I am half Dutch on my mother's side with Italian/English ancestry on my father's side. I'm in my 60's and live in Tucson, Arizona. I have two grandchildren.

I got hooked on Harry Potter after I watched and then read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone a few years ago. Since then I have gotten every book that was written and watched the movies. I am also a veteran of the US Navy who served in the early 1970's. I was in the Hospital Corps where I helped heal those who were injured.

I consider myself a Slytherclaw. While I have a lot of Slytherin traits, I also have a love of reading and study, hence the Ravenclaw. I am more of a Slytherin, though.

I do not consider Harry to be a murderer. Voldemort is a murderer! Harry just has to be the one to vanquish him. Voldemort is not even a human. He is a construct that is in a humanoid shape. He is made of his Muggle father's bone, Wormtail's hand and some blood from Harry in combination with a potion and a spell. He ends up looking more like a snake than a human. He may be able to think, and react, but does that really make him human? I think not. He is incapable of having any compassion or remorse. He punishes those who fail to obey him by cruelty. He does not reason. Think about it.

I do love stories where there is a lot of humor. I love to read about funny pranks and satires about "Lord Voldemort". I have a warped sense of humor myself. I was always pulling pranks while in school, but I was not like the Weasley twins. I was very sneaky and pulled my pranks when no one was looking for any, and I never got caught! I was also a lot like Hermione. I loved my books, but I also took time to have some fun but was sneaky about it.

I wish they would do a better job in adapting the books in the movies.

As far as Dumbledore goes, I do not like him. I do not think Dumbledore is doing anything to help Harry. He keeps information from Harry, he puts Harry in an abusive situation, and I do not think that a so-called blood protection is in place since the Dursleys hate Harry.

I also enjoy Star Trek, Star Wars and X-Men., Stargate:SG1, and Charmed. I play a lot of Role-Playing games on my computer. My favorites are the Forgotten Realms, Might & Magic and The Elder Scrolls. I like to play the Mages or Fighter/Mage. In Pool of Radiance - Ruins of Myth Drannor, I also like the character who is a Monk, Magic User and Thief. They can fight with only a quarterstaff and no armor and can also cast spells and have thief abilities. I also enjoy reading crossover fiction. I also love to play DOOM and Max Payne!

I love to read. I read practically everything that strikes my fancy. I 've read a lot of Star Wars and Star Trek books. I also enjoy reading Tolkien. The Lord of the Rings movies were terrific! I also like the Tom Harris and Tom Clancy novels. I've read a lot of Robin Cook, Anne Rice, etc. Also, any book that gives me food for thought also interests me. Books like "The DaVinci Code", "Angels and Demons" by Dan Brown.

I can't say I care all that much for the Canon Harry. He seems too emotional, willing to let everyone walk all over him, and basically an unpleasant person. I like a Harry who has a backbone, and is able to overcome the abuses by his relatives, Snape and Dumbledore.

I also do not agree that Harry should get together with Ginny. In my opinion, I think she should leave Harry alone. She reminds me of an obsessive fangirl who only likes Harry because he is the Boy Who Lived and her hero in shining armor.

Hermione is ok. I don't like it when she constantly has to know everything. She needs to realize that she can't learn everything first and that someone else may be better at something than she is. She can be incredibly stupid at times, and in DH, she was a lousy actress when she was "Bellatrix". I would rather she get together with Harry than Ginny, if there has to be a relationship with one of the Golden Trio, not Ron.

I don't care for explicit stories about Harry or others being involved in Slash. Yeah, I know there are people out there who like Slash, but I don't think Harry is like that! Nor do I really like smutty stories about Harry!

I don't like Dumbledore, Ronald Weasley, and Molly Weasley. For one thing, Dumbledore is a master manipulator. I've had some bad experiences with manipulators. Ronald Weasley constantly complains about how poor he is, has atrocious table manners, and can be considered as a fair-weather friend. Think about his reaction when Harry was chosen as a Champion in GOF! He is often rude toward Hermione. Why he ever ended up with Hermione is a mystery to me. Molly weaslwy drives me up the wall with her banshee-like yelling. I felt sorry for Sirius because while she was staying over at Grimmauld Place, she tried to control whan everyone was doing. I'm also not that fond of Ginny Weasley. First is her stupidity in writing in that diary, then she ransacks the boys' dorm to get the diary back. She should have been reported , and Harry should not have forgiven her, possessed or not. I was very disappointed that she ended up with Harry at the end of Book 7. I really wish that Harry would have disappointed Dumbledore and had become a Slytherin. I don't think Slytherins are evil.

I would also like to add that I enjoy stories that are well written and have few spelling mistakes. Typos are ok, as I am not a great typist. Heck, I almost failed typing in High School, I just could not be able to make my fingers work right. I really have to look at my fingers while I type so I do not make spelling mistakes or typos. I do object whenever someone deliberately makes spelling mistakes, makes grammar errors, does not capitalize proper names, and when told about them in a review, does not correct them! I was always good in spelling. It was something I was always good in since I used to love to read dictionaries and encyclopedias for entertainment when I was a child. When I was in Elementary School, I was always in the advanced reading classes.

Also, I think the story about the so-called Blood Wards that Harry is supposed to be protected by is something made up by Dumbledore. When Harry had his blood taken for the ceremony to bring back Voldemort, I would think that cancelled out the blood protections. Voldemort can attack Harry at his home whenever he wanted to since he now shared some of Harry's blood. Voldemort is also a Half-Blood. He even admitted it to Harry.

I was disappointed with the ending of Deathly Hallows. Did Harry, Ron and Hermione ever finish their education? When did they ever complete their education? Why is Draco Malfoy showing up at King's Cross with his wife and son? Did he not pay for his previous crimes? What happened to Delores Umbridge? She should have been exposed as a Half-Breed, considering that she looks like a cross between a human and a Toad. I was really hoping that she would be affected by the Dementors. Fitting punishment for her!

I really dislike stories that constantly have Harry on a guilt trip. They remind me so much of the Soap Operas. I absolutely loathe soap operas! I like stories that have Harry in a positive light. He is able to overcome the abuse from his muggle relatives, the crap he gets from the other students at school, and is able to come out on top! I also dislike what Dumbledore is putting him through.

As far as Fanfics go, I prefer reading those of AU, and it really doesn't matter to me if Harry is in a relationship with anyone. If Harry has to have a relationship, I like to read ones of Harry having relationships with a female, but not Ginny.

Give me an AU fic over Canon anytime. I like satires, humor, and fics that have Harry being a strong wizard who overcomes Dumbledore, the Dursleys, the Ministry of Magic, and does not believe in the Prophesy from Trelawney which could be one way that Dumbledore can try to control Harry. I do NOT like a Harry that is willing to be a doormat and is willing to sit and take in all the lies. Also, those of people wanting to make Harry into a gay person, I will not read your stories if they go into explicit sexual situations. As far as I know, there are other fan fiction sites that cater to that sort of thing.

Give me a good story where Dumbledore is exposed for the manipulator he really is, the Malfoy family not being able to use the money they have to get out of trouble, and Draco finally stopped from abusing everyone.

One reference book I highly recommend for all fanfiction authors is the paperback version of the Harry Potter Lexicon. I ordered a copy of it a couple of years ago from the Harry Potter Lexicon website. It contains who's who of the Harry Potter world, information about spells, about Hogwarts and the correct spellings for Privet Drive, Madam Pomfrey, the Daily Prophet (which I've noticed is misspelled as the Daily Profit -- that reminds me of a wizarding version of the Wall Street Journal or other financial magazine), and other useful terms. I consider The Lexicon a worthy investment for all Harry Potter fans.