Serious Cat

Pandora Are Serious Cat Just when I think my fifteen minutes of fame are done from I HAS A BUDGET and 2.0RLY, the Fame Stick hits me in the face for yet another fifteen minutes, this time in the form of PANDORA ARE SERIOUS CAT getting into I Can Has Cheezburger.

Thanks to konolia for the Metatalk mention; I had removed ICHC from my feeds during an internet pruning about a month prior, so I’m not sure I would have noticed otherwise.

By the way, the books in that photo are Working For Yourself and The Barbarian Conversion. The ink wash drawing in the background is by my wife. You may also wish to see the original “I are Serious Cat” macro.

Update: Pandora’s Serious Cat has made an appearance on the set of The IT Crowd:

Someone on set probably thought the reference to an office was relevant?

Harry Potter Spoilers – Deathly Hallows

So there’s been some buzz over Harry Potter spoilers getting leaked via photos of open books being posted online. At least two of these sets of photos show books with contradicting plots, and I’ve read bits of a “spoiler” PDF which was obviously an awkward R-rated fanfic. Perhaps Bloomsbury picked up some cues from LOST and put out “foilers.”

All the controversy means that my own old “Darth Voldemort” spoilers have been getting hundreds of frantic inbound Google clicks, and so I’m happy to reveal that I hold in my hands an early-shipped copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, from which I’ve transcribed a couple of pages near the end: the climax after a surprisingly comical chase scene at Gringott’s. Look away if you don’t want to be completely spoiled!

But the chase was over. Harry lifted his wand and pointed it at Voldemort’s stumbling form. He whispered the simple jinx with a rush of triumph: “Stupefy.”

A shout, and Voldemort fell with a great clatter of barrels and gold, robes flailing, and then he was still.

“Good one, Harry!” came Ron’s yell from above. “And Hermione’s okay!” He heard their footsteps coming down the stairs behind him, but did not take his eyes off the Dark Lord.

Wand at ready, Harry approached Voldemort’s now stirring form. Magic-less though Voldemort had now been rendered, he could still throw a punch if he wished, and Harry was taking no chances. Ron and Hermione hurried to his side, their wands raised as well.

“Give it up, Riddle.”

Do not call me that!” Voldemort hissed, eyes fixed with hatred on Harry, his snake-like nostrils flaring with rage.

“I don’t think I’ll need to,” said Harry with a smile. “I’ve figured it out.” And with his free, wand-less hand, Harry grasped the top of Voldemort’s head, and, before Ron and Hermione’s unbelieving eyes, pulled it off. There was a collective gasp, joined by that of two more new arrivals from the stairs. Harry needed not look to know that Hagrid and Professor McGonagall had finally arrived.

“Professor Flitwick!” Professor McGonagall exclaimed, stopping short, a hand hovering over her heart as though it would leap out of her chest. Hagrid appeared stunned into wide-eyed silence.

“Jinkies!” exclaimed Hermione. Ron looked askance at her, but only for a moment, keeping his wand trained on Voldemort.

But it was not Voldemort. Before everyone’s eyes were Flitwick’s unmistakable goblin ears and fuzzy white hair, a strange sight to see atop what still seemed to be Voldemort’s body.

“Yes, it was I!” Flitwick cried, his eyes blazing defiantly at each of them. “I was Lord Voldemort all this time!” He began to get to his feet, a hand slipping on a rolling goblet, but four wands — and a shaking umbrella — quickly raised gave him pause. Even now, the body that had been Voldemort’s was growing shorter, the robes shrinking back to the familiar form of the Charms teacher.

“But Filius,” Hagrid said with an incredulous whisper, “Ye’re not, ye’re not…” he trailed off for a moment, seeming to lose himself in thought, but raised his, and growled, almost griffin-like, “Zoinks! Filius, why’d ye do it?!”

“For the gold, of course!” Flitwick cried. By now he had gotten to his feet, but it made little difference now that he had reverted to his true form. He turned to look at the rest of the vault, at the gleaming mounds of gold and silver and jewels. “James and Lily Potter’s gold, sitting here, galleons and galleons of it,” he sneered, “and ickle Harry never doing more than spending a bit of it at Diagon Alley and giving a bit of it to that- that Weasley joke shop!”

He whirled around again, and four wands and an umbrella which had begun to lower, drew up once more.

