Time Zone Conversions

To make life a wee bit easier (we hope) for students trying to get in their final projects before the buzzer at the end-of-May deadline, here are some exact times to work with. We've attempted to cover all the areas of known House Cuppers, but it is possible we've left some out. Hopefully this will still be helpful!

ALL CLASS ASSIGNMENTS WILL BE DUE BY THE FOLLOWING TIMES

In the United States of America and Canada...

Alaska -- May 31, 2009 -- 10:59:59 p.m.

Pacific -- May 31, 2009 -- 11:59:59 p.m.

Mountain -- June 1, 2009 -- 12:59:59 a.m.

Central -- June 1, 2009 -- 1:59:59 a.m.

Eastern/Saskatchewan -- June 1, 2009 -- 2:59:59 a.m.

Atlantic -- June 1, 2009 -- 3:59:59 a.m.

Newfoundland -- June 1, 2009 -- 4:29:59 a.m.

In Australia...

Western (Perth) -- June 1, 2009 -- 2:59:59 p.m.

Centeral (Adelaide) -- June 1, 2009 -- 4:29:59 p.m.

Eastern (Sydney) -- June 1, 2009 -- 4:59:59 p.m.

In Britain and Europe...

UK -- June 1, 2009 -- 7:59:59 a.m.

Western Europe (Denmark/Germany/etc.) -- June 1, 2009 -- 8:59:59 a.m.

Eastern Europe (Finland/Ukraine/etc.) -- June 1, 2009 -- 9:59:59 a.m.

In Japan...

Tokyo -- June 1, 2009 -- 3:59:59 p.m.

10 Questions With...

This week, we'll be talking to sparksearcher, Head of House for Gryffindor! Her House has shown major spirit and teamwork in rising from last place in points to second place over the course of seven days this past week! Amazing!

We'll start with the basics...

Which is your favorite Harry Potter book?
Prisoner of Azkaban

Which is your favorite Harry Potter movie?
Sorcerer’s Stone

Who is your favorite Harry Potter character?
Charlie Weasley

And to transition the love of
all things HP into the House Cup...

How did you become involved with the House Cup?
I stumbled on it after I typed “Harry Potter” into the Rav search box. I wasn’t sure what it was about when I signed up, but I’m glad I did.

You've identified yourself as a Gryffindor. Why?
Part of it is having the red and gold clothes from high school, part of it is how the House is idealized for its courage. Reminding myself that I’m a Gryffindor allows me to try new things that scare me a little (or a lot).

What is your favorite thing about the House Cup?
The super special awesome friends I’ve made. Everyone is just so cool and this group has one of the most supportive environments I’ve ever been in.

As a student, which class/subject is your favorite?
Charms. The students always come up with really cool stuff to tie in to the theme.

And a little bit about you...

Do you knit, crochet, spin, or some combination of the three?
Knit, but I’m interested in spinning too.

What is your favorite type of item to make?
Mittens. This works out well because most of my family won’t wear mittens so I get to keep them.

Last, but not least, what's the story behind your Ravelry ID "sparksearcher"?
“Sparksearcher” was gifted to me by a friend on livejournal. Someone she knew abandoned the original journal and she customized it up for me. I use that for all my IDs now.

View From a First Year # 5

May is Coming to an End

No!!! I can't believe how fast the time has flown! I can't believe that in a matter of only a few days the month will be over! How can this be?? ;)

I hope that everyone has done well on their assignments. I just turned a few of my own in. I love everyone's creativity and assignments. Another round of pats on the backs to all of my schoolmates! I say a nice trip to Hogsmeade this weekend would be lovely. What better way to show off everyone's pretty creations? :D

I can't wait for June to begin! I am excited to learn of all the new assignments that our professors have in store for us. I also can't wait to go do some more yarn shopping, although my trunk is quite full of yarn as it is. Oh well, there is always room for more. Good thing yarn is quite squeezable. mmm Malabrigo, I need more Malabrigo :)

P.S. --> I also can not wait until I am feeling better. I have unfortunately been visiting Madam Pomfrey in the Infirmary more than I have wanted to. Darn allergies attacking (and I have yet to find a decent spell to stop them).

Clara

(Our "View From a First Year" column is brought to you by the lovely-in-green 1st Year Slytherin ajkane. Her original content can be found here.)

Featured Projects

Ancient Runes
Overcast of Hufflepuff


Arithmancy

ShaylaMyst, NQFY


DADA
AerieIris of Slytherin

Wildcard Wednesday!

To alleviate some of the stress of May "finals week" (as it were) at HPKCHC, here's just some plain ol' interesting-to-know information about your fellow House Cuppers that has nothing to do with classes or assignments or grades.

Did you know...

...the most popular names* at HPKCHC Hogwarts are as follows?

Ann/Anne/Anna -- 10 students
Jen/Jenn/Jennie/Jennifer -- 10 students
Sara/Sarah -- 9 students
Kate/Katie/Katy/Catie -- 7 students
Jess/Jessica -- 6 students
Julie/Julia -- 5 students
Laura -- 5 students
Rachel -- 5 students
Cindi/Cindy -- 4 students
Karen -- 4 students
Kristen/Kristin -- 4 students
Maria/Marie -- 4 students
Michelle -- 4 students

Did you know...

...there are 3 boys playing this term? And they're ALL Ravenclaws!

Did you know...

35 House Cuppers' names (not their RavIDs, their actual names*) start with A
12 start with B
21 start with C
13 start with D
16 start with E
3 start with F
12 start with H
35 start with J
33 start with K
14 start with L
24 start with M
5 start with N
3 start with P
13 start with R
34 start with S
19 start with T
4 start with V
1 starts with X
1 starts with Z

Did you know...

