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A Fan's Addiction
By Ivy.

  So, you're a Lord of the Rings fan, huh? You get up in the morning, ogle at hobbits (or maybe that ranger... or that elf...) and go about your business... For a while. And suddenly, you're shaking, you can't focus, and all you can think about is doing something Lord of the Ring-ish. This is what has come to be known as 'The Fan Complex'.
  New studies performed by top Middle-earthian scientists (aka the newsletter staff in disguise) shows that some fans experience uncontrollable urges to so hobbitish/rangerish/elvish things at completely random times. A staggering 34.219% of fans exhibit such behaviour. And why? They have developed an over-addiction.
  You may have 'The Fan Complex' is you show any of the following symptoms:
  1. Watching of any film in the trilogy more than once a week
  2. Reading of any part of the book more than once in a three month period.
  3. Ogling / drooling / fainting / melting / falling from chairs / giggling / squealing / blushing when looking at pictures of the characters of the movie or the actors who portray them.
  4. Sudden urges to shout phrases in Elvish or any other Tolkien-created language.
  5. More than two walls of your room are covered in posters and/or screencaps.
  6. You have spent more than 150 dollars / euro / pounds / other currency on collectors' items or memorabilia.
  7. Uncontrollable shaking / nervousness / edginess / frustration if you don't see / do something Lord of the Rings related in more than two hours.
  Now, don't panic. If you suspect you may be 'suffering' from 'The Fan Complex', there's nothing to worry about. Our extensive studies have concluded that it is definitely not hazardous to your health, though we are quite 'disappointed' (not!) to inform you it is a possible lifelong ailment.
  Any questions or comments may be e-mailed to luckoftheirish@hotmail.com and may be answered in a follow-up article once more research is conducted. Thank you.

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By Perian

 

  Everyone searches for, and sometimes is able to find, what is for them a favourite character. This is simple enough in theory. In application it is rather more difficult as everyone has a different idea as to who this favourite is. After they have set their sights on a particular character they then feel compelled to justify their opinion, and, if they are very fervent in their devotion, to try to sway others to agree with them. Thus debates arise as to who is most worthy of respect. Who, if I may coin a phrase, is the universally acknowledged faviour of Middle-earth.

  There are several who come immediately to mind, all of whom hold a very valid claim to the title.

  Aragorn, to begin with. He saved humanity at Helm's Deep, an act without which, well, I wouldn't be writing this for your human eyes (whatever species may lie behind them) to read. You, I, and everyone else would be orcs - squint-eyed, foul-bellied, and even smellier than we are now. He also saved our Ringbearer on numerous occasions, with the same result.

  Our Ringbearer, ah, yes. He is the next logical choice. Actually, he is the first logical choice, but I have to give someone else a chance. Frodo was the one who sacrificed himself, or tried to, time and time again for Middle-earth's sake. Sometimes I wonder whether he had a death wish. Ahem, excuse me, I should say a longing for martyrdom. We all know what he endured and accomplished. No need to linger.

   What of the females? Eowyn's destruction of the Witchking surely saved all of Middle-earth. Galadriel, too, played a great role in a subtle way; refusing power, gifting Frodo with the light with which he was saved from both the nazgul and Shelob. And if I may be so bold, she gave a few members of the Fellowship - three to be exact; you know who they are - an extra cause for which to fight.

  There are even those who saved Middle-earth without meaning to. Smeagol in his final moments is an obvious example of this. Another you may not have considered is Grima Wormtongue. Not once but twice he saved Middle-earth. The first time with his enraged blunder of hurling the palantir from the tower of Orthanc. This, in causing it to fall into Pippin's possession, drew Sauron's Eye away from Mordor and allowed Frodo and Sam safe passage through that realm. The second time was when he killed his own master, who, like Sauron had done in the age prior, might have quietly gained power and corrupted and fouled Middle-earth once again. What is more, Grima was killed for his actions giving more ground for one to say he gave up his life for the lands.

