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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 12 2022, 2:48pm
Post #26 of 40
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Today in Middle-earth
January 12, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Snow on Caradhras—it's unrelenting!
(from the appendices)
..."A great sleepiness came over Frodo; he felt himself sinking fast into a warm and hazy dream. He thought a fire was heating his toes, and out of the shadows on the other side of the hearth he heard Bilbo's voice speaking. I don't think much of your diary... ...Snowstorms on January the twelfth: there was no need to come back to report that!
... But I wanted rest and sleep, Bilbo, Frodo answered with an effort, when he felt himself shaken, and he came back painfully to wakefulness. Boromir had lifted him off the ground out of a nest of snow.
...'This will be the death of the halflings, Gandalf,' said Boromir. 'It is useless to sit here until the snow goes over our heads. We must do something to save ourselves.'
...'Give them this,' said Gandalf, searching in his pack and drawing out a leathern flask. 'Just a mouthful each—for all of us. It is very precious. It is miruvor, the cordial of Imladris. Elrond gave it to me at our parting. Pass it round!'
...As soon as Frodo had swallowed a little of the warm and fragrant liquor he felt a new strength of heart, and the heavy drowsiness left his limbs. The others also revived and found fresh hope and vigour...
......though they had brought wood and kindlings by the advice of Boromir, it passed the skill of Elf or even Dwarf to strike a flame that would hold amid the swirling wind or catch in the wet fuel... ...reluctantly Gandalf himself took a hand. Picking up a faggot he held it aloft for a moment, and then with a word of command, naur an edraith ammen!, he thrust the end of his staff into the midst of it. At once a great spout of green and blue flame sprang out, and the wood flared and sputtered.
...'If there are any to see, then I at least am revealed to them... ...I have written Gandalf is here in signs that all can read from Rivendell to the Mouths of Anduin.'
...'...If Elves could fly over mountain, they might fetch the Sun to save us,' answered Gandalf. 'But I must have something to work on. I cannot burn snow.'
...'Well,' said Boromir, 'when heads are at a loss bodies must serve... ...The strongest of us must seek a way. See! Though all is now snow-clad, our path... ...turned about that shoulder of rock down yonder. It was there that the snow first began to burden us. If we could reach that point, maybe it would prove easier beyond. It is no more than a furlong off, I guess.'
...'Then let us force a path thither, you and I!' said Aragorn.
...Aragorn was the tallest of the Company, but Boromir, little less in height, was broader and heavier in build. He led the way, and Aragorn followed him... ...and were soon toiling heavily. In places the snow was breast-high, and often Boromir seemed to be swimming or burrowing with his great arms rather than walking.
...Legolas watched them for a while with a smile upon his lips, and then he turned to the others. 'The strongest must seek a way, say you? But I say: let a ploughman plough, but choose an otter for swimming, and for running light over grass and leaf, or over snow—an Elf.'
...With that he sprang forth nimbly, and then Frodo noticed... ...though he had long known it, that the Elf had no boots, but wore only light shoes, as he always did, and his feet made little imprint in the snow.
...'Farewell!' he said to Gandalf. 'I go to find the Sun!' Then swift as a runner over firm sand he shot away, and quickly overtaking the toiling men, with a wave of his hand he passed them, and sped into the distance, and vanished round the rocky turn."
[furlong = .125 miles or 220 yards]
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 13 2022, 1:58pm
Post #27 of 40
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Today in Middle-earth
January 13, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Attack by Wolves in the early hours.
(from the appendices)
..."'Since our open attempt on the mountain-pass our plight has become more desperate, I fear. I see now little hope, if we do not soon vanish from sight for a while, and cover our trail. Therefore I advise that we should go neither over the mountains, nor round them, but under them. That is a road at any rate that the Enemy will least expect us to take....' [said Gandalf]
......The hobbits said nothing. Sam looked at Frodo. At last Frodo spoke. 'I do not wish to go... ...but neither do I wish to refuse the advice of Gandalf. I beg that there should be no vote, until we have slept on it. Gandalf will get votes easier in the light of the morning than in this cold gloom. How the wind howls...!'
......Suddenly Aragorn leapt to his feet. 'How the wind howls! ...It is howling with wolf-voices. The Wargs have come west of the Mountains!'
...'Need we wait until morning then?' said Gandalf. 'It is as I said. The hunt is up! Even if we live to see the dawn, who now will wish to journey south by night with the wild wolves on his trail?'
...'How far is Moria?' asked Boromir.
...'There was a door south-west of Caradhras, some fifteen miles as the crow flies, and maybe twenty as the wolf runs,' answered Gandalf....
...'...I wish I had taken Elrond's advice,' muttered Pippin to Sam. 'I am no good after all. There is not enough of the breed of Bandobras the Bullroarer in me: these howls freeze my blood. I don't ever remember feeling so wretched.'
...'My heart's right down in my toes, Mr. Pippin,' said Sam. 'But we aren't eten yet, and there are some stout folk here with us. Whatever may be in store for old Gandalf, I'll wager it isn't a wolf's belly.'"
