The Finals Countdown

Well folks, today marks the middle of the end. The beginning of the end was probably last thursday when I got out of my last summer semester class. Today was the first day of finals.

So far I knocked out two of them. Thank the gods, cause if I hadn't I would be stressing big time right now.

I got an 87% on my New Testament class and a 94% on my Current Social Problems.

Fairly satisfied with those scores. Now I just have Classical Traditions to go.

Also, I'm coming home this weekend. Be excited.

In other news, I'm watching Lord of the Rings with my roommates. Basically the best thing ever. A few notable quotes so far:

"One does not simply walk into Mordor."

"One does not simply plug in a USB the first time."

"One does not simply pause an online game."

"One does not simply hie to Kolob."

"One does not simply be productive on Sunday."

"One does not simply destabilize a Ugandan warlord by liking facebook statuses."

"One does not simply leave the friend zone."

"One does not simply read these quotes in a voice that doesn't belong to Boromir."

"One does not simply watch Lord of the Rings without laughing at the gay parts."

The last one, was of course me. And my roommates disagree. But if you realize that Ian McKellan is an active homosexual, you start to notice it spilling through in his acting. So many good quotes. Also, Frodo and Sam make a better couple than most Hollywood romances. Just saying.

I respect the epicness of it all, but really, those movies are also freaking funny.

Might as well review the movies while I'm at it.

Lord of the Rings is my favorite trilogy of all time. There are better films out there, like Warrior, but this trilogy takes the cake. Actually, it takes the bacon wrapped steak. The christian symbolism is super deep, especially once you go full nerd and study it like me. For example, there was a war in heaven in which Melkor, a son of god, led some of god's other children to rebel and reshape the world. He and the fallen angels were cast out and started a war against the true god. Eventually, Gandalf, also a son of god, is sent to save the world. He falls through fire and water, casts down his enemy and is resurrected in a purified state. Everywhere the christian symbolism and parallelism are incredible.

Some of my favorite characters of any story anywhere are in these stories. Aragorn is an example of what men can be if they live up to their potential. Sam is the most reliable friend anyone could ask, brave not because he has trust in his skills, but because he is willing to do whatever it takes for his friends. And Boromir is one of the most human heroes I've ever heard of. He has the charisma and the skill, but he has a weakness that criples him and nearly causes the destruction of everything he loves. All it takes is one bad move.

Almost everything is perfect. I've seen hours of videos chronicling the filming process and if I could work on any movie it would be this one.

But I have to ask, why doesn't Gandalf do any magic? He's a wizard, right? Thats his thing? So why on earth does he fight by smacking orcs with a painted stick? The most magic he does is to shine a light at the fell beasts. Impressive work, chap. Harry Potter could do that year one, but if thats what floats your boat.

Til next week.

Josh Whitlock