Today is Harry's 29th birthday, and so I am going to make a list of 29 things that I lurve about the Boy Who Lived. (This isn't a Harry Potter blog, honest! But it can be a bit difficult to restrain myself...)
- Harry's real and justified anger usually finds its way to a productive solution.
- He's kind of an idiot when it comes to classwork…but at least he doesn't cheat off Hermione quite as often as Ron does.
- I like to think of his unruly hair as being a cousin to the Jewfro. I love Jewfros.
- He lays some pretty heavy sarcasm on that bitch Umbridge. Sarcasm is hot.
- Harry doesn't value his fame, which has no value. He values his friends instead. (Two slices, please, extra cheese!)
- Speaking of friends, he has the good sense to humor Luna, who is one thousand percent effing awesome.
- In Order of the Phoenix, he does quite a lot of at-the-top-of-his-lungs shouting. I absolutely LONG to be able to do that. But it is, in fact, socially unacceptable. Frown.
- Harry bears his scar(s), geeky glasses, and knobbly knees with great grace, and is, on the whole, a "scrawny, specky git" who is cool with his image.
- He doesn't always do the right thing. He often does the wrong thing, as a matter of fact. Unlike David Copperfield and Daniel Deronda, who are a pair of smug bastards.
- And yet, per Dumbledore: "In spite of all the temptation you have endured, all the suffering, you remain pure of heart, just as pure as you were at the age of eleven, when you stared into a mirror that reflected your heart's desire, and it showed you only the way to thwart Lord Voldemort, and not immortality or riches."
- That kid is one brave motherfucker.
- The essence of Harry Potter is easily absorbed. My favey-fave wizard rockers, Harry and the Potters, are just as Harry Potter to me as the books are, and so are bits of the movies. Harry is you, and he is me. Being Harry is the universal battle of good against evil.
- Okay, so I know I said he's kind of an idiot. But he makes some pretty awesome decisions, and while we all know Hermione has a lot to do with that, he also finds himself following his gut on many occasions. As Dumbledore once said, "It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."
- If Harry Potter can mess about with dead spiders in Potions class AND with elephant-size spiders in the Forbidden Forest, then surely I can squash one teeny spider in my apartment, right? Right! Oh, courage bestowed upon me by a child wizard.
- Harry fights like hell against it, but he is, indeed, the Master of Death. He is a man who does the right thing. Even though he doesn't always do the right thing. (See number 9.)
- I heart the Harry-Ron bromance.
- He has excellent taste in food. Eff the veggies—treacle fudge and bacon sandwiches, y'all. Oh, yes.
- Harry is totes awesome at Defense Against the Dark Arts, which is kind of like being a spy. James Bond, if you will. Or Jason Bourne. Swoon.
- He does not find it appropriate to discuss emotions unless it is strictly necessary. This must be because he's English. Whatever the reason, all I can say is "Thank Jeebus!"
- He never fights to kill.
- He understands Dumbledore. He has to work at it, but he gets there eventually. And thus he can accept Dumbledore saying achingly true things like "Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?"
- Harry is a great unifier of Muggles. We can't shut up about him, can we?
- He spends a great deal of his time feeling awkward, embarrassed, or uncomfortable. I can relate to that.
- Determination tends to be overvalued but underserved. Harry is determined. He doesn't talk about his determination. He doesn't bitch about his to-do list. He just gets shizz done. I could name a Muggle politician or several who might want to take such an attitude under consideration.
- Christopher Hitchens once described Harry as being "a mild-mannered and rather disorganized schoolboy." He meant that as an insult. But I think it's sweet.
- Harry lurves Ginny.
- If you eff with him and his, he will eff you up.
- Not having met him, I can't be certain, but I presume he has a lovely accent. :D
- I just love him to pieces. For no reason whatsoever. Isn't that enough?
Happy birthday, kid. Have a great (fictional) one!
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