I discovered Harry Potter in 2000 through you, Oprah. I was watching a show about the twin brothers who discover antiques, paintings and stuff that may be worth a lot of money. One of them said it's an investment to buy first edition books. I went to the nearest bookstore and bought the first four HP books. I kept them in a safe place where I could store them in perfect condition hoping that one day I could resell them. I was a bookworm in my teens but since college I hadn't read a novel. I was bored one day and started reading The Sorcerer's Stone. I got so hooked I read it in two days. My mind had never been pushed to an extreme level of imagination before. Since then, I've been a crazy fan. I got married in 1999 to a Korean man whom I dated four years in college. Nothing prepared me for the cultural shock and loneliness of being a Filipino living in Korea. Harry Potter was my only friend. There are very few Filipinos in Korea. I found it hard to bond with Korean women. I've been in Korea eleven years and so far I got only two Korean close friends.
I got addicted to HP. In 2001, I realized that I want to be a novelist just like JKR. Just like her; I'm a foreigner teaching English as a second language. JKR had lived in Portugal to teach English. I’ve always loved books and love writing stories. I've been keeping a journal since I was 15 years old and writing has been a daily routine for me. I write in the morning for 3-5 hours. I teach in the afternoons. JKR wrote in cafés. I love Starbucks and I’ve been writing in Starbucks since 1997.Coffee aroma ignites my creativity. In 2003, my HP addiction started to escalate. I went to London to be at the Order of the Phoenix books release party at Waterstones Bookstore in Picadilly Circus. I was 27 and it was my first time to travel alone. In 2004, I went to New York for the Prisoner of Azkaban movie premiere. I stood from 4a.m to 5p.m.I didn’t pee for 13 hours. I was hoping JKR will be there but she wasn’t. I was exhilarated to see the actors in the movie. It was my first time to see famous Hollywood actors in person. In 2007, I returned to London for the Order of the Phoenix movie premiere. I had a glimpse of JKR for 10 seconds. I came to Leicester Square 8a.m. and I was so far back from the red carpet. Fans camped out 2 days before. It was horrible being alone on my HP escapades but it’s all worth it.
In 2004 after trying to get pregnant for 3 years, the fourth doctor we consulted told us that my womb is deformed. I won’t be able to get pregnant. My Korean mother-in-law asked my husband to divorce because I can’t have kids. It was so horrible I succumbed to depression. My husband didn’t do as his mother asked him but because of that I hated his family and didn’t make contact with them for 3 years. When JKR wrote about the DEMENTORS she was in depression. I was clinically diagnosed to be suicidal and I took anti-depressants for 6 months. It was a very cold and dark experience for me. When I saw the movie in 2004 and saw the dementors sucking Harry’s happiness, I cried and cried. In 2008, my husband agreed to take me with him to Chicago and New York on his business trip with the condition that I reconcile with his mother. I agreed. There were no apologies involved. I just visited his mother and pretended nothing happened. I can’t deal with hatred and grudge anymore. They have accepted that their son loves me even if I can’t bear children.
I spent a lot of money collecting HP books in different languages and various hardback and paperback covers. I collect anything HP. My students love playing my HP UNO cards. My husband estimated my HP collection to be worth around $30,000.I order HP books online from different countries. I’m an English teacher in Korea and I don’t make much because I’m not a native speaker. My salary is half of what Americans and Canadians get here in Korea. I save as much as I can to finance my obsession. I’m saving money to be at the London premiere of Deathly Hallow this November. If I can a ticket to Oprah Show, I will fly to Chicago at my own expense. I won’t go to the London premiere if I can come to Chicago instead. It will be the happiest day of my life if I can see you Oprah and JKR in one stage. I love you Oprah, I’ve emailed you so many times desperate to be on your show. I’m extremely desperate now because it’s the farewell season. My husband and I were in Chicago in April 2008.We were at Harpo Studios at 6a.m. begging for your staff to let us in if there are vacant seats but my tears and begging didn’t work. Thank you Oprah. Because of your show I discovered HP. Please check out my HP album on Facebook.
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