34 House Cuppers have the word "knit" in their RavID (7 are Slytherins, 8 Ravenclaws, 8 Gryffindors and 11 Hufflepuffs).

4 have the word "yarn" in their RavID (2 Slytherins and 2 Ravenclaws).

2 have the word "hook" in their RavID (1 Ravenclaw and 1 Gryffindor).

4 have the word "stitch" in their RavID (2 Gryffindors and 2 Hufflepuffs).

2 have the word "crochet" in their RavID (1 Ravenclaw and 1 Hufflepuff).


* (18 Slytherin -- no name given; 12 Hufflepuff -- no name given; 18 Ravenclaw -- no name given; 10 Gryffindor -- no name given)

Featured Projects

Charms
vitalai of Slytherin


Herbology

Eliandhra of Gryffindor


Muggle Studies
trainergirl15 of Gryffindor

Stand tall, House Cuppers!

This has been the busiest month the HPKCHC has ever seen and, on this day of reflection here in the United States, I thought it would be a good time to remind those who are struggling or losing spirit just how much you've accomplished in a little over three weeks.

• About 360 individuals from all over the world came together in April, many of whom didn't know one another from Adam, and became partners and teammates and friends (some will remain so for life).

• In three weeks, you all have posted in your House Common Rooms and in the Great Hall a total of 10, 541 times. That's over 10,500 comments of encouragement, pride, love, disappointment, fear, concern, and reassurance. Yes, absolutely, it's hard to keep up with, but there's something infinitely comforting in it as well.

• In three weeks, you all have completed (fully, 100%, not halfway but TOTALLY completed) 579 projects -- not including the Quidditch wristwarmers and baby items. From a woman who can hardly complete one item in a month, I find this to be a stunning accomplishment.

• I cannot count the number of times I've seen people "cross House lines" to help one another out, whether it be to offer congratulations, to provide encouragement or to hold someone's hand and walk them step-by-step through a new process. There were concerns with the HPKCHC growing more than double this term about losing that sort of kindness and camaraderie, but clearly we had nothing to worry about.

In the end, while this is a competition and one eye is always on the points, keep in mind that 10 years from now you won't remember who won or lost, you won't remember the socks you could have made for that one last class, you won't care that five more points could have pushed you over the top -- you'll remember the friends you made and the things you learned and, we hope, how fun the journey was.

Unofficial Points Update!

It's that time again, House Cuppers! Time for the unofficial house points update as tallied by the Reporting Staff! We've got some exciting developments to report for you today, so hold onto your brooms...

SLYTHERIN: 3504

GRYFFINDOR: 2601

HUFFLEPUFF: 2565

RAVENCLAW: 2440

That's right, Gryffindor has roared into second place! They've shown a tremendous amount of team spirit this past week and, boy, has it paid off. Slytherin holds onto their lead and they're still swinging hard as we head into this last week of classes for the first month of the term.

Here are the breakdowns by classroom (an * at the end of a line means that team is highest or tied for highest as far as percentages of homework turned in or approved in that category):

OWLs

160 students have applied

152 students have been approved (95% approved)

34 Gryffindors applied

34 Gryffindors approved (100% approved) *

40 Hufflepuffs applied

37 Hufflepuffs approved (93% approved)

42 Ravenclaws applied

40 Ravenclaws approved (95% approved)

44 Slytherins applied

41 Slytherins approved (93% approved)

CHARMS

133 students enrolled
94 turned in either a partial or completed project (71%)

30 Gryffindors enrolled
19 Gryffindors turned something in (63%)

23 Hufflepuffs enrolled
18 Hufflepuffs turned something in (78%) *

34 Ravenclaws enrolled
25 Ravenclaws turned something in (74%)

46 Slytherins enrolled
32 Slytherins turned something in (70%)

DEFENSE AGAINST THE DARK ARTS

254 students enrolled
159 have turned in either a partial or completed project (63%)

58 Gryffindors enrolled
36 Gryffindors turned something in (62%)

66 Hufflepuffs enrolled
42 Hufflepuffs turned something in (64%) *

56 Ravenclaws enrolled
34 Ravenclaws turned something in (61%)

74 Slytherins enrolled
47 Slytherins turned something in (64%) *

HERBOLOGY

105 students enrolled
66 have turned in either a partial or completed project (63%)

26 Gryffindors enrolled
17 Gryffindors turned something in (65%) *

22 Hufflepuffs enrolled
14 Hufflepuffs turned something in (64%)

23 Ravenclaws enrolled
14 Ravenclaws turned something in (61%)

34 Slytherins enrolled
21 Slytherins turned something in (62%)

MUGGLE STUDIES

163 students enrolled
87 have turned in either a partial or completed project (53%)

40 Gryffindors enrolled
20 Gryffindors turned something in (50%)

37 Hufflepuffs enrolled
22 Hufflepuffs turned something in (60%)

42 Ravenclaws enrolled
15 Ravenclaws turned something in (36%)

44 Slytherins enrolled
30 Slytherins turned something in (68%) *

ANCIENT RUNES

128 students enrolled
86 have turned in either a partial or completed project (67%)

27 Gryffindors enrolled
22 Gryffindors turned something in (82%) *

28 Hufflepuffs enrolled
16 Hufflepuffs turned something in (57%)

32 Ravenclaws enrolled
18 Ravenclaws turned something in (56%)

41 Slytherins enrolled
30 Slytherins turned something in (73%)

ARITHMANCY

120 students enrolled
93 have turned in either a partial or completed project (78%) *

27 Gryffindors enrolled
23 Gryffindors turned something in (85%)

21 Hufflepuffs enrolled
18 Hufflepuffs turned something in (86%) *

28 Ravenclaws enrolled
17 Ravenclaws turned something in (61%)

44 Slytherins enrolled
35 Slytherins turned something in (80%)

And, by House (not including OWLs for this part)...

