by Bazile
A Question of Activity?
Activity, or lack thereof, is a problem that our site has been facing lately. I’m sure we all know why it can be a struggle to stay active - as most of us have mostly likely wrestle with it at some point. Real life, what a downer! When real life gets tough and something has to give, that something is usually mH. We’ve all had friends who this has happened to, it’s even come close happening to me. I’m not here, though, to talk about why we stop being active. I’m more interested in what keeps us all so enthralled with this site that we willing spend hours and hours of our life on it and are willing to do extra homework, all for a fictional story, one that we all hold so dear. What draws us back to site after we leave? What keeps us on even when the going gets tough? Why do we allow mH to take over become such a huge part of our lives? Well, prepare yourself, because I will answer all those questions (while being a huge cheeseball, you have been warned ).
Since I’m not all-knowing and I can’t read everyone’s mind to see what they all love so much about mH, I sent out a civil PM to some people on the site to see where they stood on this. I expect to see a variety of answers; that people would all have their own reasons for loving mH so much. Maybe for some, it was simply a passion for Harry Potter, perhaps others enjoyed the homework or the games. When I saw people’s answers, however, that wasn’t even close to the case. Again and again, people were saying it was the people they met, the friends they made, their mH family. Almost everybody said this. And so, I mulled over this a bit in my head. Yah, it really is the people. It’s how we can connect with someone halfway across the world and 10 time zones away. It’s how we can make friends with people we’ve never met. How we can form bonds just as strong as with friends in real life, without ever meeting face-to-face. It’s the people. It’s the people that make mH such a wonderful place. It’s you and me and everyone on the site. Our second family, who we can fall back on when we have a tough day, or share a joke with to cheer us up.
So if it’s the people - the connections - that keep us all on mH, let’s welcome everyone, new and old, in and make even more of those connections. Let’s chat with a new sortee or an old veteran. Let’s knit our whole community together, pulling in all the new students so that they are trapped and can never leave so that everyone feels like a part of this huge family, and everyone can stay, or at least come back after they leave.
I will leave you with a quote one of my dear interviewed victims subjects gave me on how to stay active. To quote an 'anonymous student who wants to be called Bob': “Have a plan. Know what you need to do, in RL and on mH. And then try to plan your days and weeks according to those schedules”.
The Shopping Industry
by LunaHP
Yes, I know just the title of this article doesn’t exactly draw you in. But bare with me, hopefully this will be an interesting article for you to read!
I’m sure pretty much everyone has noticed the Stoatshead and Elm Bank changes. The Elm Bank ships have been moved into Stoatshead and are now mingled with the Stoatshead Shops, split into different arcades. Supposedly, this is so Hogwarts students can buy stuff from Elm Bank shops over the school year. There is a Food Court, Occamy Arcade, Sphynx Arcade and Moke Arcade. Personally, I feel this change is pretty good and I find it rather pleasant. However, I beg to differ, what are those names?
One of the sectors is called the Food Court, containing shops such as Sprinkles, Moonbucks and Cheesy Cheers, which of course makes sense. However, following that we have the Occamy Arcade. In the magical world, Occamy is a type of magical creature. And that sector is about holiday cheer and fun. And yet, the Occamy is aggressive and is rated XXXX, showing it’s dangerous. Fun, and danger. Works for others, yet not for me.
Additionally, we have the Sphinx Arcade. That sector is dedicated to muggle comforts. A Sphynx is a magical creature. And the SphinxArcade has muggle comforts. Do you see where I’m going with this?
Finally, there is the Moke Arcade. A Moke is an informal word for donkey. And this sector is dedicated to jewelry and boutiques. And is called a Donkey Arcade. Strange, no?
However, I have a theory. We are all thought of as animals. Donkey, Sphynx, Occamy, these are all animals and don’t even make sense to the shops they contain. We need to make a stand. Students and Of-Ages alike! They believe we are animals, the Admin do. Or, they just like to give random names. But I choose to believe the former.
