Check Inventory: One Pair Glow-in-the-Dark Harry Potter Glasses

I have two confessions:
1. I am back. Hopefully for good.
2. I only made it halfway through the third Harry Potter book before getting distracted and moving onto something else in my life.

I was hanging out with a certain Kelly McIntyre and a reputable Evan Ross last Friday evening when Evan stated that he had to leave in order to stand in line for a book. I have done this to see a movie but never once for a book. I agreed to tag along and experience the Potter Mania first hand. Since I was there and enduring the hysteria, I figured I'd pick one up myself. Evan got his armband and I got mine. Evan's was a glorious gold color and mine was a dreadful blue. Turns out, he had reserved the book, and I was in a pariah caste known as the "walk-ins". A plastic bag full of cheap Potter goodies and a schedule of the night's events was handed to us both.

The only things of note were a temporary tattoo of Harry's scar (though in a shape of a 7 as well) and a pair of plastic HP glasses. I have seen free HP glasses before, but these were different in two ways. First, they were not single-piece thin plastic like the others seen before, but rather they were thick with hinges held in place with little screws. If they had actual lenses in them, they could pass for actual glasses. Well, except for the second difference. Every pair of HP glasses I've had the pleasure of seeing were black, and these were not. They were whitish. Evan and I took turns giving reasons why they would not be able to afford to add the black ink. An epiphany hit when I realized they were glow-in-the-dark. I have yet to test this hypothesis, but I think it's the actual reason for the color variation. Maybe not 100% Harry Potter canon accurate, at least it gives the opportunity to play "nerd ghost" in the dark.

We arrived at about 9 PM. Obviously, many people were already treading the hallowed Barnes and Nobles grounds, but as time wore on the number grew exponentially. We walked out of the cafe with coffee when Evan made a passing comment about flashbacks from Renaissance Festival. A teen boy in a green tunic and a self carved staff interjected "What's wrong with the Renaissance Festival?!" Apparently the two crowds mix heavily.

Looking around, it was funny to see people with old left over Halloween costumes. Anything remotely witchy was apparently acceptable as Harry Potter Gear... as long as it accompanies a smudged lightning scar and an older brother's graduation robes. My normal, not-remotely-witchy appearance made me feel pretty out of place. Before I could let it get to my head, I realized that Evan and I were more or less the only ones there over the age of 16, at least the only ones without a child dressed as a 7 year old Gryffindor team member.

As it got closer to midnight, the number of people there were mesmerizing. If you've ever been to the Barne's and Noble's at Zona Rosa, you'd know that it has two level, both of which are the size of several third world countries. At midnight it was literally shoulder to shoulder with Potterites. My first thought was, when deciding the legal limit for occupants according to the fire code, I can't help but think they didn't allow for wall to wall people. I've never considered myself claustrophobic, but when I had to lean into the bookshelves to keep from brushing up against people in all directions, I decided to buy the book at a later time. Regardless, the way things were set up, if there were books left over, I wouldn't be able to get mine until maybe 3 or 4 AM because I was a Walk-in pariah.

Oh well, at least I can play "nerd ghost" with my glasses.