bobstod .... with my humblest apologies but can we visit FOTR once more ?

Twelve , I don ' t think that most people on this board mind revisiting LOTR ! In fact , I may go to see the movie again , although I have already seen it twice .

The passage by Haldir that you quoted seems to express well Bob ' s idea that there is , in the universe , a hidden bent toward the good in life , which often expresses itself in the most surprising ways .

Often , when everything seems hopeless for the company , something good happens and seems to keep them on their appointed path .

I know that this is also Bob ' s philosophy in life generally , as opposed to the fiction of Tolkien specifically . I know I promised to stop expounding on Bob ' s beliefs . I slipped on this once . I hope I have it basically right !

Who is your favorite character , so far ? I wish I could meet LOTR for the first time , again . There is a genuine shock to the nervous systm when it happens . It happened to me so long ago that I can ' t remember exactly what it was like .

I know you have gotten through the Mines of Moria . Just how far along are you ? Have you seen the movie ? If not , wait until you finish the book .

HAPPY READING !

RTF !

This very board was inspired by those of us who love LOTR . It was a discussion of these books that prompted its creation . I seriously doubt anyone here will object to any threads , but especially not another one about our beloved Tolkien classics .

If you are going to LOTR : FOTR soon , and you have just read " Lothlorien ", you may be in for a bit of a jolt .

The one consistent criticism I have heard of the movie is that it gave Lothlorien short - shrift . I know that things have to be shortened down , or the movie would have been 9 hours long , instead of only 3 , but , still , Lothlorien ?

Also , the scene with Gandalf and the Balrog is just fantastic . I ' ll bet it gets shown at the Academy Award Show , they they honor Art Direction , or Technical Merit .

If you hurry in your reading , you should get to the place where the movie ends before you see it . After Lothlorien , it isn ' t too long .

RTF !

Twelve , no apology is required on that score . As my colleagues have all said , JRRT threads are always welcome . If I had my way , there would be at least one LOTR thread open AT ALL TIMES .

The Haldir quote is wonderful ! I had forgotten it , and as LTBF says , it is so expressive of a major theme in the work , as well as being at the base of what I believe spiritually . Caroline , I am flattered that you have paid enough attention to my posts that you can recite my own philosophy back to me !

And Twelve , Capstone Stan is modest when he shares the responsibility for this board ' s origin with all of us . In fact , it was his very own post that led to its creation : a post about his " second childhood " in rediscovering LOTR . That , and Bamanation ' s generosity in offering to set it up .

I hope you will continue , all through the entire trilogy , to offer your observations , Twelve . It gives me , and I suspect all of us , a joyful feeling to share this work with one who is new to it !

Caroline , I remember very well when I first became enraptured . I was a Navy flight instructor in the Basic Training Command , in about 1966 or early 1967 , when a former squadron - mate mailed the three books to me , knowing I would like them . I can vividly remember sitting in the rear cockpit of my T - 28 Trojan , critically watching students as they learned formation flying techniques , while in another part of my mind I was with Frodo and Sam .

The books went through that formation unit like wildfire . People were changing their callsigns to " Strider Flight " and " Pippin flight ". My own callsign was Rolltide flight , and I wasn ' t about to change that !

Twelve , you are fortunate to have an appreciative audience for your musings as you discover this wonderful book . Please continue to post any and all observations , feelings , theories , and complaints , if any . You will ALWAYS find others here who like to talk Tolkein !

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ALABAMA: Tradition; Class; A name to respect in College Football

[ QUOTE ] Originally posted by bobstod :
[ B ]
And Twelve , Capstone Stan is modest when he shares the responsibility for this board ' s origin with all of us . In fact , it was his very own post that led to its creation : a post about his " second childhood " in rediscovering LOTR . That , and Bamanation ' s generosity in offering to set it up .

[/ B ][/ QUOTE ]

Humility is not my strong point ( I wish it was )! I did not think that was relevant to the history of this board . What was and is terribly relevant to me and I think everyone else here is LOTR and perhaps to a much lesser extent its role in the creation of this board