Amidus Drexel's Alliterative and Awe-Accentuating Anvil of Random Banter CLXXXVI

[DraPrime]

... that is a cool video.

Tell us if it's fun! It looks cool! Though I don't think it runs on my blackberry.

GWYN! LONG TIME NO SEE!

[Amidus Drexel]

Mon dieu! There is a lot of Tolkien on this page.

Quoted in no particular order at all...

Honestly, why are people so easy to "bribe"?

We are but poor students.

Well, it would depend on the money offered. I figure 1000 dollars per LOTR book would be a good amount of money to provide to me if you were going to give me money to read them. And like 12 000 dollars to read The Silmarillion.

The Silmarillion is a bit much. I have no idea why I read it twice.

I have a pet peeve about people with short attention spans complaining about Tolkien's writing as if the problem is with him as a writer, not them as a reader. Tee hee hee, it's like shaking a beehive!

Agreed. Beehives occasionally need a good shaking. Some of us prefer to do it with a shotgun.

He was not a good author. Lord of the Rings is dry in places, has atrocious pacing, doesn't change focus between important characters nearly frequently enough, and has far too much slogging through miles and miles of bloody Mordor.

I disagree with all the things said here. The stuff in Mordor was one of my favorite parts of the story!

The Silmarillion is even worse. It's incredibly dry. My housemate adores all of Tolkein's works, and has read the Silmarillion multiple times, and even he admits it's hard to get through.

The Silmarillion (from what I understand from reading it's foreward, anyway) was a collection of short things Tolkien had written about Middle-Earth (and the rest of that setting) that were compiled by his son.

Doesn't stop it from being hard to read though.

I cannot believe what I'm reading here........

And J.R.R. Tolkein was said to be a Father of Fantasy.

@V: Somewhere out there, J.R.R. Tolkein rolls over in his grave.

DO YOU PEOPLE HAVE ANY RESPECT FOR THIS MAN AT ALL!?!?!??!?!?!?

Yes, some of them just don't appreciate long descriptive passages and walking in between plot points.

I like the slowness of LotR

Good man.

I believe they actually made Tolkien publish the Lord of the Rings in three books, rather than one. Imagine what a monstrosity that would have been.

Which is funny, because the "trilogy" is actually six books. I wonder if it would have sold as well if it were split into six parts?

On the first point, same for me. And even when they're not interesting, I can usually manage to struggle though. I mean, I read every book of Eragon because my grandma gave them to me and I didn't want to lie to her.

On the note of the editor-needing though? While I mostly agree, I don't think that elves having pointy ears was a thing at the time he wrote it, so he wouldn't have thought it needed saying that they didn't.

Okay, Brisingr is one of the dullest, dryest books I've ever read, especially the second half (I vaguely remember something interesting happening at the beginning of that book). If you read that, you can read the LoTR trilogy, easy.

ION: I've somehow managed to let my rhythm guitarist talk me into bringing my keyboard to practice... It may sound nice, but now I have problems: 1) I am not an very good pianist (holding chords? Good. Proper piano-playing? No.); 2) There are a lot of things involved with moving that setup, and it takes forever to move; and 3) It keeps me from being able to move around much (as it takes up a good deal of space).

Pros: I am starting to feel like Geddy Lee, what with the bass, mic, keys, and long hair.

[Dimonite]

*Tolkien stuff*

I did try and fail to read the books once, but I don't think it counts because I was 10 at the time. Given the fact that I managed to slog my way through most of Don Quixote (which, while very good, is a little hard to get into for the modern English speaker) I could probably manage LOTR now, I just haven't gotten around to it. But the movies...

Those were the best movies I've ever seen.

[Drakeburn]

Those were the best movies I've ever seen.

Agreed. And I'll bet my money that The Hobbit: An unexpected Journey will be just as good.

That book was good as well.

[Elemental]

I believe they actually made Tolkien publish the Lord of the Rings in three books, rather than one. Imagine what a monstrosity that would have been.