GRYFFINDOR

208 enrollments by Gryffindor students in classes
137 partial or completed projects turned in by Gryffindors

66% of Gryffindors signed up for a class have turned something in

HUFFLEPUFF

197 enrollments by Hufflepuff students in classes
130 partial or completed projects turned in by Hufflepuffs

66% of Hufflepuffs signed up for a class have turned something in

RAVENCLAW

215 enrollments by Ravenclaw students in classes
123 partial or completed projects turned in by Ravenclaws

57% of Ravenclaws signed up for a class have turned something in

SLYTHERIN

283 enrollments by Slytherin students in classes
195 partial or completed projects turned in by Slytherins

69% of Slytherins signed up for a class have turned something in

(Points counted are for: approved OWLs, partial and complete assignments turned in for class, Quidditch points, recruiting points awarded to students at the opening of the term and any bonus points openly given to students along the way to this point. Bonus points for class assignments have not yet been assigned and are not included in this tally. Points tallied as of 10:03 a.m. EST on Sunday, May 24, 2009.)

10 Questions With...

This week's interview features our favorite Slytherin, scarlettb, who is doing double duty this term as both Head of House for Slytherin AND Defense Against the Dark Arts professor (not to mention her university studies in real life)!

We'll start with the basics...

Which is your favorite Harry Potter book?
Prisoner of Azkaban. I love it because a lot of stuff happens, but it’s still really tightly written. GoF has a similar amount of action, but it’s three times as long - I think JKR does an incredible job of getting a lot across in a little bit of page real estate.

Which is your favorite Harry Potter movie?
Hmmm…Can I wait until after I’ve seen HBP to answer this definitively? So far, I think Cuaron did an amazing job with PoA, but I also think a lot got left out, and I think Newell did good work with GoF (I cried and cried when Cedric died, because he was so much more real for me in the movie than he had been in the book). Columbus was really true to the books, but they were so clearly kids’ movies that I think more could have been done. And I think all the movies spend too much time showing off their flying special effects, when they could be spending that runtime (and budget) on things that advance the plot.

Who is your favorite Harry Potter character?
Hermione Granger. Sometimes I feel just like her - I was an outcast (and really, really poor) as a kid, and I think the feeling that I had coming to Harvard from an impoverished background is the closest I could ever come to the feeling of entering a world of magic as a muggle-born.

And to transition the love of

all things HP into the House Cup…

How did you become involved with the House Cup?
I heard about it first term, in the Harry Potter Lovers group, and I figured it would be something fun to do, to help me finish things more consistently, and to get ready for the movie release.

What is your favorite part of the House Cup?
I love seeing what everyone chooses for my class! I think the Imperius assignment (in January) was my favorite assignment - the enthusiasm, the number of different projects people chose, and the hilarious “Imperiused” posts that people contributed got me through a really difficult exam period. (Although I also really loved the Patronus assignments, and finding out what everyone identified with!)

You’ve identified yourself as a Slytherin. Why?
Well, when I originally signed up, I said I would be happy in either Ravenclaw or Slytherin. Ravenclaw was an obvious choice for me, because I’m a student, and I’m totally brilliant (kidding!), so I do identify with that house. But Slytherin really resonates for me, too, because I do want more from my life than what I have (so I could definitely be described as “ambitious”, and I am pretty ruthless in the pursuit of that. And I have no qualms at all about doing things that are…let’s say “not super-nice”… if it’s what’s best for me or the people that I love. And I am vicious toward people that cross me. Fortunately, it’s easy to get on the “People I Love” list, and hard to get on the “People Who Will Rue The Day” list.

Also, I look really good in green.

What made you volunteer to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts this term?

After the first term, I felt like I needed to be more involved in the Cup in general, so that I could help Slytherin do better. I think a lot of us felt that way, which is why we had three Slytherin professors. I actually originally hoped to do Arithmancy, but when Onica suggested DADA, I was totally excited (although a little bit worried, because…nobody wants a cursed position!) I was 100% on board to come back for the Spring term, partially because I’d had such a great time last term, and partially because I still had a lot of ideas for assignments.

What makes a student’s project stand out to you?
Well, I’m the one that always gives the points for making me laugh, so…a good back-story, a funny description, or an unexpected project in general is guaranteed to get bonus points from me. I also admire people who go for the gusto and turn in a giant shawl after only a month, or something like that.

And a little bit about you…

Do you knit, crochet, spin, or some combination of the three?
I knit, mostly. I’ve started to crochet, largely because of the Cup (it’s so much faster!), but I’m not particularly adept at it. I have a spindle and some roving, but I’ve spun, seriously, like 20 yards of exceptionally inconsistent singles, and then let my spindle sit around for the next five months, so…I don’t spin. I do sew, though, and I also do other kinds of garment construction - just last weekend I created a floor-length skirt made with only playing cards and brass paper-fastener brads as part of a Queen of Hearts costume for a school fashion show.

