Lord of the Rings

There are many excellent and edifying novels out there in the world. It is to the world of classics that I am pointing specifically here, and despite them being fiction they have much to teach us. 1984 is a great and disturbing story, Lord of the Flies calls us to question our essential goodness or lack there of. Then there are those such as Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and the works of Austen that speak to the behaviour of people and help us look back on a time in our history. I could list others of course and may in another post because I'm all about the reading, but today I want to focus on The Lord of The Rings (LOTR) trilogy.
First - some back story. I read The Hobbit for the first time in grade 4. Reading was the only part of school in which I excelled and one ambitious teacher had me do my book study on The Hobbit so I wouldn't get bored with the book list in her class at that time. Well, I loved it. Not long after that I went to visit my father in Newfoundland and he owned the LOTR series which is essentially a sequel to The Hobbit. Apparently, I stole his books when I returned home to Calgary and never returned them, but I don't remember that...what I do remember is loving those books and loving them ever since.
LOTR is the ultimate battle of good and evil. It explores our ability to withstand temptation and the consequences that come when we don't. The books speak to the ability of every single person (no matter how small) to be able to do great things. They take us into the very heart of darkness and allow the light to explode from within knocking the darkness back. I really cannot recommend these books enough. They are well worth the time and energy to read and, while the movies are also great, the books bring a great deal of depth and insight that is understandably missing from the movies.
So, if you're looking to expand your knowledge of classic novels, or just like a good read, or for that matter, enjoyed the movies then read The Lord of the Rings novels. May I also recommend The Hobbit and his other works, but don't delve into The Silmarillion unless you're a devout fan, it's not for the faint of readers. I haven't even gotten through it more than once. As a point of interest, J.R.R. Tolkein was devout Christian man who helped to influence C.S. Lewis to become a Christian although he didn't always enjoy Lewis' allegorical tendencies (Chronicles of Narnia are also good reads). Okay, that's enough book recommendations for now.

Pets

I have always had a pet. I actually don't remember a time where I didn't own a pet. I had Juliet the cat, Trixie the dog, Lucy the goose, Bullroarer the pigeon and of course my current tormentor - Little B. In and amongst all of these were Charlie, Kip, Nabob, Boo, about a zillion different birds of varying types, various hamsters, and fish...I've had it all when it comes to pets and a few pretty unusual ones. I enjoy having a pet to play with and torment and whatnot. There's the simple joy in a dog, the quirkiness of cats, the soothing views of fish, and, well, I don't know why I wanted hamsters.

Right now, as I mentioned, I have a cat. I've had her for 12 years now and she never fails to do something that makes me laugh. At this time we have another cat in the neighbourhood who is wandering around and driving my cat nuts as she tries desperately to get to it and as I watch her zip around the house trying to keep the other cat in sight I have to laugh, as well as keep moving so she doesn't damage anything...cats! It's also nice to have the company around the house - she always meets me at the door.


I think a dog is next on my list but only if I'm ready for the commitment. A dog takes a lot more work than a cat. I miss the fun of playing fetch with a dog and the forced walking experience. Not to mention that after 12 years it'd at least be a change which is always good. Or, maybe I'll  get a puppy and a kitten to cover all the bases. Nothing until Little B has passed on though as she's earned the right to rule her house.

You just never know

I am a nerd! Not a big nerd, but I definitely am one. I can discuss at length why the X-Men movies were disappointing with the exception of First Class. I have seen every Star Trek movie and almost every episode of every Star Trek series (that almost is what keeps me from the big nerd level). I love to read sci-fi and fantasy novels and enjoy most shows in those genres as well and I have LOVED the series of Avengers movies that have come out (not the first Hulk, the second one). I've always been this way and plan on continuing to be a nerd in my own small way. However, this can be a good thing as you just never know what's going to be useful - even on a Sunday morning.

I had two young boys in my service today and one of them did not want to be there at all which is fine because hey, I remember times when I really didn't want to be in church either. However, this little guy left church glad he had come because not only did we sing songs about soldiers and battles, BUT the sermon contained.....THE AVENGERS!!! It didn't before I got up to speak on Sunday but when I started talking about a movie the boy spoke up to say he had just seen The Avengers and so I used that to illustrate the point that no matter what happens to us we need to keep on doing good for people just like The Avengers - albeit for a different reason.

So, being a nerd has it's good, socially usable moments...who knew. More importantly, God will use us to get the message across in a way that people will hear.

It's My Birthday

I love my birthday (other peoples too) and so far have no problem with getting older although, someone saying I was no longer a spring chicken recently kinda threw me off. However, I enjoy being young and having a day to celebrate and I hope that I enjoy the celebrating when I'm not quite as young. Fortunately this year many good things have coincided with my birthday. Last weekend my father and his wife were in town along with another officer and we had a great weekend. I got some ice cream cake and a new iPod and it was a good time. This weekend I also have family in town - my second parents - and am really excited to see them and to play with their dog.

Conveniently - and not planned - my birthday has fallen on the day I usually take off and so I have been able to relax and get my house ready for some amazing company. In a little bit I'll go out for some supper and then back home to finish my day of relaxation. I love those days that are primarily about opening a good book...or three....or four....well who's counting anyway, and I love that it happened on my birthday as that's a present in and of itself. There was even a bit of sun this morning to make it perfect.

And, there's still more ice cream cake to enjoy!