Intermission

Well, folks. I am taking a short break.

The demands of this little project are taking its toll. I'm not going so far as to say that I've bitten off more than I can chew, however certain constraints have forced me into following a much slower pace that I had anticipated. I had planned to be halfway through The Two Towers at this point. It's not that I underestimated the amount of work it would be. My mistake was overestimating the amount of time I would be able to dedicate to it. As such, when combined with the other priorities in my life, it seems like I haven't been able to come up for air. At times, my frustration has even led me to be a bit impatient and defensive with some of the comments left here. This will not do at all.

At first I toyed with the idea of taking a long break, not starting up again until maybe the first of the year. But not only would that make it too difficult to get back into the routine, it's hardly fair to the handful of readers that have gotten "sucked into" this and look forward to the next post. So I am making a compromise between what I want to do and what I need to do. I won't be posting for about a week. During that time I will be getting some much needed rest and recharging my batteries. I'll also be tending to matters that have fallen by the wayside over the last six weeks or so.

Expect that I will take a similar break after The Two Towers. Also, it's likely that I won't be finishing Return of the King until well into January (yes, I intend to post on the Appendices as well). Being as the story is now about to get more complicated I will be trying to include maps whenever I can and at Book Four, I plan to include a section at the end of each post called "meanwhile, on the eastern/western side of the Anduin" that tells you exactly where the other stories are in relation to the one being read. So, for example, if Sam and Frodo are meeting Faramir for the first time, I'll briefly describe what Merry and Pippin as well as Gimli, Legolas and Aragorn or doing at exactly that moment. Should be interesting.

I ask for your pardon and patience for a short while.

So, until the horn of Gondor sounds, I'll see ya later.