life sucks without magic

cornelius fudge. that's literally all it took. that name. for me to read the harry potter series. we were on our way to california, and for whatever reason we were listening to the sixth book on tape in the car. it only lasted a chapter or so cause everyone started getting whiney and hating it. we probably should've kept it playing though, because what resulted after that was an argument about gavin saying that the beatles could all die, even though half of them already are, and drew almost ending his life. after that we all put in our own headphones and didn't talk for a while. while we we did listen to harry potter i wasn't really paying attention cause i had no idea what was going on. then something grabbed my attention, and that was "cornelius fudge". i loved the name so much. so i started listening. and as i listened i realized that j.k. rowling was seriously onto something. i asked drew what all this harry potter business was about and she started raving about how i would love it. i generally trust drew in what sort of entertainment i would like so i knew what i was going to do when we got home from california. read harry freaking potter. i had read the first book in elementary school. i honestly remember how it made me feel, like it was the best book on earth, and having to put it back into my desk after SSR (silent sustained reading) time was one of the hardest things i had to do in fourth grade. but for whatever reason i never finished the series. that needed to be fixed. and so it began.. i started with the first book. i broke up the monotony of work by taking breaks and going to a park to read. this wasn't a very good idea cause usually i'd never go back to work, i was so consumed. the guy who mows the lawn in the park i go to actually came up to me and told me he always saw me there reading, and asked how i liked the grass. i sometimes would read at the lake on top of my car, in a swim suit. i had a lot to read, so i got pretty creative. i also think reading indoors is boring, unless it's winter. if you want to know where else i read, you're just going to have to ask me sometime. so many people have said things to me like, i don't want to read harry potter, i'd rather read really good books. if i hear someone saying this, i immediately put them in the zero imagination loser category. sure, they are easy reads, but sometimes i feel like things like that have more meaning in them than things that are supposed to be packed with it. look what j.k. rowling has created. my mom didn't really like my obsession, because most nights i would press her about why she never told me that i was a wizard, and if i was the only one in our family who could do magic. i think it was a nice break for her though from cat comments though. i love everything about harry potter. i love everyone in harry potter. i would honestly fantasize about harry way before edward or jacob. he's the freaking greatest. finishing the series was bittersweet to say the least. obviously i was elated, but at the same time i could feel the awful end. these feelings could only result in the production of tears. i made my way through the last chapter or so crying. i was close to a playground and i could feel the mothers eyes on me, ushering their children back to them, and forcing them to keep a good distance from the weeping lunatic over at the picnic table. but i didn't care, i couldn't care. harry potter transformed my boring life into one full of all sorts of wonder. and i'm not gonna lie, life sorta sucks without him.

so here i am, a few months and 4175 pages later, a harry potter freakin fanatic. a wonderful series finished, feeling completely full, but totally empty.