September 2018 J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World by LootCrate subscription box review

This is the September, 2018, J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World by LootCrate.  It's delivered every other month, priced at $44.99 with shipping.  This box is a few weeks late.  It shipped early last week, wasn't supposed to be here till Saturday, and it arrived on Thursday.

Like the missing shirt from last box, this time an apology card was sent due to a pin that wasn't ready to ship.  It's promised to arrive mid-October.  On the info sheet at the bottom there's a picture of the pin.

This is the last Wizarding World box I'm receiving.  I've canceled and resubscribed to this box several times, due to lateness and other issues.  This time, though, I've decided not to renew, and it honestly feels good.  I'm done with this chapter.

 This months theme: Back to Hogwarts.

"It's time for another magical school year!  Prepare yourself for the adventures ahead with these back-to-school essentials inspired by going Back to Hogwarts."

What's interesting is every item, minus the pin not included, is house exclusive.  This is a better House box than the one we received a couple boxes back.

Every item is exclusive and licensed.

 Hogwarts House Banner

"Show off your house pride (and your most admirable traits!) by unfurling this delightful house mascot banner."

This is really cool.  I like the design of all the house banners I've seen.  Love the colors, use of key words, and how each banner has an artifact representing the house.  Here we see Gryffindor's sword.

 Hogwarts House Book Bag

"Carry all your wizarding supplies in style in this bewitching book bag accented by your house colors and a screen printed house patch."

I like the idea of a book bag.

And it's nice, with the way it rolls down, you can have books of different sizes.

 Hogwarts House Notebook

"When parchment just won't do, jot down your latest spells in this notebook showcasing your house crest and colors."

This is the one meh item for me.

It's paperback.

 I like the design on the cover.  I'm a little confused with the inside.  With the Gryffindor emblem printed inside you can't use it as a sketch book, and since there's no lines it would be difficult using it as a journal. I'll figure something out.

 Hogwarts House Bookmark

"Get lost in a book (without losing your place) with this die-cut metal bookmark featuring your house crest and colored tassel... or hang it up as decoration!"

When I first saw a spoiler I thought this was a Christmas ornament.  It's a bookmark.  A little thick, but it works and stays in place inside a book.  I think I'll use it as an ornament.  Really nice.  Like this item.

 Hedwig Pin (Not coming until mid-October)

"Given to Harry on his 11th birthday by Hagrid, Hedwig is Harry's beloved snowy owl and the first creature pin series."

It looks like the next pin series is creature themed.

 

If the pin was included this would have been a great box.  Though I know the pin is still coming, not having it makes the box feel a little empty.  There's no shirt, probably because we've received Hogwart crests shirts and house shirts recently.  There always feels like something is missing when there's not a shirt.

The Gryffs & The Hares: A Quidditch Story, or, in other words, How A Virtual Running Club Got Me to Walk 59 Miles in a Week

I've talked about the Hogwarts Running Club a few times on this blog.  Last week we started a Quidditch match between the four houses.  Three groups of 75 people each in Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Slytherin, and Ravenclaw.  Though we were all racing at the same time, each of the 12 teams was in a race against just one of the teams in another house.

I was put in the GryffinRoar team against Luna's Hare Raisers.

Each of the individual races amounted to a single win.  If two houses got the same amount of wins, the house with the fastest combined time won the tie.

 GryffinRoar and Luna Hare Raisers were very evenly matched.  Through all of last week we were constantly switching places.  It was pretty exciting, actually.

(Okay, a momentary interlude.  I'm listening to a Spotify station, Discovery Weekly, and this song entitled "3000 Miles" by Emblem3 is playing, and it seriously made me laugh because the distance each team had to travel was 3,343 something miles or so.)

The Eagles won their match against the Snakes.  The Badgers won their match against the Eagles.  It looked like the Snakes would win against our Gryffindor team.  A lot of these matches ended late last week.

Still, back and forth us Gryffs and Hares went.  There was serious hope, and a good chance, that we could win, but it was a nail biter, major time.

Twice, close to midnight, I was walking to get in miles.

