On to the Harry Potter news of yesterday! My two favorite blog sites, MuggleNet.com and The Leaky Cauldron: We Blog for Harry Potter have put up the newly revealed covers for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I must admit, these are the two sites that got me started in blogging! MuggleNet has some new insights on the covers, too, but i must admit that i found their appearance quite exciting in themselves...

Interesting war-related sites? (just came across these; explore at your own risk)

Dear Raed

Keven Sites|blog

Not much has been going on in my life lately. Which isn't to say that there isn't a lot going on in the world, just not in my life. For the U.S. and the rest of the Alliance of the Willing (or whatever we're calling ourselves), war against Iraq has finally begun. My sister has been getting work altering prom dresses. My brother-in-law just got a new job and his sister (one of my roomies) is starting to date someone new. I've been merely going to work nearly every day and watching the news every chance i get. It's rather straightforward, really. Pretty boring, truth be told. I haven't found a new job so far, which is stressful of course. I wish something would happen.

Should the U.S. go to war against Iraq without the U.N.'s approval? I was watching MSNBC tonight where two Congressmen and two to three dozen Americans were debating that very question. All of them were extremely articulate individuals, and most of them argued/debated their position well, but as always it struck me how many people claimed that President Bush had not made his case against Hussein. I'm always amazed when people say this, particularly since i feel like Hussein has made the case against himself and that Bush has done a remarkably good job putting it into words for the rest of us who aren't convinced. And then i had a brainblast.

Throughout the entire discussion MSNBC was scrolling poll results and pertaining news at the bottom of the screen. The opinions of people as to whether or not we should go to war are remarkedly split down the middle. Most poll results were 47% (yes) to 43% (no) with similar numbers in the U.S. as well as in other countries (the international polls being seperate but have nearly identical results). I haven't been following the news much since i moved here (it's a passion of mine and i think that those around me get irritated if i state my opinions too much so i've been trying not to get worked up about it) but people are still saying the same things now that they were six months ago even though the "war effort" (for lack of a better term) has gradually progressed (excrusiatingly slowly) in that time to what it now is (at a feverish pitch that is nearly impossible to ignore).

So that's when i had my brainblast and realized: nothing anyone says is going to change these people's opinions. I mean, if what happened on September 11th won't convince you, and the President's articulate presentation of the U.S.'s case repeatedly over the past few months won't do it then what will? And then i had another brainblast. You see, my sister Megan (read about her at her blogspot) was reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the fourth book in the Harry Potter series (and my favorite) next to me. I've just finished reading it for the third time and it got me thinking about how these books speak about what's happening in today's world just as the Lord of the Rings and other great books have (and do repeatedly over the years). Here's what i was thinking of specifically (for those of you who don't read the books or just need a reminder)...

Voldemort (the bad guy) has come back to power. He "beamed" Harry to a cemetery using a portkey and basically came back to life/got his powers back right before Harry's eyes. The experience is tramatic for our boy wizard (and understandably so), but when Harry gets back to safety he vocally relives the horrific experience for his mentor Dumbledore with such detail and information (that would otherwise have been hidden from him) that Dumbledore can not doubt the verasity of Harry's words. Unfortunately, Fudge does doubt them.

Fudge is the Minister of Magic (it's the equivalent of Prime Minister or President for the wizarding world's government in Britain). He isn't a very able wizard for the job, but Dumbledore couldn't take the position so he did (and has asked for Dumbledore's advice often). But when Fudge is presented with the evidence that Voldemort has come back to power he won't believe it. He thinks that just because Voldemort lost his powers some thirteen years earlier that he can't possible become powerful again and as such chooses to ignore the facts (even hide them from his constituants) because of his fear. Dumbledore then activates a choice group of individuals (the Order of the Phoenix?) who have been watchfully waiting for such a horrific event and are ready to jump into action and fight evil when need be (which is now).