“You know how little I was paid by Dumbledore!” he wailed, eyes wide with something bordering on insanity. “Years and years of that pittance; I needed more! If I wanted to level Hogwarts and build my retirement castle, I would have needed… gold!” He stopped suddenly and glared at Harry and Ron and Hermione. “And I would have gotten away with it, if it weren’t for you meddling kids!

* * *

“Nice work, Potter,” said Moody, clapping him on the shoulder heavily as they stood outside Gringott’s. The sun was rising, and Flitwick, looking sullen as the goblins slapped chains on to his wrists, refused to meet the eyes of any of those gawking and pointing at him all over Diagon Alley. Moody’s magic eye fixed on Flitwick like a hawk.

“Mad-Eye,” Harry began haltingly, “What about- what about Sirius?”

“He’ll live,” came Lupin’s voice behind him. Harry and Moody turned to face Lupin, and Harry saw with relief that Ginny and Luna were beside him, Tonks standing behind. Their faces were tired, and…sad? Lupin’s face was crestfallen, his voice was anything but reassuring. “He’ll live, but, well, Harry…”

Only then did Harry begin to notice the familiar bedraggled black dog at Tonks’ side. “He’s…stuck, Harry,” Lupin whispered. “We can’t get him out of dog form. We’ve tried every Animagus-specific spell known, but the best he can do is talk a bit.”

Harry knelt by his godfather’s canine form. Sirius lifted his head, recognition filling his eyes. “Ra-ree?”

Jinkies!That’s the end of the spread I have open here; I dare not reveal more. Who’d have guessed it was Flitwick all along?

Update: This “spoiler” has gotten a copyright infringement notice from the U.S. publisher of the book. A veritable trophy of notorious infamy!

Elevator to Nowhere

Elevator to Nowhere

While Metropark station is being renovated, half of the northbound platform and bridges to the elevator towers and parking garage have been removed, but this elevator tower remains standing. I’d hate to ride it to the top, see my train there, and step off into nothingness. (Good news, by the way, my camera is back!)

NJ Trip

Amy and I spent an eventful weekend up in NJ to visit her parents, whom we hadn’t seen since the wedding last month. The train ride from Washington was quick. We watched Groundhog Day en route (Amy had never seen it before), and later found upon arrival that track work at Metropark meant that Amtrak passengers had to detrain at track level, cross the tracks, and climb the steps to the platform, which was an adventure in itself.

Saturday was spent with Amy and her dad on the waters of Spruce Run, a reservoir and recreation area (kind of a New Jersey version of Caliraya) popular for camping, fishing, boating, and windsurfing. We were on kayaks, and spent many hours rowing about the artificial lake, exploring the shoreline and coming as close to the spillway as was allowed, all the while getting marvelously sunburnt. This was my third time to kayak at Spruce Run, but I forgot my camera, so you will just have to imagine how mind-bogglingly marvelous and amazing the whole experience was.

After kayaking, we had a delightful dinner at Chestnut Chateau, the restaurant at which we had our rehearsal dinner the night before our wedding. I ordered filet of sole, eaten to the tune of live music of the “Blues” variety — I will skip the obvious sole/soul witticism.

Sunday morning worship was at Amy’s church and we were witness to the sad announcement that Pastor Keith, one of our own wedding co-officiants, will be leaving to pursue God’s call to pastorship at another church down in MD. I’m sure he’ll be greatly missed in that church and in that town, and we wish him well.

That night our train home was delayed an hour, and we arrived in DC well after 2AM. We still haven’t fully recovered.

Burger.jpg

Burger.jpg This is a ‘Union Pacific’ burger, topped with avocado and a fried egg. It is very good.

(Burger.jpg uploaded by brownpau.)

Skylight.jpg

Skylight.jpg Eating lunch at Garrett’s, a railroad-themed tavern and restaurant in Georgetown. Blue sky and hot sun outside, but this is a covered terrace.

(Skylight.jpg uploaded by brownpau.)

Detrain.jpg

Detrain.jpg Passengers getting off the train at Metropark northbound have to detrain at track level because of platform and rail construction work.

(Detrain.jpg uploaded by brownpau.)

SprRun.jpg

SprRun.jpg At Spruce Run, a reservoir and state park near Clinton, NJ. We’re going kayaking.

(SprRun.jpg uploaded by brownpau.)

RearRail.jpg

RearRail.jpg View out the back window of the train as we head up the Northeast Corridor, off to NJ with my luv.

(RearRail.jpg uploaded by brownpau.)