Saturday was a hard day.  I hit a MAJOR wall.  With some of the teams finishing it looked like we lost our chance at an overall first.  The snakes were rooting for us to win our match against the Hares, but the snarky/cynical side of me concluded that it was because if we won our match, it would guarantee the Snakes winning the Quidditch cup.  Someone mentioned on the GryffinRoar forum that, whether or not there's self interest involved in them cheering us on, they're showing us true spirit, #OneHRC spirit, or something like that.  Then, in the back of my mind, I was all like, "Well, if it's in the spirit of #OneHRC the snakes would equally be cheering for the Hares, which from my knowledge isn't happening."  Could be wrong.  Suddenly I was feeling a little used and contemplated the idea that losing and pushing the Claws to an overall win wouldn't be a bad thing.  Dark moment this was.  Thankfully I snapped out of it, after a couple hours . . .

I realized, no matter who won overall, I needed to give it my all regardless, no regrets.  If we lost it wasn't because we didn't try.

We did try.

And we pushed hard.

Saturday night I went to bed, having walked 10 miles that day, with our Gryff team 30 miles ahead of the Hares.  Sunday morning I woke up and the Hares were 150 or so miles ahead of us.  Then 200 miles ahead.  Then 300 miles.  And so on.  It didn't matter how much we worked we just couldn't make up the distance.  And while I was at church the Hares crossed the finish line in Orlando.

We were crushed.  I was crushed.

Then we pushed just to finish.

When I signed up I promised 7 miles a week, a mile a day.  Last Monday morning was when we crossed the finish line, 7 days from starting, and I did a total of 59.4 miles, just short of 60 miles, walking on the treadmill and around the house, showing proof by using the Nike+ Running Club app by posting screen shots after each walk to my personal thread.

I'm still amazed I walked that far.

 Throughout the race it was fun seeing where my walks brought the team.

 Sometimes I wrote a little something when posting to Racery.

 The final stretch!

 Where I ranked, out of 900, after posting my final miles.

Now I'm sitting at #200.

The overall rankings, though there's a Hufflepuff team still working to finish, and we're all cheering them on, helping them not give up.

In the last few hours today the last two Gryffindor teams, Godric's Pride and Mane Attraction, crossed the finish line.  These last few days our house adopted the hashtag #OnePride.  Pretty much for most of the race our three teams stayed close together, showing how evenly balanced we made the teams, but also a symbol of our solidarity.

It is disappointing our team lost, but in a way we didn't lose because we pushed ourselves and didn't give up.  I didn't think I could get so many miles.  I was unsure about signing up, not wanting to let the team down.  For health reasons I've never talked about I can't run, so I walked all my miles, averaging 20 minutes a mile.  A lot of time!  Pretty much this was all my free time last week.

And I'm sore allover.  A good sore.

And, for the record, Epsom salt baths are pretty awesome.

In Which I Get A Very Slytherin Fortune Cookie . . .

Slytherin!

The Hogwarts house people love to hate in the Harry Potter books.  (It doesn't help that Slytherin was constantly being painted as the villains in the story.)

Known for being cunning, success seeking, loyal to a fault, but also ambitious.  

In truth there are a lot of really good people who are Slytherin, as they do have good traits.  Ambition is a good trait to have, but I've always felt ambition taken to the extreme is never good.  (Though most things taken to the extreme isn't good.)

This little fortune cookie highlights where I feel ambition can go wrong:

"Ambition knows no obstacles."

True, if one is truly ambitious they are ready and willing to weather any storm.  They are ready and willing to face and overcome any obstacle.  This is a good thing, but when these obstacles become people then it's good to pause and reflect.  I'm not talking about overcoming naysayers.  I'm talking about a persons willingness to hurt other people and/or stab others in the back to achieve what they wish.

No ambition is worth hurting another.

How Much Money Each Charity Makes On the Charity Miles App

Thanks to the Hogwarts Running Club I started using Charity Miles, an app that you can download and use on Androids and iOS.  It encourages me to exercise while earning money for charity, thanks to corporate sponsors.  (And earning Gryffindor house points with team #hrcgryffinroar16 simply a bonus).

