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.
Anyway, I gotta get cleaned up, then I'll be back too...maybe try to get into the egroup chat room.
Bet you forgot the worcestershire sauce!
I'm not even going to TRY to catch up, unless of course there have been any interesting PICTURES posted recently I should be aware of.;^)
Hubby & I have decided we really must relace our 30-plus year old set of books; I'm re-reading FOTR, he's up to TTT; and pages are falling out (and those that are there a a lovely shade of yellow), covers are missing, etc. Perhaps I will take a trip to Barnes & Noble this week.
I don't know how many of you are familiar with this site, but there are some really cool pictures here and it is updated frquently. Musings of Viggo. And no, it's not all about Aragorn all the time.:)In fact there is a lot of "Hobbity" content.
VIGGO QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
“When everything looks worst, the individuals in the fellowship have to find in themselves some sort of hope. They have to meet their individual challenges so that the group challenge can work. In the end, it really isn't about only Frodo, or only Gandalf, or only Aragorn, or what have you. You can be a fan of any one of the characters, but in the end I think you end up being a fan of all of them.”
So true. In fact, I think you will find that HairOfTheDog has become a big fan of Boromir!
Not much has happened of late I guess... Today I have been spellbound-glued to the Live Eagle Nest Cam here in Washington State. There is a pair of eagles tending some eggs there that are set to hatch around the 22nd.
I have been copying some of the events there here in my Best of Eagle Cam Photo Album If you would like to catch the highlights and don't want to watch them for hours the way I have been. They do spend hours just kindof sitting on the eggs while the other one hunts and does eagle stuff. Then they switch. Kind-of curious to see waht they will do now that the sun has set and it is getting dark... Don't know if the mate will return and settle in for the night while we can still see anything.
Lucius - were you watching the eagle cam today when Mr. Gwahir finally came home? - Click my "Best of" link up there if you didn't - it was cool.
BTW my bro-in-law still hasn't seen the movie but now says he WILL go. All my propogandizing finally paid off.;^)
Missed it, was out catching some dinner for me and Mrs. Sulla. You can clearly see that there are two eggs in your pics. I looked up some information on eagles, it seems that the females are larger and stronger, and that the second egg usually hatches about 40 days after the first one. If this is true, this will be a long running show.
Boy, I'd better start reading faster............
Down the valley of the shadows,
in the red, and bloody dawn,
rode the forty thousand demons
bringing evil to the land.
Pass the word among the kingdoms
to every corner of the land,
find the one who has been chosen
to wield the power in his hand.
Face the demons,
stand your ground,
on this day Hell rides on Helm’s Deep.
To the last man,
we’ll wage war,
for this day death calls on Helm’s Deep.
Gather all your sunrise warriors,
ride them hard, and ride them fast,
comes the Dark Lord and his legions,
we must meet them at the pass.
Farmer, warrior, Lord, and Wizard
stand together at the wall.
Seven Kings shall heed the message,
a ring of gold to bind them all.
Face the demons,
stand your ground,
on this day Hell rides on Helm’s Deep.
To the last man,
we’ll wage war,
for this day death calls on Helm’s Deep.
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