PS/SS:CH1:ITEMS OF INTEREST

JKR loves to tease us with visual clues. One way in which she tantalizes our sleuthing senses is by mentioning items (often in passing) that prove important later. I'm going to attempt to list every item of note, even if it later proves fruitless (but most of it won't, I'm willing to bet).

Dumbledore's Put-Outer -- It apparently looks a bit like a cigarette lighter, but it takes light away from electrical sources, like streetlamps. Later it can be used to return the light to its source.

Dumbledore's "watch" -- The description makes it sound like a miniature orrery. It also looks a bit like a Zodiac Watch, except that his has planets moving around the outer perimeter, and a Zodiac Watch has planets floating around the face with stationary zodiac signs all around the perimeter.... He looks at it and announces that Hagrid is running late in bringing baby Harry to the Dursleys. I'm not quite sure, but I think it might be like a cross between a cosmic clock and the wizarding equivalent of a GPS tracking system...Dumbledore seems to be able to tell time from it (in some sense) and have an idea where certain people are. I'd like to know what each of the 12 hands represents. If they represent people, who could these people be? Hogwarts professors and other staff?

Drills -- Grunnings makes drills, but we're not sure what kind. Are they little power drills used in basic carpentry and odd-jobs around the house, or are we talking about equipment for drilling into the ground? Generally, drill bits are made of steal, an alloy of base metals. There seems to be a running theme that Vernon won't devolop as an individual because he refuses change, even if it would be for the better (he can't see any benefits).

Office window -- Another way that Vernon avoids reality -- he always sits in his office facing away from the window.

Bun/doughnut -- Like father like son, I say....

"Downpour of shooting stars" -- Are they really from celebrations in the wizarding world, or could they have actually been caused during the events in Godric's Hollow?

"High-heeled, buckled boots" -- Probably nothing to these, but I think it's interesting just how old-fashioned his boots are. It gives an idea of how old he is (JKR later said he's about 150), those heeled boots might have been fashionable in his youth.

"Half-moon spectacles" -- I think there's more to them than just reading glasses, etc....

McGonagall's square glasses -- They cause simiarly-shaped markings when McGonagall turns into a cat.

Lemon drop/sherbert lemon -- A Muggle candy Dumbledore fancies. (When life hands you lemons...make lemon drops??)

Dumbledore's letter to the Dursleys -- I want to know how this letter was worded.... Any chance Petunia kept the letter?

Earmuffs -- I was slightly surprised Dumbledore would wear them, but as we have come to see more of his personality, it's not such a surprise after all. I'm quite amused that Madam Pomfrey's compliment made him blush.

Motorcycle -- Belongs to Sirius Black, and Hagrid left Privet Drive to return the motorcycle to Sirius. Will we see this flying motorcycle again? I think so, and Hagrid could tell Harry where it's being stored.

Harry's scar -- Shaped like a lightning bolt, cannot be removed, could "come in handy" somehow. It's an obvious way to identify him when he later returns to the wizarding world. We know it later acts a bit like a warning device, a dark detector of sorts, letting Harry know that Voldemort was near. Then it also hurt when Voldemort displayed particularly strong emotions, like extreme anger or elation. How else could the scar help him?

Dumbledore's scar -- above his left knee, shaped like a map of the London Underground. A famous mythic hero also had a scar above his left knee -- Odysseus, or Ulysses. Ulysses' scar was caused by the tusks of a wild boar. The scar was what later identified him when he was in a disguise. Could his scar somehow be used to identify him again later, like Harry's and Ulysses's scars? Don't know, but since he's dead now, it probably no longer matters. Perhaps it helped him navigate London years ago?

Doorstep -- we have to consider this because Dumbledore seems a bit nervous around doorways. They might be doors to other planes/worlds/dimensions, for all we know. Doorsteps and doorways are not safe, according to Dumbledore, yet he leaves Harry on a doorstep for several hours....

Milk bottles -- Big whoop. I think it's just a continuation of the supposed normality of the Dursleys' lives.