Posted on 03/14/2002 5:07:26 AM PST by HairOfTheDog
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.
I think it was sometime back in the early part of the Reagan administration when Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson were in the ascendancy with “The Moral Majority” and the Christian Broadcasting Network. Some liberal pundit or congressman came up with the phrase “right wing religious fanatics” to describe the phenomenon. I remember chuckling to myself and thinking “They’d call anyone who went to church a right wing religious fanatic”. And ever since, I’ve humorously thought of myself as a “right wing religious fanatic”, quite tongue in cheek. If you know the specific attribution of the term, Corin, I would love to know it so I can solidify my hold on my handle, as it were.
Back at work and already contending with the idjits. Had an e-mail from the boss that said "where are we with this?" It was something I left for one of his secretaries to handle while I was out regarding event tickets for some board members. I told him, they were supposed to let her know by August 22nd, so if she didn't tell you, there are no requests. He responded "can you follow up on this?" I thought I just did...
Oh well...it's Monday...and I'm off to another meeting in a few. Back later this afternoon.
BUT, are you ready for this one? IT'S RAINING!
The Concerning Hobbits theme is in the In Dreams piece....like the first couple of bars.
Sorry if my blood lust is up...painful meeting already this morning...
I've got a real American hero for a neighbor...Special Ops guy...he earned a Silver Star and a Purple Heart in the Battle of Mogadishu, and he spent most of last year in Afghanistan doing "direct action"...we shared some of our similar experiences over homebrewed pints...he's a great, unassuming, mellow guy...my kids love him...our daughters are best friends...
talkin' about the old days got my blood up...God forgive me...
Hmmm…..Wait a minute now……Threadkiller in the Hole, wasn’t he a semi-demented hermit dwarf who lived under the Lonely Mountain long ago? I think I’m distantly related to him, I…..I…..I think, by golly yes, he was my Great Uncle! That means I’m a…..I’m a……a dwarf! Boy, that sure explains a lot. Oh, blessed self revelation, now that I know what I am, now I can begin finding out WHO I am. Consider me a dwarf one and all. Vim Bronzehand (with a ^ over the i in Vim – don’t know how to do that) at your service! And please be a little more tactful with your future references to my Great Uncle Threadkiller, if you don’t mind….. I'll have to do a little research and tell you all the story of Threadkiller someday.... Have a great day, all!
The limit is in the 64,000 range.
I honked when I went past the exit for SR40 (exit 352 or 357, I don't remember which) did you hear me? ;^)
Was he the one hanging out with TN Republican? And that's why he became the "Threadkiller"? Or am I thinking of some other dwarf?
You should be able to, I hear they are pretty light.
Oh...and another funny one - my tin whistle playing brother came out as a "Springle-Ring-Dancing Dragon!"
Maaan! You blew my cover!...and for what it's worth...g'nad not demented...g'nad just not right in the head...
Very good stuff indeed. I haven't had a chance to review it all but it looks great. Meant to copy you on my earlier self revelatory post. See above.... Looks like I'm Vim Bronzehand, a dwarf after all. Glad that's settled. But oh, by the way. Threadkiller in the Hole was my Great Uncle, so you'll need to be a little more tactful from now on referencing him, if you please.... I'll be telling more of Threadkiller's sad but noble history in the coming months.... Have a good one!
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