magic in the world

Nearly the big day -- the day the next Harry Potter comes out, I mean. Can I just say I think the hype is ridiculous. Also, I'm looking forward to reading it when it comes out (and yes, of course, I've read all the others).

I know why I like the books; I'm not sure why so many other people do. There must be a lot of unhappy childhoods out there, or maybe it says that, for most people, they wish childhood could have been more magical. What do you think?

We all want more magic in the world. That sounds right, actually. Although noone seems to consider that if there was magic, other people could use it on us. I mean, if you think you lack control in your life now, just wait and see what it would be like in a magical world! I guess, like everything else, we want magic on our own terms.

I remember reading a scifi short story once; it was about this guy who goes to a psychiatrist because he's worried about his dreams. It turns out that the world is what he's dreaming -- if he dreams changes, then the changes happen in the real world. I think I've got that right; it was a long time ago. Anyway, the reason I remember it is because I think we're all like that in a way. We all think the world revolves around us -- not in the sense of being hugely egotistical, but like a child who believes what his parents do is all his fault. You don't have to believe that you're the sun and moon to believe that what you do has consequences; that what happens to you is all your fault. We really aren't designed to believe that life's random.

Yeah, I'm doing it again, aren't I? Assuming other people are all like me. Okay, some people do act as if life is random; they're the ones who are totally screwed up. So, maybe, it's a really important lie we need to tell ourselves.