I know… I wrote about Harry Potter last week also. But I feel like there are so much to be said about Harry Potter and I am a big fan. Also, I wrote this week WCW about J.K. Rowling and I thought it was appropriate to write about Harry Potter again.
Because I concentrated on the first book and movie I decided that today I would write about the second part of the Harry Potter Series. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
Here is the trailer for the movie:
One of my favourite parts of the book is this one:
‘I seem to remember telling you both that I would have to expel you if you broke any more school rules,’ said Dumbledore. Ron opened his mouth wide in horror.
‘Which only goes to show that the best of us must sometimes eat our words,’ Dumbledore went on, smiling.
And also when Dumbledore says this to Harry:
“It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”
And of course, it’s in this book and movie that Dobby is introduced for the first time. At first infuriating little thing, but when you get his backstory you can’t do anything else than to love him.
Here is when Harry makes Dobby a free house-elf.
I think I might just have to have a Harry Potter marathon soon. Both with the books and the movies.
In November 2006 my family and I were busy packing up the house that I grew up in. My parents had sold the house. For many reasons and at the time it was hard, but I am thankful that they came to that decision. It can’t have been easy. They had lived in that house for about 20 years. They started our family in that house.
We moved out of the house at the beginning of December that year, to an apartment right in the middle of town. The same town my parents still live in. I live in the next town over.
I can still remember how the house looked when I grew up. How the stairs creek when I walked up them to get to my room. How the view from my room was.
And I remember the laughter that was in that house. Our traditions on Christmas. Or how my parents gave me a daffodil from our garden on my birthday every April. There was always one waiting for me to wake up.
The view from the kitchen window from the house I grew up in.
I remember the dreadful green bathrooms with the green toilet and basin. And the brown floor in the kitchen.
Sometimes when I drive by my old house I wonder what has happened in these last 12 years. Have they renovated it so I would not recognise it if I went in?
Moving from the house was a chapter of my life that was ended. Moving to the city from living 15 minutes from it was a big change. That I will write about another time.
This week WCW is J. K. Rowling. If you don’t know who she is you must be living under a rock. As the writer behind the Harry Potter books and Fantastic Beasts and where you can find them, she is world known. But how many people now all the reasons that she is a role model? Here are 10 of my reasons why she is my role model:
She worked up from nothing to being, like I wrote earlier, world known. I think most people know that she was living on welfare before she became famous. When she wrote Harry Potter, she was depressed and a single mom.
She never gave up on her dreams, even though many publishers rejected her Harry Potter books. She just kept going.
She stands up for what she believes in. Just look at her twitter.
She never forgets her fans. Always having a dialogue with them on Twitter. Or writing on Pottermore.
She is the first author in the world to have a net worth of 1 billion, that she then lost when she donated money to charity.
She founded a charity that helps orphans to find homes and she named it after the light giving spell from Harry Potter, Lumos.
She doesn’t romanticise the bad guy in her books. Just look at Draco Malfoy. J.K. Rowling has been very clear to her fans that he does not have a heart of gold an that he will not become friends with Harry in the end. He is one of the bad guys.
Her female characters are strong women who stand up for themselves. And they have strong opinions and they are independent. Just look at Hermione, McGonagall, Mrs Weasley, Ginny, Tina, Queenie and so many more of the female characters from her books.
J.K. Rowling is also a big inspiration to millions of people because of the books she has written. The books are amazing and filled with so many wonderful lessons that we need. And they help inspire people to read and to go out in the world an make a difference.
She is an advocate for LGBT rights. She said that Dumbledore was gay.
Some of my favourite quotes of J.K Rowling:
“Anything’s possible if you’ve got enough nerve.”
“If you want to see the true measure of a man, watch how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”
“It is impossible to live without failing at something unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all, in which case you have failed by default.”
What’s your favourite thing that J. K. Rowling has written or said?
This week thankful Tuesday post is about my father. A person that loves me for me and that’s always there for me. He has never stopped me from going after what I want in life and he has taught me so many things.
My father is one of my best cheerleaders and he has read almost everything I have written. And he is the one that has taught me about photographing. That’s an interest that we both have and can talk for hours about. Like what kind of camera we would like to own. Places we would like to visit and photograph.
When I have bad days, he sometimes follows me to campus and sits in the car so I have some support on hard days. And that feels really safe so I actually can go to my lectures. And to clarify, he sits in the car for a maximum of two hours. And he leaves the car and walks around campus. It’s just that he is close and I have someone there if something happens.
My father is a great person to call if I am having a panic or anxiety attack. I usually try calling my husband first, then it’s my father or mother depending on the time in the day. My father has a calm voice that helps me relax and we can talk about anything so I don’t think about the things that started my attacks.
And he is a great “grandfather” to my dogs. They love him. And he spoils them, which they love. He is a great dogsitter and he and my mom often help with the dogs when my husband and I can’t take them with us. Like when we went to England this summer.
So to summarize. I am thankful to have my father as my father. And I love him very much.
Well, I am not moody, but my dogs are. They are coming in to heat soon and they are being really bitchy. And when they’re not bitching at each other they are sleeping. Or in Zelda’s case howling at the dogs that pass on our street.
I am studying from home today, which I find really nice. I am also planning the coming posts here on the blog. If you have any requests please let me know.
My husband got home early from work because he got sick. I hope he gets better soon.
”Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Be kind. Always.” ~ Ian Maclaren
This Motivational Monday quote is a reminder that we can’t see what everyone is fighting against. Some people can be fighting depression or maybe fibromyalgia. We don’t know. But we can be kind to each other.
I am so tired of people not being kind to each other. It doesn’t take some much more energy to try and be nice. Give each other compliments. Build up one and another, instead of tearing down.
Be a good example for the children, for a better future. The world needs more love, not more hate.
So I decided to try a new kind of Situation Sunday because I feel like my old ones weren’t really what I wanted to share with you. I will probably write some news from around the world on Situation Sunday, but it will mostly be about my week and my thoughts in the future. If you don’t have any requests.
This week have been eventful. And I will share bits of it with you.
On Monday I had my Statistics Exam from 8 in the morning to 1 in the afternoon. I feel like I have a very slim chance of getting a passing grade on that exam, so I will probably have to take it again in December. And for that, I am really sad, but I did my best and my head wasn’t really in the game so to say.
On Monday afternoon my husband underwent surgery. It’s a surgery we have waited for a couple of months and it was nice that it was finally happening. But the surgery was postponed from 1 o’clock in the afternoon to 2 in the afternoon. When I talked to him after my test he said that they also had some delays. I went to his work to eat some lunch and wait for the operation to finish because I was driving him home. His operation started at 3 o’clock in the end. But now its done. And it went well and he is now recovering.
It’s been snowing some here at the beginning of the week and in Sweden, you need to have winter tires on your car between 1 of December to the 31 of Mars. But you need to have winter tires on before that if there are ice and snow on the roads before that. And my husband’s car is a company car that didn’t have winter tires so on Monday I had my parents car and also on Tuesday. On Wednesday my husband got new winter tires on his car but now it’s not cold out anymore. I am hoping for the cold to get back soon. I want to have winter in November and December.
My husband needs to take it easy after his surgery and should not lift things or take it easy. So this week I have tried to make life as easy for him as possible and made sure that he doesn’t lift things. And that has been hard to do because he does not like sitting still. He likes being active.
Last Sunday we place a bid on a kitchen table and 6 chairs from an auction that my mother-in-law’s boyfriend runs. We only saw pictures of it but it looked really nice and my mother-in-law went to the action and saw it so we trusted her judgment. And I am so glad that we did. Because we won so now we have a new kitchen table and chairs. The set is so much better than any set we have watched on furniture stores. Flash forward to this Wednesday when we got the delivery of the furniture. My brother came to help us with the lifting, but we couldn’t get somebody else, so my husband decides that he will carry the table with my brother, even tho he should not do that. At the end after a lot of bickering between my husband and me, and then between my husband and my mother-in-law, she came and helped my brother and me in with the table and chairs. And I am so grateful for her and my brothers help.
Our new table and 4 of the 6 chairs.
And yesterday I spent the whole day in bed because I was not feeling well. And I am really sad because we were going to meet my mother-in-law’s boyfriends daughter and her family. Something I had been looking forward to, but I will just have to meet them another day.
Now that some parts from my eventful week. I didn’t write anything about my mental health struggles this week, that is not because I didn’t have any but because I feel like I don’t need to share it with you today. I more or less always fighting with my anxiety and my panic attacks, but I don’t want it to be my entire life. I will write about it in other posts in the future just not today. Today is a good day.
I hope you don’t mind me changing Situation Sunday. And that you have an amazing week to come!
I didn’t post anything yesterday, because I was not feeling well. So I am thinking about posting two Self-care Sunday posts next week. But we will just have to wait and see.
Today I have a full day ahead of me at home with cleaning and washing. I have already started two washing machines and folded dry clothes. I am also trying to work on my individual assignment that is due at the end of next week.
Now I am going to take care of the dishes in the kitchen. I will be back later with a Situation Sunday post, it will be a little different from before.
Because I wrote about Emma Watson on Wednesday for my WCW post, I decided to write one post about Harry Potter. I love Harry Potter, both the books and the movies.
I can still remember when I read my first Harry Potter book. I couldn’t put it down. I loved how J. K. Rowlings pulled me into this magical world and how amazing her writing was. I still read the books when I get the chance.
And the movies are amazing too. I feel like they have been made in such a way that you aren’t disappointed after reading the books and then watching the movies.
“There are all kinds of courage,” said Dumbledore, smiling. “It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends.”
This was something that I took to heart and I really needed to read this at the time. To stand up to your friends aren’t easy but sometimes necessary.
I will always love Harry Potter. And one of my goals is to visit Harry Potters World in London and of course Platform 9¾ at King’s Cross Station in London. I didn’t have the tie when I was in London this summer.
One other favourite quote from the first Harry Potter book is this:
“The truth.” Dumbledore sighed. “It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution. However, I shall answer your questions unless I have a very good reason not to, in which case I beg you’ll forgive me. I shall not, of course, lie.”
I believe that if you ask a lot of people my age most of them have read a Harry Potter book or at least watched a movie. And many people have probably read all the books and watched all the movies. I hope I get a chance to read the books again this winter. I love to curl up on the sofa under a blanket and with a cup of hot chocolate and read a good book.
Here is a clip from the first movie. Where Harry meets both Ron and Hermione:
Just watching this clip down below gives me nostalgia. Anyone else?
I will probably write more about the wizarding world that Harry Potter lives in at some time. Maybe even this month, but not right now.
The Not So Secret Diary of Nea 