2. The Company reaches the West-gate of Moria at nightfall.
(from the appendices)
..."'Well, here we are at last!' said Gandalf. 'Here the Elven-way from Hollin ended. Holly was the token of the people of that land... ...they planted it here to mark the end of their domain; for the West-door was made chiefly for their use in their traffic with the Lords of Moria. Those were happier days, when there was still close friendship at times between folk of different race, even between Dwarves and Elves.... ...The doors are shut and hidden, and the sooner we find them the better. Night is at hand...!'
...'...I once knew every spell in all the tongues of Elves or Men or Orcs, that was ever used to such a purpose. I can still remember ten score of them without searching in my mind... ...The opening words were Elvish, like the writing on the arch: that seems certain.'
...He stepped up to the rock again, and lightly touched with his staff the silver star in the middle beneath the sign of the anvil.
Annon edhellen, edro hi amine!
Fennas nogothrim, lasts beth lammen! he said in a commanding voice. The silver lines faded, but the blank grey stone did not stir.
...Many times he repeated these words in different order, or varied them. Then he tried other spells, one after another, speaking now faster and louder, now soft and slow. Then he spoke many single words of Elvish speech. Nothing happened... ...the doors stood fast.
...Again Gandalf approached the wall, and lifting up his arms he spoke in tones of command and rising wrath. Edro, edro! he cried, and struck the rock with the staff. Open open! he shouted, and followed it with the same command in every language that had ever been spoken in the West of Middle-earth. Then he threw his staff on the ground, and sat down in silence.
...At that moment from far off the wind bore to their listening ears the howling of wolves. Bill the pony started in fear, and Sam sprang to his side and whispered softly to him.
...'Do not let him run away!' said Boromir. 'It seems that we shall need him still, if the wolves do not find us. How I hate this foul pool!' He stooped and picking up a large stone he cast it far into the dark water.
...The stone vanished... ...at the same instant there was a swish and a bubble. Great rippling rings formed on the surface out beyond where the stone had fallen, and they moved slowly towards the foot of the cliff.
...'Why did you do that, Boromir?' said Frodo. 'I hate this place, too, and I am afraid. I don't know of what: not of wolves, or the dark behind the doors, but of something else. I am afraid of the pool. Don't disturb it...!'
...'...Why doesn't Gandalf do something quick?' said Pippin.
...Gandalf took no notice of them. He sat with his head bowed, either in despair or in anxious thoughts. The mournful howling of the wolves was heard again. The ripples on the water grew and came closer; some were already lapping on the shore.
..."With a suddenness that startled them all the wizard sprang to his feet. He was laughing! 'I have it!' he cried. 'Of course... ...Absurdly simple, like most riddles when you see the answer.'
...Picking up his staff he stood before the rock and said in a clear voice: Mellon!
...The star shone out briefly and faded again. Then silently a great doorway was outlined, though not a crack or joint had been visible before. Slowly it divided in the middle and swung outwards inch by inch...
... '…I was wrong after all,' said Gandalf, 'and Gimli too. Merry, of all people, was on the right track. The opening word was inscribed on the archway all the time! The translation should have been: say "Friend" and enter. I had only to speak the Elvish word for friend and the doors opened. Quite simple. Too simple for a learned loremaster in these suspicious days. Those were happier times. Now let us go!'
...He strode forward and set his foot on the lowest step. But at that moment several things happened. Frodo felt something seize him by the ankle, and he fell with a cry. Bill the pony gave a wild neigh of fear, and turned tail and dashed away along the lakeside into the darkness. Sam leaped after him, and then hearing Frodo's cry he ran back again, weeping and cursing. The others swung round and saw the waters of the lake seething, as if a host of snakes were swimming up from the southern end.
...Out from the water a long sinuous tentacle had crawled... ...Its fingered end had hold of Frodo's foot, and was dragging him into the water. Sam on his knees was now slashing at it with a knife.
...The arm let go of Frodo, and Sam pulled him away, crying out for help. Twenty other arms came rippling out....
...'...Into the gateway! Up the stairs! Quick!' shouted Gandalf leaping back. Rousing them from the horror that seemed to have rooted all but Sam to the ground where they stood, he drove them forward.
...They were just in time. Sam and Frodo were only a few steps up, and Gandalf had just begun to climb, when the groping tentacles writhed across the narrow shore and fingered the cliff-wall and the doors...."
3. Gollum begins to trail the Ring-bearer.
(from the appendices)
..."Frodo began to hear... ...something else; like the faint fall of soft bare feet. It was never loud enough, or near enough, for him to feel certain that he heard it; but once it had started it never stopped, while the Company was moving. But it was not an echo, for when they halted it pattered on for a little all by itself, then grew still."
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Otaku-sempai
Elvenhome
Jan 13 2022, 3:00pm
Post #28 of 40
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January 13, 1977 (Common Era)
1. Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Copeland Bloom born in Canterbury, U.K.
Orlando Bloom is forty-five years young today. Happy birthday, Legolas!
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 14 2022, 3:15pm
Post #29 of 40
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Today in Middle-earth
January 14, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. During the night and into the day in Moria.
(not from the appendices)
..."Pippin felt curiously attracted by the well. While the others were unrolling blankets and making beds against the walls of the chamber, as far as possible from the hole in the floor, he crept to the edge and peered over... ...Moved by a sudden impulse he groped for a loose stone, and let it drop. He felt his heart beat many times before there was any sound. Then far below... ...there came a "plunk," very distant, but magnified and repeated in the hollow shaft.
