I'm a Hufflepuff ?

November 17, 2005 - My friend Adriana and I were talking about the upcoming Harry Potter film and she mentioned that there's an online sorting-hat test that can determine which four of the Hogwarts Houses you belong to. Of course, I had to try it out myself to see whether I'm a Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or worse, a Slytherin (Adriana is a Slytherin !).

After completing a somewhat silly test, the answer came to be...you guessed it, I'm a Hufflepuff.

So who are the Hufflepuffs you might ask? well read below !! (apparently, there's an entire website devoted to Hufflepuffs everywhere called Hufflepuffs Pride...sary eh ?)

Head of House: Professor Pomona Sprout, Herbology
House founder: Helga Hufflepuff
Mascot: Badger
Colours: Yellow and Black
Sorting Hat Description: These belong in Hufflepuff, where they are just and loyal; those patient Hufflepuffs are true and unafraid of toil.

Famous Hufflepuffs:

Cedric Diggory (picture above), Tri-wizard Tournament Champion, Captain and seeker of the Quidditch team
Hannah Abbott, Prefect
Ernie Macmillan, Prefect
Zacharias Smith, he was in Dumbledore's Army
Justin Finch-Fletchley, he was petrified in HP and Chamber of Secrets
Susan Bones, her aunt worked for the Ministry of Magic until she was killed by You-Know-Who

So there you go - the Hufflepuffs might be a bit boring, but if I can be in the same house as that dreamy Cedric Diggory, then I'm ok with that. Yes I know, he's a fictional character.

Here's another FYI for non-Harry Potter fans. The entire Harry Potter series takes place in the early to mid 90s. According to clues in the books, Harry Potter was born in 1980, meaning he's the same age as I am. So characters like Cedric, Cho Chang, Percy Weasley are all older than me !

So try the Sorting House test and let me know which house you belong to ! Here are the links to a couple of them:

http://www.thealmightyguru.com/reviews/harrypotter/docs/quiz-house.html

http://www.personalitylab.org/tests/ccq_hogwarts.htm

Battle with the flu

November 16, 2005 - It sucks being sick, but it's worst when you're alone.

On Sunday night, I felt sick for the first (and hopefully the last time) time this flu season. I knew I wasn't feeling 100% even in the afternoon, but I kept thinking that I could sleep it off in my apartment. When I got home that night, my conditions got worst - the point where I couldn't move and I had to wear layers of clothing just to stay warm. I also knew I have a high fever, judging my how warm I feel (while getting chills at the same time) and how my head felt like it was going to explode.

Struggling to even grab a cup of water from the kitchen, I finally had enough and called home. Mom came and picked me up. It was then I realized how difficult it is to be sick and alone. I don't know how some people do it - it's definitely not a fun experience.

So back up to Markham I went, where I spent three days fighting my fever and struggling to get my health back. It was sooooo nice to have mom around to bring me soup and water and to remind me to take my pills every 4 hours...

I'm such a baby eh...sigh...but at least I'm back on my feet now =)

Countdown to Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire

November 12, 2005 - Let the countdown begin !

This summer, I finally had the chance to read all 6 Harry Potter books. The books have been sitting on my bookshelf for years now, but with school and work, it was hard to find time to read them (especially books 4 and 5, which were over 500 pages long). So finally, this summer, I had the chance to read them - all 6 in a row.

Of the 6, I have to say Goblet of Fire is my favourite. Perhaps it's because it's the first BIG book (over 70o pages) in the series. Or maybe it's because the book has more actions and feels a bit more grown up. Or perhaps it's because that dreamy Cedric Diggory is in it...

So in counting down towards Friday, when the movie officially opens, I have tried to find as many GoF posters as I can and I have to say, I'm pretty impressed. Aside from that teaser poster that has been up since the summer, it seems like marketing forces at the WB have also developed entire series of posters featuring all the GoF characters - some of them are strictly for promotional uses overseas (particularly in Asia). I will try to post some of these posters on here over the next week, but here's one of my favourites so far, with Cedric and Cho Chang...

Roaches, Paint Odour and a Leaky Toilet

November 3, 2005 - Tonight marked a low point in my first week of living on my own.

Tonight, when I came home and found yet another bug in my bedroom, I finally lost it.

First, I'm just disappointed by the fact that the apartment didn't turn out the way I had hoped. Primarily because 1) it stinks because of the paint odour, which makes all my clothes smell like paint; 2) it's infested with creatures 3) it's really quiet and at times, even a bit lonely...

Seriously though, the bug situation has subsided. I still kill on average two bugs a day, but the size of them have decreased and we're talking about little creatures (don't see the big ones no more, touch wood)...but still...

So after finding yet another bug tonight, I decided to take action. All week I've been talking to the people at work and they've told me to get these roaches traps. So I decided to make a trip to Canadian Tire and buy a few for the apartment. I even did research on them all afternoon at work and have decided to get this one that will kill the eggs too (it's called Raid Eggs Bait or something like that).

Needless to say, the trip did not go as planned. The Canadian Tire at Bloor & Church does not carry roach traps anymore, because they are "out-of-season". Neither does the Shoppers Drug Mart at Yonge & Bloor. I was told to perhaps try the Canadian Tire at Eglinton and Laird.

Disappointed, I went back to Eglinton and took the bus to Laird. The Canadian Tire there was bigger, but still no traps. Pissed off that the whole trip was a waste of time (and fuelled by Jason's text msgs which also pissed me off - seriously, I think he doesn't quite know how this bug situation affects me), I finally just lost it and was THIS close to either knocking someone over with a can of Raid or burning down the apartment. I was just really upset that nothing seems to be going my way.

After cooling off a bit walking around the store (and with Jason finally figuring out that I'm ultra-pissed/depressed over this situation), I decided to buy that cocking gun, another can of Raid, and some steel wool to re-claim my apartment from those awfully disgusted creatures. I went back to my place, sealed up some cracks on the walls in my bedroom (that's where they seem to be found these days) and the bathroom, made a huge mess (I stopped caring though), while at the same time, cursed the genetic makeup of roaches for allowing them to survive past the Jurassic Period...

The other problem that I've found this week was that my toilet leaks water around the base. Though after some investigation, the problem doesn't seem that big nor important anymore. I mean, I flush the toilet maybe four times each day and it appears that the toilet will only leak under heavy usage (such as last weekend when my parents were around). A little paper towel around the base seems to do the trick for now.
At least that problem solved itself - sorta...

I feel better now that I've ranted...still, I think I might be a tiny bit home-sick...