More Half-Blood Prince and a MacBook

Upon seeing Half-Blood Prince a second time, I'm left, once again, with only unstructured, bulleted fragments of thought. I was reminded of what I forgot to tell you before, and I came to a few new conclusions.

--Last time, I got a little misty-eyed when Harry and Luna went together to Slughorn's party. Not because of anything the movie itself accomplished, but because it took me back to that place in my head. I know much of the fandom relates to Luna, the dreamy outcast, but I love her because of the good she brings out of the other characters. It warms my heart to see Ginny treat Luna well, and to hear Harry reassure her that they're friends. 

--This time, my misty eyes were care of Tom Felton. I've heard the argument in a few different places on the internet that the movie neglected the Draco plotline, but I sincerely couldn't disagree more. I jokingly tweeted tonight that they should've called the film Draco Malfoy and the Vanishing Cabinet, but sarcasm aside, I'm still in awe of Tom's performance. The way he tries to act like he hates Hogwarts, distancing himself, trying to convince himself that he has any say in his destiny. The look of torture on his face when Dumbledore speaks in the Great Hall. His indignant grimace as he exposes his Dark Mark. Aaaaah! Draco is one of my favorite characters, and I think Yates did him justice this time.

--Sorry, but I very much stand by what I said about Helena Bonham Carter's Bellatrix. If possible, tonight she annoyed me ten times more since I was expecting it. I HATE anything done unnecessarily quietly or gently, so her little saunter-around-you-and-whisper-in-your-ear thing just about pushed me over the edge. It's as if she barely skimmed the wikipedia article on Bellatrix and saw only the words "sexy," "scary," and "dramatic." Within a world of extremely complex characters possessing both good and evil, Bella is evidence for the theory that humans can be bad by nature. Helena didn't make me contemplate mob mentality and the incest problems of the pureblood families. She just sort of made me squint my eyes irritably.

--I understand that the last scene was trying to show the dynamics of the trio's friendships-- Hermione awkwardly attempts to lighten the mood by mentioning Ginny, but is still worried sick and is trying to look at the situation practically, while Ron is present and supportive but doesn't know what to say. I love Fawkes flying off, and the sad goodbye dripping out of Harry's final words. I do NOT like, however, how distant Ron felt. I was just uneasy and anxious until the last few seconds when he walked up to the other two.

--All it takes is fifteen minutes of explaining the major themes of the series to my dad in the car ride home for me to remember how complicated HP is, and subsequently how much of my freaking soul is this story. The other five movies embarrassed me. I didn't want anybody to think I dedicated myself to a corny kid book about "the power of friendship." But finally, finally, finally, I'm proud to be associated with a Potter movie.

Anyway, I'm currently sloshing hot tea around my sore throat, daydreaming about Harry, and dreading tomorrow. Our garden will be covered with politicians all afternoon. They'll drink wine, they'll speak passionately about trivial crap that doesn't matter, they'll pretend to know who I am and make me uncomfortable by expecting me to return the favor to them. It'll be less than fun... all I can hope is that my sister will be embarrassed by my hair and ask me to hide in my room. Looking like a delinquent reaps serious benefits!

In super important news, I placed my order today for a beautiful, glorious, gorgeous, spectacular MacBook Pro. It'll be hard to get used to the keyboard, lack of mouse, quiet speakers and new video editing software, but I REALLY THINK I'LL BE OKAY CARRYING MY COMPUTER AROUND 24/7. Think of all the writing I've always thought about but never done! It'll be so easy! (That's completely untrue, but it makes me feel better about how much money was spent on this baby.) It should ship in "7 to 10 business days," but in my experience, it's taken much less time to get here from Columbus. I'll let you know as soon as he gets here. And yes. I just personified my new laptop.

Sexy: Well, obviously. :)

Unsexy: How little Neville and Tonks appear in the HBP movie. I've never really thought of myself as a fan of either of them, but I certainly sense their absence. Besides, Matt Lewis is far from unsexy!

Chipotle burritos this year: 24

S'mores this summer: 3

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Bye, guys! Hopefully I'll see you tomorrow. <3