...'What's that!' cried Gandalf. He was relieved when Pippin confessed what he had done; but he was angry, and Pippin could see his eye glinting. 'Fool of a Took!' he growled. 'This is a serious journey, not a hobbit walking party. Throw yourself in next time, and then you will be no further nuisance. Now be quiet!'
...Nothing more was heard for several minutes; but then there came out of the depths faint knocks: tom-tap, tap-tom.... ...They sounded disquietingly like signals of some sort; but after a while the knocking died away and was not heard again.
...'That was the sound of a hammer, or I have never heard one,' said Gimli.
...'Yes,' said Gandalf, 'and I do not like it. It may have nothing to do with Peregrin's foolish stone; but probably something has been disturbed... ...better left quiet. Pray, do nothing of the kind again! Let us hope we shall get some rest without further trouble. You, Pippin, can go on the first watch, as a reward,' he growled, as he rolled himself in a blanket.
...Pippin sat miserably by the door in the pitch dark; but he kept on turning round, fearing that some unknown thing would crawl up out of the well. He wished he could cover the hole, if only with a blanket, but he dared not move or go near it, even though Gandalf seemed to be asleep.
...Actually Gandalf was awake, though lying still and silent. He was deep in thought, trying to recall every memory of his former journey in the Mines, and considering anxiously the next course that he should take; a false turn now might be disastrous. After an hour he rose up and came over to Pippin.
...'Get into a corner and have a sleep, my lad,' he said in a kindly tone. 'You want to sleep... ...I cannot get a wink, so I may as well do the watching.'
...'I know what is the matter with me,' he muttered, as he sat down by the door. 'I need smoke! I have not tasted it since the morning before the snowstorm.'
...The last thing that Pippin saw, as sleep took him, was a dark glimpse of the old wizard huddled on the floor, shielding a glowing chip in his gnarled hands between his knees. The flicker for a moment showed his sharp nose, and the puff of smoke.
...It was Gandalf who roused them all from sleep. He had sat and watched all alone for about six hours... '...And in the watches I have made up my mind,' he said. 'I do not like the feel of the middle way; and I do not like the smell of the left-hand way: there is foul air down there, or I am no guide. I shall take the right-hand passage. It is time we began to climb up again.'"
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 15 2022, 8:21am
Post #30 of 40
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Today in Middle-earth
January 15, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The Bridge of Khazad-dûm, and the fall of Gandalf.
(from the appendices)
..."… there came a great noise: a rolling BOOM that seemed to come from depths far below, and to tremble in the stone at their feet. They sprang towards the door in alarm. DOOM, DOOM it rolled again... ...Then there came an echoing blast: a great horn was blown in the hall, and answering horns and harsh cries were heard further off. There was a hurrying sound of many feet.
...'They are coming!' cried Legolas.
...'We cannot get out,' said Gimli.
...'Trapped!' cried Gandalf. 'Why did I delay? Here we are, caught, just as they were before. But I was not here then. We will see what----'
...DOOM, DOOM came the drum-beat and the walls shook.
...'Slam the doors and wedge them!' shouted Aragorn. 'And keep your packs on as long as you can: we may get a chance to cut our way out yet....'
......There was a blow on the door that made it quiver; and then it began to grind slowly open, driving back the wedges. A huge arm and shoulder, with a dark skin of greenish scales, was thrust through the widening gap. Then a great, flat, toeless foot was forced through below... ...Boromir leaped forward and hewed at the arm with all his might; but his sword rang, glanced aside, and fell from his shaken hand. The blade was notched.
...Suddenly, and to his own surprise, Frodo felt a hot wrath blaze up in his heart. 'The Shire!' he cried, and springing beside Boromir, he stooped, and stabbed with Sting at the hideous foot. There was a bellow, and the foot jerked back, nearly wrenching Sting from Frodo's arm. Black drops dripped from the blade and smoked on the floor. Boromir hurled himself against the door and slammed it again.
...'One for the Shire!' cried Aragorn. 'The hobbit's bite is deep! You have a good blade, Frodo son of Drogo!'
......but even as they retreated, and before Pippin and Merry had reached the stair outside, a huge orc-chieftain, almost man-high, clad in black mail from head to foot, leaped into the chamber... ...With a thrust of his huge hide shield he turned Boromir's sword and bore him backwards, throwing him to the ground. Diving under Aragorn's blow with the speed of a striking snake he charged into the company and thrust with his spear straight at Frodo. The blow caught him on the right side, and Frodo was hurled against the wall and pinned. Sam, with a cry, hacked at the spear-shaft, and it broke. But even as the orc flung down the truncheon and swept out his scimitar, Andúril came down upon his helm. There was a flash like flame and the helm burst asunder...
......DOOM, DOOM went the drums in the deep....
...'...Now!' shouted Gandalf. 'Now is the last chance. Run for it!'
...Aragorn picked up Frodo where he lay by the wall and made for the stair, pushing Merry and Pippin in front of him. The others followed; but Gimli had to be dragged away by Legolas: in spite of the peril he lingered by Balin's tomb with is head bowed. Boromir hauled the eastern door to... ...it had great iron rings on either side, but could not be fastened.