  There are so many, great or small (or both), who made an impact so strong that even had Middle-earth survived without them, history would have been dramatically altered. And yet it probably would have survived... Had Aragorn passed in Battle, Gandalf would have rallied the armies to the Hornburg nonetheless. Had Frodo perished truly and finally in Shelob's Lair, Sam would have gone on with the Ring. No person can be credited with the entire fate of Middle-earth.

  Save one.

  So, hats off everyone, to the indisputable Faviour of Middle-earth: J.R.R. Tolkien. Had he perished in the trenches of World War One, or even set down his pen rather than struggle on with his work, Middle-earth would not be there for us today. Raise your glass, and three cheers, to our faviour. 

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By Xara

 

  As parents will, mine have often forced me to attend friendly Sunday luncheons with their friends, which, as teenagers will, I find incredibly boring, except the food of course. As guests will, they always try to engage me in conversation at some point during the meal, and after a well scripted set of questions, they discover that I am a fan of Lord of the Rings. It is at this point that the outrage has sometimes occurred, "That's odd, isn't it usually teenage boys who like Lord of the Rings?" Then, struggling to fit me into the conventional stereotype, they assume that I am one of these teenage boys they are referring too, only in female form, and try to introduce topics such as collectors cards and Dungeons and Dragons. This is annoying, as I hardly know what Dungeons and Dragons is except for a vague suspicion it is a video game of some sort, and as for collectors cards, I own one that I found in a marshmallow packet, but it rather loses precedence amongst the giant Frodo posters on my wall.

  It is that old hobby of society playing tricks on us again, stereotyping. Have you noticed that we fans of LotR, just like everyone else in this day and age, have been stereotyped? In the eyes of outsiders, being a Lord of the Rings fan means you're a nerd, a fan girl, or an ageing hippie. That, or all nerds, fan girls and ageing hippies are Lord of the Rings fans. This assumption is of course false. I know many a 'fan girl', that is, a girl who will scream at the sight of a celebrity, who adamantly hates LotR. As do I know a nerd or two who've never heard of Frodo. I suspect one of my uncles is an ageing hippie, but I've never heard him speak in elvish. Something is obviously amiss here.

  The truth is, it's not what category or stereotype you conform to, if you conform to any at all, many people don't, that makes you a fan of Lord of the Rings. And being Lord of the Rings doesn't instantly make you fit into a category. Lord of the Rings fandom can strike anyone, anywhere. It can and does appeal to people from all walks of life, from the so-called nerds to the cool kids, from the daggy dad to his adolescent offspring. And so why on earth have these strange and mysterious assumptions emerged from?

  It's human nature being silly once again and stereotyping that's what. Can we never escape it? Perhaps all Lord of the Rings fans should spontaneously start wearing Harry Potter glasses to throw them off? But then, that would but lead to another damn stereotype: If you like LotR, you like Harry Potter. Argh!!! Somebody help me I'm being stereotyped!! If you can think of a solution to this impossible problem of society's assumptions please let me know! Until then, I think I shall sit here and sulk about it, that should pass some time.

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A Huge LotR Fan in a Small Town
By Padfoot.

  As we grow up we tend to like the things that are around us. If one grew up in a basketball household then that someone would tend to like basketball. This goes for a lot of things. The size of the town, village, city, hamlet, etc. also affects the things you like. For most people it is difficult to move from a small town to a huge city just because of the noise, people and atmosphere. I, myself, live in a town of 1,500; the town proper has 267 telephone poles (a lot compared to the size). So it's difficult to like new things when you're surrounded with the same things every day. My love for LotR did not develop because of the people around me, or from the constant bickering of my dad to pick up the book and read it, nor did my love for it come from the countless bombardment of LotR- the movie- posters plastered on the walls on the nearest "city" 20 minuets away. My love for LotR developed one snowy afternoon in the winter of 02' (I think, who knows, dates aren't important). The town's state of emergency warning was flashing on the lovely TV screen before the power went out. A beautiful winters afternoon. At this time my small town had not heard of the Internet so I was not deprived of such an amenity (though that fall we were introduced to it.) The TV was the only thing I had, and it was gone. So I went into my room and looked around for a book to read and I found a nice little copy of The Hobbit. So I sat and read it, it took me the rest of the afternoon and then the next day. I immediately fell in love with this great plot line. (Which was then later pointed out to me by the school brain that Tolkien copied from other authors. But hey, who doesn't?) My dear old father had taken me about a month earlier to see The Lord of the Rings The Fellowship of the Ring, but I had forgotten about it. 'Twas a silly flick I had said. I had not fully understood its majestic quality. After the state of emergency that February winter the year of '02 my mother had taken me to the "city" 20 minuets away and we purchased the set of books. I began reading them one by one and was totally mesmerized. I would just like to say that these books have really brought a nice change in my life. It was the in a sense "gateway drug" to other exciting novels and movies and all that jazz. Tolkien, This girl right here, sitting at a computer at one of the most isolated towns in the northeast will be forever a life long fan. Thank you very much for your books. And thank you to PJ, for bringing them to life, and while I'm on a thank you high I have a few more people to thank. There's so many people out there who contributed to my liking of LotR, but mostly the one who really made me a huge fan would be Xara. I was a fan when I read it. But I was obsessed after I joined ATLotR.

