting "Katherine" not to yell at me hath failed. She yelled at me when I was on my way upstairs (I'm not really sure why...), and then she came upstairs to ask me for help on some homework, which resulted in more yelling at me (because I was trying to explain that she had made a mistake in which number to substitute for "c" in the quadratic formula). Anyhow, enough about her. I probably need a good yelling at every once in awhile, anyways. Just maybe not every hour.

This week, I learned that there's cyanide in apple seeds. (xiy told me, and then this fact was confirmed by my dad, who knows everything.) I also learned why "chicken Parmesan" is called that even though the cheese on top of it isn't Parmesan - they bake Parmesan cheese into the breadcrumbs! That's why it tastes so good. Interesting, n'est-ce pas? (I learned the cheese fact from my French teacher. Madame Hdiamond gets off-topic easily; that's why we love her.) I also learned the pluperfect and future perfect tenses in Latin. That's four things... I learned a lot this week!

Because it's THEME WEEK, I have looked up a number of silly laws from my homeland of Great Britain, where the Great Brits live.

1.) A taxi driver must ask passengers if they are suffering from plague or smallpox.
2.) A bed may not by hung out of a window.
3.) Any boy under the age of 10 may not see a naked mannequin.
4.) Any person found breaking an egg at the sharp end will be sentenced to 24 hours in the village stocks.
5.) Any whale washed up on the shore is property of the Queen, so she can use its bones for her corset.
6.) All double-decker buses must be painted red.
7.) It is forbidden to ask a Scotsman what he wears under his kilt.
8.) It is illegal for any commoner's pet to have sex with a pet belonging to the monarch.
9.) It is illegal to die in the Houses of Parliament.
10.) All land must be left to the eldest son.

Speaking of England, I must now go do my English homework. (<- Unnecessary)
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...and the English homework is done! Actually, I still have an extra credit essay to write (because I'm an overachiever) that I think is due Friday... eh, I'll do it later. (<- Unnecessary)

So, let's see here. I had stuff that I was going to write about today, and it was all planned out in my head, but... oh yes! Another Harry Potter drabble!! It was written for a Mother's Day Challenge, and it's a wee bit corny, but that's what Mother's Day is for. Warning: involves awkward Harry/Ginny. He should have gotten with Luna.
P.S. This ended up being quite a bit longer than I originally intended. I apologize.

In my mind, when I was younger, I used to romantically compare Harry’s eyes to emeralds sparkling in the lamplight. Today, however, they look more like distant lakes glazed over with a thick layer of algae. I am tempted to dip my foot into the water and see was lies below, but there is no need. Tomorrow is the anniversary of his parents’ deaths, the first anniversary since he defeated Voldemort. He is thinking to himself, something he has been doing a great deal ever since the Battle.


We sit in silence, exchanging emotions in the place of words. I touch his hand; he takes it willingly in his own. I open my mouth to speak, and he does the same simultaneously.

“You first,” he murmurs.

“So…” I begin, not knowing what to say.

Suddenly, the door of my room swings open to reveal Ron, with his hand clamped over his eyes. “Put your clothes back on and come downstairs – we’re about to start Mum’s birthday dinner without you,” he says.

“We’re just sitting together, mate,” Harry says, his face turning pink as he does so.

“Yeah, for now.” Ron exits without another word, leaving Harry and me to have a few more words together before joining the madness that is the Weasley dinner table.


“The party’s waiting,” I say to him softly.

Downstairs, a feast like no other has been prepared by Dad and George. Mum is sitting at the head of the table, and every few seconds somebody has to push her back into her seat as she keeps trying to help set the silverware. Once we enter, the bustling seems to settle down and everybody takes their seats. Harry is grinning almost as wildly as Mum now. His eyes are lit up once again, just as they were in the days of our youth. As Mum looks around the table and beams at every family member in turn, her smile does not change when her gaze reaches the man who has jet black hair rather than ginger.

One at a time, we each offer a birthday toast. When it comes to Harry’s turn, he seems to be trembling, as if he’s not sure if he has the right to speak. I give him a small nudge, and he raises his wine glass.

