The Harry Potter Themed Birthday Party- Part Two

Karen McCullough Posted on by

(This story is best read from the beginning. Go here to read part one if you haven’t already)

Next class would be Herbology. Professor Snickerdoodle instructed the students in general on caring for plants, then provided each one with a pot, some dirt, and a magic seed. Owl-shaped pots were used to add extra protection for the sprouting plants.

The students planted the magic seed in the dirt, tapped the pots with their wands to promote quick growth, and the pots were put aside to allow the plants to sprout while they went on to the next class: Potions.

In Potions (Professor Snickerdoodle’s last class of the day) the students would be mixing elements to make a potion that magically changed color. Each student had a clear cup and poured liquid from several special bottles into it. The liquid stayed clear until the students tapped their cups with their magic wands and added the special magic white powder. And once they did that, the liquid in the cups turned blue!*

That class was followed by Runes, taught by Professor Fimgrubel (aka Dad). He’d actually created a code based on runic scripts and translated a quote into it. He then challenged the boys to decipher it. The boys, and Liam in particular, love this sort of thing and dove right in. They continued to wrestle with it even after class ended.

The final event of the day was Quidditch practice. They concentrated on catching the golden snitch. Professor Fimgrubel stood on the back deck and tossed practice snitches for the boys to catch. The truth is most landed on the ground, causing a short scrum for possession of each. It was the three-year-old, the youngest, who discovered that the golden covering of the snitch could be unwrapped to reveal an edible and rather delicious, chocolatey center!**

Next post: The great discover and the post-class birthday celebrations!

* The secret here is blue Kool-Aid powder. The powder itself is white until mixed with water.

**Amazing how much those Ferrero Rocher gold-wrapped chocolates look snitches, especially when paired with taped-on paper-doily wings!

The Harry Potter Themed Birthday Party-Part One

Karen McCullough Posted on by

On September 30th of this year, my grandson Liam, turned nine years old. He requested a Harry Potter-themed party and did he ever get one!

Normally for a birthday Liam would get to choose an outing for the whole family as a special treat. But since most of the places they would go, zoos, parks, museums, and such were closed or seriously limited due to the pandemic, his mother decided to go with the Harry Potter theme and turn it into a memorable day.

She succeeded beyond anyone’s hope, due to a lot of research, preparation, and work.

Owls and messages

The fun started around ten in the morning when a knock on the front door led Liam and his three younger brothers to discover four small owls carrying parchment scrolls. Unfortunately I don’t have the exact wording now, but the parchment was an invitation to each boy to become a prospective student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and participate in a day of sample classes. Unfortunately, due to the Pandemic, classes could not be held at Hogwarts main campus, so their home had been granted Hogwarts extension status for the day. Classes would start soon.

A message ‘magically’ appeared on the door from the dining room out to the back yard, saying that Professor Snickerdoodle would arrive at eleven to begin classes.

The boys gathered in the “class room” (aka the dining room) at eleven. Professor Snickerdoodle (aka Mom) also arrived, with academic robes for each of the boys to ensure all would be properly clad and announced that the first class would be a start of The Defense Against the Dark Arts curriculum, namely “Wands.”

Each boy selected a wand (see below for notes on how the wands were created) and allowed to attach various “spells” (in the form of small stick-on jewels) to enhance its power. Then they studied and practiced the proper technique for waving the wand.

Next up would be a break for lunch and then Herbology!

(Wands were made from chopsticks enhanced with raised designs on one end created with a hot glue gun, then painted with an acrylic brown paint and gold highlights.)

New York Public Library

Karen McCullough Posted on by

The New York Public Library holds a special place in my heart. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I spent several days while at home one summer from university doing research there for an important history project. That meant taking the train from Poughkeepsie down to Manhattan’s Grand Central Station. From there it was just a few blocks’ walk to the library.

The building itself is a massive monument to scholarship through the ages. There’s something about walking between the huge lion statues on the steps up that warns you’re embarking on a serious enterprise as you approach the building.

Main Library Exterior: New York Public Library
CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

The interior continues that theme with its enormous spaces, grand, soaring staircases, huge windows, works of art throughout, and the array of resources available.

