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 haven't seen ET either. Sounds like I'm the lucky one!
Well most of the PC is kept to the movies and the wretched 'Gay' weeks (although maybe Gandalf will come to one of them, grrrr!). There are a number of times during the year when there are no crowds at Disney (or the other theme parks). As I remember, this includes January, after the holidays, until Spring breaks start, in late February; May(?); September until Christmas, except Thanksgiving week. At these periods, you usually have no crowds, and no lines at all, except for short ones at the most popular rides.
Florida barbecue is smoked, and served dry, with the beef and pork sliced, with several different sauces on the side, according to your taste.
OK...now I have to reveal what a stick-in-the-mud I am. :) I don't care for "amusement" parks or going on rides. I'd end up spending a lot of money just to be bored all day.
It's funny you mention that. My older and just younger sister have developed a love of Celtic music, as I have, though we all came to it seperately and without the others knowing about it. Our maternal grandmother was Irish, but she never talked about her Irish roots; I'm not even sure when her family came over. Her paternal grandparents, the Selbys, were from Kentucky and her great grandfather was a colonel in the Confederate Army, but I'm not sure about the maternal side, the Dolans. I don't think anyone in our family ever asked her about or did any sort of search.
My younger sister loves to go to Celtic fests and Highland games, neither of which I have ever done. Living in MA, I could avail myself of some live Celtic music, but I just don't feel like schleping into Boston!
No I hadn't seen it yet... and haven't had a chance to watch it all the way through yet either... But I was getting into it before I had to leave on errands.
Well, I went to town to buy the suddenly-needed new TV! (Remember my sound finally went out on my old one?) Well, since the old one was a 25 inch and I felt it was a good size, I walked into the store ready to buy a 27 inch and be better off than I was.
Well. Once I saw the choices and the bigger sets, I splurged and bought the 32 inch! It is still in the truck... I need to put it on a different piece of furniture than the old one was on... luckily I have my old desk that will work nicely. But I have no idea how I am gonna get it unloaded. It is in a big box and it is heavy! Called a couple friends, but no one is home. hmmmm.
Oh! - and I found Fiddle on the Roof (My now-2nd favorite movie) on DVD and bought that too!
That's very interesting, SC! I feel the same way about the Victorian idea of fluff angels versus the idea of the Biblical Angel. When anyone in the Bible is visited by an Angel, the Angel's first words are "fear not". To me, that means that the creature before them is not some sort of wispy, romantic thing, but a awesome, powerful being of whom they would be afraid!
Does that mean "Thats outrageous! That's silly!"?
It also looks like the style of one of my favorite artists, Will Moses. I think he is the great grandson of Grandma Moses. I just love this style of art. I'm going to have to keep a lookout for more Brueghel!
Well I don't know if you have ever been to a theme park, but the 'rides' in Disneyworld are not much like ordinary amusement parks or state and county fairs. Many of them are meant as educational experiences, presented in an entertaining way. Epcot is more like a permanent World's Fair than it is like an amusement park.
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