“‘Another year gone!’ Dumbledore said cheerfully. ‘And I must trouble you with an old man’s wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast. What a year it has been!” (Sorcerer’s Stone p 304).

Indeed, Professor: what a year it has been! Why it feels like only three hundred and sixty something days ago that I was summing up 2008 and here we are approximately one year later, summing up 2009!

The Harry Potter Alliance has had some extraordinary experiences this year. Amongst them (get ready for a ton of hyperlinks!):

• Donating over 14,000 books across the world, including 4,000 to ASYV youth village in Rwanda through the first ever Accio Books!

• Wrock 4 Equality combined Wizard Rock, livestream, knocking on doors, phone banking, and education on equal rights in a pretty astounding way. Over 3500 phone calls were made in one day, increasing phone calls through Mass Equality’s phone banking system by over 1200%. The event was covered by the Wall Street Journal amongst others. Though marriage equality was repealed in Maine, we transformed so many hearts and minds and will continue supporting and working for equality!

• In What Would Dumbledore Do (with an amazing web site designed as always, by Acacia) we brought the whole fan community together (Mugglenet, Leaky, Wizard Rock, HPEF, Fiction Alley, and more!) to celebrate being loyal to the spirit of Albus Dumbledore in our world. People wrote tons of blog entries about how Dumbledore transformed them, on the night that Half-Blood Prince came out, we took over Twitter with over 12,500 tweets of #Dumbledore in less than nine hours, and in the Dumbledore Movie Theater Challenge, Harry Potter fans around the world (North and South America, Europe, even Singapore) wore name tags that stated a lesson that Dumbledore taught them. We estimate that thousands if not tens of thousands wore name tags reminding them of a lesson that Dumbledore taught them.

• We received significant press on Australia’s Today Show, the front page of CNN.com, features in the LA Times, Newsweek (and Newsweek Japan), and mentions in Entertainment Weekly, Time, and so many, more – check them out here!

• Magical Acts of Kindness WROCKED in partnership with GivesMeHope.com – and you can check out some highlights here where people from all over the world did good deeds for people anonymously.

• We did a ten day campaign around dealing with the Muggle Mindset of “stress as the only norm” during Finals and Holiday season.

• The first two HPA House Cup Competitions with Ravenclaw (fittingly) winning Accio Books! and Gryffindor (also fittingly) winning Wrock 4 Equality! We have less Slytherins, but they did incredibly well considering their numbers (don’t worry Slytherins: next year we’ll rob banks and you guys we’ll be so motivated nothing can stop you). And Hufflepuff, it should be noted was in the lead for the first half of both contests – I believe in you Hufflepuffs! Special thanks to our House Prefects and Heads of House, Paul DeGeorge, Evanna Lynch, Lauren Fairweather, Brian Ross, Sue Upton, and Matt Maggiacomo.

• We worked with Vlog Brothers John and Hank Green to motivate the creation of hundreds of videos, with folks lighting candles of hope for Rwanda, across the world – the best of which were played during the 15th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide in the Rwandan capital of Kigali.

• You all raised over 4000 dollars to keep us going through the extraordinary efforts of the Nine and Three Quarters campaign. This is not to mention the ridiculously generous fund raising by Leaky, Harry and the Potters, the Whomping Willows, Justin Finch-Fletchley, HPEF, and the entire Wizard Rock community - all of which are keeping us going and making this possible.

• We kicked off the New Year on January 1, 2009 with Paul and Matt’s “No New Stuff Campaign” – a New Year’s Resolution that they followed for it’s full six months and inspired so many to be engaged in conscious consumerism.

• We created the HPA Common Room on Ning, our Twitter account, a flowering of our Youtube account, and livestream! WHOO HOO!!

• Our staff saw an explosion of new volunteers (and sadly seeing some go – we miss them!) who are doing amazing things for the HPA! It is difficult to express how much the heart and soul of this organization is run by creative and committed volunteer staff. I won’t even try to name each one of you - but I am so grateful for both you and your ridiculously admirable work!

• Our chapters exploded through the roof as we now have over 50 active chapters across the world. Though small in number compared to how many we end up reaching, our chapter members are mind-blowingly, soul-inspiringly committed and creative - doing half the work of the entire organization (including donating more than 4,000 books, sorting all of the books t help them get to ASYV, spending more than 20 combined hours calling Maine, residents during Wrock for Equality, and doing unbelievable work during What Would Dumbledore Do!!!!

• We put on over ten full hours of AMAZING programming during Leaky Con (special, special thanks to Karen Bernstein), and HPA presentations at Azkatraz, Pledge 2 Protect, and the Futures of Entertainment Conferences

• New HPA merchandise (and more soon!)

• Getting well over 1,000 signatures at ipledge2protect to join the movement to end genocide

Tomorrow night at midnight we begin a new year on the heels of an amazing year for the HPA. I believe that with our incredible staff, chapters, members, and an entire community and the breadth of our scope and vision that the beauty and transformative power of this organization will continue to expand and ripen for what will be an amazing 2010.

And yes, tomorrow night at midnight we begin a new decade on the heels of a decade of Harry Potter - that saw amongst so much, the birth of the Harry Potter Alliance and our magical approach to activism. I believe that the magic that Harry has given our world and the magical activism that we have been practicing for several years will continue to expand, ripen, and flower in this new decade. I am excited, humbled, and grateful that we are on this journey together.