The site use to state that every running/walking mile was worth $0.25, so 4 miles was a dollar.  The site no longer states this.  Once upon a time the Charity Miles app, CM for sort, would state how much you earned for your chosen charity after your race/run/walk, immediately updating how much that charity earned. The app no longer does this as well, and instead updates at the end of each day the cumulative total earned through combined users.  All we see is how many miles we've walked/ran that day with no idea how much money we actually helped earn towards our charity of choice.

Money for each charity is still being earned, but I was curious how much money each charity was earning, as some charities have only a few thousand dollars earned while others a couple hundred thousand.  This disparity comes from a variety of reasons: charity popularity, where a charity is listed on the charity list, and how long the charity has been on the app, as new charities are added every so often.

Below is a list of the charities on Charity Miles.  The order corresponds to the order found on the Android app, instead of alphabetical.  The first gross is the amount of money earned on September 4 around 9:30 PM MST, 2016.  The second gross is the amount earned on September 14 around 3:00 PM MST.  I then divided the increase amount by 10 to get the daily average.

(The links take you to the main website for each charity if you wish to learn more).

1. National Park Foundation. $14,097. Ten Days Later = $15,028 ($931 increase)($93.10 Daily Average).

2. ALS Association. $1,912. Ten Days Later $2,428. ($516 increase) ($51.60 Daily Average).

3. Habitat For Humanity. $61,142. Ten Days Later $61,639. ($497 increase) ($49.70 Daily Average).

4. American Diabetes Association. $2,343. Ten Days Later $2,343 ($0 increase) ($0 Daily Ave.) (Back in April their total was also $2,343.  No increase in 5 months?  Really!!??  This can't be right.)

5. Charity: Water. $22,902. Ten Days Later $23,577. ($675 increase) ($67.50 Daily Average).

6. ASPCA. $164,029. Ten Days Later $165,392. ($1,363 increase) ($136.3 Daily Average).

7. Stand Up To Cancer. $226,599. Ten Days Later $228,009 ($1,410 increase) ($141 Daily Average).

8. National Multiple Sclerosis Society. $2,519. Ten Days Later $2,911. ($392 increase) ($29.2 Daily Average).

9. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. $107,565. Ten Days Later $108,047. ($482 increase) ($48.2 Daily Average).

10. Save the Children. $16,448. Ten Days Later $16,756. ($308 increase) ($30.8 Daily Average).

11. Feeding America. $164,922. Ten Days Later $165,798. ($876 Increase) ($87.60 Daily Average).

12. World Wildlife Fund. $105,110. Ten Days Later $105,528. ($418 Increase) ($41.80 Daily Average).

13. Shot@Life. $18,057. Ten Days Later $18,181. ($124 Increase) ($12.40 Daily Average).

14. The Michael J. Fox Foundation. $99,393. Ten Days Later $99,788. ($395 Increase) ($39.50 Daily Average).

15. Alzheimer's Association. $95,133. Ten Days Later $95,914. ($781 Increase) ($78.10 Daily Average).

16. (RED). $26,320. Ten Days Later $26,414. ($94 Increase) ($9.40 Daily Average).

17. Operation Smile. $19,378. Ten Days Later $19,587. ($209 Increase) ($20.90 Daily Average).

18. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. $53,105. Ten Days Later $53,970. ($865 Increase) ($86.50 Daily Average).