...'I am all right,' gasped Frodo. 'I can walk. Put me down!'
...Aragorn nearly dropped him in his amazement. 'I thought you were dead!' he cried.
...'Not yet!' said Gandalf. 'But there is no time for wonder. Off you go, all of you, down the stairs! Wait a few minutes for me at the bottom, but if I do not come soon, go on! Go quickly and choose paths leading right and downwards.'
...'We cannot leave you to hold the door alone!' said Aragorn.
...'Do as I say!' said Gandalf fiercely. 'Swords are no more use here. Go!'
...'...I am afraid Balin is buried deep, and maybe something else is buried there too. I cannot say. But at least the passage behind us was completely blocked. Ah! I have never felt so spent, but it is passing. And now what about you, Frodo? There was no time to say so, but I have never been more delighted in my life than when you spoke. I feared that it was a brave but dead hobbit that Aragorn was carrying.'
...'What about me?' said Frodo. 'I am alive, and whole I think. I am bruised and in pain, but it is not too bad.'
...'Well,' said Aragorn, 'I can only say that hobbits are made of a stuff so tough that I have never met the like of it. Had I known, I would have spoken softer in the Inn at Bree! That spear-thrust would have skewered a wild boar!'
...'Well, it did not skewer me... ...though I feel as if I had been caught between a hammer and an anvil.' He said no more. He found breathing painful.
...'You take after Bilbo,' said Gandalf. 'There is more about you than meets the eye, as I said of him long ago....'
......The ranks of the orcs had opened, and they crowded away, as if they themselves were afraid. Something was coming up behind them. What it was could not be seen: it was like a great shadow, in the middle of which was a dark form, of man-shape maybe, yet greater; and a power and terror seemed to be in it and to go before it....
...'...Ai, ai!' wailed Legolas. 'A Balrog! A Balrog is come!'
...Gimli stared with wide eyes. 'Durin's Bane!' he cried and letting his axe fall he covered his face.
...'A Balrog,' muttered Gandalf. 'Now I understand.' He faltered and leaned heavily on his staff. 'What an evil fortune! And I am already weary.'
...'Over the bridge... ...Fly! This is a foe beyond any of you. I must hold the narrow way. Fly!' Aragorn and Boromir did not heed the command, but still held their ground, side by side, behind Gandalf at the far end of the bridge. The others halted just within the doorway at the hall's end, and turned, unable to leave their leader to face the enemy alone....
...'...You cannot pass... ...I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. You cannot pass. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udûn. Go back to the Shadow! You cannot pass.'
...The Balrog made no answer. The fire in it seemed to die, but the darkness grew. It stepped forward... ...and suddenly it drew itself up to a great height, and its wings were spread from wall to wall; but still Gandalf could be seen, glimmering in the gloom; he seemed small, and altogether alone: grey and bent, like a wizened tree before the onset of a storm.
...From out of the shadow a red sword leaped flaming.
...Glamdring glittered white in answer.
...There was a ringing clash and a stab of white fire. The Balrog fell back and its sword flew up in molten fragments. The wizard swayed on the bridge, stepped back a pace, and then again stood still.
...'You cannot pass!' he said.
...With a bound the Balrog leaped full upon the bridge. Its whip whirled and hissed...
......Gandalf lifted his staff, and crying aloud he smote the bridge before him. The staff broke asunder and fell from his hand. A blinding sheet of white flame sprang up. The bridge cracked. Right at the Balrog's feet it broke, and the stone upon which it stood crashed into the gulf, while the rest remained, poised, quivering like a tongue of rock thrust out into emptiness.
...With a terrible cry the Balrog fell forward, and its shadow plunged down and vanished. But even as it fell it swung its whip, and the thongs lashed and curled about the wizard's knees, dragging him to the brink. He staggered, and fell, grasped vainly at the stone, and slid into the abyss. 'Fly, you fools!' he cried, and was gone."
2. The Company reaches Nimrodel late at night.
(from the appendices)
..."'Lothlórien!' cried Legolas. 'Lothlórien! We have come to the eaves of the Golden Wood. Alas that it is winter...'
...'...Lothlórien!' said Aragorn. 'Glad I am to hear again the wind in the trees! We are still little more than five leagues from the Gates, but we can go no further. Here let us hope that the virtue of the Elves will keep us tonight from the peril that comes behind....'
...'...Here is Nimrodel!' said Legolas. 'Of this stream the Silvan Elves made many songs long ago, and still we sing them in the North... ...All is dark now and the Bridge on Nimrodel is broken down. I will bathe my feet, for it is said that the water is healing to the weary.' He went forward and climbed down the deep-cloven bank and stepped into the stream.
...'Follow me!' he cried. 'The water is not deep. Let us wade across! On the further bank we can rest, and the sound of the falling water may bring us sleep and forgetfulness of grief.'
...One by one they climbed down and followed Legolas. For a moment Frodo stood near the brink and let the water flow over his tired feet. It was cold but its touch was clean, and as he went on and it mounted to his knees, he felt that the stain of travel and all weariness was washed from his limbs."
