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#1 |
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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I see Middle-earth
Have you ever 'seen' a place from Middle Earth as you're walking/driving around? Now that the movies are out, we all have new images of ME available to replace those created in our heads when we first read the books (Note that PJ was pretty spot-on when it came to the scenery).
However, for me the old images still persist, and there are places around where I live that to me are Middle Earth. For example: There's a coke plant (the material used to make steel, not the beverage) nearby that I always see as Mordor. At night the place has an eerie, menacing look with orange fires and red lights playing atop towers of black. Ever present smoke smudges the view, and the bridges/ramps jutting out of buildings at odd angles make it look more like a growth of black crabgrass than something made by men. The place is surrounded by coal fields where (obviously) coal is stored. Machines pile it into small mountains, then remove it again as it is needed for processing. This makes the ground appear black, sharp and lifeless. Puddles of rain collected in depressions appear as sickly mirrors, as there's always some oil to add color. I always see this as Gorgoroth, especially as the air has a sharp sulfur smell, and on a good day can really get you coughing. The hills across the river, downwind and so receiving most of the pollution, are barren of color for most of the year. These 'Brown Hills' are mostly dirt and rock with some patches of scratchy weeds that never seem to turn green. As kids we used to play in the remains of an old deserted terra-cotta pipe mill near where we lived, and the concrete roads and structures served as Moria. Fire-blackened brick furnaces still remain, and we could see where the Dwarves made their livelihood and also marks of the Balrog's passage. The underground sewer that runs from the mill to the river (about 100 yards) gave an understanding to the meaning of "long dark road" as we made our way sans lights from one end to the other. A private owner now lives in Lothlorien, and not wanting to trespass I can only see what is visible from the street. It's rumored that the owner (or former owner) of this estate is a botanist, and she brought and planted trees from all over on the grounds, and now the exotic trees of many colors, textures, etc give the place a wooded, elvish feel. The trees are large and so block some of the sun, adding to the mystery. In winter snow adds to the effect, as the 'whiteness' makes me think more of Galadriel. A man-made hill of slag juts up above the treeline near a road I travel, and one day I would like to get a closer look at the top of Weathertop to see if there are any rocks there that are scored with a 'G' rune - you never know. Anyway, anyone else so afflicted? |
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#2 |
Auspicious Wraith
Join Date: May 2002
Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 4,859
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Nothing so interesting as that, I am afraid. Those are some interesting examples you post, especially Gorgoroth.
![]() I am reminded of the Shire a lot; British countryside will do that to you.
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#3 |
Energetic Essence
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It is a very interesting thought, but there isn't really anything around here (Canada) that reminds me of ME, except maybe the mountains here. They kind of remind me of Caradhras.
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I'm going to buy you a kitty, I'm going to let you fall in love with the kitty, and one cold, winter night, I'm going to steal into your house and punch you in the face! Fenris Wolf
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#4 |
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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I really hope that it's not just me being a little too geeked out about ME. Note that I've left out places that as a teenager I'd named as ME locations just because they have one attribute in common.
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#5 |
Ghost Prince of Cardolan
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Wandering through Middle-Earth (Sadly in Alberta and not ME)
Posts: 612
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I am somewhat afflicted
For exampl when I see an extremely dark red sunrise It reminds me of Mordor and I call it a Mordorian sunrise. This view is however affected by the movies. But i also have the old forest nearby. Althought it is a very small old forest since Alberta doesn't have many deciferous trees. ![]()
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#6 |
Stormdancer of Doom
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There are beech groves nearby that sing to me of Lothlorien.
Pine ridges that remind me of Frodo's desire to check out the Pine Ridge in Rivendell. Drumlins (that's what New Englanders call rocky outcroppings on the tops of old hills) remind me of trolls caves in the Ettenmoors. Any beach reminds me of the Grey havens or of the older elf-havens to the south (Edhellond.) Streams remind me of the stream near Bag End that both Bilbo and Frodo crossed as they departed (with the little wooden bridge, there are a few of those around.) ...I could go on and on...
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...down to the water to see the elves dance and sing upon the midsummer's eve. Last edited by mark12_30; 02-23-2005 at 10:13 AM. |
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#7 | |
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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Quote:
In the examples that I provided, I always think that the locations are ME. I've had the idea that I should take pictures of the same, label them, format them as a calendar and distribute them as 'Middle Earth is Here!' (I'm sure that some lawyers would have a long talk with me if I did so). Might have trouble coming up with 12 good ones... Anyway, wanted to add one more. At the bottom of this steep hill is a square doorway - aged, dark, of stone construction. Try as I might I cannot see where it leads, and again it is on private property so... I assume that the actual purpose of the 'room' is for some kind of storage, like a root cellar frm years past. However, to me it just inspires visions of the Paths of the Dead. |
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#8 |
Stormdancer of Doom
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The places drive the thoughts, not the other way around. Any beech grove reminds me of Tolkien. And there's this one magnificent beech tree at the top of a hill... the roots spread all around the hilltop, and the branches are plentiful and close, and the trunk is thick. I call it the Crown Beech. I am sure Tolkien would have been pleased with it.