Last, but not least, what’s the story behind your Ravelry ID “Scarlettb”?
Okay, so…my dad has two sisters…and 16 brothers. All his siblings have sons. There hadn’t been a girl born into my father’s family in 41 years when my mum got pregnant with me. So they figured I was a boy, picked out a name (Matthew Stephen), and got on with it. When I was born, they were…surprised. And totally unprepared. And my mum figured that she wouldn’t get another chance to use any of her favorite names for girls (and was on a lot of drugs, most of them administered by her doctors), so she…got a little crazy. My full name is Julia Elizabeth Mary Louisa Eleanora Scarlett Lucinda Rebecca Cordelia Belladonna Lastname. My little sister, born three years later? Emily. No middle name. Mum was out of ideas.

Featured Projects

Ancient Runes
naturallyknitty of Gryffindor


Arithmancy
djmeurer of Ravenclaw


DADA
xamonster of Ravenclaw


Herbology
Miyaka of Ravenclaw


Muggle Studies
Zanahoria12 of Slytherin

View From a First Year # 4

Guess What is Underway Right Now???

QUIDDITCH!!! QUIDDITCH!!! QUIDDITCH!!! QUIDDITCH!!!

I am super excited to be participating in quidditch! It sounds so much fun. I am sure every team has their own strategies, secrets, and suprises in store for others. I am looking foward to watching everything unfold and see all of the results! As well as everything else that is going on, I am finally catching up on my homework! Yay! My projects will be getting turned in soon. I have really enjoyed seeing what everyone has been turning in for their classes. The projects are absolutely amazing! I love everything! Great job to all of my fellow classmates! I can only imagine what is in store as the month continues to come to an end.



(All "View From a First Year" articles are brought to you by the talented, the amazing, the Slytherin-y ajkane and original content can be found HERE, on her blog.)

Notable Quote: zanahoria12

You know why I’m most excited about this term? It’s the longest term….May and July both have 31 days, while June has 30, for a total of 92 days.

Fall had 91 and Winter had 90…

Quoted from zanahoria12

ACCCKKK! MANDRAKES!

Mid-Month Mandrake Parade!




Taxscrapper of Hufflepuff created this wonderful collage of mandrakes. She has offered to make a larger one at the end of the month to show off the mandrakes that are created for this assignment! We hope to post that for you as well.

Unofficial Points Update!

It's Sunday, which means it's time for the House Cup Reporters to give you their approximation of the (unofficial) points count for the Houses this week!

SLYTHERIN: 2710

HUFFLEPUFF: 1954

RAVENCLAW: 1808

GRYFFINDOR: 1747

The Gryffindors have been pretty busy this past week, especially on the Quidditch pitch, and it shows! The out-front Slytherins are still the sly, coordinated team everyone knows and loves (the new strategy seems to be to turn in partial assignments along the way for the 5 points -- they are definitely in the lead as far as partial points), but the month is only halfway over and there's plenty of room for the other three houses to advance!

Breakdowns by House are as follows...

GRYFFINDOR

32 students have submitted an OWL proposal.

28 have been approved.

25 are enrolled in Charms.

12 have turned in either a partial or fully complete assignment (hereinafter known as "something").

51 are enrolled in Defense Against the Dark Arts.

25 have turned something in.

22 are enrolled in Herbology.

11 have turned something in.

34 are enrolled in Muggle Studies.

10 have turned something in.

23 are enrolled in Ancient Runes.

13 have turned something in.

22 are enrolled in Arithmancy.
15 have turned something in.

13 wristwarmers made for Quidditch.
32 points for cheering for the Quidditch team.

HUFFLEPUFF

36 students have submitted an OWL proposal.
33 have been approved.

19 are enrolled in Charms.
13 have turned something in.

61 are enrolled in Defense Against the Dark Arts
34 have turned something in.

18 are enrolled in Herbology.
10 have turned something in.

34 are enrolled in Muggle Studies.
18 have turned something in.

24 are enrolled in Ancient Runes.
12 have turned something in.

14 are enrolled in Arithmancy.
9 have turned something in.

4 wristwarmers made for Quidditch.
33 points for cheering for the Quidditch team.

RAVENCLAW

35 students have submitted an OWL proposal.
33 have been approved.

28 are enrolled in Charms.
19 have turned something in.

48 are enrolled in Defense Against the Dark Arts.
23 have turned something in.

19 are enrolled in Herbology.
9 have turned something in.

37 are enrolled in Muggle Studies.
10 have turned something in.

26 are enrolled in Ancient Runes.
12 have turned something in.

26 are enrolled in Arithmancy.
14 have turned something in.

1 wristwarmer made for Quidditch.
12 points for cheering for the Quidditch team.

SLYTHERIN

35 students have submitted an OWL proposal.
34 have been approved.

41 are enrolled in Charms.
24 have turned something in.

71 are enrolled in Defense Against the Dark Arts.
44 have turned something in.

28 are enrolled in Herbology.
15 have turned something in.

39 are enrolled in Muggle Studies.
24 have turned something in.

36 are enrolled in Ancient Runes
22 have turned something in.

35 are enrolled in Arithmancy.
26 have turned something in.

9 wristwarmers made for Quidditch.
74 points for cheering for the Quidditch team.

And by classes...