Actually no... He wanted it published in six, but because of something to do with paper costs, they made him do it in three. Hence why each volume is two books.

Also, no. I haven't read it. But I made a valiant effort and got up to the part with that sacred pool thingy in Ithilien, or however it's spelt after over a year of stopping and starting. To this day, I have not had the proper mind set to take it up again.
The Hobbit was a much more enjoyable book.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

GWYN! LONG TIME NO SEE!

DP!

I'm going to be in Boston in February at some point, if all things work out. You should mosey along to hang out with me!

[Mutant Sheep]

DP!

I'm going to be in Boston in February at some point, if all things work out. You should mosey along to hang out with me!

Gasp! But Boston is so FAR from Mini France!

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Gasp! But Boston is so FAR from Mini France!

A day by bus. It's closer than home.

[LaZodiac]

DP!

I'm going to be in Boston in February at some point, if all things work out. You should mosey along to hang out with me!

Another Canadian! This forum is only big enough for one of us and also a budgie!

[Socratov]

Question: How can one have an informed opinion on a movie either way in the first five minutes?

I by no means defend the movie - not the best (I did think the graphics were neat), but I think it was at least on par with my dislike of Eragon. Both disappointed me for the same reasons. However, I've never seen lightening thief, nor read the book, so I shant comment on that.

well, simple. I watched five minutes of consecutive bits, after a total of 20 minutes it only sucked harder (even with skipping). It jsut hurt my eyes...

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Another Canadian! This forum is only big enough for one of us and also a budgie!

And that budgie ain't gonna budge.



So I guess it's you and me...


(I JUST FOUND THIS AND WAS GOING TO POST THIS ANYWAYS SO THANK YOU FOR SETTING ME UP)

[Kneenibble]

O! Excuse me while I liquify into a puddle of squee.

He looks around all calmly at the bottom :D waaaaaaa


But seriously, Zodalicious, Gwyn is good people. He can have my seat.

Uhh, I mean

[LaZodiac]

And that budgie ain't gonna budge.



So I guess it's you and me...


(I JUST FOUND THIS AND WAS GOING TO POST THIS ANYWAYS SO THANK YOU FOR SETTING ME UP)

O! Excuse me while I liquify into a puddle of squee.

He looks around all calmly at the bottom :D waaaaaaa


But seriously, Zodalicious, Gwyn is good people. He can have my seat.

Uhh, I mean

I like how none of you realized I specificly said that no matter what Knee is staying here. I said this forum isn't big enough for two Canadians, and also a Budgie.

In retrospect I realize that this isn't 100% clear, but basically what I'm saying is that we're all ridiculous. Besides, Gwyn's from Toronto, that barely counts as Canada

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

I like how none of you realized I specificly said that no matter what Knee is staying here. I said this forum isn't big enough for two Canadians, and also a Budgie.

In retrospect I realize that this isn't 100% clear, but basically what I'm saying is that we're all ridiculous. Besides, Gwyn's from Toronto, that barely counts as Canada

We can't all be as frozen as you, Love. Some of us actually need to upkeep a business sector that keeps the entire economy running.

The phrase "not big enough for two canadians and also a budgie" TOTALLY means "one of the 3 goes". I don't think I could draw a syntactic tree that would give the meaning that the budgie is a separate thing...

[MoonCat]

...I honestly have no idea how long I've been gone this time. It's the same thread...

But I thought yesterday was Monday too, so I don't even...

I also remember having some really cool things to tell you all, but I can't even remember what they were now.

I think I'm doing well on that whole social aspect though!

It's sort of hard to tell. I'm having those things you get after a long day where the morning seems like a year ago. Repeatedly.

Also, I'm going to France for the spring break (and Barcelona, we're being taught phrasey things in French, Spanish, and Catalan) and I think school didn't get any harder, but damn, having a social life is weird and time-taking.

...I'll explain what I mean when I next can say anything. Right now I'm just listening to Carmelldansen on repeat so my mind doesn't break.I might have a new bookbag!

