How did you find CoE?
Wow that was so long ago…let me recall. Ah yes, those were the days that I was completely obsessed with Elvish. I would search online to find anything I could about the language. At some point, I found CoE and fell in love with the Elvish 101 courses. I stayed up all hours of the night studying the language. Unfortunately, my busy life has taken a different turn and I’ve been unable to complete the courses, but they really are amazing if you haven’t tried them yet!
What are your duties here at CoE?
Oh geeze. I’m the hotdog of CoE of course! Um…okay well. My title is “Technical Admin” which is one of those very generic titles that means “I do a lot of random things all having something to do with CoE”. Some of the regular things I do are: Realm Leadership Administration, Chatskins, Member Websites, and I also perform backups on the site. I’m Rivka’s understudy in the sense that I help her with anything she needs help with technically-related and I also watch the server for any slow-downs and general problems. I also do a lot of small things on the side from making Random-Graphics-On-Demand to answering questions from members about viruses, website building, etc.
What are your favourite areas of the site?
I’m biased. My favourite area of the site is the Member Websites. I also enjoy the staff gallery a lot because it’s a good place to get to know my fellow co-workers. And, of course, I can’t forget my roots at CoE with the Language section.
How often do you visit CoE?
*clears throat* I well, I uh…*sigh*. I guess an average of 10-15 times a day is a good number. Some days more, some days less—depends on what’s going on there. Last year my average was probably twice that number.
How many times have you read the books?
Once. I’ll probably read them again once I’m done with school and homework (bleck).
Who is your favourite LOTR character?
My favourite book character is Arwen. I admire her strength and strong will. My favourite movie character is Pippin because he has a great sense of humour. Sometimes I think Pippin and I are more alike than I’d generally admit.
Do you have a favourite scene from the trilogy?
Yes, my all-time favourite scene is when Denethor was going mad and trying to burn Faramir and himself. I love this scene because it truly reveals the hero in Pippin despite his clumsy, silly exterior…he’s really a very beautiful person.
What character left out of the films do you miss most?
Tom. Tom Tom Tom. I was probably most disappointed in the movies because of the lack of Tom. Although I understand why they would leave him out considering his scene in the books has to be the most random non-related scene in any book that I’ve ever read.
Do you know any Sindarin or Quenya?
Elvish is a lot like Spanish to me now. When I hear it, I can pick out words and get the general idea of the meaning of a sentence-but I can’t do it on my own. I’ve never tried to learn Quenya unfortunately. It is, after all, a forbidden language.
What are you looking forward most to in ROTK EE?
I haven’t read any spoilers for it, but I would love to see Faramir and Eowyn’s wedding. I’d also love to see the scouring of the Shire, but the wedding intrigues me because I love both the Rohirric and Gondorian cultures that Peter Jackson created. To see both cultures coming together would be a truly beautiful sight.
