Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is the fifth movie in the series of seven and is the first movie that I’ve enjoyed more then the book. The difficulty that has developed in creating these movies is that as the series progresses J. K. Rowling’s books have become substantially larger. The director has to decide what to keep in the movie and what to remove. David Yates has successfully removed a lot of the whining Harry did in the book that really slowed down the story and made Harry rather annoying.

In this movie Harry finds himself isolated all summer long. He has not heard from his friends Ron and Hermione or Professor Dumbledore after ending the last school year facing Lord Voldemort and bringing Cedric Diggory’s dead body back to the school.

Once Harry returns to school he finds out that the Ministry of Magic has been posting articles in the Daily Prophet saying that Potter is lying about Voldemort being back and that Cedric’s death was a tragic accident. Harry’s classmates believe what they’ve read in the paper and shun Harry for trying to spread fear just to get attention. Harry feels even more isolated then when he was with the Dursley’s in the summer.

Here is where the movie is a huge improvement over the book. Harry’s friends and classmates quickly rally around him to let Harry know he is not in this alone. Harry becomes a leader in this movie and you can see he is finally evolving into the hero that has been hinted at since the beginning of the series. In the other movies Harry has somewhat stumbled his way to defeating Voldemort and his followers. In this movie you see a more mature and confident Potter. He knows what he wants to do and is aware of his developing powers.

There is a fantastic battle in the Ministry of Magic which is more intense and has more impressive special effects then in any of the previous films. If you get a chance to see this in an Imax 3D theatre then do so.

If you haven’t seen any of the other films or read any of the books this is a good place to start. The Order of the Phoenix is the beginning of the end. Tension will build through the next two movies to an expected climax where Harry will be face to face with Lord Voldemort and only one will survive.

Of course we won’t know for sure until the final book is release this weekend July 21. I have my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows pre-ordered and I’ll be writing a review shortly after. Make sure you don’t miss out on the most successful series of books and movies or our time!

A bacteria called columnaris is being blamed for dead Carp washing up on the shores of Lake Scugog in Ontario, Canada. Lake Scugog is a man made lake with an approximate average depth of about 3.5ft.

The bacterium thrives in warm water and is triggered around the 13 to 18 degree Celsius mark. With the warm dry weather Southern Ontario has had and the shallow depth of the lake the water will be well above 18 degrees and has created an ideal environment for the bacteria to grow.

Many lakes are attached to Lake Scugog via the Trent Severn Waterway and dead Carp are starting to show up in Cameron Lake, Sturgeon Lake, and Pigeon Lake. So far only Carp have been affected by this bacteria and authorities are telling us that the lakes are still safe for recreational use.

To give you an idea of the severity of the problem on Lake Scugog one cottage owner helped fill 30 garbage bags with fish bones after burning all the dead Carp that washed onto their shore.

This weekend, as was the case last weekend, many of the streets in Toronto were closed due to festivals and parades. Toronto has a population of approximately 2 million people and is very proud of its multiculturalism.

The Salsa Festival started on Saturday July 14 and ended Sunday night and celebrates Latino culture, entertainment, and music. A stage and dance floor was setup on St. Claire Avenue W. and seven neighbourhood blocks were filled with food stands, dance lessons, and retail booths.

The 35th International Festival of India also took place this weekend. The festival originated in the city of Puri, India over 2000 years ago. A parade traveled along Yonge St. to Queens Quay. The festival then moved to Toronto Island and remained there for the rest of the weekend. There was yoga lessons, traditional Indian dancing, and a free vegetarian feast. The festival attracted somewhere over 30,000 visitors.

Keys to having a good barbeque party

• Make sure you have enough alcohol
• Make sure you have a variety of alcohol
• Don’t let your guests pour their own drinks
• Have plenty of non alcoholic drinks
• Select music that sounds good as a background noise, but is not too loud or distracting that it takes away from conversation
• Ensure there is plenty of seating
• Provide some sort of game such as Bocce Ball
• Make sure to have appetizers consisting of deli meats, cheeses, and vegetables
• Make sure to have a vegetarian main dish as well as a selection of meats
• Provide fruit or something sweet for desert
• Put the alcoholic drinks away long before anyone plans on leaving
• Let everyone know they can stay at your place if they’ve had too much to drink or that you can call them a cab
• Arrange for car pooling and designated drivers

Following these tips will ensure everyone has a safe and memorable time. Now fire up those barbques!

