On Marriage

I've been trying for weeks now to get There And Back Again on our Lord of the Rings pinball machine. Ever since Kelly first got it (I say first because he has gotten it four times now!), I've been pretty jealous. It's such a magical wizard mode!

It really does sound like you and the machine are getting married. It's so romantic.

Since we've had this machine, I've destroyed the ring, completed the Two Towers multiball and gotten all of the super jackpots, killed Shelob, saved Gandalf from Saruman, escaped the Ringwraiths, broken the dam for the Ents, and even conquered a Warg attack. But I had never gotten There And Back Again.

Until today.

There I was. I had already destroyed the ring and gotten all 6 modes, so all the lights were flashing around the ring hole, as they do. I was on my last ball. I hadn't collected any of the three Elf rings to get the mode start lit again, so I was aiming for those. On my quest to do so, I acquired an extra ball. And good thing, too! As I was shooting for an Elf ring, the ball drained!

The extra ball popped up and I looked at Kelly and said, "Do you know what is lit!?" He just smiled because he's a good husband and knows that I'm superstitious about being told how well I'm doing. I launched the ball right into the Orthanc tower so it was delivered to my left flipper. Perfect. I took the shot, and it flew right into the ring hole, like magic. The music started and I screamed.

Kelly was laughing now and said, "Just enjoy it!"

When you first hit the ring shot, the machine gives you a lovely Ding! backed by the wedding ceremony music. It's the most wonderful feeling in the world.

After the first ring shot, all of the ramps, orbits, and vertical upkicks are lit. I shot Legolas right off and a page turned on the LED screen. Frodo said, "The Treason of Saruman!" as a picture of Gandalf's surprised face flashed on the screen with a soft border. Frodo and I were just sitting down for a cup of tea after all these years, flipping through an old photo album.

"Ah, yes," I said to Frodo, "I do remember the treason of Saurman!"

I hit the ring hole again. Ding! I squealed with delight. We turned a page in the photo album and reminisced  about the Witch King. Oh, that Witch King! (Still haven't killed him yet)

My ball drained after 2 pictures, but I wasn't so nervous about beating the mode. I just wanted to get there, say "I do", and turn the pages of the old photobook with Frodo.

It's been the most magical day, marrying our pinball machine.

Now I just need to: complete the Fellowship multiball, the Return of the King multiball, kill the Witch King, and make it to Valinor. I'm on my way.

There are rumors of a possible Hobbit pinball machine. If that happens, Kelly and I will have no choice. It will be ours. Our own. Our precious.