So make a stand! And if you have any other theories about these names, send me an owl!
Luna, over and out!
By Junie4410
Super Special Student Shops: #2
Hello readers of S.S.S.S! Today we are going to look into another great shop, but first...a question has come up. If you noticed the change in Stoatshead Hill, then you would know that the shops that were once in Elm Bank are now all located in Stoatshead Hill. So where will this leave the S.S.S.S, you ask? Well, for now it will remain just for student run shops, but if this particular series gets a lot of support, then you never know!
Anyway, lets just dive right in to our next shop of the article (which I am now doing based on order)... The Cookie Jar! This is a shop for anyone with a sweet tooth, and is sure to always meet your needs. Christmas cookies, House cookies, they have it all! And besides, who doesn't love cookies?
Lets start off with what to get your friend from here. I would personally recommend getting a House cookie. Everyone loves showing their House pride and it is a common gift to get a friend something from their house. Also, it is a perfect way to welcome first years to your House. However, if the friend in question is more on the extreme side, try for the large party cookie! It tastes delicious, and is the size of a pizza!
But what to get yourself? I would suggest getting either the large party cookie or a shaped cookie. There was a delicious looking waffle cookie, which is the perfect size for one person who sorta doesn't want to share (wink, wink). On the other hand, with the large party cookie you will still have some left to share with other people. In December, I ended up buying a lovely gingerbread cookie for my friend as a holiday gift, and I must say, it was very well decorated!
Congrats to NevFawkks for coming up with this store idea, and thank you for reading! I'll see ya next issue with a new article!
Nutty Nifflers
By chloecs
Interim has come and gone and the first week back from our short break has been packed full of activity. Five students landed a detention, but what all led up to this? That is precisely what I'm here to inform my dear readers about. Many are acquainted with our beloved Care of Magical Creatures Professor, Memrah. She's basically a household name on the site (she's a Queen and she's a Legend). Christiana hosted a practical with the Divination class, and she had a simple, innocent plan in mind, or did she?
Eighteen Care of Magical Creatures students headed out to the Woodland Glade, early Monday morning, eager to hear what they would be doing for the next week. Boots and sneakers squeaked and squished under the fresh spring grass, glazed with early morning dew. They arrived, and everyone's eyes widened at the scene before them, Nifflers galore! Each student would be taking care of their own Niffler, or Baby Niffler all week!
The beginning was slow and lovely, getting a Niffler and naming it, and let me say there were some interesting names such as Bobdelion, J-bob, Taemin Bob Fox... what is with this Bob stuff... The practical was split into two parts, and the first was simple; get to know your Niffler and spend 72 hours caring for it, which went smoothly for all students, but as younger students do, they "let the older students steer you (them) poorly and lose track of your (their) Nifflers (tsk, tsk)" (C's words). This is when the Divination student's abilities were needed. Professor Angela left them directions to be able to use Rhabdomancy to find all the poor little (greedy) Nifflers. One group, EllaLuna Malfoy, Liang-Wei Chou, and AnneliseWofle got it pretty bad. Their three Nifflers, Loki, Tuuluuwaq, and Kiwi found their way all the way up in the Astronomy Tower to our own Headmaster's Office! Not to mention all the damage they caused, and inevitably the three have landed a detention with Professor Riddle too.
All over Hogwarts, the Nifflers were roaming! Some landed out by the Quidditch pitch, angering Madam Hooch and even distracting our teams as they were playing! They were also found staring into the Mirror of Erised, probably seeing themselves lying in piles of shiny objects. A few were even found studying up and doing trivia in the Library! As you could imagine, the castle was hectic! Nevertheless, the week was full of fun, laughs and lots of love, and that's all I think we need here at Hogwarts, (well and as a competitive Ravie... maybe just the House Cup too..) to be one happy, silly family, as Hogwarts will always be there to welcome us home.
