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.
Is it 4:00 yet?
I came in and had a voice mail from Corin Jr.'s French teacher.
We had given him the benefit of the doubt. He said (and I thought my wife had verified) that he got all the homework caught up. He didn't and he's missed three more assignments.
I'm trying to decide where I want another television in the house. The Nintendo and Playstation will just get put in a box.
As soon as the Mrs. calls, we'll decide whether or not he's just going to turn in his football equipment tonite.
I think he is.
I hate it when that happens.
Let's be real here. His chances of playing on a college team are pretty slim. But, if we pull him from football and from high school he could grow up blaming us for his "missed opportunity."
Interim grades come out this week though. We'll be making some decisions.
I'm catching up after the weekend...
My Mom LOVED Omnis...we had a little red stick shift Omni for awhile. An elderly neighbor with a penchant for mispronouncing words always called it her Omi, so that became its name. It did have the occasionally grumpy day when it didn't want to shift smoothly, but she thought of that as character! It broke her heart when it finally died.
Oh...true story! When I was shopping for MY car a few years back, we went to a used car lot one evening after it was closed, to scope the place out without sales guys bugging us. There was a little red Omni on the lot, so she was wandering around it peering in the windows. Her skirt brushed the bumper and it FELL OFF! It wasn't attached. Scared her for a minute! We set it back on and left, but we got such a laugh out of that - Dad always teased her for loving the junky ol' Omni, but at least it stayed in one piece!
Ugh...yeah, puppy-proofing a house is way different from kid-proofing! My Fiona (I get a kick out of your having a Fiona dog, too!) still isn't past the chewing stage. But her very, very favorite thing to destroy is tissue paper. She can take one Kleenex and spread it in tiny bits throughout the WHOLE HOUSE - leave soggy little pieces stuck to alllll the furniture and all over the floor. It's amazing how much of a mess that makes! My brother took a box of Kleenex down from the shelf where I had it and left it on the couch, so I was reminded of that this weekend...
I guess it's akin to a toddler's ability to spread one Oreo over an entire wall...
Sounds like a good opportunity to teach him about personal accountability.
You and the Mrs. have some tough decisions ahead, I don't envy you. You will be in my prayers about this.
Who was the moron that decided carpeting in bathrooms was a good idea? I wanna know...my bathroom has furry brown carpet, which picks up cat hair like nothing I've ever seen. It's narsty, as my brother would say.
The rest of the house has kind of a late '60's / early '70's thing going - lots of oranges and yellows and greens. Pretty ugly. I REALLY need to work on redecorating this winter. Maybe if I bribe my brothers with cookies and pizza, I can get some help, too!
Her skirt or the bumper? ;-)
Your day (teenagers) will come soon enough (or are you there yet? I keep forgetting).
And just think. I get to do this all over again in another 10 years...
Sounds like my siblings. I know most of them, but not as well as they do. I love Mr. Lunt's cheeseburger song and the Cebu song! And the wacky humor is great...
You and me both! My house dates mid '70's and had the tackiest sunflower wallpaper in the kitchen. I still have the bedroom and bathroom to do...having a hard time picking a color!
Will do, SuziQ! (Hey, that rhymes!)
Keep us updated.
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