Owl to Arabella?

[Steve <bboy_mn@yahoo.com>]

No: HPFGUIDX 50481

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "btk6y <btk6y at v...>"
<btk6y at v...> wrote:
> In the first few pages of SS ...  Then:
> 
> "None of them noticed a large, tawny owl flutter past the window."
> 
> This may (probably has) been discussed, but where is this owl going 
> that it flutters past a window on Privet Drive?  Perhaps to Arabella 
> Figg's house ...edited...
> 
> There is another quick mention of owls:
> 
> "...the cat on the wall outside showed no signs of sleepiness... it 
> didn't so much quiver when a car door slammed on the next street, 
> nor when two owls swooped overhead."
> 
> ... I find it difficult to believe that the first owl would have 
> gotten down to window level if it wasn't delivering a message to 
> somewhere on  Privet Drive- the question is who?
> 
> Bobby

bboy_mn:
I think you are on to something. The second mention of owls says
'swooped', our common association with the word 'swoop' is that
something swoops DOWN. But I'm pretty sure it is just saying the they
flew overhead. Remember, that people all over England reported seeing
owls everywhere in broad daylight. So the spotting of an owl wouldn't
be unusual.

But the owl that flew past the window, is something else. If the owl
was traveling, he would have been high overhead where there were no
trees, power lines, and houses to dodge around. So it would seem that
the owl was searching for a specific place to land. 

We know that wizards live mixed in with normal people. The Weasleys
live outside a muggle village. Diggory's live within a long walking
distance of Weasleys. Dedalus Diggle lives in Kent. There is really
only one all wizarding village and that is Hogsmeade. That would imply
that all the other places that wizards live are mixed muggle/wizard
villages. 

Also, more of a side note, I believe that Diagon Alley is a city
within a city. It has high, middle, and low class housing areas, it
has semi-industial/warehouse areas, and of course, the high street
downtown area. I think Malfoy's house is in the rich section of
Magical London, in what I call the Magic City of which Diagon Alley is
only one part. I can't picture Malfoy living near muggles.

I also wonder if other major cities in Britain have Magic Cities
hidden within them Magic Endinburgh City, Magic Bristol City, etc...

Point? That wizards live among muggle, but they don't really live with
them. I think of someone living in a foreign country who is not really
comfortable there; like the British in colonial India. They are
completely isolated from the local culture. You could live for many
years in Bangkok, and never integrate yourself into the culture. I
think that's what happens to wizards. Living in the muggle world is
like living in a foriegn country that doesn't particularly appeal to
them. So they keep to themselves. 

Conclusion, it could be that Mrs. Figg always lived there. She may
have done well in her long life, and had substantial assets, and
bought a house in a nice suburb in Surrey for her quiet retirement.
It's also worth remembering that wizards can travel without entering
the muggle world. They don't have to step out the front door. So even
from Surrey, the whole wizard world was easily accessible to her.

So whether it was Mrs. Figg or not, I suspect it could have very
easily been a witch or a wizard who lived within a few blocks of
Privet Drive. 

But that's just my opinion.

bboy_mn