Looks like we’ve been tagged again! This time by our friend Saman

This Is How It Works:

• Each player must post these rules first.
• Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
• People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
• At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
• Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Here are 8 random facts about me to share with the world:

• I have a huge birthmark on the right side of my face.
• I shake uncontrollably to the point where it’s hard to cut my fingernails.
• I have a black Cocker Spaniel named Riley. He has so many infections doctors have given up on him. My vet said that he should have never been born.
• I am such a poor swimmer that I would hold on to the side of the pool as I did laps. The life guards would kick me along the way.
• I refused to finger paint in Kindergarten because I don’t like to get my fingers mucky
• As a child I had 14 cavities. The dentist used metal filling and told me to swallow the excess shavings that were on my tongue. He said it was just water.
• I’m in a men’s basketball league. Last season I scored 2 points.
• I was training to run a marathon. One day running in the rain I looked down to see two streams of blood on my shirt. My shirt had chaffed the ends of my nipples off.

The sites that I’m Tagging:

• Darin Carter
• John Chow
• Jane May
• Derrich
• Net Business Blog
• Derek Semmler
• Ms. Danielle
• SiteLogic

Have a Happy Weekend!

Sometimes going to the cottage weekend after weekend seems a little more like a chore then a vacation. You have to make sure you get up there to cut the grass, cut down the tree that is dying, and fix the dock. All that fun awaits you after you fight traffic for 2 plus hours. Maybe this weekend you will take a real vacation. A hot spot for us Canadian’s is Orlando, Florida. A cheap flight to Orlando from Toronto only takes 3hrs, about the same amount of time to drive to the cottage. With fantastic sunny weather, great beaches, and Disney Land it’s a guaranteed fun vacation even if it is for just a couple of nights.

Another great spot to vacation is the Dominican Republic. Flights to Caribbean are so cheap that it is well worth paying for the all inclusive package and staying the week rather then paying for individual nights. In fact my wife and I were just married in Punta Cana, which was a great time, and it saved us a bundle of cash that we can now put towards building the cottage.

Perhaps traveling farther south and catching a flight to Brazil is more your type of vacation. Brazil is known for its skilled soccer players and always produces top volleyball teams. If you’re interested in beaches, small bikinis, and sports, Brazil is the place for you.

Get away this weekend. You deserve it!

Blog About Your Blog is a community blog. The content on the site is provided by the community members who also have their own blogs.

The majority of the information is focused around improving your blog. There are articles on promoting your blog, making money, tips to increase web site traffic and maintaining readers, and improving your writing skills.

I was very impressed to see this site existed. There are too many sites out there focusing on making money and not enough focusing on quality content. The blogging tips that are provided on blogaboutyourblog.com will definitely help you improve your blogs content, which in turn should improve your readership, and ultimately make you money. The difference is that you have done it the right way by contributing useful information to an information highway filled with crap!

July 1st is Canada Day! Similar to the United States’ July 4th, Independence Day, Canada celebrates it’s birthday each year on the first of July. There is a big celebration at the parliament buildings in Ottawa. All across Canada people get together enjoy a pop or two, have some barbeque, and light fireworks once the sun goes down. It’s a great day where everyone can look at each other with pride knowing that they at least have one thing in common. They are Canadian!

It hasn’t always been this way however. Back in 1868 Governor General Lord Monck signed a proclamation creating a union of the British North American Provinces under the name of Canada. It wasn’t until 1879 that a holiday was officially established and at that time it was named Dominion Day. Although the holiday existed there was no official celebration organized until the 50th anniversary in 1917.

Not until 1958 has the government arranged some manner of celebration each year. In 1980 a national committee was put together to arrange the festivities of Canada’s birthday. Since then the holiday has manifested into a huge across the country party with bands traveling from coast to coast playing in each province as some point during the day. In 1982 the holiday was officially changed from Dominion Day to Canada Day.

If your not from Canada and wondering what to do July 1. Call up your friends, grab some Canadian beer, and just enjoy the day and their company. If you ever want to go on a vacation remember you will always find friends in Canada!

Happy Canada Day!