I often look out into our oaks in my backyard and try to decide where to put my talan. Very cool, your stone doorway...
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...down to the water to see the elves dance and sing upon the midsummer's eve. |
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#9 |
Dead Serious
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Well, I would say that I have beheld the Misty Mountain (ie. the Canadian Rockies) from my front yard. I know what the wide flatlands of Rohan look like (the natural flat grasslands of the prairie). I have beheld the mostly barren, but with scattered trees and shrubs and hills, and altogether unpopulated Eriador (Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, where the prairie and forest meet in a rather bumpy terrain). I feel like I have walked in the Woody End (anywhere up in the Parkland band of forest. Elk Island Nat. Park springs to mind). I have walked in the pine-forest of Dorthonion, tracking the footsteps of Barahir and his men (lodgepole pine forest, either in Cypress Hills or Waterton Nat. Park). I have gone down the River Running in a canoe (Red Deer River).
Yes, I have seen Middle-earth.
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I prefer history, true or feigned.
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#10 |
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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Thanks for the replies.
Around here we have these huge sycamore trees that I picture as examples of the 'Party Tree' - especially when they stand along. However, the areas around the same do not lend themselves feelings of the Shire. |
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#11 | |
Animated Skeleton
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Erebor
Posts: 49
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My aunt has a cabin up near Imperial, PA that struck me as a good vision of Woodhall. Nice old trees with some good paths between them. Clearings that my family maintained. Racoon Creek is literally down a hill from the cabin.
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#12 |
Energetic Essence
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That would be a very interesting drink name Snorri. There's this really big forest in the back that reminds me of Mirkwood. It's dark and creepy so, you understand why hopefully.
Glirdy
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I'm going to buy you a kitty, I'm going to let you fall in love with the kitty, and one cold, winter night, I'm going to steal into your house and punch you in the face! Fenris Wolf
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#13 |
Shady She-Penguin
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: In a far land beyond the Sea
Posts: 8,093
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I don't know is this related to the topic, but I'll write it anyways.
My father visited France a few years ago and found a place called Lorien. He even visited a village named Rohan. There was an inn in the middle of the village called Le Cheval Blanc , which means The White Horse. Tolkien ever visited Northern France? ![]() (The Lorien-thing was probably a coincidence, since it's Elvish, but what about Rohan? Was (the village or) the inn named after Tolkien's inventions or did Tolkien get the idea from a little village in France? The place was coincidentally named Rohan and a Tolkien-fan named his inn the White Horse?) Well, anyways I think it's funny. ![]() |
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#14 | |
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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#15 |
Energetic Essence
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I agree with alatar. Maybe all of this is just coincadential, well, for the inn anyway. But the town Rohan? I think Tolkien was inspired by that town. But that's just my opinion.
Glirdy P.S. Notice how its just you, AragornII and myself in the thread of "If they still had Gandalf."? Wish other people would join that.
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I'm going to buy you a kitty, I'm going to let you fall in love with the kitty, and one cold, winter night, I'm going to steal into your house and punch you in the face! Fenris Wolf
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#16 | |
Dead Serious
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In case anyone asks, the reason that the Riders' country has a Sindarin name is that Rohan is the name given to the country in Gondor. In their own land, they call it the Riddermark (Rider-land, sorta....) and they call themselves the Eorlingas (Eorl-lings, people of Eorl).
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I prefer history, true or feigned.
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#17 |
Energetic Essence
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You know, I never knew that before now, very interesting indeed.
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I'm going to buy you a kitty, I'm going to let you fall in love with the kitty, and one cold, winter night, I'm going to steal into your house and punch you in the face! Fenris Wolf
Last edited by Glirdan; 05-29-2005 at 01:04 PM. |
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#18 |
Shady She-Penguin
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: In a far land beyond the Sea
Posts: 8,093
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That's true about the name of Rohan - I didn't remember. It still - though it is elvish - might have been influenced by the little village...
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Like the stars chase the sun, over the glowing hill I will conquer Blood is running deep, some things never sleep Double Fenris
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#19 |
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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One note that I'm in (almost) total agreement with Peter Jackson is where he states something like "we strove to get the scenery right."