[league = 3 miles]
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Otaku-sempai
Elvenhome
Jan 15 2022, 3:06pm
Post #31 of 40
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January 15, 1965 (Common Era)
1. (William) James Nesbitt is born in Ballymena, U.K.
Northern Irish actor James Nesbitt, who played Bofur in Peter Jackson's three Hobbit movies, is fifty-seven years old today. Happy birthday, James!
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 16 2022, 1:56pm
Post #32 of 40
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Today in Middle-earth
January 16, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. The Fellowship makes its way through Lothlórien
(not from the appendices)
..."The morning was still young and cold when the Company set out again, guided now by Haldir and his brother Rúmil. 'Farewell, sweet Nimrodel!' cried Legolas. Frodo looked back and caught a gleam of white foam among the grey tree-stems. 'Farewell,' he said. It seemed to him that he would never hear again a running water so beautiful....
......They went back to the path that still went on along the west side of the Silverlode... ...But soon Haldir turned aside into the trees and halted on the bank of the river under their shadows.
...'There is one of my people yonder across the stream... ...though you may not see him.' He gave a call like the low whistle of a bird, and out of a thicket of young trees an Elf stepped, clad in grey, but with his hood thrown back; his hair glinted like gold in the morning sun. Haldir skilfully cast over the stream a coil of grey rope, and he caught it and bound the end about a tree near the bank.
...'Celebrant is already a strong stream here, as you see... ...and it runs both swift and deep, and is very cold. We do not set foot in it so far north, unless we must. But in these days of watchfulness we do not make bridges. This is how we cross! Follow me!' He made his end of the rope fast about another tree, and then ran lightly along it, over the river and back again, as if he were on a road.
...'I can walk this path,' said Legolas; 'but the others have not this skill. Must they swim?'
...'No!' said Haldir. 'We have two more ropes. We will fasten them above the other, one shoulder-high, and another half-high, and holding these the strangers should be able to cross with care....'
......The Company passed over, some cautiously and slowly, others more easily. Of the hobbits Pippin proved the best for he was sure-footed, and he walked over quickly, holding only with one hand; but he kept his eyes on the bank ahead and did not look down. Sam shuffled along, clutching hard, and looking down into the pale eddying water as if it was a chasm in the mountains.
...He breathed with relief when he was safely across. 'Live and learn! as my gaffer used to say. Though he was thinking of gardening, not of roosting like a bird, nor of trying to walk like a spider. Not even my uncle Andy ever did a trick like that...!'
...'...Now, friends,' said Haldir, 'you have entered the Naith of Lórien... ...a spearhead between the arms of Silverlode and Anduin the Great. We allow no strangers to spy out the secrets of the Naith. Few indeed are permitted even to set foot there.
...'As was agreed, I shall here blindfold the eyes of Gimli the Dwarf. The others may walk free for a while, until we come nearer to our dwellings....'
......This was not at all to the liking of Gimli. 'The agreement was made without my consent,' he said. 'I will not walk blindfold, like a beggar or a prisoner. And I am no spy. My folk have never had dealings with any of the servants of the Enemy. Neither have we done harm to the Elves. I am no more likely to betray you than Legolas, or any other of my companions.'
...'I do not doubt you,' said Haldir. 'Yet this is our law. I am not the master of the law, and cannot set it aside. I have done much in letting you set foot over Celebrant.'
...Gimli was obstinate. He planted his feet firmly apart, and laid his hand upon the haft of his axe. 'I will go forward free... ...or I will go back and seek my own land, where I am known to be true of word, though I perish alone in the wilderness.'
...'You cannot go back,' said Haldir sternly. 'Now you have come thus far, you must be brought before the Lord and the Lady. They shall judge you, to hold you or to give you leave... ...You cannot cross the rivers again, and behind you there are now secret sentinels that you cannot pass. You would be slain before you saw them.'
...Gimli drew his axe from his belt. Haldir and his companion bent their bows. 'A plague on Dwarves and their stiff necks!' said Legolas.
...'Come!' said Aragorn. 'If I am still to lead this Company, you must do as I bid. It is hard upon the Dwarf to be thus singled out. We will all be blindfold, even Legolas... ...though it will make the journey slow and dull.'
...Gimli laughed suddenly. 'A merry troop of fools we shall look! Will Haldir lead us all on a string, like many blind beggars with one dog? But I will be content, if only Legolas here shares my blindness.'
...'I am an Elf and a kinsman here,' said Legolas, becoming angry in his turn.
...'Now let us cry: "a plague on the stiff necks of Elves!"' said Aragorn. 'But the Company shall all fare alike. Come, bind our eyes, Haldir!'
...'I shall claim full amends for every fall and stubbed toe, if you do not lead us well,' said Gimli as they bound a cloth about his eyes."
January 16, 2020
1. Christopher Tolkien sails into the West.
…Salute to Christopher Tolkien to honour him on the anniversary of his passing at the age of 95. TORn's squire shared a wonderful tribute to the son of J.R.R. Tolkien… the one who carried the torch for us all.
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(This post was edited by grammaboodawg on Jan 16 2022, 1:57pm)
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 17 2022, 2:10pm
Post #33 of 40
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Today in Middle-earth
January 17, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The Company arrives at Caras Galadon in the evening.