“You’ve always been there for me when I’ve needed it – there for all of us – and, y’know, people say that I’m an orphan,” he gulps hesitantly, “but, it’s not true. You’ve been a mother to me in times when I’ve needed one most, so Molly… Mum… here’s to you.”

We clink glasses with one another and break into a very loud and out-of-tune chorus of "For She’s a Jolly Good Fellow.” As we sing, Mum and Harry’s eyes are locked in a loving gaze that can only be shared between a mother and son. A single tear of joy edges its way down her rosy-red cheeks.

Perhaps I can share her with one more person.

I warned you about the corny-ness. It's cornier than Boston Market cornbread.
I'm going to go do my Latin homework now. When I get back, I'm going to talk about the release of "The Necromancer" (siriusly? The swanky new toolbar doesn't have underlining?) and the awesomeness that is "The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel." Be excited. (<- Unnecessary)
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(Unnecessary ->) Latin homework is done. Yayy. Now, I shall write an excessive amount of words relating to the Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel. I would like to give you the option to skip over this next paragraph, but I'm not going to, because I actually really do want you to read it. I suppose I can't really stop you from just skimming it over, though. I have yet to perfect my mind-control skills. Warning: I might get just a little bit overexcited.

The Necromancer comes out on May 26th. Do you have any idea how soon that is? FOUR DAYS!! Ahhh!! You don't know what The Necromancer is? Well, I'm about to tell you. The Necromancer is Book Four of a six-part series called "The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel," which is possibly one of the best fantasy series of all time, coming in a close second after Harry Potter. It's actually a lot like Percy Jackson and the Olympians, only it's more true to the actual mythology, and it's better, especially in terms of plot. The first book, The Alchemyst, introduces a pair of twins (twins are awesome. Have I told you that I'm a twin? I don't think I have.) named Sophie and Josh, who may or may not be the "Twins of Legend." It's epic. The whole entire novel takes place over the timeframe of a matter of hours, and it's based on a variety of mythologies, especially focused on Norse, but also a lot of Greco-Roman and some Egyptian as well. The main character (besides the twins) is Nicholas Flamel, born in 1330. He's immortal, and he's been guardian of this really ancient book called the Codex for centuries - which is what keeps him and his wife alive, because it has the recipe for the Elixir of Life. Anywho, within the first ten pages of Book One, Dr. John Dee (also immortal) steals this book to give to his Dark Elder masters (the bad guys who want to destroy humanity and retake the world) and... the adventure begins. I won't give anything else away. Once again, the first book is called The Alchemyst. #2 is The Magician, #3 is The Sorceress, #4 is The Necromancer (which comes out in four days AHHHH) #5 is The Warlock (coming May 2011) and #6 is The Enchantress (Coming May 2012). You should honestly read these books, especially if you, like me, have an interest in mythology - or if you just like fantasy in general. Honestly, I'm so glad that these books started coming out after Harry Potter ended, or else I would have almost nothing to look forward to in life.

Going on and on about this amazing series, I haven't yet mentioned the author! Tsk, tsk. The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel is written by Michael Scott (no, not like from the Office) who is: 1) Irish, and therefore has an amazing accent 2) AWESOME. 3) really involved in the Flamel "fandom" - he answers almost every question that anybody asks (unless it involves spoilers), and he participates in the discussions on the Flamel forums (which you can find here) 4) AWESOME.

Speaking of books, I just finished a book called "The Greatest Knight" by Elizabeth Chadwick, and it was one of the best historical fiction novels I've ever read! It's set in the Middle Ages and it's about a knight named William Marshall (who was actually one of the characters in the Robin Hood movie that I talked about in my last post). The paragraphs are quite long (hehe, kind of like mine are sometimes), but it's very entertaining and fast-paced (most of the time), and a lot of the settings are places that I've been in England and France, which is cool, because I can picture those places in my head.

Okay, well I'm done rambling for the day. Have a nice week.

DFTBA,
PDBAZ,
Peace, Love, & Otters,

Virgil

P.S. I'm too lazy to edit this for grammar. House (and Momo!) can feel free to do so if she so pleases.(Done.)
P.P.S. I apologize for the very long post. I guess I'm making up for last week's very short post.