Tuesday, March 19, 2013

So Proud :)


I am so proud of myself right now.
I just came up with my best villain name yet!

I’m writing this Harry Potter fan fiction. It’s about Dudley’s daughter, Violet Dursley, going to Hogwarts.

For a fanfic it’s okay. I’m having fun, and that’s what important. I’m pretty sure that J.K. Rowling never thought of some of the plot I’ve come up with.

In my story, Violet is friends with Scorpius Malfoy, who’s very shy, insecure, and not brave enough to defend himself from James and Albus Potter's teasing. Violet, who’s essentially good if a bit obstinate, sarcastic and prone to solving things with her fists, defends him. And then he meets a mysterious being in the halls of Hogwarts…

I needed an additional villain, a Slytherin, so I just now came up with a name. There’s a lot of pressure with HP fanfic to write good names, what with J.K. Rowling’s being so great.

Here’s mine: Tarquin Thyestus.

Here’s the etymology:

In ancient Rome, there was a run of particularly nasty emperors of the Tarquin family. They tended to get a bit stabby-stabby, as we Latin scholars say. Everyone was relieved when someone else took over.

Thyestus also comes from Latin class. Last year we read this story called The Curse of Atreus. Here’s a quick summary:

Atreus and his brother Thyestes were Tantalus’s descendants. Remember, Tantalus was the guy who fried up his kids and served them to the gods. (You see where this is going…)

Even though Thyestes was married with kids, he liked having affairs. But he really shouldn’t have had one with his brother’s wife. Atreus found out about it, and he did what any reasonable man in his position would do: He invited Thyestes—and Thyestes’  kids—over for dinner.

Well, the kids mysteriously disappeared before the main course, presumably to eat at the kiddie table. Thyestes commented on how tasty the meat was, before wondering where the kids had got to.

You can probably guess where the kids had got to.

Suffice it to say that family reunions probably got a bit awkward after that…

So both names have wonderfully evil negative connotations—just what you want in a villain!

I realize that J.K. Rowling has rights to all the Harry Potter stuff, but that name? That name is mine. I am SO using it again for another story. I might even think of something different for the fanfic and save good old Tarquin for something else…

Happy birthday to my mom! I got her an awesome gift, but I'm not telling what it is in case she reads this before tonight... :D 

Universal Pt. 2 is written and I'm waiting on pictures. 

Saturday, March 2, 2013

Universal Studios, Part 1

I meant to post earlier, I really did. Like a week ago.

But it's hard to find the energy to do anything when you have strep throat, all right? I missed four days of school and watched waaay more TV than I usually do. Well, actually not TV so much as videos. My mom got the BBC Pride and Prejudice from the library. That was fun.

Anyway, exactly a week ago I got to go to Universal with my best friends from Waldorf! It was Izzy's birthday and her aunt, who works in the business, got tickets AND fastpasses! THANK YOU, KATHY!!!

So off I went with Izzy, our other best friend Alkira, and Izzy's older cousin Anna! (Please note that all names are fake.) It was fun. And exhausting. And...whoof.

We got there at about 10 or so, had a bit of trouble getting in (I don't remember the exact problem) and then ON TO THE RIDES! And stuff.

Rowan's Review of Select Universal Rides:

The Backstage Tour: Awesome. I love seeing the sets. It was like going through deserted cities sometimes. And we got to see the clock tower from Back to the Future! Granted, they'd painted over it, but still...Oh! We saw one of the original DeLoreans too!

The Simpsons Ride: Same as last time I went on it. That is, fun! I'm not a fan of The Simpsons, but I enjoy the ride. Favorite line: "Maggie, spit those tourists out! You don't know where they've been!"

Jurassic Park: Never doing that again. The robots had the shakes and I hate hate HATE 84 foot drops. Alkira doesn't like that one either, but she had some fun. It's hard to be scared of robot dinosaurs when your friend is next to you going "He just wants a hug! But his arms are too short!"

Revenge of the Mummy: Loved this one. We went on it twice. Once again, it's hard to be scared of mummies when your best friend is reaching for the hands dangling from the ceiling and yelling "HIGH FIVE, MAN!" My only problem: It was way too short!

The Transformers: Visual. Overload. I had NO IDEA what was supposed to be going on. Stuff like that makes me dizzy, and I was just like, "Huh? Mission? Explosion? Whaa! Explosion! Again!" Seriously, there were WAY too many explosions on that ride. Izzy and I both had to sit down for a while afterwards.

I can't remember if we went on any rides besides that, but we did do other amazing stuff. The most awesome part of the day? The vampire. But since it's getting late, I'll save that for later.