the end of an era: harry potter edition

as you may or may not know, harry potter and the deathly hallows (part 2) came out in the theatres this past friday.  or thursday night at midnight if you're hardcore (like me) and not scheduled to work friday morning (like me).

for those of us that are roughly 24ish years old, the harry potter era began when we were harry potter's age when he got his lovely little letter from hogwarts.  i remember reading the first book in 6th grade (more details on that in a sec) and being immediately drawn into this world that i wanted so.very.badly to be real.  i remember asking my dad if there was any chance that it could be real. humoring me he always said sure, but  part of me most have known it wasn't possible.  i guess the part of me that still believes disney world is the happiest place on earth believed in muggles, hogwarts, and quidditch (and that part of me still believes in them just a smidge).

i didn't really think about the fact that this movie being released marked the end of the harry potter era until i saw a friend's tweets (shout out to tan!) about being ready for the movie but not ready for the end of childhood (or to see a weasley die).  and just for the record, everyone's been saying that as of late, but i read her tweet forever ago.  so she's my source.

and maybe, just maybe, now that i'm 24 it really is time for the end of childhood.  i mean, i'll graduate (again) in december and apparently get a job (although if we're being honest i'm not so sure about that anymore).  most of my friends already have big girl and big boy jobs and do other adult things. ex: see harry potter 7.2 on the weekend because they work friday morning.  the jury's still out on whether i'm going to be good at this "adulthood" thing, but at least i have a few more months to figure out what the heck that means.

in the meantime, i wanted to pay tribute to the magical world of harry potter with a few of my hp memories, one from each of the seven books.

ron, harry, and me. no big deal or anything.

1.  it took me forever to read the first book.  and not because i'm a slow reader.  but because i was terrified (like get the sweats and sleep with the lights on kind of terrified) of that darned cat in the first chapter of the book.  oh, you don't remember that cat?  that's because it's really insignificant to the rest of the story.  but it freaked me out in the worst way.  i mean, it sat on privet drive and watched the houses all day.  how freaky is that?  no thanks.  i actually hid the book and didn't get past that first chapter until other kids in my class used the book for a project.

2.  i have had two harry potter and the chamber of secrets books.  i left the first one in a closet on a trip in 10th grade (i was rereading them, don't judge) and never saw it again.  my set was actually incomplete until the past year when i asked for new copies for christmas of the ones i had lost.

3.  the prisoner of azkaban is one of my least favorite books.  and that's a hard choice because i really love them all.  but that one still gives me the willies because of those dementors.  yikes.  i'm pretty sure i've met a few dementors in real life.  seriously, those people that always seem to suck your energy out?  those are dementors.

4.  i read the goblet of fire at the beach on vacation and [spoiler alert!] i don't think i've ever cried as hard as i did when cedric diggory died.  like gasping for breath, blotchy face, bloodshot eyes kind of distraught.  also, because my family was at the beach, i was super bummed i wasn't going to be able to get the book at midnight.  but surprise!  my mom found the closest walmart to the beach house and staked it out to snag me a copy and surprise me the next morning.  best mom ever.

5.  i went to books-a-million at concord mills to get this book at midnight.  there were all kinds of people dressed in crazy costumes and the energy was so electric you could feel it.  and i thought it was all awesome.  some worker even came around and let you get sorted into your hogwarts house by picking a pin that was one of the four houses.  unfortunately i got ravenclaw which couldn't be farther from the truth.  anyone that knows me knows that i am such a hufflepuff.  i'm not gryffindor brave, ravenclaw smart, or slytherin evil (no, mom, i'm not evil enough to be in slytherin regardless of what you're thinking right now).  so by default i'm a hufflepuff.  the one good thing?  i would've gotten to hang out with cedric diggory in our common room...prior to his death and all.  another thing about this book?  my parents took it away from me as soon as i got home from the midnight release.  they didn't let me have it again until after i had taken the SATs.  thanks 'rents.  real cool.

6.  i can't re-read the half-blood prince because it's too much for me.  but apparently i was really into it when i read it the first time because the spine is busted and the pages fall out when i open it.

7.  i refused to read the 7th book until just last december (2010).  even though it was published in july 2007, it wasn't over for me until the day where i finally caved and read it.  hp7.1 had finally come out in theatres and i refused to see it without reading the book first so i gave in and cracked it open.  i read it straight through and stayed up all night because a) i was seeing the movie the next afternoon and b) i couldn't stop crying and who can sleep through tears like that?  maybe that's when my childhood really ended.  i mean, i extended mine three and a half years longer than most of my friends, but it doesn't make it hurt any less.

now that the books are done, the movies are out, and pottermore is a bust, i can set my sights on finally visiting the wizarding world of hp.  that, and looking out for my hogwarts letter come november.  i hear 25 is the year adult wizards get their letters.  keep your fingers crossed and watch for my owl!