OWLs
138 proposals submitted / 128 approved

Charms
113 enrolled / 68 partial or complete assignments turned in

Defense Against the Dark Arts
231 enrolled / 127 partial or complete assignments turned in

Herbology
87 enrolled / 45 partial or complete assignments turned in

Muggle Studies
144 enrolled / 62 partial or complete assignments turned in

Ancient Runes
109 enrolled / 59 partial or complete assignments turned in

Arithmancy
97 enrolled / 64 partial or complete assignments turned in


(We're happy to announce that we're now including Quidditch points in our tallies to make it even more accurate (as much as we can), so keep in mind that points counted are for: approved OWLs, partial and complete assignments turned in for class, Quidditch points, recruiting points awarded to students at the opening of the term and any bonus points openly given to students along the way to this point. Bonus points for class assignments have not yet been assigned and are not included in this tally. Points tallied as of 9:55 a.m. EST. on Sunday, May 17, 2009)

10 Questions With...

Today's interview is with the glorious, the gorgeous, the brilliant, the one-of-a-kind GazeboGal, HPKCHC's head Quidditch coach!

We'll start with the basics...

Which is your favorite Harry Potter book?

Prisoner of Azkaban for two reasons. First because of that wonderful half hour when Harry believes that he is going to live with Sirius - so much healing and wonderfulness is on the horizon for him - and when it falls through, he still has gained a godfather, has gained some of the love which he grew up without. Second, because of the Time Turner portion of the plot - seeing the many threads weave together - and double-stranded at that!!

Which is your favorite Harry Potter movie?

Oh, I do love them all - I love Chamber of Secrets because of really meeting Molly Prewitt Weasley and her whole family and her magnificent home. But I must say that Sorcerer’s Stone is truly my favorite movie if I had to be deserted on an island with only one of them - who can ever forget their first visual/visceral experience of Quidditch?

Who is your favorite Harry Potter character?

Harry. First and forever, the Boy Who Lived.

And to transition the love of

all things HP into the House Cup…

How did you become involved with the House Cup?

I had participated in the Reducio Sock tiny HP sock exchange - enjoyed it very much - when PrincessOnica hopped onto the discussion board to say that she was creating the House Cup to get us all psyched up for the movie 6 release. I stayed away from it because it was competition, and that’s very much not who I am, competition makes me all nervous. Then I realized it was only going to be three months, and full of HP fans being excited about the movie, and if I got in on the ground floor, I could experience the group from the start and perhaps not be overwhelmed.

What is your favorite part of the House Cup?

In the very beginning, there were House Common Room threads and class threads, but no Great Hall. There were assignments to show off and talk about, but there was the tiniest, tiniest hint of the bad side of competition, the side which had made me hesitate to join in the first place. Then some genius (was it PrincessOnica?) opened the Great Hall and specified that this was not a place to sit with your house.

All of a sudden, there was a huge, free flow of ideas, compliments, news, questions, conversation and friendship - overnight it went from a game-focused group to a group of friends who shared a game. And then there was the fateful day in the Great Hall when Pretywtch offered to spray glitter-spray-paint on Foxy’s tail and Foxy became my fully-formed alter-ego. Foxy very much helps me show a playful side of myself which I’ve been learning to express.

What made you volunteer to coach Quidditch?

In the Ravelympics, I was impressed by all the brilliant games - and the idea of a design/spin/craft team event got into my head. When I really started thinking about joining the House Cup, the idea for Quidditch as a vehicle for a team project started to gel. I asked Onica if I might work out a first draft, and she graciously agreed. She liked the format, agreed to give it a try, and I let go of it and in fact joined the Fall Ravenclaw Team as a player. Our Groundskeeper was keeping track of the game and the points (thank you, Hagrid!!!). Suddenly there was a need for a rules interpretation. Since the original rules had been written by me, Headmistress and Groundskeeper turned to me to make the ruling in order to keep the spirit of the game as originally intended. That’s when I realized that I should have stayed with my baby all along to be the coach, and I’ve enjoyed this position ever since.

This is your third term as coach. How do you come up with your ideas for the games each term?

The first term was inspired, as I said, by Ravelympics. The second term was designed to eliminate some of the elements which were difficult in the first term (too much reliance on postal service, way too much demand on the spinning-Beaters). During second term I discovered how much fun it was to involve everyone in the cheers and general merriment; that inspired the everyone-gets-to-participate portion of Third Term Quidditch.

And a little bit about you…

Do you knit, crochet, spin, or some combination of the three?

I love to spin, and do it as very much an uncoordinated beginner. I have learned two whole crochet stitches, including chain, thanks to the House Cup! I’ve been knitting since I was eight years old, which makes it 36 years now, and it’s my meditation and my “home”. When I move back into a knitting phase of my life, I know I’m comfortable where I am. When I’ve been moving around and just starting out and trying to fit into a non-Gazebo-shaped hole, at those times I’ve forgotten to knit and life is un-good.

What is your favorite type of item to craft?

Oh, dear. Pretty ones. Ones which I can give to my dear ones to keep them warm and safe from afar. Ones which make me feel beautiful when I wear them. Ones which I design and which let me know that I can create beauty, even in the depths of winter.

Last, but not least, what’s the story behind your Ravelry ID “GazeboGal”?

In role-playing gaming circles, there is an urban legend of a warrior player character who attacked a gazebo that was sitting on a town common. The gazebo just sat there. It was, after all, a gazebo. The character kept attacking (obviously the player had no clue what a gazebo was), until finally the game master, fed up with the player, said, “OK, you’ve annoyed the gazebo and it eats you.”

When I joined my first on line community (43 Things), I was trying to find inspiration to really write a full fantasy novel. I wanted a moniker which would be a chuckle to other long-time gamers (real, table top, role-playing gamers with no technology other than dice, pencils, and hex paper). I wanted to write great scenes of fantasy adventure, like the gazebo-attacking story. Hence, GazeboGal! Now I have worked out a whole family history for Selene Gazebo, Hogwarts third year student, and her familiar Foxy Girl. Lots of fun!

