"Stolen Waters are Sweet…

…and Memes written in Secret are pleasant.”

I pilfered these from the blog of a complete stranger, who probably would not thank me for linking to her. The idea is that if you are able to check off a number of these (which I have done in bold green), you have really lived.

HAVE YOU EVER…

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said “I love you” and meant it
09. Hugged a tree

10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
(Canucks and Colorado)
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby’s diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment

27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse

34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 10 provinces and 3 territories
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving (one of my biggest wishes!)
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class

71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest

79. Ridden a gondola in Venice (wanted to, but didn’t have enough Lire!)
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83. Gotten flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror (wicked! I wish!)
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Passed out cold
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country (husband and daughter did in Jamaica, but I basked on the beach with a Pina Colada, quite happily.)
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper

129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad – and the Odyssey
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone’s life

Jaymz Gaymz

Jared has started a contest using the memes from Miss Fortune’s Cookies. I find that I like being Empress Gwendolyn the Lackadaisical, actually, and suspect that the cookie might be right.

My Fortune Cookie told me:
I sense a complete and utter vaccuum in the space between your auricles.
Get a cookie from Miss Fortune

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is:
Empress Gwendolyn the Lackadaisical of Olde Yockenthwaite in the Hole
Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title
My Harry Potter Spoiler of Doom is:
Hermione Granger is turned into a house plant by Moaning Myrtle, in the study, with the candlestick.
Get your Harry Potter Spoiler of Doom

It’s All Over

Gwenny Potter and the Clenching Stomach

Tonight’s the night! I am so excited I feel terribly nauseous. The boxes will open at 12:01, so I think I’ll toddle down to the bookstore at 11:15ish, clutching my fresh $50 as if my life depends upon it. Less than an hour to go….

  • I am so afraid that Ron will die. In fact, I’m almost sure of it.
  • I will NOT read so fast (racing to find out what happens) that I miss the details.
  • Shan and I will email periodically throughout the night to discuss.

Super, Natural British Columbia

I suppose everyone feels this way about their own country, but I have been overwhelmed these last few days by how very, very much I love living in BC.

BletherGram

ALL IS WELL STOP SHOWER GREAT SUCCESS STOP AM WORKING A LOT BUT HOPING FOR LESS HOURS SOON STOP FAMILY CAMPING TRIP THURSDAY STOP KIDS VERY EXCITED STOP WILL UPDATE BLOG SOON STOP HOPE ALL ARE WELL STOP LOVE GWEN

Weasley Is Our King!

I am currently in a state of nervous anticipation of Deathly Hallows. I’m re-reading, very slowly and carefully, books I to VI, and here are the questions I cannot help but ask:

  • re: the chess match in the Philosopher’s Stone. It seems so clearly to foreshadow Ron’s death in the final battle of good vs. evil. Ron sacrificed himself in the chess match in the Philosopher’s Stone. In the Shrieking Shack, Ron pushes Harry out of the way of Sirius, who breaks Ron’s leg. Will Ron die at the end of Book VII, sacrificing himself to save Harry? One wonders.
  • re: the brain. Am I the only one waiting to see what kind of fallout there will be from this? It’s one of the most clever bits of the book, in my mind. “According to Madam Pomfrey, thoughts could leave deeper scarring than almost anything else, though since she started applying copious amounts of Doctor Ubbly’s Oblivious Unction, there seemed to be some improvement.”
  • re: Aberforth Dumbledore. I am so intrigued by Aberforth. He’s Dumbledore’s little brother. He’s the innkeeper of the Hog’s Head. He escorted Snape out when Snape had overheard half the prophecy. He performed an inappropriate charm on a goat. He was a member of the original Order Of The Phoenix. Very interesting. Is he on undercover assignment? He was in the photo of the OOTP, but we never hear about him. Is he still on the Good Side? Fascinating.
  • re: Horace Slughorn. Another fascinating character. I can’t wait to figure this guy out. Nothing seems to add up: he’s shocked that the Death Eaters want to recruit him. He’s shocked at Snape’s Moste Evile Act at the end of Half Blood Prince. He knows about Horcruxes. He was a Slytherin. He was in hiding for a year. He’s taken Felix Felicis twice… what happened then? He stood back-to-back with Dumbledore to clean up the room during Harry’s first introduction to him. He’s got fantastic thatched hair. Who is this dude? What’s up with him? Tell me more, J.K., please.
  • Is Harry himself a Horcrux?
  • Is there anyone more amusing than Gilderoy Lockhart?

Happy Canada Day!