Making plans for Harry

No - I'm not talking about Harry Wales (that's 3rd in line to the British throne to you!) - although I note with interest that he's not going to Iraq after all. What a surprise! Ah well, guess Cornet Wales will have to sit on his arse at home while his men go off and do their thing instead. Wonder how they feel about that?

But anyway, I digress. I'm talking of course about making plans for Harry Potter - or more specifically, the release of Book 7 - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. We all need a plan for momentous occasions such as this :)

I was at Dymocks the other day, ordering 2 Harry Potters - one for me, one for Alice (hey Alice! What's up with the NOT blogging, dude?) - and I was thinking, as you do, about getting the book in my hot little hands and settling down to read it.

I plan to read it in as short a time as possible (the first time!), so I get to the end without knowing in advance what happens. I neeeed to read it without knowing!

This involves some pretty tricky planning:

1. Get to Dymocks in plenty of time on Saturday 21 July (books go on sale at 11.01am NZ time).


2. Get in queue with hundreds of other kids (!).


3. Plug into iPod, select Punk and New Wave playlist and turn it up really loud.


4. Don't look at anyone or anything. Keep eyes firmly focused on the ground at all times.


5. Get my hands on the books as fast as possible and high-tail it out of the shop.


6. Do not switch on the car radio.


7. Look at nothing but the road on the way home.


8. Drop Alice off at her place (allow her to get her hands on her copy of the book only as I'm driving away at high speed - just in case)


9. Lock myself in the house.


10. Open the book and start to read.


11. Do not watch TV.


12. Do not listen to the radio.


13. DO NOT SURF THE WEB.


14. Do not read the paper.


15. Do not answer the phone.


16. Do not answer the door.


17. Do not allow flatmates into house until I've finished.

I'm serious! (well ok, maybe I'm exaggerating just a little) - but really - can't you picture it? The ending'll be on the 6 o'clock news! It'll be across the front page of all the papers! If I'm not careful - if I don't turn my iPod up really loud - some 8-year old in Dymocks will yell "Mummy!!! Harry DIES at the end!" or "Mummy!!!!! Snape's a Death DEATH EATER!!!" and I'll hear them - and it will be all over.

Because I really, really don't want to know the ending before I get there...

Maybe I should take the day off on the Monday, just in case I haven't finished it by the end of the weekend...

So tell me - when you get hold of your copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - are you going to turn to the last page and find out what happens?

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