I went there to research events of a certain narrow historical time period, so I’d make my way up the stairs to the third floor reading room. First, though, I’d stop in the card catalog room that forms an anteroom to the main reading room to look up call numbers for the books I needed. This was many years ago, and I haven’t been there recently, so I’m guessing that the physical card catalog has mostly been replaced by computers.

From there I’d proceed to the Rose Reading Room, a huge space filled with rows and rows of long desks, lit by enormous windows and a series of impressive chandeliers. The main desk bisected the center of the room and it was there I’d submit the book requests. Generally it would take 20-30 minutes for the books to be delivered to the desk where I’d take them to one of the long tables and fill a notebook with notes and references. Those books couldn’t be removed from the reading room, so I’d get what I needed from them and return them to the desk when I was done.

The quiet in the room was broken only by the low mumble of voices at the desk, the swish of pages turning, and the occasional squeak of a chair or shoe. It was almost a reverential hush, respect for all of the people who’d come to seek wisdom or knowledge from the vast repository the library held. Sometimes my mind would drift and I’d look up at the awe-inspiring paintings on the ceiling.

I felt then, and continue to believe, that it says something amazing about our society that we’ve created and maintain a place like that to celebrate the collected experience and thoughts of the ages of human existence.

The Rose Reading Room, New York Public Library
Photo: Deposit Photos

Reading Stories

Karen McCullough Posted on by

A few more pictures from the grandsons’ recent visit. The boys love stories, whether someone else is reading to them or they’re reading themselves. The oldest, 8, is an accomplished reader, the 7-year-old does pretty well, though he lacks confidence in his ability, and the 5-year-old has some basic reading skills. The 3-year-old loves to look through books himself and ‘reads’ the pictures.

Their level of comprehension is sometimes astonishing. Bedtime stories for the older three have already covered The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings (all three volumes), and the Silmarillion, among others. They can quote lines from all the books and they’re happy to tell about or even act out scenes from the books.

Now Available in Paperback!

Karen McCullough Posted on by

When Samantha “Sam” Dennis’s life implodes, she flees her hometown for a fresh start in New York City. Her cousin Julie helps her get settled and introduces her to her friends in the No Brides Club—other women who’ve sworn off love to concentrate on their careers. She gladly joins the club as she spends her days waitressing at a cafe and nights attending an online business school.

But then Matt Sentori walks into the cafe.

Matt has his own tragic history, and Sam is reluctantly drawn to him, even if he is a lawyer just like her ex. He makes it clear he’s interested in her, but when his lawfirm gets involved in the sale of the apartment building she lives in, which will displace all the tenants, Sam is more convinced than ever to commit herself to the No Brides Club.

Matt wants to win back her trust by showing he’s not the same uncaring creep as her ex, despite their shared profession. Finding ways to help the most desperate and needy tenants who share her building seems a good way to do it, but dealing with her neighbors and their problems will test Matt’s and Sam’s ability to trust each other as well as their growing love.

When Sam finally puts her life back together, will there be room for Matt in her heart?

Amazon ebook: https://www.amazon.com/No-Time-Regrets-Brides-Club/dp/B089LYGVN5

The Grandkids Visit

Karen McCullough Posted on by

Due to some lifting of travel restrictions, plus the fact that some of us have had COVID-19 already and the others have been pretty thoroughly exposed, we deemed it safe to have my daughter, son-in-law, and their four boys visit us recently. It allowed everyone a break from the routine. We were limited in what we could do, of course, with playgrounds, museums, libraries, and other attractions closed. It also proved to be a very wet two weeks, with many rainy days, but we had fun exploring some local parks when the weather permitted. On other days we did some baking projects and explored construction possibilities of craft paper and stickers.

Because my oldest daughter married young and my younger two children married later, I actually have two generations of grandchildren. The older daughter’s two children are grown and making their own way in the world (mostly). But they still live nearby and I’m always thrilled when they stop by for a visit. My son, who lives in England with his wife, has two children, a daughter aged 6 and a son, 3 (soon to be 4). Due to the distance and the expense we don’t see them nearly as often as I wish we could.

