The New Hobbit Hole

[HairOfTheDog]

Welcome to The New Hobbit Hole
Concerning Hobbits
The New Hobbit Chronicles

This is a continuation of the infamous thread New Zealander Builds Hobbit Hole originally posted on January 26, 2001 by John Farson, who at the time undoubtedly thought he had found a rather obscure article that would elicit a few replies and die out. Without knowing it, he became the founder of the Hobbit Hole. For reasons incomprehensible to some, the thread grew to over 4100 replies. It became the place for hobbits and friends of hobbits to chit chat and share LoTR news and views, hang out, and talk amongst ourselves in the comfort of familiar surroundings.

In keeping with the new posting guidelines, the thread idea is continuing here, as will the Green Dragon Inn, our more structured spin-off thread, as soon as we figure out how to move all the good discussion that has been had there. As for the Hobbit Hole, we will just start fresh, bringing only a few mathoms such as the picture above with us to make it feel like home, and perhaps a walk down memory lane:

Our discussion has been light:

It very well may be that a thread named "New Zealander builds Hobbit hole" will end up being the longest Tolkien thread of them all, with some of the best heartfelt content... Sorry John, but I would have rather it had been one with a more distinguished title!… post 252 - HairOfTheDog

However, I can still celebrate, with quiet dignity, the fact that what started as a laugh about some wacko in New Zealand has mutated and grown into a multifaceted discussion of the art, literature, and philosophy that is Tolkien. And now that I've managed to write the most pompous sentence of my entire life, I agree, Rosie… post 506 - JenB

Hah! I was number 1000!! (Elvish victory dance... wait, no; that would be too flitty) … post 1001 - BibChr

Real men don't have to be afraid of being flitty! Go for it. – post 1011 – HairOfTheDog

Seventeen years to research one mystical object seems a bit excessive… post 1007 - JenB

Okay...who's the wise guy who didn't renew Gandalf's research grant?… post 1024 – Overtaxed

To the very philosophical:

…Judas Iscariot obviously was a good man, or he wouldn't have been chosen to be one of the Apostles. He loved Jesus, like all of the Apostles, but he betrayed him. Yet without his betrayal, the Passion and Crucifixion would never have occurred, and mankind would not have been redeemed. So without his self-destruction infinite good would not have been accomplished. I certainly do not mean this to be irreverant but it seems to me that this describes the character of Gollum, in the scenes so movingly portrayed above… Lucius Cornelius Sulla

To fun but heartfelt debates about the integrity and worth of some of the characters…

…Anyone else notice how Boromir treats the hobbits? He's very fond of them but he seems to think of them as children - ruffling Frodo's hair, calls them all 'little ones'. He likes them, but I don't think he really respects them… post 1536 - JenB

Yes... Tolkien told us not to trust Boromir right off the bat when he began to laugh at Bilbo, until he realized that the Council obviously held this hobbit in high esteem. What a pompous dolt… post 1538 - HairOfTheDog

…I think almost every fault of his can be traced directly back to his blindness to anything spiritual or unseen. He considers the halflings as children, because that is what they look like. He considers the only hope of the ring to be in taking it and using it for a victory in the physical realm. He cannot see what the hobbits are truly made of, he cannot see the unseen hope of what the destruction of the ring might mean--the destruction of Sauron himself, and he cannot see the unseen danger that lies in the use of the ring itself… I just feel sorry for Boromir--he is like a blind but honorable man, trying to take the right path on the road but missing the right path entirely because he simply cannot see it… post 1548 - Penny1

Boromir isn't a jerk, he's a jock… post 2401 – Overtaxed

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Oh, I think by the time Frodo reaches the Cracks, he's not even himself anymore! I think he's not only on the brink of a dangerous place physically, he's on the brink of losing himself completely during the exchange with Gollum. But for some reason, the take-over isn't complete till he actually has to throw the Ring in. The person speaking to Gollum is not Frodo, but the "Wheel of Fire" that Sam sees. After the Ring is destroyed, Frodo not only comes back to himself, but comes back with the unbearable (to him) knowledge of what it's like to be completely without compassion. I think that's why it's so important to him to be compassionate in the Shire… post 2506 - 2Jedismom

…Regarding Frodo's compassion... it's a little too much at the end. Even Merry tells him that he's going to have to quit being so darn nice. But you're right. He's learned a lesson about evil that very few ever learn since it wasn't an external lesson but an internal one. (Those kinds of lessons have the greatest impact) Not only did he totally succumb to it, but he was rather ruthless to my little Smeagol… post 2516 - carton253

Well that Frodo was a big mean bully! (to Smeagol)… post 2519 – Overtaxed

So as you can see, everything JRR Tolkien (and Peter Jackson) is welcome here in our New Row, our soon-to-be familiar New Hobbit Hole…; philosophy, opinion, good talk and frequent silliness.

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

With most of us so out of practice, I get the feeling that the entmoot male choir might sound a lot like the Budweiser Bullfrog commercials.

Bud
wie
ser.

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

Congrats to your dad! Not a golfer, but I do watch on TV sometimes. I know that this has to be a great day for him!

[RosieCotton]

Halvah is a mix, but she's a mix with a Himalayan, which has the same coloring. I have one other cat, an older one who's another Siamese mix (Cleo). She's actually darker, so I'm not sure what she's mixed with! She's beautiful.

