Hip to the action

Okay, we're posers. I've only read the first Harry Potter book and Tom has read none (though he worked the midnight releases of Books 5 and 6 in his bookseller days). But with the hoopla across the street at Barnes & Noble rivaling community celebrations on the 4th of July or Halloween, we didn't want to be left out of the excitment. Especially with a kid named Harry in our midst. So we took E and H over to see the scene.

It's a good thing we walked--at 8:15 the whole mall parking lot was full, and people were circling desperately. If we'd been more on top of things, we'd have arranged to sell parking spaces at our apartment complex for $5 a pop.

Tom had promised Edith live owls based on the previous two releases he'd seen at B&N; it's probably good they weren't part of tonight's program, or they would have been frightened out of their wits. There were people everywhere, camped out with lawn chairs, blankets, pillows, and pizzas behind rope lines up and down the halls of the mall. Not planning on purchasing a book, we could skip all that and go straight to the face painting. Edith was delighted with the cat on her cheek, and she and Harry seemed quite pleased to make the acquaintance of the Other Harry, above. I wish I could post the Polaroid version of the photo taken for us by a B&N employee. Above Harry Potter's hand all the lights of the mall, reflecting off its skylights, are a blurry, mystical green, as if he really were casting a spell.

Those of you waiting have 13 minutes to go...Hope it's great!