Loads has happened, including most of the budget for movie seven.

Har! Yet there's much more budget busting to come.

this. is. so. much. fun.

Agreed. It is such a great way to revisit the book.

Semi-related to HP: the fact that Jim Dale narrates Pushing Daisies drives me crazy since I so associate him with the world of HP. I guess I've taken too many car trips with the WCNs.

Conversely, it would remind me of the Carry On films.

This morning I resumed the commute and listen. Aberforth has told the sad tale of his sister Arianna. Obviously this is the event that changed everything for Dumbledore. He made different choices after that. It's interesting how much of this book is about Dumbledore and how Harry has come to accept who Dumbledore actually was.

Neville has turned up from the odd magical tunnel to Horwarts and it looks like he's having a difficult year at school. It looks like they'll be going back to Hogwarts, as we all knew they must, to find the last Horcrux.

Neville!

I'm just at this spot in my (fifth? sixth?) re-read!!

Speaking of Neville, here's a cute look at the Battle of Hogwarts from a different perspective--Trevor's!

They have made it to Neville's refugee camp via the magic tunnel. Neville has finally become worth twelve of Malfoy. Luna, Dean, Jinny, Fred, George, and others have arrived as well. Harry, like McClellan, has the army he trained but is unwilling to use them.

There is some pointless discussion of why the lost diadem is called the lost diadem and how it is unlikely to be the horcrux. It's pointless because we all know that Voldemort found it and make it a horcrux. There wouldn't be all this talking about it if the horcrux ended up being Tom Riddle's special services award. Besides, Voldemort said that it was someplace only he knew about. If the Voldemort was the first to find it, then that could be the reason it has been lost all this time and Tom Riddle is the one who found it.

Anyhow, Luna and Harry take off to look at Ravenclaw's statue after some intervention by Ginny. Honestly, Luna would be my choice anyhow. You know that Luna isn't going to panic in a tight situation. I like that the Ravenclaw common room has a different way of gaining passage, however it probably sucks to be a Ravenclaw first year.

They find the statue and Harry stupidly gets out from under the cloak so he can be discovered by Carro. I wonder if the diadem could be inside the statue of Ravenclaw. There would be some great irony that it would be lost all this time and be right there in the Ravenclaw common room. Tom could have gotten it out horcruxed it and reparo'd it back. Except why would be in the Ravenclaw common room to find it in the first place? Probably not. Where was I? Oh yeah, Harry gets discovered, Carro summons Voldemort, and Luna doesn't panic and stuns Carro. That's where I'm at.

Harry, like McClellan, has the army he trained but is unwilling to use them.

Gud, can I marry you? Anyone who can make Civil War allusions when commenting on Harry Potter makes me swoon.

I had the same response, Kathy. I started to write, "Maybe someone should have given Harry whatever Grant was drinking," and then I stopped due fear of geekery. I should have known I was not alone.