The Most Amazing Piece of Home Decor I Have Ever Seen

Friends, I am so happy today!

My guyfriend just got me a Triwizard Cup lamp as a gift!! I couldn’t be more thrilled! The lamp is absolutely beautiful – it’s what any die hard Harry Potter fan wants to light up their room. The detail on this lamp is absolutely fantastic and it adds wonderful soft light to any room. I plan on showcasing this lamp every opportunity I get. It’s amazing and I love it!

Considering the bad news I got last week regarding the Half Blood Prince movie change, this really helps to make up for it. I can’t think of anything that could make how I feel right now even better…perhaps some Hogwarts express bookends (hint, hint)? The bookends would go great with all seven of my Harry Potter books and upcoming Tales of Beedle the Bard companion book, don't you think?

"Half Blood Prince" Pushed Back to Summer 2009

Friends, I have some very sad news for you today..."Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince," originally scheduled for a November 21 release, has now been moved to July 17, 2009 in the US and major international markets. Warner Brothers confirmed the move and the official film website has been changed to reflect the date.

The press release states two reasons for the move: First, the studio says summer releases are better for “family tentpole” events, and second, they are still feeling the aftereffects of the writers' strike and need the time to make sure the film reaches the widest audience possible.

The writers' strike "impacted the readiness of scripts for other films - changing the competitive landscape for 2009 and offering new windows of opportunity that we wanted to take advantage of. We agreed the best strategy was to move Half Blood Prince to July, where it perfectly fills the gap for a major tent pole release for mid-summer."

The new date, said Jeff Robinov, president of WB's motion picture group, does not alter the production schedule for the last two Harry Potter films; filming on the first of the Deathly Hallows films will begin in February. "The good news for [fans]," he said, "is that the gap will now be shortened between 'Half Blood Prince' and the first part of 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.'"

Friends, I am quite saddened and angered by this news – especially since the reasons for the move, those stated in WB’s press release, are hardly the main motivation for extending the films release by another year. It doesn’t take a great sorcerer to figure out that WB is only interested in the bottom line here. By moving "Half Blood Prince" to next year, it will prevent WB’s 2009 profits from looking seriously mediocre after the phenomenal success of another one of their studio’s movies, a little film called "The Dark Knight." In fact, a rival studio executive told Entertainment Weekly, "They don't need the money this year anymore. When a movie over-performs the way "The Dark Knight" has, you really don't need Harry Potter in the fall."

And every Potter fan knows that it’s not just a movie release – it is all the merchandising and market around the film. That is a whole lot of money folks! And they want 2009 to be dominated by that because there is no other competition (besides perhaps "Terminator: Salvation," also a WB movie). The movie executive quote earlier comments about this as well: “Turning a battleship that big isn't easy. You're not talking just about the movie, but all the merchandising, the toys and stuff. It's huge. And it has a domino effect across the rest of the summer slate."

And one more reason…another popular book series is launching their first feature film – "Twilight," which hits theatres this December. "Twilight" and "Harry Potter" share MANY of the same fans. There is no reason for Potter film producers to want to risk their box office haul with a fellow series rival.

This is the kind of behavior that makes me hotter than a Hungarian Horntail!! Do they even think about the fans?! Do they?!!

As a final note, a bit of irony. This week, "Entertainment Weekly" will feature an early look at "Half Blood Prince," with the film gracing the cover of it’s Fall Preview issue hitting news stands today. EW and Warner Brothers share the same parent company, but, clearly, they do not share the important information.

Why Not Quidditch?

In keeping with the Olympic spirit, I thought I would reflect a little bit about a sport that I whole heartedly believe should be added to the roster of sporting events in the summer games…QUIDDITCH!

One of the complaints often voiced by Olympics haters is that the sports played are too obscure and seem made up. Sure, LeBron James gets to play basketball in China, but who cares about team handball, modern pentathlon, and shooting? Is shooting even a sport? Come on people!

Why not Quidditch? It's the wizarding world's favorite sport, played in most successful book series of all time...duh! Think about it! The excitement! The terror! The broomsticks! The wizardry! Who wouldn’t watch world-class Quidditch players in action?

Okay, okay…Sure, a lack of magic might make this game a tough one to reenact in Beijing's Olympic Stadium, but land-bound Quidditch is already being played by numerous New England colleges (they even have an Intercollegiate Quidditch World Cup!), and imagine if world-class athletes got in the game? As an added bonus, the U.S. would probably always take home to gold, seeing that we are the only nation with advanced jetpack technology.

Muggle Quidditch would be played quite similarly to what has been adopted by colleges in the U.S. The game involves a volleyball, playing the part of the Quaffle, that must be thrown through one of three hoops – hula-hoops perhaps? - posted on each end line of the pitch to earn points. Beaters on each team throw bludgers – imagine red rubber dodge balls - to distract members of the opposing team. And then there's the Snitch, who, if caught, is worth 50 points and automatically ends the game.

