This journal will no longer be updated.

I've been part of Live Journal since February 22, 2002 and it has been an important and life-altering part of my journey. There is no doubt that I would not have the happy existance I have today were it not for Live Journal and the enduring friendships I formed here.

But the time has come to close this chronicle and move on to other things. I won't delete it. I'll leave it here as an archive for any who might still wish to read my Sean and Elijah stories.

I wish all of you as much joy in your journey as this blog has brought to mine.

Love always....
Rakshi

I've loved him since I was 15. He's my hero, and today is his birthday.

A tribute to a guy named Sam.

“Far above the Ephel Dúath in the West the night-sky was still dim and pale. There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach. His song in the Tower had been defiance rather than hope; for then he was thinking of himself. Now, for a moment, his own fate, and even his masters, ceased to trouble him. He crawled back into the brambles and laid himself by Frodo's side, and putting away all fear he cast himself into a deep untroubled sleep."

I want to add a special 'Happy Birthday' to my dearest, Plastic Sam from Plastic Town.



( The beauty that is Samwise....Collapse )

I love you, Sam. Happy Birthday.

This entry was originally posted at http://rakshi.dreamwidth.org/1314145.html. Feel free to comment there or here. Makes no difference to me. Happy Days!!

ink_gypsy. Finished off an old one just for you. Enjoy!

( How Could This Have Happened?Collapse )

You all know my favorite passage from 'Lord of the Rings'. It it seems particularly meaningful today:

"Far above the Ephel Dúath in the West the night-sky was still dim and pale. There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty forever beyond its reach."

Farewell dearest mews1945. May you find that place of light and high beauty that is forever beyond the reach of shadow.

I haven't been around much lately, but I had to come today because it's a birthday!! It's a very special birthday. It's the birthday of two little folks who are very, VERY important in my life.

Frodo has taught me so much. Perseverance, tolerance, courage, and most of all love. His kindness and humility put me to shame at times. I've wished I could be as accepting and gentle as he is when faced with crisis or even just annoyances! I've wished I could accept my tasks in life with just HALF his grace and dignity. Would *I* have volunteered to take that Ring to the Cracks of Doom? I doubt it. I doubt many of us would. But I've had my own rings to carry in the course of my life. And my beloved Frodo has been my inspiration and guide through many of those journeys. I love him. And I admire him. And I'm so very grateful that he walks by my my side on this journey we call life. I can't think of a better companion... though I CAN think of one who is just as good. ;)

And what would I do without Bilbo? Without his guidance and inspiration I would probably still be sitting in Michigan, alone and miserable. He was my teacher. He was the one who's voice was in my ears on the day I got in my car and pointed it Westward, never to look back. He was the one whose song rang in my ears as I dug up all my roots and began a completely new life at a time when most folks are digging in for the long haul. I'm so grateful to this kind, courageous, adventurous Hobbit.

And on this day most of all I want to offer up my love to both of them. I honor their lessons. I honor all the taught me and all they inspired me to achieve. And I wish them the happiest of all possible birthdays. I can't think of two little souls who deserve happiness more than they.

Happy Birthday, my dearest Bilbo and Frodo Baggins... and thank you.

And to celebrate... here are a few reposted mathoms. Enjoy!



Also I would also like to repost three tribbles I wrote to honor this important birthday, one from Sam, one from Frodo, and one from Bilbo. I wrote it to honor my beloved Hobbits on their birthdays, and to remember Sam who was beloved of both of them. Frodo and Bilbo have been as important in my life as most people in it. They have taught me courage, determination, and most of all from dearest Bilbo - a spirit of adventure which led me to Seattle and the happy life I now have here. I hope I carry the spark of their spirits with me always. Thank you, birthday boys, for all you have given to ALL of us... and thank you dear Professor Tolkien for giving us the work, and the characters, who have changed our lives on levels and in ways too deep and profound to be expressed in words.

( Sam's Mathom, Frodo's Mathom, and Bilbo's MathomCollapse )

In gratitude to all who serve or served.

Happy birthday to one of the dearest ladies on LJ! I miss our lunches and our talks.

Have a wonderful birthday and a most joyful year ahead!!!

... all I have to say is this: Oh. My. GOD. This movie broke my heart.

I could have used a bit MORE character development and a bit LESS CGI action. But still an amazing film.