Tam and Cleo are major talkers - I can identify with you. They both come yowling when I get home!

[2Jedismom]

My father-in-law hit a hole in one and after he was cremated, that's where they sprinkled his ashes...around that hole! We like to joke around about it, saying "Steve's dad is out on the golf course".

[HairOfTheDog]

He is a big ole orange tom... about 15 pounds. Blind now from Glaucoma. All he see are blurry forms, which he attacks unless you talk to him at let him know you are not one of the dogs. The dogs live in terror. He will bump into them when they are asleep on the floor, and then blame them for it. His name is "Kitty #8".

We have a bad habit of not naming cats in our family (they only come to "Kitty! Kitty!" anyway), so by the time we brought the fourth "Kitty" into the vet's office years ago, they started numbering them to keep the files straight. ("Is this the "Kitty" that was put to sleep? - Or the "Kitty" with the flea allergy?")

Kitty #6 is still alive and living with my Dad. He is a 20 pound Orange tom that is really old. Seven disappeared on me. I worried about him for weeks. He was a cute little guy.

[htur_75]

Cairo also yowls when I am in the kitchen, (thinks I am going to fix him something to eat), yowls when we are eating dinner (or sits there and looks at us as if to say, "Well, where is mine?"), and yowls in the morning when we wake up (always when we are in the process of getting up to take a shower). He's getting up there in years, but still in good health so far.

He's about 12 years old, and we got him about a year and a half ago. He and his brother, Piglet, needed a good home. His brother ended up having to be put to sleep due to health problems (Cairo fell on him, we think, while fighting, and broke a couple of ribs and had a collapsed lung, poor thing).

Piglet's real name was BarfoStinkySchitzoPiglet. And yes he lived up to his name. He came with the name PussBoots, but never responded to his name (he was dumb). He did however repsond to "Piggy Piggy". Don't know if it was because it sounded like "Kitty, Kitty" or not though.

[g'nad]

bud...bud...bud...

[RosieCotton]

Mine all seem to have their favorite times to talk. Halvah actually DOES talk, she just isn't as loud as the other two. She yowls the whole time I'm getting ready in the morning, while the others ignore me until breakfast time. Cleo is the most nerve-wracking - she sounds like a newborn!

The other day I went to take Fiona out and had both front livingroom windows open. Cleo and Tam each took a window and sat and screamed at me - loud! How DARE I go outside when they were there wanting attention??

Cleo is the only one of my cats that's even near old - she's about eight. I got a call this spring from a guy I know through work. A friend of his wife's was looking for a new home for her, and he knew I had Siamese cats (or one and a mix) and thought I might be willing to take her. It wasn't exactly planned, but she's a wonderful kitty.

I can only imagine what the neighbors think of me sometimes. Maybe strutting around with Narsil would actually be an IMPROVEMENT on my current image...

[RosieCotton]

We have a bad habit of not naming cats in our family (they only come to "Kitty! Kitty!" anyway), so by the time we brought the fourth "Kitty" into the vet's office years ago, they started numbering them to keep the files straight.

LOL! Oh, Hair, this is so sad...I don't even know where to start!

[htur_75]

Cairo just says "Mrow" (over and over of course), and can get really loud when he wants attention NOW! There are also times when he will stand in the middle of the bed or room and just start "Mrow-ow"ing like he's going to die. I hate it when he does that. I always have to call his name, or go find him to make sure he's ok. It just breaks my heart. I can't tell if he is in pain at all, mourning hte fact that he can't go outside, pining for his brother, or just wants to hear his own voice. He seems to be fine after he does that, I just hate listening to him.

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

("Is this the "Kitty" that was put to sleep?

Uh, Hair, if your vet has to ask you this question, maybe you should change vets.

G'nad, I think I am the frog in the middle, heavier and older.

[2Jedismom]

I just checked on Joshua while he was taking a nap. Get a load of this! LOL

[Scott from the Left Coast]

It is highly possible that when g'nad said: "Yeah, I can see the Elf in him", he was describing the material that was stuck between said Orc's teeth.

And those ears! What appears cute about them is more likely something akin to being in boxing ring with Mike Tyson, when Mike is hungry.

But your protestations in defense of the attractions in the physical characteristics of certain Orcs is a worry. We wouldn't want you to pull a Saruman on us. With your high standing in the Shire and your extensive knowledge of our strengths and weaknesses, your turn toward the shadow would be devastating to our fortunes.

So do not be fooled by those gallant....er, red...eyes. Only terror and loss lives within.

[Scott from the Left Coast]

Now those guys...they're cuter than the Orcs that Hair likes.

[HairOfTheDog]

LOL! - What is wrong with the numbering system? It keeps the vet from making further notes on the dead cat's file. (They don't always know to look back through the old work to see if this is the kitty that is still living) With the numbers, we have no problems!

[RosieCotton]

Oh c'mon! You have to admit that guy is cute - for an orc! (Of course, that's about the same as being "attractive for a large fat hairy biker dude", but...)

[HairOfTheDog]

Thanks Rosie! My comrade in arms!

[HairOfTheDog]

Your son is being attacked by balloon animals! - Help him!

[HairOfTheDog]

I still like the ears....

[Scott from the Left Coast]

There's just no accounting for women in these dark and terrible days.