How I Learned about Ron Weasley’s $49.39 pair of Socks Providing Sea Safety #harrypotter #volunteering #disasterrelief

Harry Potter movie fans would probably not be as attracted to the Ron Weasley character as we are today, if it were not for the talents of actor Rupert Grint, who plays Weasley in the Harry Potter film series. So, join me in dedicating this last Ron Weasley themed King Dong post of January 2012 to Grint, whose charitable work in the United Kingdom (UK) seem just as fun as the magical adventures that he bestowed upon us as Harry Potter’s right-hand man over the last several years.

While reading up on Rupert Grint, I found out that he has participated in the Wacky Rally, an annual event where teams of two or more obtain cheap cars costing around $300 Pounds and then dress them up to race across Europe and complete challenges along the way. From what I've read, it sounds a little like NASCAR meets "The Amazing Race" on CBS.

Grint joined forces with actors Oliver and James Phelps, who play his sibling’s in the Harry Potter movies, once in a race to Barcelona in 2010 and then to Prague, last year. While Wacky Rally teams can join the event just for mere fun and prizes, Rupert Grint and the rest of his Harry Potter trio race to raise money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).

Now, I’m no sailor and have been lucky to reside in an area that does not experience the effects of disasters at sea or on beaches, but RNLI looks like a worthy cause to support. The all-volunteer organization provides 24-hour search and rescue services for floods and emergencies along the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland. RNLI also provides lifeguard services to beaches in England and Wales, while teaching beach, sea and fishing safety to adults and youth.

I don’t fish but my Uncle does and while I’m not in the UK, I can certainly understand the importance of being safe at sea. To date, RNLI has saved over 130,000 lives, thanks to their rescue missions -- If Rupert Grint aka Mr. Ron Weasley himself can do something to help them continue their exceptional service, so can I -- or so, I thought. I browsed the RNLI store to find something to buy and came across a nice pair of socks for only 3.95 Pounds ($5.21 for those of us in the United States). After considering buying them for myself, I decided to give them out as a prize to one of you lovely readers.

My shopping plans came to a halt when I reviewed their shipping information and found out that the delivery charges for U.S. orders are 33.45 Pounds, which comes out to $44.17 -- yikes! Forty-four dollars for one pair of socks? I love me some Ron Weasley and understand the importance of safety on water and all but in moments like this, a Geminio Spell like the one Hermione used in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows would come in handy -- cause that’s the only way I’m forking over that much cash for a pair of socks. That way, I could multiply the $5.21 for these socks, into at least $40 toward that expensive RNLI store shipping fee.

Since RNLI is said to use 100% of profits from online sales toward their lifeboat crews and related services, it is a shame that, kind of like health care, saving a lives comes down to a matter of dollars and cents -- at least where my reaction to the sock order is concerned. Still, I’m holding off on the socks for now, with plans to order them when I can also buy a few additional items from RNLI to give out as prizes on this blog -- so the group of items can at least make up for that astronomical delivery charge.

In the meantime, I did some further reading after the RNLI service had me wondering why there isn’t an organization like that or an RNLI affiliated branch here in the U.S. and then I realized....”Oh! I guess that’s what the Coast Guard is for, right?” That goes to show you how much (read: little) I know about our military.

In matters of life and death where the scope of available rescue service is in your hands, would you rather....

A. Spend almost $50 on one pair of socks to contribute at least a little something to make sure rescue volunteers have the tools they need to be heroes at sea.

or

B. Pimp your ride to look like a lifeboat and then drive across the country in an old 1992 Vauxhall Carlton, Toyota Camry or equivalent vehicle in a race for a chance to win around $1,300?

Also,

Check out what Grint had to say about his experience in the Wacky Rally:

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5 Harry Potter Cocktail Recipes for Ron Weasley Fans #movies #drinks #entertaining

Red is the new Black today, as we take a look at Harry Potter cocktails inspired by Ron Weasley. I found a few Weasley-based cocktail recipes that are suitable for both men and women, making your party plans, weekend getaway or evening wind-down routine a little more enjoyable.

The Weasley by Nerds Need Drinking Games Too
The Weasley cocktail has a lot of variation to it, allowing you to adjust the recipe to fit your juice preferences (cranberry, pomegranate, cherry, etc.) or favorite character (Ron, Ginny, Molly, Fred, George, etc.) in the Weasley family. For the sake of this post, however, I’m sharing the main recipe with you because it’s based on Ron -- the most important of the Weasleys, after all!

