In His Steps

I think it goes without saying that the Harry Potter books (and films) are amazing, so when J.K. Rowling put up her website  Pottermore , I eagerly jumped on the bandwagon. The picture above is my wand that Rosslyn fashioned for me to the specifications of the wand Ollivander's gave. My wand is Larch wood, 10 inches, Slightly Springy with a Unicorn hair core. And, because you are all dying to know, I am a Gryffindor. If you wish to find me on Pottermore, my username is MirrorCloak19399. Due to this, my friends and I are contemplating a group costume as our Pottersonas, but American wizards. Ms. Rowling mentioned that the American school was called the Salem Institute, so we're speculating how such a place would be run, and what the fashions would be. Any wizard who had gone to America would most likely be more up with the times (only a century behind instead of several, for instance), and would not ignore the idea that a good gun would be apropos in a battl...

Last month (I know, I'm way behind), me, Rosslyn, and a couple of my friends from my knitting group got together and drove up to Gardner Village, a charming shopping center that delighted in collectibles, crafting, and some of the best food in the Frozen North.  We saw a mobile brick oven as we wandered about.  They had a large, outdoor farmer's market that day, so toys and crafts were on display alongside tents and various foods.   This man was making balloon animals, and I admired his rainbow colored outfit. It was clownish and fun. I do not mind the mismatch at all. He was a good sport. We had some outdoor music as well. I cannot remember what they were playing, or in what genre. Proof Rosslyn was there in seeing the back of her head. Heh. Kamille's, the shop in the photo, is the reason we four came. It is a yarn shop, with knitting and crochet patterns as well.  The shop front and a nearby covered bridge. ...

I hope you had a lovely Independence Day! I know that I did. I slept in until 12:30pm (a ridiculous luxury, I know) and then went up to visit Rosslyn  and her pool. My boyfriend joined us and we swam around, didn't get sunburnt, and had pizza and salads. Yummy... Man, my throwing arm is sore today. My boyfriend took me to his sister's house for an Independence Day BBQ. I met even more family than I had previously and they had great food. I brought some pop-its and sparklers that I had bought last year with me (last year I spent the holiday alone, so I didn't bother to light them then). Some kids, a boy and a girl, were running around and began to have a pop-it war. I watched them for a bit, then pulled out my box very discretely and opened a bag. When neither were looking, I threw one at the boy's feet. He jumped and turned around, looking at my boyfriend, not me. I smiled and whenever neither kid was looking, I would throw one. My year old pack ha...

I have the rest of the zoo photos for your delectation and delight. Well, mine, anyway. Now for.... Tigers! There were four male tigers at this zoo, three in one enclosure and one by himself in the another. He seemed to be an old tiger though, and these other three were doing too much romping to be the same, so my bet was he was moved to be alone and have some peace from their antics. Here we have one tiger jumping out of the water and pouncing his friend who had been resting in the shade. He was soon forced to beat a hasty retreat, heh. But, the playful tiger succeeded in waking up and rousing the other one, who was kind enough to pose so beautifully for me for the next few shots. And then the two got back down to playing. First the circling...   Then the nosing... Then pouncing! The wet tiger is lying in wait again. And here is the older tiger in his own enclosure, completely sacked out. Eve...