(from the appendices)
..."That night the Company slept upon the ground, much to the satisfaction of the hobbits. The Elves spread... ...a pavilion among the trees near the fountain, and in it they laid soft couches; then speaking words of peace with fair elvish voices they left them. For a little while the travellers talked of their night before in the tree-tops, and of their day's journey, and of the Lord and Lady; for they had not yet the heart to look further back.
...'What did you blush for, Sam?' said Pippin. 'You soon broke down. Anyone would have thought you had a guilty conscience. I hope it was nothing worse than a wicked plot to steal one of my blankets.'
...'I never thought no such thing,' answered Sam, in no mood for jest. 'If you want to know, I felt as if I hadn't got nothing on, and I didn't like it. She seemed to be looking inside me and asking me what I would do if she gave me the chance of flying back home to the Shire to a nice little hole with—with a bit of garden of my own.'
...'That's funny,' said Merry. 'Almost exactly what I felt... ...only well, I don't think I'll say any more,' he ended lamely.
...All of them, it seemed, had fared alike: each had felt that he was offered a choice between a shadow full of fear that lay ahead, and something that he greatly desired... ...and to get it he had only to turn aside from the road and leave the Quest and the war against Sauron to others....
...'...To me it seemed exceedingly strange,' said Boromir. 'Maybe it was only a test, and she thought to read our thoughts for her own good purpose... ...I should have said that she was tempting us, and offering what she pretended to have the power to give. It need not be said that I refused to listen. The Men of Minas Tirith are true to their word.' But what he thought that the Lady had offered him Boromir did not tell.
...And as for Frodo, he would not speak, though Boromir pressed him with questions. 'She held you long in her gaze, Ring-bearer,' he said.
...'Yes... ...but whatever came into my mind then I will keep there.'
...'Well, have a care!' said Boromir. 'I do not feel too sure of this Elvish Lady and her purposes.'
...'Speak no evil of the Lady Galadriel!' said Aragorn sternly. 'You know not what you say. There is in her and in this land no evil, unless a man bring it hither himself... ...But tonight I shall sleep without fear for the first time since I left Rivendell. And may I sleep deep, and forget for a while my grief! I am weary in body and in heart.' He cast himself down upon his couch and fell at once into a long sleep.
...They remained some days in Lothlórien, so far as they could tell or remember."
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 18 2022, 3:33pm
Post #34 of 40
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Here is part 1 of a 4-part Book Spoiler that takes a look at what the Fellowship did after crossing Nimrodel and before reaching Caras Galadon... for a moment of Tolkien-zen.
From Lothlórien: The Fellowship of the Ring ..."The Company now turned aside from the path, and went into the shadow of the deeper woods... ...Not far from the falls of Nimrodel they found a cluster of trees...
... '...I will climb up,' said Legolas. 'I am at home among trees, by root or bough, though these trees are of a kind strange to me, save as a name in song. Mellyrn they are called... ...but I have never climbed in one. I will see now what is their shape and way of growth....'
... '...said Pippin, 'they will be marvellous trees indeed if they can offer any rest at night, except to birds. I cannot sleep on a perch!'
... 'Then dig a hole in the ground,' said Legolas, 'if that is more after the fashion of your kind. But you must dig swift and deep, if you wish to hide from Orcs.' He sprang lightly up from the ground and caught a branch that grew from the trunk high above his head... ...even as he swung there for a moment, a voice spoke suddenly from the tree-shadows above him.
... 'Daro!' it said in commanding tone, and Legolas dropped back to earth in surprise and fear. He shrank against the bole of the tree.
... 'Stand still!' he whispered to the others. 'Do not move or speak!'
... There was a sound of soft laughter over their heads and then another clear voice spoke in an elven-tongue... ...the speech that the Silvan folk east of the mountains used among themselves... ...unlike that of the West. Legolas looked up and answered in the same language.
... 'Who are they, and what do they say?' asked Merry.
... 'They're Elves,' said Sam. 'Can't you hear their voices?'
...'Yes, they are Elves,' said Legolas; 'and they say that you breathe so loud that they could shoot you in the dark.' Sam hastily put his hand over his mouth... '...they say also that you need have no fear. They have been aware of us for a long while. They heard my voice across the Nimrodel, and knew that I was one of their Northern kindred... ...and afterwards they heard my song. Now they bid me climb up with Frodo; for they seem to have had some tidings of him and of our journey. The others they ask to wait ... ...to keep watch at the foot of the tree, until they have decided what is to be done.'
... Out of the shadows a ladder was let down: it was made of rope, silver-grey and glimmering in the dark, and though it looked slender it proved strong... ...Legolas ran lightly up, and Frodo followed slowly; behind came Sam trying not to breathe loudly. The branches of the mallorn-tree grew out nearly straight from the trunk, and then swept upward... ...among these they found that there had been built a wooden platform, or flet... ...the Elves called it a talan. It was reached by a round hole in the centre through which the ladder passed.
... When Frodo came... ...on to the flet he found Legolas seated with three other Elves... ...clad in shadowy-grey, and could not be seen among the tree-stems, unless they moved suddenly... ...one of them uncovered a small lamp that gave out a slender silver beam. He held it up, looking at Frodo's face, and Sam's. Then he shut off the light again, and spoke words of welcome in his elven-tongue. Frodo spoke haltingly in return.
