Meanwhile, in Rivendell . . .

Hi, everyone!  I thought that this might be the month that broke my posting streak, but it turns out that old goals  habits die hard, so here we are. 😉   The title is pretty self-explanatory; I thought it would be fun to match atmospheric books, movies, etc. to iconic fall-time hobbies.  (As always, use your own discretion with these; the media listed here encompass a wide variety of content levels.) source If you like hiking , try The Fellowship of the Ring ( by J.R.R. Tolkien) for the ultimate autumnal quest experience, with plenty of cozy cottagecore moments, plenty of mountains, and plentyyyyyyyy of walking. 😜 If you like baking , try Brave (2012) for a tart, sweet exploration of what it means to be family. If you like  leaf peeping , try  In the Forests of Serre  ( by Patricia A. McKillip)  for the chance to lose yourself in a mysterious forest full of fiery color and breathtaking magic. If you like decorating , try Ever Afte...

Well, folks, another Tolkien Blog Party is drawing to a close.  Today is the last day of Rachel's shindig, and therefore, high time for me to post my answers to this year's tag.  Before we begin, though, a moment of silence for the end of a (sort of) era.  For the last several years I've used collages from a gorgeous Tumblr series as graphics for my tag answers, but at long last, I've used all or most of them at least once before.  I don't particularly want to recycle them, so I'm not including any in this post, but I think that Tumblr creator has made other Middle-earth inspired collections, so maybe I can scope out some new ones to use in coming years!  Anyway.  RIP, "modern LOTR aesthetics".  You did us a solid. ✌ On a cheerier note, read on for the 2024 tag questions and my answers thereto.  ⸻ 1. The Shire: What place in Middle-earth do you think would feel the most like home for you? Well, that's the million-dollar question, isn't it?...

Greetings, my dear Shirelings!  Yesterday was Hobbit Day, and it marked the commencement of what is probably my favorite annual online event:  Rachel's Tolkien Blog Party.  Check out Rachel's kick-off post here  and be sure to enter the fabulous giveaway she's hosting in honor of the party as well. I plan to answer this year's tag questions later this week, but for today's post, I'm casting my mind back to this time last year.  During 2023's party, Rachel hosted a game that gave players the opportunity to build a hobbit name for themselves.  (You can check out that post by clicking on this link .)  Per the rules of the game, my hobbit name turned out to be Cloverpin Sackcobble , and you know something?  I actually love it.  "Cloverpin" as a hobbit name?  Are you kidding me??  So cute, so versatile.  Fantastic. Anyway.  I enjoyed playing that game so much that it got me thinking about what my life would actually look like ...

HELLO HI I'M VERY CONFLICTED.  Top ten lists are often difficult for me, but it feels especially wrong, this time, to exclude some of the characters I've excluded.  In an attempt to assuage my conscience, I've included a pool of honorable mentions at the end of the post, but still. In the end, I've had to console myself with the thought that these are just my ten favorites at this specific moment in time.  They may shift over time, and their rankings certainly do.  So, before you come for me for ranking one character ahead of another, just know that I'm probably even more upset and confused about it than you are.  I'm 100% confident of the #1 spot.  That's . . . that's about the only one, though. I've absolutely no more time to dither over this list, however, as today's the last day of the 2023 party, and if I don't get this post published this year, I shall be Quite Put Out. Forth, Eorlingas! ⸻ #10.  Eomer I've run out of time to wax loq...

Well, I did it.  I watched the cartoon versions of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings made in the late 70's/early 80's, and . . . I have Questions™.  And Comments™.  So, I figure the simplest way of doing this post is to just share those questions/comments in bullet journal format. Before I do that, however, let's have some backstory for the uninitiated: As near as I can tell it after meticulously combing the very best of sources  for information, it all went down like this.  In 1977, Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass released an animated adaptation of The Hobbit .  The next year, Ralph Bakshi and United Artists came out with The Lord of the Rings , which was based on  The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers but not The Return of the King .  [Bakshi took over the project from John Boorman, who had originally intended to produce a single-film live-action version of the entire story, apparently with Tolkien's own approval.  United Artis...