You haven't been successful at blocking out your children's plaintive wailing, meaning you're well aware that the latest Harry Potter book goes on sale precisely at midnight. You'll have to purchase the book anyway, so why not surprise them with a trip to the magical land of Out Past Bedtime as well? (The parents of all the other spoiled and supplicating kids are doing it. Pretty please, Mom.) At 9:00 p.m. the Miami Children's Museum and Books & Books combine their mystical marketing forces to offer young readers a splendid opportunity to come together to celebrate the launch of Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix, the fifth release in the series. Temporarily replacing the Miami Beach (933 Lincoln Rd.) and Coral Gables (265 Aragon Ave.) bookstores will be Potter-themed fantasylands. A team of wizards from the museum (new digs are under construction at Watson Island) will lead various independent and group activities. Among several is Words and Wands, during which kids cast spells by joining together Latin words and rolling their paper into a wand. Prizes and chocolate coins await the winners of Guess What's in Hagrid's Pocket? and a card game called Gringott's Greedy Goblins. The sorcery is free. The book costs $29.99 plus tax. Call 305-532-3222 or 305-442-4408.-- By Margaret Griffis
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Lead Footin'
Summer means speeding
The bliss of Miami summer is upon us. It's time to count our subtropical blessings. Mosquito larvae mature into full-fledged bloodsuckers. Our cars turn into butt-scalding convection ovens. And late-afternoon lightning storms shut down our computers, giving us a good excuse to procrastinate during work. But perhaps the sweetest part of our seasonal urban sauna is the fact that we don't have to move like slugs when driving through the much-loathed "School Speed Zone." That's right, we get a break from the tyranny of child safety at 15 miles per hour. We get to speed, and hang our arms out the window to catch some wind without having some dowdy minivan soccer mom holding us up. For the next two weeks enjoy the speedy cruise through the neighborhood. Soon enough the back-to-school precautions will fetter our need for speed. --By Juan Carlos Rodriguez
