Winner! And Thoughts on H-B P

Our latest contest winner is Becky, who correctly answered our "How Fast Can Harry Find Himself in Trouble?" question. Becky, a Sly gal, will be receiving two skeins of truly Slytherin green Wakiki yarn by Crystal Palace. Good job, Becky!

Another question, perhaps a little easier, will be coming this week. Stay tuned...

I had a few thoughts after re-reading Half-Blood Prince.

1. Is Dumbledore setting up his own death? I was just a tad-bit hysterical at finishing H-B P and found a LOT of comfort in the website Dumbledore Is Not Dead (now called "Beyond Hogwarts") when the book was first released. Even after J.K. assured us all he IS dead, I've gone back to that site to remind myself that maybe Snape isn't, oh, I don't know, the scum of the earth and there is some crucial reason to Dumbledore's death.

I realize, Dumbledore had to go, he was the last adult protecting Harry from his inevitable final meeting with Voldemort. There's no one left in Harry's life who he might look to for guidance; I get it, Dumbledore couldn't be in the seventh book (though maybe, just maybe, he is... just maybe).

But did Dumbledore mean to die? On my last reading, H-B P seemed littered with signs he was putting all the pieces into place, giving Harry all the necessary tools for Harry and the Order to carry on after he was gone. (Of course, now I can't find any of them easily, but they're there, I swear it! ;-)

2. Is there a chance the final showdown, we'll call it, between Harry and Voldemort happens at Hogwarts and not Godric's Hollow? Or that Hogwarts will play a bigger role than any of us, or I, at least, expected? In "Lord Voldemort's Request", Dumbledore says,
"'Voldemort was, I believe, more attached to this school than he ever has been to a person. Hogwarts was where he had been happiest; the first and only place he had felt at home.'
Harry felt slightly uncomfortable at these words, for this was exactly how he felt about Hogwarts too.
'Secondly, the castle is a stronghold of ancient magic... he [Voldemort] may have felt that there were mysteries still to be penetrated.'" ( H-B P American edition, p 431)
I can't help but think that, even though Harry won't be going back to school, he will end up back at Hogwarts in Book 7.

3. Even if, and I really hope this is true, Snape IS on the side of the Order, is he a "good guy"? I have some sympathy for him after what J.K. revealed of his youth in OotP, but I can't bring myself to like him even a little. Yes, I love Alan Rickman, and it's hard to hate him in the movie, but when I read OotP and H-B P, I'm reminded of what a small, petty, nasty character Snape is, not only to Harry, but to almost everyone- Neville, Hermione, Ron. Can all that cruelty be part of his double-agent role?

Just some questions/concerns/comments. Getting to the end of Book 6 suddenly made the release of Deathly Hollows seem so much more crucial and, therefore, so much farther away. When will the 21st of July get here?!

Lots of Knitting!

I have knitted up a ton of Harry Potter related objects. I also managed to read the sixth book. I have once again started with the first and plan on reading the series again before the release of the seventh book. I think I will start off with my comments from the book, then go on to knitting.

First, wouldn't Voldemort have put curses on Harry if he was being used as a Horcrux? There were curses on the other ones.
Second, does Harry still want to become an Auror? If he does won't he have to go back to Hogwarts for his final year?

That was all I could come up with for this book. On to my knitting. First off, here is my owl: Isn't he adorable! I finished him up the same day I started him. (that is the second). However, I could not think up a name for him. Any suggestions?

I have also knitted up a mini sweater for my uncle for Christmas. I didn't add the embroidery because I don't think he reads Harry Potter. Awful, I know. I also made a little Ravenclaw bookmark for me, which you can see below.


I also knitted up a baby hat, using the Tea Cozy Crown. It is soooooo cute. I used navy for the body and gold for the stripe. Ravenclaw yet again! Here's a pic:


In the car yesterday on the way back from Florida, I cast on and knitted up the first mitten using Gryffindor colors and the trapped bar pattern. I love it. I cast on the second of the pair during church, and managed to get to the thumb gusset during the sermon. Unfortunately, I didn't snap a pic of them yet. Maybe tomorrow. I also started a Slytherin colored Warm Up America! square that I am crocheting. Have a picture! Since I took the picture, I have worked almost two stripes. Of course, it wasn't until I finished the first stripe that I measured. It was nine inches wide. I decided to work for seven inches then finish it and call it vertical stripes!

Sarah