Some of the places that he filmed were straight out of my head (the Shire, some general scenery like farms, woods, etc). The valley of Rivendell must have come from a someone's artwork as it was in my head too. Never pictured the 'last homely house' like PJ created it, though. Anyway, I've not found many examples of elvish country (with the exception of Lothlorien) as it's hard to 'see' a place that otherworldy while sitting in this world. Picturing Rohan as Tennessee and Gondor as some city by a river is much easier than seeing what Lothlorien looks like in Spring. |
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#20 |
Wight
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I used to walk to school through this cemetary every day. It had a big long road down the middle and there were trees on either side. The tops of the trees would cover the space above the road in the summer and It could get quite creepy. It always reminded me of The Road where Frodo is assailed by the Black Rider, especially when it's windy as all the dead leaves kinda blow up in the air. It looked exactly like it did in the film!
Once, when I was with my friend we saw a man standing right up on the top of this tree that had collapsed during a storm. He was moving with such ease and grace and he was 'clad all in green and brown'. We both stopped and looked at each other, certain that we'd just seen Legolas!!!
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Ś cilith war. Ś men war. Boe min mebi. Boe min bango. |
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#21 |
Ghost Prince of Cardolan
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Wandering through Middle-Earth (Sadly in Alberta and not ME)
Posts: 612
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Yesterday was a very sunny day in Calgary,Alberta. Suddenly dark clouds formed, they were dark blue,purple and almost black. Some even had a orange tinge. These clouds were slowly covering the blue sky untill you could see just a tiny strip of blue sky. Needless to say this reminded me of the shadow of Mordor approaching Gondor . It was actually quite scary.
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#22 |
Wight
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Yesterday I was on the bus on the way to college, whilst listening to the TT soud track at full blast on my Walkman, I looked out of the window. To my astonishment, I saw a white tree, but not just any white tree, it appeared to be dying. Although it was half dead it still looked so beautiful, as sunlight just started to touch the top of its low branches.
I of course exclaimed loudly that Elessar would soon replace the dead tree and that I was going to get off the bus and wait. My friend grabbed by the arm and told me that Viggo Mortenson wasn't going to walk down the street and Aragorn certainly wasn't because he didn't exist. My friend knows that I like to think of LotR as a part of history so she just burst out laughing at the sad look on my face. When I got on the bus on the way home and looked at the tree it had lost all it's appeal and no longer looked like The White Tree, but just a withered and sorry sight.
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Ś cilith war. Ś men war. Boe min mebi. Boe min bango. |
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#23 | |
Cryptic Aura
Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 5,990
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I have, one dank, grey November day, looked out upon a beech tree, its orange leaves dead but drooping on its limbs, and its white bark shimmering, and seen Lothlorien, a land of memory and commemoration like a moment out of time.
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Ill sing his roots off. Ill sing a wind up and blow leaf and branch away. |
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#24 |
Cryptic Aura
Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 5,990
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Well, I wasn't atop a mountain, nor did I see a burning bush, although some of the euonymous shrubs here are a brilliant burst of screaming scarlet. I did however come face to face with Eru today.
An Emergency Rescue Unit (yes, it really is labled in large- lettered acronym, ERU) pulled around the corner without siren or lights flashing and raced into my lane. You cannot guess what imaginings I felt as I faced this music. Luckily I was able to stop in time and so the sight did not foretell my doom.
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Ill sing his roots off. Ill sing a wind up and blow leaf and branch away. Last edited by Bźthberry; 11-01-2005 at 06:55 PM. |
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#25 |
Blithe Spirit
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,779
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Some years ago I visited Romania and it struck me that the dictator Ceausescu had done his best to turn it into Mordor. Wherever there was a particularly beautiful valley or castle, he had stuck a hideous sprawling steel factory belching out filthy yellow smoke. I kept muttering Mordor, Mordor to myself, to the concern of my travelling companion who misheard me and thought I had turned homicidal...
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Out went the candle, and we were left darkling |
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#26 |
Hauntress of the Havens
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: IN it, but not OF it
Posts: 2,538
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This is posted at the door of a room in my univ's Bio building (of sorts):
NUMENOR is a COMPUTER ROOM. It is NOT a tambayan*! *a place for hanging out in Filipino To think that will be my home in the univ...that's so cool! ![]() |
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#27 |
Ghost Prince of Cardolan
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: In hospitals, call rooms and (rarely) my apartment.
Posts: 1,538
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Well, I just read the thread about "walking to Rivendel" and I had an epiphany. There is this this great forest which I once went biking to with a friend. It was not the best idea as it had just rained and the trails were very muddy.... but while biking around I got this feeling of re-tracing Frodo's journey... specially as the mosquitoes drove my friend and I away. I think next summer I will go walking rather than biking... and who knows? I might just find Rivendel lost in there!