Ingredients for The Weasley:
Gin
Cranberry Juice
Ginger Ale

The Weasley Instructions:
Pour four shots of gin into a glass and then add eight shots of cranberry juice. Add four shots of ginger ale and then stir to complete this Harry Potter cocktail.

The Ronald Weasley by Ashley Bryce and Liana Cole at The Little Pink Blog
Not to be confused with The Ron Weasley, which we’ll cover later in this post, The Ronald Weasley is a peach lemonade concoction that Bryce and Cole say is “best for this brave comrade who secretly hopes for his own glory.”

Ingredients for The Ronald Weasley cocktail:
Vodka
Peach Schnapps
Dash of grenadine
Lemonade
Peach half
Lemon slice
Maraschino cherry

The Ronald Weasley instructions:
Fill a glass with ice and then add 1½ ounce of vodka, ½ ounce of peach schnapps and grenadine. Cut the peach into slices and add it to the drink mixture. Fill the remaining part of the glass with lemonade and then garnish with one slice each of a peach and lemon. Top it off with a cherry.

Weasley’s Wicked Brew by Donna Pilato
Can you say “Ginger snap”? I’m guessing that Pilato’s ‘Wicked Brew has a bit of a kick to it, so this may be one of those Harry Potter cocktails that Ron Weasley fans who like spicy drinks would enjoy. The sake base seems interesting.

Ingredients for Weasley’s Wicked Brew:
Sake
Ginger Ale
Fresh Ginger
Lemon Peel
Basil

Weasley’s Wicked Brew instructions:
Grate the fresh ginger into a cocktail shaker and then add two ounces of sake. Muddle the ginger and sake mixture together and then add four ounces of ginger ale and ice. Shake it up and then strain it into a tall glass. Garnish with basil, wrapped inside the lemon peel.

The Ron Weasley by Coryanne Ettiene
If you’ve read this far, you should know by now that while it may sound the same, this particular Harry Potter cocktail is a whole different ballgame from The Ronald Weasley mentioned earlier in this post. Ettiene’s drink looks good and easy to make, but I’m a little lost on the recipe. I mean, what is Campari? I never heard of it nor have I ever (I think) drank it. As the saying goes, we learn something new everyday!

Ingredients for The Ron Weasley cocktail:
Gin
Campari
Grapefruit Juice
Ice

The Ron Weasley instructions:
Add ice, two ounces of gin, 1½ ounces of Campari and three ounces of grapefruit juice to a tall glass. Stir and serve.*

*Madlab Sidebar: Is this one of the simplest Harry Potter cocktail recipes, or what?!!

Last but most certainly not least, I bring to you...

The Ron Weasley by The Backyard Bartender
Ok, so while it as the same name and a similar ingredient as Ettiene’s drink above, this Harry Potter cocktail recipe appears to be stronger. The style of The Ron Weasley is also very old-school, according to The Backyard Bartender, whose concoction reflects certain traits that she noticed in Ron -- “manly, a little bit rough - and a little bit bitter.” Therefore, it may not be suitable for lightweight drinkers.

To lessen the confusion between all of the Harry Potter cocktail recipes that I listed here, however, let’s refer to this one as “The Ron Weasley No. 2” -- fair enough?

Ingredients for The Ron Weasley (No. 2):
Rye whiskey
Cherry brandy
Campari
Sweet Vermouth
Fresh orange juice

The Ron Weasley (No. 2) Instructions:
Add 1½ ounce whiskey, ¾ ounces of cherry brandy, ½ ounce of campari, ½ ounce of sweet vermouth and 1 ounce of orange juice to a pint sized glass filled with ice. Stir for thirty seconds and then strain into a cocktail glass for your drinking pleasure.

So there you have it -- 5 Harry Potter Cocktail Recipes based on Ron Weasley, our January 2012 King Dong!

See you all tomorrow.

In the meantime, let me know what you’re drinking from this list. Cheers!

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Jason Statham’s ‘Blitz’ in a Nutshell #blockbuster #moviereviews

The movie “Blitz” starring Jason Statham leaves much to be desired....I suppose. I fell asleep while watching this movie; that cannot be a good thing, given that it is an action flick and all. In fact, I don’t even remember much about “Blitz” except, the characters talked funny (epiphany #1: It’s a British movie. Ok, check!) and something big was going down but it wasn’t serious enough for me to want to know how it all turned out. Maybe it’s a good movie but the person I know who watched “Blitz” in it’s entirety didn’t seem very excited about it, so maybe the film is actually not that great. I wonder if it’s big over in the United Kingdom.

To all of those Jason Statham fans out there, is he better or worse in American movies versus his work in British films?

Just curious.

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