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The Joy of Screen Capping
By Xara

 

  I must begin by warning all, if you are not a screen capper, have many time-consuming addictive obsessions and do not wish to develop another, I would suggest you do not try screen capping. It is very time consuming, very addictive, and you will become more and more obsessive about it as time goes on. That said, I love screen capping!! For the past three years, twice a year (once when the theatrical DVD comes out and once when the extended version is released) screen capping becomes the absolute lodestone of my life! In such times, nothing gives me greater pleasure than to sit for hours locked in the study with the DVD clicking away until every single frame of my beloved Lord of the Rings, the beloved hobbits, the beloved landscapes, the beloved other characters who aren't hobbits, and even the beloved bad guys, have been captured and stored on my hard drive. Am I a freak? I'm a freak.
  What is screen capping? I hear some of you ask. Well, it's when you take pictures of a DVD as it plays on your computer, using your DVD player program. I don't have experience with many of these, the one I use is Power DVD and, as I'm sure you have gathered by now, it has a screen capping (screen capture is the more accurate term) option, which is basically a button at the bottom of the screen you press when you like the look of what's currently on the screen. Once you press the button, the picture is automatically sent to the location of your choice, be it your pictures folder, clipboard, or some other location. You decide. From there it is but a simple step to using a paint program to cut off the black lines at the top and bottom and anything else you consider to be superfluous, and there it is, your very own picture from the movie.
  As I said earlier, screen capping is highly addictive. I discovered it shortly after the release of the Fellowship DVD, and promptly took about 500 caps. By the time the extended version came out, I was taking 1000 of the extended scenes alone. By the time I was watching The Two Towers in the cinema I was thinking "My gosh that is such an amazing scene, I want to freeze every frame and stick it on my wall." By my third viewing of The Two Towers I was making mental notes of specific frames I would like to take, which pictures I would take twice so I could cut Merry and Pippin out and have individual shots of them and still keep one of them standing side-by-side, and when The Two Towers DVD came out I took a staggering 3500 caps, which shocked even me. I forced myself to cut it down to 2000 but it was a wrench to let them go, even the blurry ones that were duds anyway. Dare I tell you that I took another 3000 of the extended scenes alone when the EE came out? (If you don't believe me, look at the 100 I took of Merry and Pippin's ent draught scene).
  It has now reached the point where the Lord of the Rings movie experience is not complete for me until I have every frame saved on my computer, uploaded onto my website, printed out, stuck on black cardboard and blue-tacked to my wall. You might call it devotion to hobbits, or plain lunacy, but I like to call it the joy of screen capping! But remember folks, don't try it at home, it's addictive!
  To enjoy Lord of the Rings screen caps without becoming addicted to the process of creation yourself, please feel free to visit my website: http://au.msnusers.com/allthingslordoftheringsphotoalbums. Seeing people enjoy them makes it even more worth it than it already is!

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After all, who can resist a Gamgee? (Part 1)
By Prongs.