[Heliomance]

What exactly is Ingress? Looks interesting.

[LaZodiac]

We can't all be as frozen as you, Love. Some of us actually need to upkeep a business sector that keeps the entire economy running.

The phrase "not big enough for two canadians and also a budgie" TOTALLY means "one of the 3 goes". I don't think I could draw a syntactic tree that would give the meaning that the budgie is a separate thing...

I know what I intended and that's what counts! Mwahaha.

...I honestly have no idea how long I've been gone this time. It's the same thread...

But I thought yesterday was Monday too, so I don't even...

I also remember having some really cool things to tell you all, but I can't even remember what they were now.

I think I'm doing well on that whole social aspect though!

It's sort of hard to tell. I'm having those things you get after a long day where the morning seems like a year ago. Repeatedly.

Also, I'm going to France for the spring break (and Barcelona, we're being taught phrasey things in French, Spanish, and Catalan) and I think school didn't get any harder, but damn, having a social life is weird and time-taking.

...I'll explain what I mean when I next can say anything. Right now I'm just listening to Carmelldansen on repeat so my mind doesn't break.I might have a new bookbag!

Hey Moony! One of these days you gotta come online so we can talk. I've missed you. Glad to see things are going good though!

[Teddy]

I believe they actually made Tolkien publish the Lord of the Rings in three books, rather than one. Imagine what a monstrosity that would have been.

We have that monstrosity in our book shelf.

(Think a bible, but twice as thick, and the height and width of the front has been increased by a factor, say √(3)/√(2), for a sufficiently approximative number. Same paper thickness.)

...I honestly have no idea how long I've been gone this time. It's the same thread...

But I thought yesterday was Monday too, so I don't even...

5 days, I think. Not terribly many, in other words. And time passes weirdly. I'd say I'm experiencing something similar right now, but my internal chronograph is more than but a lost cause right now. Good thing it's Friday...

I also remember having some really cool things to tell you all, but I can't even remember what they were now.

Speaking of cool things to tell... Scroll down to the end.

I think I'm doing well on that whole social aspect though!

It's sort of hard to tell. I'm having those things you get after a long day where the morning seems like a year ago. Repeatedly.

Also, I'm going to France for the spring break (and Barcelona, we're being taught phrasey things in French, Spanish, and Catalan) and I think school didn't get any harder, but damn, having a social life is weird and time-taking.

Sounds good to hear.

...I'll explain what I mean when I next can say anything. Right now I'm just listening to Carmelldansen on repeat so my mind doesn't break.I might have a new bookbag!

Heh, Caramelldansen would be the tool of my choice if I was set out to break my mind. Given, the text is in my native language, so I get exposed to that as well...

ION:
I've made worse decisions than skiing to uni, but they aren't many. The problem is, my street holds the lowest priority of all when it comes to snow removal, so when I looked out my window yesterday, I saw nothing but thick, untraversable snow, but as soon as I got around the corner, the streets lay neat and clean (and as such, completely unskiable). And then I tried to cut across the golf course, where the snow was both unspoiled and a good two to three decimetres thick. Plodding would only have been mariginally more difficult than that.

Oh well, my prof only seemed amused by my briskness when I, half an hour late, entered the classroom carrying my skiis. He even stopped his walkthrough of a problem on the blackboard just to ask me if the surface was any good.

And, I hadn't missed anything important anyway...

IOON:
Physical exercise kills my manual dexterity (and makes me torpid and unenterprising), and I really need it if I'm going to finish this small project of mine before the end of this week.

[DraPrime]

DP!

I'm going to be in Boston in February at some point, if all things work out. You should mosey along to hang out with me!

February? If this is on a weekend, then I am 99% sure that this can totally work! Hooray!

[Devmaar]

It's looking like I have somewhere to live next year

[MoonCat]

Hey Moony! One of these days you gotta come online so we can talk. I've missed you. Glad to see things are going good though!