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#28 | ||
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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Quote:
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"Well, there's this online forum where all we talk about is Tolkien..."
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There is naught that you can do, other than to resist, with hope or without it.
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#29 |
Dead Serious
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Weathertop is sweet, Alatar, but I must quibble with your Paths of the Dead. Tolkienish they look indeed, but they conjure up an image more of the Barrow Downs... (Not these ones, the ones by Tom Bombadil's house.
![]() Thanks for sharing. Clearly, you live in a mystical neighbourhood.
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I prefer history, true or feigned.
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#30 | ||
Doubting Dwimmerlaik
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Heaven's basement
Posts: 2,466
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Neighbor #1 to neighbor #2: "If he says, 'You shall not pass!' one more time to me..." Edit: Note that the "Weathertop" hill is situated just above a major road, as it should be.
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There is naught that you can do, other than to resist, with hope or without it.
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#31 |
Shade of Carn Dūm
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Posts: 257
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There's a sort of park in central Edinburgh alongside London Road, with trees and a path. It's hilly, with shrubs and I can't help feel like an Istari wandering through some woods in Middle-earth everytime I walk through it.
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Head of the Fifth Order of the Istari Tenure: Fourth Age(Year 1) - Present Currently operating in Melbourne, Australia Last edited by Rhod the Red; 05-12-2006 at 04:08 AM. |
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#32 |
Wight
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Behind the hills
Posts: 164
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A year or so ago, I would have said, yes, I have seen Middle-Earth, and would have proceeded to give a lengthy list of places near my house that somehow reminded me of ME. Now, however, I have to say, no, I have not seen Middle-Earth. I have seen Earth. Perhaps my imaginings of ME have sharpened my interest and awareness of Earth, but, then again, the beauty of our world has shaped my imagination of that world. I cannot go out to the natural lands on campus and say I see the plains of Rohan, nor can I explore the forest behind my dorm and say I have seen the Old Forest or Lothlorien or Fangorn (although sometimes I feel like a hobbit out there
![]() Besides, Middle-Earth doesn't really have any lakes. On the map, and in the stories, there is one lake (Lake Evendim), two marshes (Midgewater and Dead), and two seas (Rhun and Nurnen). I would miss lakes and ponds--and ducks!
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"If we're still alive in the morning, we'll know that we're not dead."~South Park |
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#33 |
A Northern Soul
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Valinor
Posts: 1,847
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I live in a small town/rural area myself. On the way to my university, I pass through another small town which reminds me of a present day Shire. There are still fields within the city limits; the houses are nothing extravagant. There are plenty of goats about. Most of the yards have at least a small garden. There are no business buildings, grocery stores, or gas stations to speak of - only a church and a post office. I've been meaning to photograph it.
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...take counsel with thyself, and remember who and what thou art. |
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#34 | |
Pilgrim Soul
Join Date: May 2004
Location: watching the wonga-wonga birds circle...
Posts: 9,451
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I think that, though I am not an expert on troll-lore ( I would redirect you to Pio) that your picture looks like a troll refuge/store room. And Lommy, Tolkien did visit Northern France both as a tutor and a soldier.
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But Finrod walks with Finarfin his father beneath the trees in Eldamar.
Christopher Tolkien, Requiescat in pace |
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#35 |
Wight
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Concluding negotiations
Posts: 103
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On my way to school in the morning (at 6 am
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From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken; The crownless again shall be king. |
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#36 |
A Mere Boggart
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: under the bed
Posts: 4,737
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I swear that this place, Padley Gorge, is Rivendell. We had a walk down there this morning, when I decided to pull up and see why there were cars parked at the side of the road and found this stream with waterfalls and oak groves, and huge half-carved millstones lying around in the woods. It's at one end of Longshaws (near Hathersage in Derbyshire) which I thought I knew well, but I didn't know this part existed. The pictures cannot quite capture how lovely it is.
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Gordon's alive!
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#37 |
Animated Skeleton
Join Date: May 2006
Location: East Texas
Posts: 38
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#38 |
Guest
Posts: n/a
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All though I'm surrounded by countryside and coastal views I'm prone to think about Middle Earth quite a lot. When I go to walk TJ, our pet pooch, I tend to think like Bilbo and want to go on adventures, see mountains and all mystical creatures that go with. I would so love to find ME, but I'm already there when I pick up my books or watch my movie versions and this makes my mind visually satisfied
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#39 | |
Animated Skeleton
Join Date: May 2006
Location: East Texas
Posts: 38
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Plus it's a whole lot less trouble. ![]() |
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#40 |
Guest
Posts: n/a
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Thanks Texadon
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