... 'Welcome!' the Elf then said again in the Common Language, speaking slowly. 'We seldom use any tongue but our own; for we dwell now in the heart of the forest, and do not willingly have dealings with any other folk... ...But there are some of us still who go abroad for the gathering of news and the watching of our enemies, and they speak the languages of other lands. I am one. Haldir is my name. My brothers, Rúmil and Orophin, speak little of your tongue.
... 'But we have heard rumours of your coming, for the messengers of Elrond passed by Lórien... ...We had not heard of—hobbits, of halflings, for many a long year, and did not know that any yet dwelt in Middle-earth. You do not look evil! And since you come with an Elf of our kindred, we are willing to befriend you, as Elrond asked; though it is not our custom to lead strangers through our land."
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 19 2022, 1:41pm
Post #35 of 40
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Here is part 2 of a 4-part Book Spoiler that takes a look at what the Fellowship did before reaching Caras Galadon... for a moment of Tolkien-zen.
From Lothlórien: The Fellowship of the Ring ... "Frodo lay for some time awake, and looked up at the stars glinting through the pale roof of quivering leaves. Sam was snoring at his side long before he himself closed his eyes. He could dimly see the grey forms of two elves sitting motionless with their arms about their knees, speaking in whispers... ...Frodo fell asleep with the song of Legolas running in his mind.
... Late in the night he woke. The other hobbits were asleep. The Elves were gone... ...he heard a harsh laugh and the tread of many feet on the ground below... ...The sounds died slowly away, and seemed to go southward, on into the wood.
... A head appeared suddenly through the hole in the flet. Frodo sat up in alarm and saw that it was a grey-hooded Elf. He looked towards the hobbits.
...'What is it?' said Frodo.
...'Yrch!' said the Elf in a hissing whisper, and cast on to the flet the rope-ladder rolled up...
......Frodo sat and shivered in his wraps. He was thankful that they had not been caught on the ground; but he felt that the trees offered little protection, except concealment... ...He drew out Sting: it flashed and glittered like a blue flame; and then slowly faded again and grew dull. In spite of the fading of his sword the feeling of immediate danger did not leave Frodo, rather it grew stronger. He got up and crawled to the opening and peered down... ...he could hear stealthy movements at the tree's foot far below.
... Not Elves... ...noiseless in their movements. Then he heard faintly a sound like sniffing... ...something seemed to be scrabbling on the bark of the tree-trunk. He stared down into the dark, holding his breath.
... Something was now climbing slowly, and its breath came like a soft hissing through closed teeth... ...Frodo saw two pale eyes. They stopped and gazed upward unwinking. Suddenly they turned away, and a shadowy figure slipped round the trunk of the tree and vanished.
... Immediately afterwards Haldir came climbing swiftly up through the branches. 'There was something in this tree that I have never seen before... ...It was not an orc. It fled as soon as I touched the tree-stem. It seemed to be wary, and to have some skill in trees, or I might have thought that it was one of you hobbits.
... 'I did not shoot, for I dared not arouse any cries... ...A strong company of Orcs has passed. They crossed the Nimrodel—curse their foul feet in its clean water!—and went on down the old road... ...They seemed to pick up some scent, and they searched the ground for a while near the place where you halted. The three of us could not challenge a hundred, so we went ahead and spoke with feigned voices, leading them on into the wood.
...'Orophin has now gone in haste back to our dwellings to warn our people. None of the Orcs will ever return out of Lórien... ...there will be many Elves hidden on the northern border before another night falls. But you must take the road south as soon as it is fully light.'"
January 19, 2001
1. The Fellowship of the Ring peeks over the hedge.
... The first FotR trailer is officially released on the internet.
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ElanorTX
Dor-Lomin
Jan 20 2022, 9:06am
Post #37 of 40
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I like the first one you linked to better. I hadn't remembered that when it shows the sequence of the three releases, Boromir and then Aragorn are the visuals for The Return of the King. Subtle indeed.
"I shall not wholly fail if anything can still grow fair in days to come."
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 20 2022, 2:28pm
Post #38 of 40
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*twitch* You want me to remember something?
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Oh geez. First off... I have the usual brain shutdown from getting all weepy and falling down the hobbit hole; but I think it's the second link. I haven't seen it in over a DECADE! We're into decades now... *sigh*
I remember I couldn't even get it to load on my home computer. I had to wait until I got to work where the machines are newer and have more GET OUTTA MY WAY power.
Thanks so much for the links!!! I made the mistake of watching the Frodo's Last Day clip after that first link... hence many moments of blubbering.
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 20 2022, 2:29pm
Post #39 of 40
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Here is part 3 of a 4-part Book Spoiler that looks at what the Fellowship did before reaching Caras Galadon… for a moment of Tolkien-zen.
From Lothlórien: The Fellowship of the Ring ..."'Alas for the folly of these days!' said Legolas. 'Here all are enemies of the one Enemy, and yet I must walk blind while the sun is merry in the woodland under leaves of gold!'
