Tolkien Blog Party Meme

I'm participating in a Tolkien blog party over at "The Edge of Precipice." It's complete with giveaways of awesome Tolkien stuff, so be sure to check it out. :)

Now on to the meme!

1.  Have you read The Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit? If so, how many times? Once for each book, though I've only read the abridged Lord of the Rings on audio.

2.  Have you seen any movies based on them? Yes, part 1 of "The Hobbit." I'll be watching all three Lord of the Rings movies soon. :)

3.  Who first introduced you to Middle Earth? My parents (mainly my dad) along with a bunch of our friends.
4.  Who are your three favorite characters?  (Feel free to elaborate on whys). Ooh, that's a tough one. I like Golem, just because he's so odd and adds so much to the story. The Ents were funny, and I like Gandalf.

5.  What's your favorite Middle Earth location? Hobbiton.
6.  If you could belong to one of the races of Free Folk (Men, Elves, Dwarves, Hobbits, Ents), which would you choose? The hobbits, because they like food and a good time. :)

7.  Would you rather eat lembas or taters? Lembas. Or taters. (Can I say both)?

8.  If you lived in Middle Earth, what weapon would you prefer wielding? (Well, magic, but I'm not sure that's what they're looking for). In that case, a bow and arrow. Call me a coward, but I'd rather shoot from far away than be in combat where the enemy is a foot away from you.
9.  What draws you to Tolkien's stories?  (The characters, the quests, the themes, the worlds, etc.) The wonderful storybuilding. Everything is so precise and detailed, down to the maps in the books.
10. List up to five of your favorite lines/quotes from the books or movies. "Not all those who wander are lost." "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." "My precious." "You shall not pass!" (Get ready for a long one):

"Frodo: I can't do this, Sam.
Sam: I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here. But we are. It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.
Frodo: What are we holding onto, Sam?
Sam: That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo... and it's worth fighting for."

(And because I couldn't resist, here's a bonus one): "The world is indeed full of peril and in it there are many dark places. But still there is much that is fair. And though in all lands, love is now
mingled with grief, it still grows, perhaps, the greater."

Be sure to check out the post below this one. I have some exciting news!!! :D