The Hall of Fire

Prim, Here is a link that shows not only a similar image of Saturn, but you can see Earth as a light blue star in the upper left of the rings on Saturn's left side. My other passion is amateur astronomy and here are a couple digital sketches I've done based on observational sketches I've done at my ...

Thanks Prim. Nice to be back, very, very nice. Well, here are some more pictures of spring where I live: Aspens in Spring Greens http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f203/ArathornJax/HPIM0189.jpg Go Rest High on that Mountain http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f203/ArathornJax/HPIM0216.jpg Hiking throug...

Ok, I just watched the film right now, and then read this thread. Some points: 1. The film will please most fans of the Jackson films. I think there are more fans of LOTR today than those of us who discovered him in the 1960's or the 1970's (the latter for me) via the books. What scares me is just b...

And so the tennis match continues . . . volley for volley. Thanks for keeping us updated Voronwë.

I think in the end this will go down as another obstacle on the path whereby same sex couples are allowed to have their marriages legalize. Someday, I hope, and I pray that this institution is allowed to be extended to everyone who wants to participate in the institution. I will also state that even...

Beautiful pictures all. Love the flowers and blossoms and the deer and fawns. We have deer and other animals visiting. One night I was out in early April around 2:00a.m. when the moon came up and a coyote let out a howl followed by two others that were on a hill about 1/2 mile away from our home. Th...

Teremia made me draw some connections between Frodo and life. I think here Frodo reminds me of me. When dealing with a major injury or health issue I think we tend to think inwardly and to really examine ourselves. I believe in many ways that is what Frodo is doing here. It is that inner examination...

Sometimes those that live in the urban or what we call today suburbia have a wonderful ability if not a need, to get out into nature. I think often we see that captured as Tolkien did in his writing, for others it is with either photography or artistic works, well for others it remains in their memo...

I love the garden images , well done.

Voronwë I love the pictures of the falls. I have missed snow shoeing this year but it will be there next year.

Well, I guess the pigeon has many meals each day as the crumbs fall.

I received mine the other day but won't be able to start reading it until after April 3rd when I am off until May 5th! Lucky me eh? I am looking forward to getting into it and then returning here for a discussion.

I think the guy could be Bolg and could be riding a warg since GDT has said he is revamping the look of the warg. I know in "The Clouds Burst" in the Del Rey paperback version of "The Hobbit" on page 283 it mentions that "These were the swiftest of the wolf-riders . . ."...

One of the things with the Black Riders is the nature of their power. It isn't in weapons or the use of them, but in the very nature of fear. The Black Breath emits fear to the core of the person. Their reputation is that of fear and their power comes from the fear they emit and receive from those a...

A minor character and I know why he was not included in the movie, but as already mentioned, I missed the gray company with the sons of Elrond. Specifically I miss Halbarad. He faithfully answered the call to come to Aragorn's aid and when he came to entrance to the Path of the Dead, and knowing in ...

Strider was one of my favorite characters, and still is. He is a rock in the midst of confusion, and his destiny and heart is tied directly to the fate of the Ring. For me, Strider is a mystery at first, and is one of the characters that I don't think I understood until a re-reading of the text. Bes...

I think there is the notion of what war should be, and what in reality it is, and only those who have been in combat know what I mean. When you serve in combat, the only thing you really care about are the people next to you, and trying to survive. There is no honor in it. There is no honor in killi...

There are elements that I like and there are elements of the EE that I don't like. I could spend a very long entry on that but won't except for one. I don't like Saruman's ending. Tolkien states in Letter 210 Tolkien stated that Saruman would have been better to let Saruman's end go, then have him c...

To clarify, I think Tolkien would have been ok with the fire and Frodo waking up and then the four seeing the Wraiths approach minus the scream. I think he would have been ok with the scene of Frodo putting on the Ring and the Witch King advancing. I don't think he would have liked Aragorn coming in...

This letter focuses on Tolkien's comments on the film's 'treatment' of The Lord of the Rings. I was reading this letter and based on some discussions thought this would perhaps offer some insights into his views on some of the things that went on in the movie. Having said that, I don't mean or want ...

I found this interesting from today's NY Times: “We need to make tax cuts permanent, and we need to make a commitment that there’ll be no new taxes,” said Mr. McCain said, referring to the Bush tax cuts for the top 1 percent Americans that will expire at the end of 2010. “We need to cut payroll taxe...

From The Hobbit: "If more of us valued food and cheer and pants over hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world." and of course Bilbo at the Battle of Five Armies: "The Pants, the pants! The pants are coming!" and "A crack had opened at the back of the pants, and was already ...