As anyone can tell from by looking at my profile, my name is not Lysander Meridith. It is Andrew Tate. How did I come up with the internet persona of Lysander Meridith? Some have thought it was a reference to a character in the Lord of the Rings novels, but it is not. It is actually the combination of the name of two brigade commanders in the Army of the Potomac during the battle of Gettysburg. I took the first name of Lysander Cutler, and the last name of Solomon Meridith.

But why would I do this? Well, it all started with a little computer game called "Gettysburg", which was tied in with the movie of the same name. A simple, yet enjoyable, game, it allowed you to take command of either the Army of Northern Virginia or the Army of the Potomac. Despite the allure of having the ability to change history, the best part of the game was the play-by-play of the actual battle of Gettysburg, narrated by the incomparable Shelby Foote.

I fondly remember him talking about the rear guard action by the Iron Brigade (Meridith's Brigade), and how the brigade held off the Confederate attack just long enough for a defense to form on Cemetery Hill, at great cost to the brigade. From the first time I heard of the heroics of Meridith and the Iron Brigade, the name stuck.

As for the other general, Lysander Cutler, I just liked his first name. Thus when it came time for me to pick a user name, I wanted a unique name that expressed my interest in the Civil War. Thus Lysander Meridith was born.

At the time of this posting, there is only 35 hours and 37 minutes left until I will be viewing the last Star Wars movie ever. It is getting so close I can almost taste it.

Until next time, godspeed...

P.S.: Tomorrow, there will be no posting, as I will be gone all day. However, be sure to tune in Thursday, when I review some film I saw the night before.