How not to be late to class

[eredien]

Never start an in-depth conversation about Lord of the Rings ten minutes before you have class.

Me: "I am disappointed that they left out Tom Bombadil, though."
Khava: "Tom Bombadil? I hate Tom Bombadil."
Half of the people at the table ask, "how can you hate Tom Bombadil?"
Me: "He's based on Puck, you know."
Catherine: "Puck? Ow."
Me: "Stop thinking about Sandman, Katherine. Not that Puck."
Katherine mumbles something around a mouthful of muffin
Julia: "Yes, Tom Bombadil is very neat. He was really the only one not affected by the ring."
Catherine: "Yes, even Gandalf wouldn't take it."Does a demonstration of what Bombadil does with the ring
Me: "That really says something, considering who Gandalf really is."
Catherine: "Yes, but consider who Sauron is. Er, was."
Me: "Oops. Yeah, I guess you're right. I forgot that."
Julia: "Ooh, the Ents."
Jessie: "And what about the Paths of Death, the ones that Aragorn has to go through?"
Me: "Yeah, wow."
A collective oooh sounds from everyone at the table.
Khava: "Can you guys stop talking about this? I haven't finished reading them all."
Chorus: "Whoops. Sorry."

Repeat for the next twenty minutes or so. Get into a heated discussion on Numenor. Realize you are late for class and run like a maniac halfway across campus, thinking: "Darnit, now I have the Tom Bombadil song stuck in my head."