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there... and also to those of you who do a lot of 'mothering' even though the title's not 'official'. I hope you have a joyous day and receive all the love and recognition you so richly deserve.

My thoughts turn to my own mom today, of course. It's rare that a day goes by that I don't think of her and miss her. There is still great sadness in my heart that she's not here to share the happiness I feel in my life. But I also feel very grateful and blessed that I had such a good friend by my side for so many wonderful years.

This was taken in Frankenmuth, MI where we went for fantastic chicken dinners that my mom loved. It was one of our favorite trips. We took Brian with us that year and I just love this picture of the two of them.

Woot!! They're ... or rather we're ... doing a full tribute to Viggo, showing four of his films including ROTK. Cathy and I already have tickets to the official 'Tribute to Viggo Mortensen' night where he'll be attending and doing a Q&A. Oh, man... hot King of Gondor in Seattle!!!

Thinking about Sean's panel at ECCC and truth to tell I found some of what he said to be rather annoying. He seems to deliberately denigrate his friendship with... not just Elijah... but any of the his LOTR cast members. When asked who his best friend on the set was he said, in a very abrupt tone "Christopher Lee!" then instantly turned to the next questioner and said: "Next!" making it clear that he found the question annoying and did not want to be questioned further on the subject.

He commented twice in a rather sarcastic manner on 'erotic fan fiction' that was written as a result of the movies... though he wasn't asked about it even once.

I found both those comments to be more than a little annoying.

I mainly found it annoying because back in the day, when those movies were coming out, he couldn't stop talking about how close he and Elijah were and how much he lurved him. He volunteered that information. No one had to ask him for it. And have there ever been any two actors who were more loving and snuggly when they appeared together? Not that I remember.

If the way he talks NOW represents his real feelings, I feel as though their behavior back then was something of a fraud. And that is what I find annoying.

We'll probably never know what actually happened in that relationship, meaning his relationship with Elijah or with the rest of the cast, but it's clear that something did because I've never seen such a complete and total flip-flop. He's made comments in other appearances that denigrate those relationships or distance himself from them. This was just the one time I happened to hear it for myself.

And on a personal note, if he didn't want 'erotic fan fiction' written about either the characters OR he and Elijah... he might have been wise not to provide such rich fodder for those of us who write it. Any ONE of the seven million adoring looks Sam gave to Frodo in those movies - see my icon - (or that Sean gave to Elijah while they were promoting those movies for that matter) was enough to hand plot-bunnies to every LOTR writer who ever lived.

And btw, Sean, we were writing Sam and Frodo erotic fan fiction LONG before you put on those ears and feet. It didn't start with you and it won't end just because you don't approve of it.

Sheesh!

OK. That's all just my thoughts and opinions on the matter and I realize I may be totally off base with all of it.

Just got home a little while ago from Emerald City Comic Con 2016. It was actually the worst con since I've been here as far as celebrity guests was concerned, but we still had a good time. Stayed two nights at our beloved Paramount Hotel, went to the Paramount Theater Froday night and saw "Star Trek Ultimate Voyage" which was mind-blowingly incredible... one of the best shows I've ever seen in my LIFE!

Spent a lot of Saturday being Sam and Frodo, which we always love.

And there were a few guests who were worth seeing.

Saw Sean's panel today. My god, he has really gained weight. I feel bad for the guy. After just winning that 'Iron Man' thing a few short months ago, he stops training and wow! Just goes to show you that it can happen fast and you can't get complacent about that kind of thing. He was his usual talkative self and it was fun to see him.







Saw Captain Tight Pants who was his usual charming, irrepressible self. I adore Nathan.



But the BEST moment came when we were at the WETA booth and the WETA people called a bunch of us dressed as Tolkien characters back behind the counter with them for pictures.



Right now I'm suffering from the post-con blues. Always takes me a couple days to shake it off. Feeling really sad. But.. I expect it'll pass.

The con wasn't nearly as good as it has been in previous years, but we still had a good time. Had dinner last night with voontah and her sweet hubby, Doug and that is always a treat. All in all... a good weekend.

.... being Sean and Elijah?

I've been writing on what I hope will be the book called 'Revolutionary Heart' nearly non-stop. It's the best I've felt about writing in years. I'm at over 62,000 words and I honestly think it's done. It takes over 60,000 words to be classified a novel, and it's made that with room to spare.