My youngest daughter and her husband are parents to four rambunctious boys, ages 3, 5, 7, and 8 (soon to be 9). They currently live in Indiana, so visiting us in North Carolina involves a long drive in a minivan stuffed with kids and luggage.

I’m glad that they think the long trip is worth doing a couple of times a year. It’s always wonderfully loud, raucous, and chaotic while they’re here, and the place seems too quiet once they’re gone.

My oldest grandson and youngest

My oldest grandchild and youngest

COVID 19 anthology

Karen McCullough Posted on by

I’m part of a group of local writers who have gotten together as Piedmont Authors Network. We had several projects in process right before the pandemic hit and lockdown became the norm. Some of those projects have had to be shelved or delayed. But one that we decided to go ahead with right away was an anthology of stories and essays surrounding the epidemic. A large group of distinguished authors have contributed. We collected, edited, and are working right now on formatting the anthology for release as an ebook on July 1 and the paperback to follow shortly. The book is now available for pre-order:

All Amazon channels: https://smarturl.it/C19Anthology

All remaining ebook retailers. https://books2read.com/u/4j2nNZ

 

Central Park

Karen McCullough Posted on by

Central Park was designed by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted and architect/landscape designer Calvert Vaux in the late 19th century. In many ways it’s one of the most surprising and delightful features of Manhattan. More than just stretches of grass and stands of trees, it was designed to be a recreation center for the city and includes an amazing variety of things to do, including walking and biking trails, a zoo, amusement park, and an assortment of monuments, fountains, bridges, ponds, fantastical buildings, and even a theater.

Central Park Tree & Bridge
Jet Lowe / Public domain

I’ve visited Central Park a couple of times but never spent very much time there. A few years ago while on a convention further downtown I went with a small group of other people to the park and we walked around the southern end of it. We glanced in at the zoo, followed a couple of paths for a bit and saw one or two of the monuments. Someday I hope to go back and take advantage of a lot more of what the park has to offer.

Central Park Lake & Stone Arch
Dietmar Rabich / Wikimedia Commons / “New York City (New York, USA), Central Park — 2012 — 6731” / CC BY-SA 4.0

Bethesda Fountain
Sidvics / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

No Time for Regrets is available on Amazon

 

 

 

Fifth Avenue

Karen McCullough Posted on by

To experience the heart and the essence of New York City, you want to walk Fifth Avenue from its origin at Washington Square Park northward through Harlem all the way to the Harlem River that marks the northern border of Manhattan. The Avenue basically bisects the city lengthwise, with postal addresses going west and east from it.

The Flatiron Building PortableNYCTours / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

It’s a long walk but well worth the effort. I’ve never done the entire thing, but I have done parts of it on several occasions. I’ve started as far south as 22nd street, site of the iconic Flatiron building, which is where my characters in No Time for Regrets start their trek.

On the trip, they pass the Empire State Building, the New York Public Library, Rockefeller Center, and Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, among many well-known brand-name stores and other classic buildings.

They stop around 59th street, in sight of the Plaza hotel that sits near the Southeast corner of Central Park. I’ve gone farther than that, enjoying gawking at the glorious buildings facing the park, most of which are either apartments or homes of the rich and famous, since it’s some of the most expensive real estate in the world. My last walk ended at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a grand and wonderful place that figured in my previous No Brides Club book, No Time for Surprises.

You can get a good overview of the entire avenue here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_Avenue

There are nice views of some of the most iconic places, brands, and buildings in this video that gives a pretty decent sense of what it feels like to walk along the avenue. Although I have to say that it’s always been more crowded than it appears here every time I’ve been there.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fCdwFgeO2o4

   

St. Patricks Cathedral
Exterior and Interior Photo Credit: PortableNYCTours / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

Looking Upward at the Empire State Building
Photo Credit: PortableNYCTours / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

 

Views of Rockefeller Center

Photo Credits: User: Stilfehler at wikivoyage shared / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0); UpstateNYer / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)