Linked by LOTR.

On Wednesday, I said of Ashbourne that ‘nothing fun, funny or even mildly interesting happens there now.’ That isn’t entirely true; something mildly interesting did happen there on Wednesday: I saw a man who looked remarkably like Gollum. I looked at him several times to make sure, and he did. He even sported a passable imitation of the ears. I imagine he must be used to people doing double takes in his direction. I wonder if he knows why.

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My recent watching of the LOTR film trilogy has had one notable and beneficial effect. I always felt a little guilty that I possessed no sense of rapport with horses. Well, I do now, ever since I realised that most of my favourite scenes from the film involved horses being noble, swift, courageous and faithful. It showed today when I met Ange (the sheep farmer) coming up the lane on her beautiful palomino hunter. She stopped to chat, while I spent the whole time stroking the horse’s nose and neck – not awkwardly as I used to, but as naturally as I’ve always done with dogs. He stood stock still the whole time, instead of jinking about as he usually does. ‘Your horse seems to like me today,’ I said. ‘That’s because you’ve put him at his ease,’ she replied. Well, there you go. At one point he turned and looked me full in the face for some time. It was a knowing look. It seemed to say: ‘Got here at last, have you? Good.’

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And tonight I found my way to a Ringie forum website. I assume they’re called Ringies, like Trekkies and Peakies – people who don’t merely immerse themselves in LOTR, but seem to regard it as their primary reality. It was quite an eye-opener, reading all their earnest, deep discussion around facts, details and speculation on such matters as what really happened back in the day when Lord Sauron seduced the Nazgul into his service. It reminded me of the way people discuss the life of Jesus during confirmation classes. I thought of suggesting that they hold their next convention in Ashbourne, home of the real Gollum, but decided that the staid, sleepy little town would probably crumble under the weight of such excitement.