Also vital to the game are the Quidditch robes – rest assured that capes would be a required. And, as in the Potter books, a Quidditch match is no Quidditch match without the play-by-play announcing. So, only the best would be allowed to call the plays at Olympic-level Quidditch. Me, perhaps?

So, how simple is that? All you need are a few balls, some hoops, all star athletes and you’re on your way to create some magic for the whole world to enjoy. If the simplicity isn’t enough to convince the International Olympic Committee, than how about all the great teams we’ll get to cheer on? The Hungary Hungary Hippogriffs, the Wild Whizbangs, the Harrowing Hinkypunks, and the Whirling Wasps among the many others.

Let the games begin!

Magic at Work!

Have any of you taken a stroll around the site of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park recently? If so, then you will have noticed the new sign that has gone up on the grounds of the site declaring “Magic At Work.” This reaffirms that work is indeed underway on the theme park and all us Potter fans have quite a lot to look forward to! Can’t wait - I am so excited about this!!

New Potter Candy! Yummy!

Have you ever had a craving for some of Professor Slughorn's Crystallized Pineapple as mentioned in "Half-Blood Prince?" What about Peppermint Toads or Cockroach Clusters? I know I have!! Well now all of us can feed the crave, as there is news on some of the new candies being released this fall before the sixth Harry Potter movie is released. MTV has an article detailing some of the new treats we can expect, including Sugar Quills, Cinnamon Pixies, Peppermint Toads (there's different varieties of chocolate frogs — some are solid, others have rice krispies inside, i.e. a Crunch bar!), and the candied pineapple which is actual dried pineapple coated in sour candy. Other treats include Every-Flavor Chocolates - like Every Flavor Beans, except instead of being jelly beans, these are more like M&Ms, with flavors like grape, pear, coffee, and raspberry, among others. The article describes them as “a strange hybrid of M&Ms and Skittles.” Cockroach Clusters, Sugar Quills, Coconut Ice, Chocolate Wands, Floo Powder (There are 26 flavors in all, “from apple pie to root bear to lemonade, and they all come in little test tubes!”), as well as Dementor's Kisses and even Unicorn Droppings (basically sugar-frosted marbles of gummy candy.)

These offerings sound so DELICIOUS!! I will definitely be sure to have plenty on hand at my next Yule Ball or dinner/tea parties. They make great gifts too (hint, hint)! Another good idea would be to have taste test parties when all these candies are available. Look out, you may be getting an invite via owl post this fall!!

Read the MTV article at http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2008/08/11/move-over-twilight-chocolate-check-out-the-new-harry-potter-candy/.

'Tales of Beedle the Bard' Being Released to the Public!

As any serious Harry Potter reader knows, July 31 was the boy wizard's birthday. To celebrate - and hot on the heels of the just-released trailer for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling is making an extremely rare Potter work available to us – The Tales of Beedle the Bard will be available to the public this December in both a standard edition and a collector’s edition.

As you know, Jo originally handwrote and illustrated the Tales of Beedle the Bard as an extremely limited-edition set. When one of the only seven copies made was auctioned off for charity last December, Amazon made the winning bid of about $4 million. Though one of the conditions of auction was that the winner could not publish or reproduce the work, Amazon found a way to convince Jo to change her mind — by donating all net proceeds to a charity of her choice.

Of the release, Jo said, “There was understandable disappointment among Harry Potter fans when only one copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard was offered to the public last December. I am therefore delighted to announce that, thanks to the generous support of Bloomsbury, Scholastic and Amazon, and with the blessing of all the wonderful people who own the other six original books, The Tales of Beedle the Bard will now be widely available to all Harry Potter fans."

The new edition of the wizard fairy tales will include five stories — "Babbity Rabbity and Her Cackling Stump," "The Tale of the Three Brothers," "The Fountain of Fair Fortune," "The Wizard and the Hopping Pot" and "The Warlock's Hairy Heart" — as "translated from the original runes by Hermione Granger," Jo said. The editions will also have commentary on each fairy tale as "notes by Professor Albus Dumbledore, which appear by generous permission of the Hogwarts Headmasters' Archive…Dumbledore's commentary on the 'Tales,' which was discovered among his papers after his death, includes some historical notes, personal reminiscences, and insights into that most mysterious branch of magic: wandlore," Jo notes. As a finishing touch, Jo has agree to write the book’s introduction.

A collector's edition from Amazon — limited to 100,000 copies (!!!)— will aim to replicate the look and feel of the original handmade copies, and will include 10 new illustrations by Jo that are not in the original or standard editions.

So, act fast muggles! If you are one of those dedicated Harry Potter fans, reserve your copy of the collector's edition today!