... 'Folly it may seem,' said Haldir. 'Indeed in nothing is the power of the Dark Lord more clearly shown that in the estrangement that divides all those who still oppose him... ...so little faith and trust do we find now in the world beyond Lothlórien, unless maybe in Rivendell, that we dare not by our own trust endanger our land. We live now upon an island amid many perils, and our hands are more often upon the bowstring than upon the harp...'
... '...the Shadow has crept northward all about us. Some speak of departing, yet for that it already seems too late... ...Even if we could come to the shores of the Sea, we should find no longer any shelter there. It is said that there are still havens of the High Elves, but they are far north and west, beyond the land of the Halflings... ...where that may be, though the Lord and Lady may know, I do not.'
... 'You ought at least to guess, since you have seen us,' said Merry. 'There are Elf-havens west of my land, the Shire, where Hobbits live.'
... 'Happy folk are Hobbits to dwell near the shores of the sea!' said Haldir... '...Tell me of these havens as we walk.'
... 'I cannot,' said Merry. 'I have never seen them. I have never been out of my own land before... ...if I had known what the world outside was like, I don't think I should have had the heart to leave it.'
... 'Not even to see fair Lothlórien?' said Haldir. 'The world is indeed full of peril... ...in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.
... 'Some there are among us who sing that the Shadow will draw back, and peace shall come again. Yet I do not believe that the world about us will ever again be as it was of old... ...For the Elves, I fear, it will prove at best a truce, in which they may pass to the Sea unhindered and leave the Middle-earth for ever. Alas for Lothlórien that I love! It would be a poor life in a land where no mallorn grew...'
... ...the company filed slowly along the paths in the wood, led by Haldir... ...They felt the ground beneath their feet smooth and soft... ...they walked more freely, without fear of hurt or fall. Being deprived of sight, Frodo found his hearing and other senses sharpened. He could smell the trees and the trodden grass. He could hear many different notes in the rustle of the leaves overhead, the river murmuring... ...and the thin clear voices of birds in the sky. He felt the sun upon his face and hands when they passed through an open glade.
... As soon as he set foot upon the far banks of Silverlode a strange feeling had come upon him, and it deepened as he walked on into the Naith: it seemed to him that he had stepped over a bridge of time into a corner of the Elder Days... ...now walking in a world that was no more. In Rivendell there was memory of ancient things; in Lórien the ancient things still lived on in the waking world. Evil had been seen and heard there, sorrow had been known... ...elves feared and distrusted the world outside: wolves were howling on the wood's borders: but on the land of Lórien no shadow lay."
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 21 2022, 1:41pm
Post #40 of 40
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This 4th part of a 4-part Book Spoiler of the Fellowship walking in darkness to suddenly reveal the beauty of Lothlorien... for a moment of Tolkien-zen.
From Lothlórien: The Fellowship of the Ring ... "All that day the Company marched on, until they felt the cool evening come... ...Then they rested and slept without fear upon the ground; for their guides would not permit them to unbind their eyes, and they could not climb. In the morning they went on... ...walking without haste. At noon they halted... ...Frodo was aware that they had passed out under the shining Sun. Suddenly he heard the sound of many voices all around him.
...A marching host of Elves had come up silently... ...hastening toward the northern borders to guard against any attack from Moria; and they brought news... ...The marauding orcs had been waylaid and almost all destroyed; the remnant had fled westward towards the mountains, and were being pursued. A strange creature also had been seen, running with bent back and with hands near the ground, like a beast and yet not of beast-shape. It had eluded capture... ...they had not shot it, not knowing whether it was good or ill, and it had vanished down the Silverlode southward.
...'Also,' said Haldir, 'they bring me a message from the Lord and Lady of the Galadrim. You are all to walk free, even the dwarf Gimli... ...the Lady knows who and what is each member of your Company. New messages have come from Rivendell perhaps.'
... He removed the bandage first from Gimli's eyes. 'Your pardon!' he said, bowing low. 'Look on us now with friendly eyes! Look and be glad... ...you are the first dwarf to behold the trees of the Naith of Lórien since Durin's Day!'
... When his eyes were in turn uncovered, Frodo looked up and caught his breath. They were standing in an open space. To the left stood a great mound, covered with a sward of grass as green as spring-time in the Elder days. Upon it, as a double crown, grew two circles of trees: the outer had bark of snowy white... ... leafless but beautiful in their shapely nakedness; the inner were mallorn-trees of great height, still arrayed in pale gold. High amid the branches of a towering tree that stood in the centre of all there gleamed a white flet. At the feet of the trees, and... ...the green hillsides, the grass was studded with small golden flowers shaped like stars. Among them, nodding on slender stalks, were other flowers white and palest green... ...glimmering as a mist amid the rich hue of the grass. Over all the sky was blue, and the sun of afternoon glowed upon the hill and cast long green shadows beneath the trees.
... 'Behold! You are come to Cerin Amroth... ...For this is the heart of the ancient realm as it was long ago, and here is the mound of Amroth, where in happier days his high house was built. Here ever bloom the winter flowers in the unfading grass: the yellow elanor, and the pale niphredil. Here we will stay awhile, and come to the city of the Galadrim at dusk.'"
NOTE: We have another break in TIME next week. I'm going to continue this thread of BS beginning January 27.
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TIME - January 12
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