Yeah. I'm probably screwing up the game schedule hugely.

5 days, I think. Not terribly many, in other words. And time passes weirdly. I'd say I'm experiencing something similar right now, but my internal chronograph is more than but a lost cause right now. Good thing it's Friday...

Speaking of cool things to tell... Scroll down to the end.

Sounds good to hear.

Heh, Caramelldansen would be the tool of my choice if I was set out to break my mind. Given, the text is in my native language, so I get exposed to that as well...

Five days is a very long time for me right now.

you silly Nordic nerds. Skiing down the street. I wouldn't have believed it possible.

Yeah.

Indeed. I just needed one song to focus on completely so all my stressy thoughts couldn't get into my head.

[Teddy]

Five days is a very long time for me right now.

And it's a very short time to me. Whenever I'm closing up on a hard deadline, the clocks have a tendency to start ticking faster. Good thing I'm efficient when I actually can pull myself to action...

you silly Nordic nerds. Skiing down the street. I wouldn't have believed it possible.

It's possible if you're sufficiently dedicated, and they haven't gritted the roads yet (although you should avoid them anyway, because cars bring dirt, and dirt is terrible to your skis). For some reason, it seems like they refuse to do so in the first day after snowfall, possibly because they want the roads properly compacted before pouring gravel on them...

Indeed. I just needed one song to focus on completely so all my stressy thoughts couldn't get into my head.

Well, for as long as you deal with the sources of your stress, good luck with that!

ION:
I've seen so much blatant misuse of statistics by some of our local politicians in the last week that I'm growing a bit angry with them. Seriously, you should never ever use a leading question in a poll. NEVER!

[Dimonite]

ION:
I've seen so much blatant misuse of statistics by some of our local politicians in the last week that I'm growing a bit angry with them. Seriously, you should never ever use a leading question in a poll. NEVER!

To quote... someone (probably Twain)

"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics."
And it depends what you mean by "should." Ethically, you absolutely should never ever use a leading question in a poll. But if your goal is to get the statistics to say what you want them to say, then you should use a leading question; it's the easiest way to do that while making your statistics look legitimate.

[LaZodiac]

Yeah. I'm probably screwing up the game schedule hugely.

Don't worry, you're not screwing up the game schedule at all! I completely understand that everyone has a life outside the game and I can't force them to devote all their time to the game. And besides, you're my friend. I want you to be happy

[The Succubus]

It's strange how an incident in the news can have a really profound effect on you even when you don't know the people involved. The news item in question relates to a nurse that was a victim of a hoax phone call and gave out information over the phone to a call show in Australia. It doesn't have a happy ending.

I guess I can relate to it because when you're working in a hospital mistakes *will* happen, however much we want to pretend they don't. I feel really sorry for her and angry that she commited suicide because of a "joke".

[Teddy]

To quote... someone (probably Twain)

"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics."
And it depends what you mean by "should." Ethically, you absolutely should never ever use a leading question in a poll. But if your goal is to get the statistics to say what you want them to say, then you should use a leading question; it's the easiest way to do that while making your statistics look legitimate.

Well, I always advocate honesty, so using misleading methods to gather wanted information is a big no-no to me. Also, it's really easy to be called out on leading questions, turning all your statistics against you. No, if you really want them to say what you want them to say, make them think that way as well. It's almost failsafe!

Also, (correct) statistics never lies, but there are three kinds of liars: liars, damned liars and people who use statistics.

[AtlanteanTroll]

I'M ALIVE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! *coughs*

[LaZodiac]

I'M ALIVE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! *coughs*

Hey Atlantean. How you doing?

[Teddy]

I feel productive and awesome today. And weirdly dignified. Also, I should start looking into where I can get a metal engraving, but that's a long time project...

[LaZodiac]

I feel productive and awesome today. And weirdly dignified. Also, I should start looking into where I can get a metal engraving, but that's a long time project...

Oh man, productive Teddy! This can only mean good things