  Ah Sam … without a doubt, the most endearing of all the characters in the trilogy. He may not have Frodo’s massive, blue eyes … or Merry’s cheeky attitude … or Pippin’s knack for saying the wrong things at the wrong time (more on that topic in the Pippin issue) … but, in keeping with the theme of this issue, he is my main hobbit and I adore him! After all, who can resist a Gamgee? Rosie Cotton couldn’t, that’s for certain … his shy nature and bumbling manner made him all the more appealing. Not only did Sam and Rosie get married, but they had 13 children together! Talk about an astounding feat, eh? So, just how did Sam and Rosie manage to have so many children? The answers lie in the body of this article ... read on, but be warned: the next few paragraphs may scar some subscribers for life – read at your own risk.
  Sam and Rosie’s relationship started off, as many relationships do, with small, simple gestures … for it is these unpretentious acts that are the most genuine and also the most romantic. And what is more romantic than flowers? Being a gardener and all, it was a relatively simple task for Sam to put together a lovely bunch of flowers and present them to his wife … oh and how overjoyed she was, for nine months later, she gave birth to Elanor (don't get me started on the biology of the process, read a text book).
  Wow – see how easy that was? It only took a bunch of flowers … so, Sam decided to try the flowers again … with a modification! This time, instead of bringing the flowers home, he had them delivered to Rosie at the Green Dragon? Ooooh, what a surprise she must have had! “Flowers? For me?!” *swoon* And she was so happy that she went home to cook Sam and Elanor a delicious dinner (I'm sure that her dinners were always lovely, but this one was extra special). Samwise came home … his daughter was being a brat (but she was at that Terrible Two phase, so she could be forgiven) and his wife … well, she was over the moon with happiness … they ate, they … er … didn't sleep, they were very merry and nine months later … er, out came a son – Frodo!
  Mind you, Samwise had not been elected Mayor yet … he was still a gardener … but one day, he decided to take time off from work to do something nice for his wife. She has been working ever-so-hard as of late … what with the news spreading about the Green Dragon having the “finest ale in all of the Shire” … business was booming. So Sam, being the sweet and thoughtful hobbit that he was, decided to forgo work in favour of … housecleaning! Yes, I did say housecleaning. He cooked the most enticing rabbit stew … the aroma filled the entire house ... and when Rosie arrived home (thinking about what to prepare for dinner) she found … a clean house, clean children and a stew that was simply too delicious for words … oh, how delighted she was … and she put the energy that she saved up (through having no cooking or cleaning to do) to good use at night (I will not elaborate on this for fear of this article being given an even-worse-than-R rating) and … lo and behold, nine months later the Gamgees have another daughter – Rose!
  In 1427, Will Whitfoot resigned as Mayor … and Samwise Gamgee was elected to take his place. What a bit of luck for the Gamgee family … Daddy/Hubby was the Mayor! Wazoo! No frills, no fancies ... Rosie made an outstanding celebratory dinner, the kids were put to bed, Rosie told Sam how proud she was of him (I might add that when I read the appendices, I was proud of him too) and … a lack of sleep and nine months later … Merry appeared! Yowza!
  Honestly … 4 beautiful children, a glowing wife, a blooming political career … what more could a Gamgee ask for? How about a bigger house? With 4 children … the house was shrinking by the minute! So, Sam bought Rosie a new house – the most beautiful hobbit hole in all of the Shire! Oh my God … wow! Rosie was speechless (this was a good thing … she was bowled over with emotion, you see) ... she was beaming … and she and Sam … erm … “christened” … their new house by … er … well, I wont go there but you know what I mean (and if you don't, congratulations on having a very clean mind – I wish I could say the same for myself) … but the outcome was the same .. a new little hobbit nine months later … a boy that they called Pippin.
  Seven Gamgees … two adults, five children … makes for many mouths to feed, don't you think? Unfortunately for Rosie, business at the Green Dragon took a nosedive when a new place, “Paddy's Hole”, opened up around the corner. Rosie’s former customers flocked to this new spot, eager to taste the “Finest Beer in All of the Shire”, not knowing that the owner watered down the drinks. Rosie was naturally very concerned about the lack of customers, and was only slightly mollified when Merry, Sam and Pippin all come down to the Green Dragon one night and drank pint after pint of beer. Sam, being the responsible father, did not drink as much as the other two … he needed to stay sober for the “Surprise” … but Merry and Pippin, Bless their big hearts, drank themselves into a coma (to support Rosie, of course) and had to be escorted back home by the Gamgees. When they returned to their Hobbit Hole, they found the house in total darkness. Naturally, Rosie was worried and panicky (and Sam did a good job in pretending to be worried and panicky) … until she reached the kitchen – there were paper streamers and ‘I Love You, Mom’ signs everywhere! After a rollicking party (where Sam drank some more), the kids went to bed and Rosie playfully accused Sam of conspiring against her … in return, Sam playfully accused Rosie of – well, I wont go there but … well, they end up in bed, giggling like teenagers in love and … er … get intimate and … er … (must I elaborate? Editor: no) …  eight months later, Goldilocks appears.
  Yes, unfortunately, I must tell you that Goldilocks was a pre-mature baby. It was a sad and trying time for the Gamgee family … their youngest daughter was sick, Rosie’s business was not doing well … the children did try to help, but as they were children, there was only so much that they could do. Sam came home one night to find Rosie completely overwhelmed with emotion … understandably so … he reminded her that this was just a difficult time in their lives and that, if they persevered and kept looking on the positive side, all would be well soon. They cuddled, they hugged, they kissed … one thing led to another … they were having a good old time … that is until their kids, who were still awake, came banging at their door. Oops. But, as your school nurse has undoubtedly told you many times over, even a quick cuddle is enough, and sure enough when Rosie went to visit her doctor a few months later … she found out that she was pregnant. Not the easiest of pregnancies of course, Goldilocks was still sick, the children were at difficult points in their lives … but Sam tried to make things as comfortable for Rosie as he possibly could … and out popped Hamfast, right on time, a few months later.
  And it is with the arrival of their seventh baby that I will leave you. Tune in to the next issue to find out how the remaining six Gamgees came into this world. Will the ‘Green Dragon’ live? Will Goldilocks get better? Will Sam try any new moves on Rosie? Or vice-versa? You'll find out … in two weeks.

