Hello!

[Phyllis]

Thank you for the invitation!  I'm in the middle of packing for a 
week-long (computerless) vacation, so I'm going to follow Amanda's 
lead and use my FAQ intro post to save time.  I'll catch up with all 
of you the first week of July!  Enjoy reading OoP!

>Real name:

Phyllis Morris

>Also known as:

erisedstraeh2002 (Yahoo ID)
Phyl (nickname only used by my three brothers, Grey Wolf and Gail B.) 

>Age/Sex:

41/F

>Birthplace/Livingplace:

I was born in  Washington, D.C. , but have lived in New York (State 
capitol, Albany) since 1992.

>Family Life:

1 husband, 2 kids (4 and 6). 

>Personality:

Hard-working, fairly serious but I love a good laugh.

>Words friends have used to describe you:

Sensitive, loyal, provider of good advice

>Words you have used to describe you:

Too hard-working!

>Things you do when not staring at the computer:

Primarily working and caring for my family. I hold a third-degree 
black belt in karate, so I train sometimes (not as much as I should, 
however!). I also play the piano, but have regressed from playing 
Bach inventions at competitions to playing nursery songs for my kids 
(the latter is infinitely more enjoyable, however!).

>Comfort foods:

Anything with sugar and refined white flour as the main ingredients. 
Preferably including chocolate.

>Education/Work:

BA in English and History from the University of Notre Dame; MPA 
(Master of Public Administration) from the George Washington 
University.

Currently working in the New York Governor's budget office as a 
budget analyst for state welfare programs.

>Language skills

I only know English, but I know it well!

>Technical know-how:

Proficient with word processing; good with numbers; good analyst; 
good proofreader and editor; fast and accurate typist; OK with 
spreadsheets.

>Favourite HP book:

PoA. 

>Favourite HP character(s):

Harry. I'm a sucker for a hero! 

>Favourite HP line

My favorite *funny* lines: 

Ch. 18 of CoS, when Dumbledore says "`Impaled upon your own sword, 
Gilderoy!' `Sword?' said Lockhart dimly. `Haven't got a sword. That 
boy has, though.' He pointed at Harry. `He'll lend you one.'"

My favorite *inspirational* lines:

Dumbledore to Harry: "You think the dead we have loved ever truly 
leave us?" (PoA, Ch. 22)

Dumbledore to the assembled Hogwarts students: "We are only as 
strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided." (GoF, Ch. 37)

>Watching/Avoiding the HP movies?:

Watching; mostly enjoying, although some parts bug me when they 
deviate too much from the text. I want the movies to be just like 
the books!

>Into HP fanfiction?

I haven't read any fan fiction yet.

>Books you'd recommend to just about anyone:

Oh, my. So hard to pick just a few. I really enjoyed the "Wind on 
Fire" trilogy by William Nicholson; the "His Dark Materials" trilogy 
and "Clockwork" by Philip Pullman; "The Giver" by Lois Lowry and "The 
Lovely Bones" by Alice Sebold.

>Favorite TV shows?

I haven't watched TV since I stopped nursing my daughter three years 
ago, but when I was watching, I enjoyed "Law and Order." It was the 
best show to watch while nursing, since daily re-runs were shown 
during prime nursing hours – 11:00 p.m. and 3:00 a.m.

>Favorite movies:

Lorenzo's Oil; Awakenings

>One thing about your life you'd change if you could – you may not 
>say "lose weight."

Rats, losing weight is always high on my agenda! I would try to be 
more easy-going and not take life so seriously.

>One thing about your life you wouldn't change even for an advance 
>copy of Book 7:

Having children. Although I wouldn't want an advance copy of Book 7 
until I had the opportunity to read Books 5 and 6!

>Philosophy for an easy life:

Find the happiness that lies within! (When I've managed to figure 
out how to do this, I'll let you know.)

>How you found HPfGU:

I was trying to find out the release date for Book 5. Last summer, I 
saw the SS video for sale at the drugstore and thought I'd buy it to 
see what all the commotion was about. I was immediately hooked, and 
bought the first three books, foolishly thinking that they would 
answer all of the unanswered questions the movie left me with. I only 
bought the first three books since GoF was due to come out in 
paperback the next month and I figured it would take me that long to 
read three books. How wrong I was! Like so many others, I buzzed 
right through SS, CoS and PoA and immediately purchased the GoF 
hardback (there was no way I was waiting for the paperback!). I then 
wanted to find out when Book 5 was coming out, and Google took me to 
the Book 5 page on Steve's Lexicon. I started exploring the Lexicon, 
and found references to HPfGU, and thought I'd check it out. I was 
instantly impressed by the quality of the posts and the friendliness 
of the folks!

>Active at other HP sites:

I regularly visit The Leaky Cauldron for news, and still putter 
around the Lexicon occasionally.

>Your most rock solid OoP prediction:

We will find out that Fawkes was once Godric Gryffindor's phoenix.

>Members of the fandom you have personally met:

None yet, but I am hoping to remedy this in July at Nimbus! Although 
I feel as if I've personally met many HPfGU-ers during Sunday chat 
and on the lists.

~Phyllis
thanking you all for taking the time to read this!