The Weapon We Have Is Love,

Andrew

Whether it’s Christmas, Channukah, Solstice, Eid, Kwanzaa, Yule, New Year, or Festivus (for the rest of us), this is a time of year of tremendous celebrating.

Some celebrations are dedicated to reverence (midnight Mass is tonight!) others to complete irreverence (rare to find any one in a “reverant” mood on New Year’s Eve. But regardless of tone, regardless of religion and faith, there is “holy” theme that runs through all of this holiday season. As the Earth reaches it’s darkest times of the year, multiple cultures including secular ones reach out and celebrate light.

Whether it’s the lights on the Menorah, the lights on a Christmas tree, or the big crazy ball of light that falls every year in New York City - we are all looking around at a wintry world cast in darkness and somehow it allows to see a wonderland that is decorated by light. The Christmas spirit is all about merriment and generosity and bright colors (think Santa’s wardrobe and Rudolph’s nose) set at a time of such wintry darkness. It is, in some respects, “the most wonderful time of the year” for it is a time where the darkness allows us to huddle in warmth and reach out through thought, action, and prayer to all of those still in the cold.

They say it is darkest before the dawn. But in the holiday season, the light of dawn and the pitch black of midnight intermingle in a divine yin-yang balance that the whole world is celebrating through its reverence towards birth, intention, light, humor, partying, family, singing, and so much more.

Those who do not feel included in these celebrations because they feel alienated from their friends and/or family of origin or even themselves - may be able to take comfort in knowing that there is no “should” or “have to” to the holiday season. The holiday season is a reminder that darkness is okay. Even when it hurts. Even when the cold bites and the lack of sun causes seasonal depression - the light is right here for us to bask in. So even if you feel more alienated by the holiday season - this is okay. And you will get through this!

But for everyone, may we all bask in the beautiful sight of Christmas lights against snow. Of people coming together. And children believing - believing that “reindeers really know how to fly.” If we believe it is true, together, then on some level it is. For just because it’s happening in our heads, doesn’t mean it isn’t real.

And regardless of how you treat this holiday season (whether it is the most wonderful time of the year for you or whether you just can’t wait until it’s over), I hope that it treats you well. Let the light that so many of us celebrate now carry over into those bleak winter days of January when dead Christmas trees litter our streets upon dirty slushy snow and winters that seem to stretch without end. They always do get transformed to spring. Light always does emerge. Even in the darkest days - like right now, there is a no better time to rejoice, sing, pray, and celebrate.

May this be a beautiful moment of holiday bliss for each of you. And if you’re in a “bah humbug” kind of mood, well bless you too.

So Merry Everything. Happy Everything. Let light shine out on to all of us as we approach this new decade of this new century and millenium. And can someone tell Santa to please not give any coal to any one this year even if they deserve it. Coal is not good for the environment. And send him some low carb cookies too. Lord knows, the man could afford to be a bit healthier so he can keep making these annual treks!

Hi all! It’s Taekia again!

So, I want to close off this blogging series by thanking all of you for reading our blogs and joining in the conversation, you’ve shared some of what stresses you out and some of what helps relieve that stress.  On to the last post!

You’ve spent the past few weeks slaving away – in the common room, in the library, in the Great Hall during all your meals. You’ve been staring at that stupid book for hours and hours. There is sunlight peaking in and all your days seem to blend together and you still can’t manage to figure out the theory behind that stupid Transfiguration spell. Perhaps if you had actually gone to class that day.  All college students say that next semester you’ll do better, be more prepared, actually study. And perhaps you will, maybe next year some of us will start our Christmas shopping with MORE than a week to finish, or remember to mail in our bills instead of running to the shop just before closing.  We’ll ban together and find the magic to get through it, but for now. YOU’RE DONE! So, how do you de-stress after it’s all said and done?

I have a few fantastic suggestions:

1. Sit back and watch movies all day (or TV).  A few personal go-to lazy-day movies: Transformers, 27 Dresses, and Bones (TV series).

2. Go shopping. Okay this is a pre- or post- Christmas suggestion. However, buying new shoes or really cool electronics can be theraputic (just remember not to let them take you back to a stressed place money-wise!)

3.  Bake a cake. Eat the batter. Eat the icing. Then Eat the cake. It’s entirely contradictory to Elizabeth’s exercising idea, but well sweets are AWESOME.

4.  Do something a little bit stupid like staying up too late, sleeping in past noon.

5. Play in the snow if you’re up north. Play in the sun, if you’re luckier than some of us.

6. Let your mind wander! Daydream, write a fanfic.

7. Read a book with absolutely no intellectual qualities.

8. Go to the gym or stay on your couch.

9. Do what you want to do, what you think is important.

After spending a long time stressed and working towards a goal, perhaps making that holiday dinner or finishing that final exam, it HELPS SO MUCH to say enough is enough. I’m living for me, because in the end that’s the best way to reduce your stress.  You’ll forgive yourself the indulgence, I swear!

I used to be very much like Hermione when it came to school and stressing out about things. I would memorize everything to the letter and aim for 100%. I always worried I would do badly. If I did, then how would I get into university? get or keep scholarships? a job?

Now, after 24 years of going to school (K-12, then 11 years of university–yes 11!), I’m not like Hermione most of the time, and I want to share the tips I’ve learned along the way. Many of the tips everyone else is sharing apply, so I will focus on only school-specific stuff, but remember and use everyone else’s tips as well!

I have found that almost everything comes down to two big problems:
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