  I am about to enter my final year of high school, and some important questions are being raised such as "What the hell am I going to do when I leave!?! ARGH!!!" Of course, I intend to pursue my lifelong ambition to be a famous novelist, and am planning in accordance with this to enrol in some university course of creative writing. But I have a problem; there is a very big chance that I shall fail miserably, so I need a back-up plan if that should happen. But I can't think of one! Please help me!

  ~Xara

 

  Dear Xara,
  Now I remember being in just such a spot when I was a lad. My skill was with ropes, like my nuncle and my brother, but being the youngest and all I had to help around Bag End with the gardens. One thing and then another happened, and before I know it I'm a Ringbearer and a Mayor and a Columnist and a few other things I didn't plan on besides. There's a lot that you can do to go for what you want, but if it doesn't happen, sure as sunlight something else will. Keep your eyes open and don't be afraid to tell people what you want, and something will come up when the time comes.

  Sam.

  My darling Samwise,

  It is once again time for my monthly love letter to you. God knows I have talked about you a lot in this issue ... but I still cannot get over you, my dear Samwise. Your eyes, your lips, even your ears ... your vision haunts me ... night in and night out ... your memory haunts me .... those precious moments that we had together (further content edited out of this letter).

  All my love,

  Prongs

 

  Dearest Prongs,
  How I've missed you. I feared after the last issue passing without a word that perhaps you had forgotten me. Now I see it wasn't that at all. I'm right pleased, and would say a lot more if I could. You're in my heart and my dreams at that. Meet me at the Ivy Bush Inn, next Friday?
  Sam.

   Dear Samwise,

  My friend recently bought me this lovely chocolate carrot. I have vowed not to eat it, but it looks so tasty... How do I curb my temptation for chocolate carrots?

  Ivy.

 

  Dear Ivy,

  Well, you could always cover it in gold, if you follow me. Then it'll be preserved for a good long time. Maybe even put it on a chain around your neck, and find another chocolate carrot to eat. It never hurts to have more than one.

  Sam.