Thanks for your questions, I have very much enjoyed gabbing with the HPKCHC fans :)

Featured Projects

Here are even MORE amazing projcts from the first couple of weeks at Hogwarts!

Charms

curiouskate of Hufflepuff

insanKnitty of Ravenclaw


Defense Against the Dark Arts

Kissmyknits of Slytherin

gladcat of Slytherin


Herbology

Coleva of Slytherin


naturallyknitty of Gryffindor

Wildcard Wednesday!

This Wildcard Wednesday update will appeal to the statistician in everyone. Today, we present some random House facts as well as statistics regarding sign ups and completed classes to date (as of 9:45 a.m. EST).

GRYFFINDOR

78% of Gryffindor students have signed up for at least 1 class this month.

21% have not signed up for any classes yet.

32% have signed up for 1 class (tied with Ravenclaw for the most in this category).

22% have signed up for 2 classes.

11% have signed up for 3 classes.

4% have signed up for 4 classes.

8% have signed up for 5 classes.

1% has signed up for all 6 classes.

68% have not turned either a partial or completed project for any classes yet (more than any other House).

20% have turned in either a partial or completed project for 1 class.

6% have turned in either a partial or completed project for 2 classes.

2% have turned in either a partial or completed project for 3 classes.

3% have turned in either a partial or completed project for 4 classes.

1% have turned in either a partial or completed project for 5 classes.

No Gryffindors have turned in either a partial or completed project for all 6 classes.

32% of Gryffindor students have signed up for an OWL this term.

23% have signed up for Charms.

54% have signed up for Defense Against the Dark Arts.

19% have signed up for Herbology.

34% have signed up for Muggle Studies.

24% have signed up for Ancient Runes.

19% have signed up for Arithmancy.

81% of Gryffindor students reside in the United States of America.

6% reside in Canada.

2% reside in Germany.

1% reside in each of the respective countries: Findland, Ireland, Mexico, Denmark, Hungary, Australia and England.

(3% did not list a location.)

17% of Gryffindor students will celebrate their birthday during this term at Hogwarts.

(10% did not list their birth date.)

HUFFLEPUFF

76% of Hufflepuff students signed up for at least 1 class this month.

24% have not yet signed up for any classes (more than any other House).

23% have signed up for 1 class.

28% have signed up for 2 classes (more than any other House).

13% have signed up for 3 classes (more than any other House).

8% have signed up for 4 classes.

1% has signed up for 5 classes.

3% have signed up for all 6 classes.

57% have not turned in either a partial or complete assignment for any classes yet.

19% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 1 class.

14% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 2 classes (more than any other House).

4% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 3 classes.

4% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 4 classes.

No Hufflepuff students have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 5 classes.

1% has turned in either a partial or complete assignment for all 6 classes.

36% of Hufflepuff students have signed up for an OWL this term (more than any other House).

20% have signed up for Charms.

64% have signed up for Defense Against the Dark Arts.

18% have signed up for Herbology.

36% have signed up for Muggle Studies.

21% have signed up for Ancient Runes.

15% have signed up for Arithmancy.

70% of Hufflepuff students reside in the United States of America.

7% reside in the United Kingdom.

5% reside in Canada.

1% reside in from the following countries: Germany, New Zealand, Australia, Denmark and Indonesia.

(12% did not report a location.)

16% of Hufflepuff students will celebrate their birthday this term at Hogwarts.

(19% did not report a birth date.)

RAVENCLAW

83% of Ravenclaw students have signed up for at least 1 class this term.

17% have not yet signed up for any classes.

32% have signed up for 1 class (tied with Gryffindor for the most in this category).

21% have signed up for 2 classes.

10% have signed up for 3 classes.

11% have signed up for 4 classes (more than any other House).

6% have signed up for 5 classes.

3% have signed up for all 6 classes.

67% have not yet turned in either a partial or complete assignment for any classes yet.

13% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 1 class.

9% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 2 classes.

3% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 3 classes.

7% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 4 classes.

No Ravenclaw students have turned in either a partial or complete assignment for 5 classes.

1% has turned in either a partial or complete assignment for all 6 classes.

33% of Ravenclaw students have signed up for an OWL this term.

28% have signed up for Charms.

51% have signed up for Defense Against the Dark Arts.

21% have signed up for Herbology.

41% have signed up for Muggle Studies (more than any other House).

26% have signed up for Ancient Runes.

28% have signed up for Arithmancy.

76% of Ravenclaw students reside in the United States of America.

10% reside in Canada.

7% reside in the United Kingdom.

1% each reside in the following locations: Australia, Denmark, Mexico and Germany.

(7% did no report a location.)

17% of Ravenclaw students will celebrate their birthday this term at Hogwarts.

(9% did not report their birth date.)

SLYTHERIN

86% of Slytherin students have signed up for at least 1 class this month (more than any other House).

14% have not yet signed up for any classes.

27% have signed up for 1 class.

18% have signed up for 2 classes.

11% have signed up for 3 classes.

7% have signed up for 4 classes.

10% have signed up for 5 classes (more than any other House).

13% have signed up for all 6 classes (more than any other House).

41% have not turned in either a partial or complete assignment in any classes yet.

27% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment in 1 class (more than any other House).

11% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment in 2 classes.

8% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment in 3 classes (more than any other House).

8% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment in 4 classes (more than any other House).

2% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment in 5 classes (more than any other House).

3% have turned in either a partial or complete assignment in all 6 classes (more than any other House).

33% of Slytherin students have signed up for an OWL this term.

41% have signed up for Charms (more than any other House).

72% have signed up for Defense Against the Dark Arts (more than any other House).

27% have signed up for Herbology (more than any other House).

39% have signed up for Muggle Studies.

38% have signed up for Ancient Runes (more than any other House).

38% have signed up for Arithmancy (more than any other House).

77% of Slytherin students reside in the United States of America.

10% reside in the United Kingdom.

4% reside in Australia.

3% reside in Canada.

1% resides in Japan.

(3% did not report a location.)

29% of Slytherin students will celebrate their birthday this term at Hogwarts.

(10% did not report a birth date.)

View From a First Year # 3

5/13

It has been a bit since I have had the chance to get to writing this. Unfortunately there has been an upset in my family and I had to leave the school for over a week. Now that I am back I have been busy catching up on homework and now I also have Quidditch looming over my head. Wow, so much for a first year to do! I have been trying to refrain from getting too overwhelmed by kicking back and antagonizing others... umm I mean relaxing, yeah relaxing. I also got an awesome package from the post the other day, it was the third Nightworld book. I am already finished with it. Yes, it was that addictive that I couldn't stop reading it. Anyhow, I better be off have to be heading to class soon.

Clara

(Our "View From a First Year" column is brought to you by the letter S, the number 13 and our HPKCHC Hogwarts First Year Slytherin ajkane, whose original post can be found here.)

Featured Projects

Wow! I am absolutely AMAZED at the creativity and productivity of this term's students! We have seen some fabulous projects already, and here are a few for your viewing pleasure.


From Ancient Runes

Qietish of Gryffindor

RebelStickClicker of Slytherin


From Arithmancy

rokujo of Hufflepuff


From Muggle Studies

Roeska for Hufflepuff

Stagasaurus of Hufflepuff

Weekly Points Update!

WOW!

The unofficial point standings are as follows!

Slytherin 1420
Hufflepuff 1020
Ravenclaw 1000
Gryffindor 770

Taking an early lead, is Slytherin- these Snakes seem to be utilizing starting points for projects, with 32% of students completing assignment for which they registered.

In second place this week, the Badgers are at 31.5% completion for registered assignments.

Hanging close, and only 20 points behind 2nd place, Ravenclaw is holding a strong 3rd place. They have completed 27% of projects that have been proclaimed in the classes.

Gryffindor seen to be utilizing the strategy of carefully choosing projects for the assignments, as they are showing 23% completion of projects. However, don’t let these Lions fool you, they might be holding out for bigger projects & seeking bonus points.

Please note that the number of students registered for a class is not a true indication of final participation. Students may register & submit projects up until the end of the month.
Signing up and turning in a project in the same post is allowed. However, the staff request you save their sanity by posting your projects throughout the term, to aid in their time spent grading & tracking points.

The points this week include homeworks submitted in all the classes, including partial submissions, fully completed submissions and OWLs that Professor Fricknfrack has announced as approved as of midday Saturday, May 9. Not included are quidditch points or bonus points of any kind.

10 Questions With...

The Reporting Staff will be publishing a series of interviews with the HPKCHC staff members every Friday this term to help you get to know them a little better. Since we wouldn't have an HPKCHC without her, we're starting the series with the founder, the one and only Headmistress PrincessOnica.

We'll start with the basics...

Which is your favorite Harry Potter book?
I love them all. I really honestly don’t have one that I just keep going back to read over and over. I usually start at book one and finish at book seven. I seriously love them all.

Which is your favorite Harry Potter movie?
I’ll let y’all know after the final movie comes out. :) (I’m a pretty fair person and like to give them all an equal chance). Right now my favorite is Order of the Phoenix…. because….

Who is your favorite Harry Potter character?
I LOVE TONKS! She’s a Hufflepuff like myself and wears her heart on her sleeve. She always changing, which I really identify with. I’m always on the move learning new things, changing my hair, going new places. She loves deeply, she is VERY loyal and she’s emotional. And when she has to be she’s a bad ass. When I go to HP events I often dress up as Tonks. This year I’m going as pregnant Tonks. :)

And to transition the love of
all things HP into the House Cup…

How did you come up with the idea for the HPKCHC?
I came up with the HPKCHC last summer as a way to get ready for the soon to be released movie that was coming out in November. The idea came to me in the middle of the night and then I threw out feelers the next day on Rav to see if anyone would be interested and what they would do in a knit/crochet house cup. I got a LOT of help very early on!

What is your favorite thing about the House Cup?
Definitely, the classes! I’m amazed at what the teachers come up with as assignments and how they relate them to the HP world. The teachers put a lot of thought and energy into their classes and it shows! I’m thoroughly flabbergasted some months as to what the students interpret the assignments into. I have seen some of the funniest, some of the most thoughtful and some of the pretties (and coolest) projects. It really inspires me, especially when I get into a knit/crochet slump.

This term will be your first as a “student”! Which subjects are you most looking forward to?
I’m really looking forward to accomplishing at least ONE assignment. I think I should get bonus points if it’s an item that I’m actually making for myself. Since I know what all the assignments are for the whole term I really can’t pick which one I’m most excited about. I love them all!

You’ve identified yourself as Hufflepuff. Why?
Because all the sorting hat quizzes I’ve done put me there! I wasn’t too thrilled about it at first because in the book sometimes ‘puffs just weren’t the cool kids. And the house colors are yellow and black. But, you know, Cedric came around and well, we all know how awesome he is. And then of course there is Tonks. She was a ‘puff!