Cathy is now doing the final edits, and then I'll submit it and we'll see. I decided that I wasn't going to post it here, or anywhere else, until after I've submitted it. In fact I took down the chapters I'd previously posted. Not to be mean or secretive, but because I don't know what publishers might have to say about work posted publicly and I didn't want to take the chance. It may get turned down. And if it does, nothing lost and I'll post it here or publish it myself and that'll be that. But, man, if it does. Wow. What a thought.

The oddest part of all of it is that I'm really in love with these guys. They started out being Sean and Elijah. But somewhere along the line, that changed. Now... they're David and Nate and any resemblance they bore to S&E has probably been written out except for odd little things like the color of their eyes. They just became two original characters with lives and thoughts and loves of their own. It was weird and wonderful and I am really, really happy with how it all turned out.

I've been stuck with S&E for too long. I loved them. And I still love them. But they're kind of the past for me now. I really hope I can do more with David and Nate in the future. Again, it's all conjecture at this point. But it's been a great experience for me, come what may.

I couldn't have done it without Cathy. She's a amazing editor. She took the copyrighting/editing class years ago and she absolutely absorbed what she learned. She's made it a better story by about 1000 per-cent. kc_risenphoenix, who always posted such amazing pictures, has also been like a guru to me through this process. He's quite a successful author in his own right and has encouraged and supported me from the get go. I'll probably submit RH first to his company, DreamSpinner Press.


PLUS... I'm taking a writing class that has helped me a LOT! I've enjoyed that too. I'm getting top grades and my teacher has been very vocal about how much she loves my writing. That's helped a lot because the writing I'm doing for my class is in many different styles and genres and I was worried that I wouldn't be able to write anything other than gay romance. LOL! Not that that isn't enough.

All of this may go exactly nowhere. Who knows? But I have to love it that at 72 years of age I can forge into a whole new creative area. It just feels GOOD!!!

I've loved him since I was 15. He's my hero, and today is his birthday.

A tribute to a guy named Sam.

“Far above the Ephel Dúath in the West the night-sky was still dim and pale. There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach. His song in the Tower had been defiance rather than hope; for then he was thinking of himself. Now, for a moment, his own fate, and even his masters, ceased to trouble him. He crawled back into the brambles and laid himself by Frodo's side, and putting away all fear he cast himself into a deep untroubled sleep."

I want to add a special 'Happy Birthday' to my dearest, Plastic Sam from Plastic Town.



( The beauty that is Samwise....Collapse )

I love you, Sam. Happy Birthday.

And here's an Elijah calendar for YOU... and no April Fool involved!

Click on the smaller image here to reach the larger one. Enjoy!!

ETA: SO SORRY. I was looking at the wrong month and the numbers were wrong. It's fixed now.

Just found out the Sean's mom, Patty Duke, has passed away.

My heart goes out to him and to their entire family at this awful time.

:(

Hope you have an amazing day and fantastic year ahead.

After ten years of working at it... and I do mean working...

Well, OK. It didn't happen exactly the way I wanted it to happen. My original goal weight was 150. But for the past seven months I have been floating between 156 and 159. Back and forth. Up a pound, down 1.5, up .6, down .8. I finally went to my doctor and he said: "You are not MEANT to be 150 pounds. Your body is sending a clear message that you need to change that goal weight."

So he wrote a note to my WW leader saying: "I have determined that 160 is the healthy goal weight for this patient." And just like that... I'M ON MAINTENANCE!

I can LOSE more weight... got to 154 at one point, but only if I absolutely STARVE myself, and the minute I go back to normal eating... not OVER eating, just normal, healthy eating... my weight bounces right back to 156-157 and there it stays.

And this is with doing 2 miles of brisk aerobics every morning and walking three miles at night (or doing another 2 miles of aerobics) and that's usually 5 or 6 days a week.

So in three weeks time, I'll be a lifetime member of Weight Watchers!

I honestly think this is the best way for me. The past seven months have been horribly frustrating and stressful. It felt like my body was fighting me every step of the way. It just did not WANT me to be at 150!!

So here's me when I started back in 2006.


And here's me now... or at least here's me back a few months when I weighed about the same as now.. might be a pound or two less now.


And even though I'm 10 years older... I still think I look better NOW!

So.... WOOT!!!