That's where we are as a country today (as Americans). We've been threatened, we've been at war with this madman before, he's been busy since then, and still some of us choose to ignore the threat because they don't believe the evidence that is before their eyes. I was just at a Christian Tolkien Fans chat about two weeks ago and someone had invited a friend to join us who (upon the mention of a possible war with Iraq) immedietely began slandering our President! He/she apologized for it later (because they were entirely out of line) but it just appalled me how some people can think that President Bush is incompetent and a madman when in fact he is only trying to exercise his God-given duty to protect the citizens of this country and the rest of the world.

I cannot say anything to convince any of you that we should go to war (at least, i don't think i can... (: ); i don't think i'll try. I'm not promising that i'll never have a rant about it, but that's not what the point of this blog is right now. You see, despite some people's claims that this war is just an example of religious extremism and a pro-economic excuse for a smoke screen (funny: the some people who believe that one think Bush isn't worried about the econonmy... oh! back to my point...) i think that one thing that this country (indeed, the world) should agree upon is that we need to pray. We need to pray a lot.

Praying is hard for me right now. I feel abandoned and betrayed by God. But still: i know that when things get tough there is but one recourse, there is but one thing for me to do... I get on my knees. "See I don't know how but there's power when I'm on my knees" (Jaci Velasquez). I hope that you get on your knees, too, because that's one power we do have right now: the power of prayer. I can't change the world, or this country and the millions of people who live here, but God can: i only hope that He'll use me in the process.

"...If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land."
2 Chronicles 7:14

life verse

"To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?" asks the Holy One. Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out one after another, calling each by its name. And he counts them to see that none are lost or have strayed away. O Israel, how can you say the LORD does not see your troubles? How can you say God refuses to hear your case? Have you never heard or understood? Don't you know that the LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth? He never grows faint or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding. He gives power to those who are tired and worn out; he offers strength to the weak. Even youths will become exhausted, and young men will give up. But those who wait on the LORD will find new strength. They will fly high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint."
Isaiah 40:25-31 (NLT)

Okay, so i'm working today and for some reason the music that we're playing doesn't agree with me. I've heard the album before and liked it, but today i'm just not in the mood. I want to put on Meredith Brooks, but someone has bought the used copy, so i get out Britney Spears instead. A little while later i'm singing "Overprotected" while i work and this guy says "Wow, we've found the next American Idol." Then my coworker said that he liked my voice better than Sheryl Crow's when i was singing "Soak Up the Sun."

I considered trying out for American Idol before the first one was on (this was way back when Dark Angel was still on the air). There was no way for me to feasibly get to an audition location so i didn't do it, nor did i really think about it again (it just wasn't meant to be). When i saw the show i hated it and i haven't watched it since (which makes sense considering the fact that i'm boycotting Fox right now). I wouldn't mind being a professional singer, but i really don't take Kelly Clarkson seriously: why would i want to get my start like that?

The point is, even though i'll probably never sing professionally, compliments like that don't come that often (at least, not ones that seem genuine... little old deaf ladies at church never really counted to me). It made me feel good to hear someone say something so nice. I had a good day.

Hi! I've just discovered the world of blogging and decided to create my own site. Which isn't to say that i've never seen other people's blog sites... far from it. I had heard the word before, and visited many such sites; i just didn't know what the word "blog" meant.

For a while now i've been at a loss as to how to bring my webpage into the new millenium. I've messed around with formats, with entirely new pages, tried to find new content, but nothing ever seemed to click. And then i found this... maybe this is what i've needed.

You see, i find myself uncertain as i am slowly developing into a young woman. Why would anyone want to hear what i have to say? But then again, why shouldn't anyone want to hear what i have to say? That's why i started on fire (indeed, my entire star in void webpage) in the first place, isn't it? To change to world around me. Which isn't to say that anyone has to read what i write, or that what i write will change anyone, but i am a writer. There's something within me that must write or die.

Maybe blogging is the answer to the lingering question that i've had the past few months: how do i share my art with the world? I'll blog. Maybe this will become a bigger success than Fire Angel's Star in Void page, maybe i won't be posting anything here outside of the week, but it's a start. Welcome to my new site.