And a little bit about you...

Do you knit, crochet, spin, or some combination of the three?
My first fibery love was crochet. My mom taught me a loooong time ago and I have been pretty much crocheting non-stop since I’ve gotten married (about 8 years ago). My mom had TRIED teaching me how to knit as well, but she’s a leftie and I was a crocheter and I just.did.not.get.it. But, then someone suggested that I learn to knit continentally and it just clicked! I’m a self taught knitter and I learned last may. I pretty much rock at it. But don’t look at my projects to see why, it hasn’t been updated in at least six months. And I’ve knit a LOT since then. I picked up spinning a few months ago. All I have is a student drop spindle and it’s heavy. I really want a new drop spindle and a wheel! I love spinning, but it’s not something I do often.

What is your favorite type of item to make?
Mostly small projects if I’m knitting. Baby items, hats, mittens. I just made a baby blanket for my sister-in-law who is due in July and it is stunning. I can’t wait to get good pics of it and put it in my projects.

Last, but not least, what’s the story behind your Ravelry ID “PrincessOnica”?
LOL, PrincessOnica is who I am on the web. I’ve had this ID since the dawn of the internet and I don’t really like to change it as it makes it easy for my friends to find me. Once upon a time I was really cute so it fit. Now, I’m just a mom. I’m only mildly cute. Not sure my ID fits anymore, but I hesitate to change it.

Wildcard Wednesday!

Every Wednesday, the HPKCHC Reporting Staff will be posting something fun, something random, and, of course, something awesome to the blog. Just to shake things up a bit. :)



Today, we present to you a recipe for BUTTERBEER CUPCAKES concocted by Hufflepuff's own Dave (dhorsh).

Ingredients

• One box Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Butter Recipe Golden cake mix
• One bottle Stewart's Cream Soda (approximately 12 ounces)
• 3 Tbs of butterscotch dessert topping

Instructions

• Follow the directions on the cake mix box EXCEPT -- substitute cream soda where the recipe calls for water and add the butterscotch dessert topping into the mixture
• Bake at time and temperature recommended on cake mix box (Dave suggests possibly baking them for slightly less time than recommended if you want less brown cupcakes)

Icing

• Standard buttercream icing with a dash of butterscotch topping mixed in

Dave recommends letting the cupcakes sit for a while as the wrappers are easier to remove when cool. Enjoy!

Opening Weekend

Here, witches and wizards, is your first UNOFFICIAL House Points Update. (The official points updates will not occur until the end of each month, when the professors post them -- at which point we will also report them and mark them as official. Please keep in mind that all unofficial points updates posted here by the Reporting Staff are our best approximation of both regular class points and OWLs points via our own record keeping and there may be discrepancies between our tallies and the official tallies, which will be remedied upon the release of the official tallies.)

GRYFFINDOR: 140

HUFFLEPUFF: 165

RAVENCLAW: 280

SLYTHERIN: 255

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Also, some Opening Weekend trivia for all you curious students (and staff!)...

During the FIRST HOUR of classes...

• 74 TOTAL sign-ups were posted (a "sign-up" is a student declaring they will participate in a class; this number does not reflect how many students signed up, but how many declarations in all the classes combined there were -- NOTE: Herbology was not yet posted during the first hour, so the statistics for that class will not be presented here)

18 sign-ups were posted for Charms
(6 Gryffindor, 2 Hufflepuff, 5 Ravenclaw, 5 Slytherin)

23 sign-ups were posted for Defense Against the Dark Arts
(3 Gryffindor, 6 Hufflepuff, 8 Ravenclaw, 6 Slytherin)

13 sign-ups were posted for Muggle Studies
(2 Gryffindor, 3 Hufflepuff, 5 Ravenclaw, 3 Slytherin)

14 sign-ups were posted for Ancient Runes
(1 Gryffindor, 4 Hufflepuff, 7 Ravenclaw, 2 Slytherin)

6 sign-ups were posted for Arithmancy
(1 Gryffindor, 2 Hufflepuff, 1 Ravenclaw, 2 Slytherin)

• 13 Gryffindor sign-ups were posted in the first hour
• 17 Hufflepuff sign-ups were posted in the first hour
• 26 Ravenclaw sign-ups were posted in the first hour
• 18 Slytherin sign-ups were posted in the first hour

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

During the FIRST 24 HOURS of classes...

• 337 TOTAL sign-ups were posted

57 sign-ups were posted for Charms
(13 Gryffindor, 7 Hufflepuff, 17 Ravenclaw, 20 Slytherin)

127 sign-ups were posted for Defense Against the Dark Arts
(24 Gryffindor, 36 Hufflepuff, 30 Ravenclaw, 37 Slytherin)

70 sign-ups were posted for Muggle Studies
(16 Gryffindor, 19 Hufflepuff, 20 Ravenclaw, 15 Slytherin)

48 sign-ups were posted for Ancient Runes
(6 Gryffindor, 12 Hufflepuff, 15 Ravenclaw, 15 Slytherin)

35 sign-ups were posted for Arithmancy
(6 Gryffindor, 7 Hufflepuff, 8 Ravenclaw, 14 Slytherin)

• 65 Gryffindor sign-ups were posted in the first 24 hours
• 81 Hufflepuff sign-ups were posted in the first 24 hours
• 90 Ravenclaw sign-ups were posted in the first 24 hours
• 101 Slytherin sign-ups were posted in the first 24 hours