19. Sight For Kids. $1,934. Ten Days Later $2,037. ($103 Increase) ($10.30 Daily Average).

20. Autism Speaks. $136,729. Ten Days Later $137,105. ($376 Increase) ($37.60 Daily Average).

21. Team Red, While & Blue. $144,873. Ten Days Later $145,651. ($778 Increase) ($77.80 Daily Average).

22. Every Mother Counts. $46,755. Ten Days Later $46,924. ($169 Increase) ($16.90 Daily Average).

23. The Partnership For A Healthier America. $22,326. Ten Days Later $22,377 ($51 Increase) ($5.10 Daily Average).

24. Girls On The Run. $44,288. Ten Days Later $44,526. ($238 Increase) ($23.80 Daily Average).

25. DoSomething.Org. $7,633. Ten Days Later $7,659. ($26 Increase) ($2.60 Daily Average).

26. Wounded Warrior Project. $284,783. Ten Days Later $285,347. ($564 Increase) ($56.40 Daily Average).

27. The Nature Conservancy. $52, 678. Ten Days Later $52,848. ($170 Increase) ($17 Daily Average).

28. The World Food Programme. $90,065. 10 Days Later $90,174 ($109 Increase) ($10.90 Daily Average).

29. Pencils of Promise. $29,670. Ten Days Later $29,774. ($104 Increase) ($10.40 Daily Average).

30. Special Olympics. $31,843. Ten Days Later $31,995. ($152 Increase) ($15.2 Daily Average).

31. Girl Up. $38,807. Ten Days Later $38,914. ($107 Increase) ($10.70 Daily Average).

32. Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America. $36,302. Ten Days Later $36,491. ($189 Increase) ($18.90 Daily Average).

33. Team For Kids. $7,286. Ten Days Later $7,317. ($31 Increase) ($3.10 Daily Average).

34. She's The First. $21,894. Ten Days Later $22,052. ($158 Increase) ($15.80 Daily Average).

35. Soles4Souls. $17,728. Ten Days Later $17,766. ($38 Increase) ($3.8 Daily Average).

36. Nothing But Nets. $13,526. Ten Days Later $13,588. ($62 Increase) ($6.20 Daily Average).

37. Back On My Feet. $23,912. Ten Days Later $24,027. ($115 Increase) ($11.50 Daily Average).

38. Achilles International. $9,785. Ten Days Later $9,828. ($43 Increase) ($4.30 Daily Average).

39. The Ironman Foundation. $9,553. Ten Days Later $9,597 ($44 Increase) ($4.40 Daily Average).

40. Vision Spring. $5,766. Ten Days Later $5,805. ($39 Increase) ($3.90 Daily Average).

Final thoughts.

First, what the freak is up with American Diabetes Association!!!!????  I'm walking 6 miles for them tomorrow to see if they go up a dollar, because staying the same for four months is ridiculous.

Second, it's obvious that those on the top of the list do better than those on the bottom.

Third, I noticed--because I took screen shots--that in the last 10 days Charity Miles mixed up the order of the top 10 charities, but the bottom 30 charities stayed in the SAME EXACT ORDER.

And Fourth, Vision Spring is always at the bottom, and has been since I started using Charity Miles.

Overall the numbers are interesting.

Trying Flying Cauldron Butterscotch Beer

 Last Sunday, July 31st, was Harry Potter's birthday, and to celebrate I tried Flying Cauldron Butterscotch Beer.  I honestly stumbled upon it last Saturday when I was visiting Provo Riverwoods, after seeing the movie Cafe Society at Wynnsong, catching Pokemon, and looking at art in Zion's Mercantile.  Before leaving the outdoor mall I walked into Blickenstaff's, a fun toy store filled with toys new and vintage, board games, candy from around the World, and old fashioned sodas.

In the soda fridge I spotted the Flying Cauldron Butterscotch Beer, non-alcoholic, naturally, and got quite excited.  Quite a few members of the Hogwarts Running Club have posted photographs of the drink, excited that they've found it locally.  I've never been to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.  Shameful, right?  When I went to Disney World last June I calculated how much tickets and taxi would cost to make it possible for my Mom and I to visit.  Considering we would want to visit both Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade it would cost $400+ to make that happen for just one day, and my Mom and I were trying to keep the trip affordable.  Someday I'll make it there to try real Butterbeer, but for now there are home recipes and Flying Cauldron.

I really liked the drink.  There was a slight aftertaste due to the stevia, but other than that it was quite tasty, the butterscotch strong.  My sister-in-law Lindsay loved it.  She drank it right down.

There's a recommended Giggle Potion recipe where you can add ice-cream to get that creamy foaming affect, like a root beer float.  That would have been really good!

From their website: "Since 1374, the Flying Cauldron has been making this magical brew for under aged wizards and wizards who are young at heart at their brew pub in Hogsbreath England . The recipe has changed little over the centuries. It has the perfect combination of spells and quality natural ingredients. It continues to be prized for its creamy vanilla and butterscotch flavors."

The bottle is super cute.

If you can't find it locally you can buy Flying Cauldron on the REED'S website.