#<- tagging so I can find it easily

[jellycaustic]

So, I love The Hobbit, and Lord of the Rings, but I haven't read them since I was a kid. Obviously, a reread is in order, and that's how I'm getting myself out of my months-long non-reading rut. To increase my absorption and retention, I'm also doing a book journal! And at my dear bestie @hartmannyoukaigirl's suggestion 💖, I'm posting a bit of it here.

This will just be some noteworthy quotes and a bit of my thoughts on them. If something I mentioned seems obvious, it's because it's been such a long time. If I don't mention something, it might be because I've already seen it discussed around here frequently or otherwise that it's obvious, or that I've noted the quote for myself but don't have anything to say about it.

The Hobbit, Chapter 1 - "An Unexpected Party"

There is little or no magic about them, except the ordinary everyday sort which helps them to disappear quietly and quickly when large stupid folk like you and me come blundering along, making a noise like elephants which they can hear a mile off. one morning long ago in the quiet of the world, when there was less noise and more green, and the hobbits were still numerous and prosperous

These quotes make it sound like The Hobbit would have taken place on Earth, not Middle Earth, like a more usual fairy tale with imps and brownies and the implication that if you believe hard enough maybe you can still see them. Placing it in Middle Earth makes it sound like inter-racial relations declined some time after the events of LotR. Sad to imagine :(

It was often said (in other families) that long ago one of the Took ancestors must have taken a fairy wife. That was, of course, absurd, but certainly there was still something not entirely hobbitlike about them, and once in a while members of the Took-clan would go and have adventures.

Of course this quote has been discussed endlessly, but I'm just going to say that given that a fairy wife is clearly absurd, and yet the Tooks are certainly unhobbitlike, I have to wonder what the true reason is for their proclivities. And is the absurdity of a fairy wife the existence of fairies or the willingness of a hobbit to marry one?

"Not the Gandalf who was responsible for so many quiet lads and lasses going off into the Blue for mad adventures? Anything from climbing trees to visiting elves--or sailing in ships, sailing to other shores! Bless me, life used to be quite inter--I mean, you used to upset things badly in these parts once upon a time."

Even climbing a tree is an adventure. What occasion did Gandalf have to cause a hobbit to climb a tree? Was that even intended as an adventure or was it just so bizarre that it stuck in Bilbo's memory? Hobbits have visited elves, perhaps as recently as within the last 50 years. Were these "quiet" hobbits the aforementioned Tooks, or genuinely respectable and supposedly entirely unadventurous hobbits? And Bilbo is clearly more adventurous then he'd like to believe; is that just his Tookishness or is that common to even ordinary hobbits?

"Dwalin and Balin here already, I see," said Kili. "Some four, I should say by the sound," said Fili. "Besides, we saw them coming along behind us in the distance."

I'm not quoting it all, but the dwarves all come in separate small groups, and though travelling close together, aren't coordinated. A measure to avoid the unlucky thirteen?

On silver necklaces they strung The flowering stars, on crowns they hung The dragon-fire, in twisted wire They meshed the light of moon and sun

The Silmarils?

As they sang the hobbit felt the love of beautiful things made by hands and by cunning and by magic moving through him, a fierce and a jealous love, the desire of the hearts of dwarves. Then something Tookish woke up inside him, and he wished to go and see the great mountains, and hear the pine-trees and the waterfalls, and explore the caves, and wear a sword instead of a walking-stick.

The dwarven song is explicitly magical.

they were all looking at him with eyes shining in the dark. "We like the dark," said all the dwarves.

Dwarves have reflective eyes, perhaps night vision.

"Where are you going?" said Thorin, in a tone that seemed to show that he guessed both halves of the hobbit's mind.

Given his smoke ring games with Gandalf, Thorin definitely has magic about him. I'm sure Bilbo is easy to read, but it's also possible that this is better than a guess.

"may the hair on his toes never fall out!"

Is that a genuine hobbitish blessing, or is Thorin guessing? He could be assuming an analogy with dwarvish beards. Bilbo doesn't comment on it.

"If I say he is a Burglar, a Burglar he is, or will be when the time comes. There is a lot more in him than you guess, and a deal more than he has any idea of himself. You may (possibly) all live to thank me yet." "That would be no good," said the wizard, "not without a mighty Warrior, even a Hero. I tried to find one; but warriors are busy fighting one another in distant lands, and in this neighborhood heroes are scarce, or simply not to be found." "That is why I settled on burglary--especially when I remembered the existence of a Side-door."

Gandalf clearly appreciates the importance of Roles. I suspect this passage had a great influence on Terry Pratchett.

"From what it says on the map I should guess there is a closed door which has been made to look exactly like the side of the Mountain. That is the usual dwarves' method-- I think that is right, isn't it?"

Gandalf sounds like he's unsure... but he's been around enough that I'm surprised by that. I think that, actually, he may be explicitly giving Thorin the opportunity to confirm him so as not to be speaking over a very important dwarf about a matter of dwarvish culture.

[verenvuoto]

LONG TIME NO SEE!

Here's the next little comic in the Post-Game DR-Was-A-Simulation AU.

Comics in this series: 01 - 02 - 03 [this one!]

[orange-orchard-system]

This is a random tip, but if you want a deeper voice but are having trouble with consistently keeping it low when you're speaking, check that you aren't subconsciously tensing your throat. This especially goes for those who have trouble speaking (such as semi-verbal folk) who may have learned to ignore the amount of effort they put into speaking.

This is a little complicated, so I'm going to heavily simplify things, but. The pitch of your voice depends on your vocal cords, which are located in your throat. Tensing your throat also causes those vocal cords to tense up, which means your voice comes out higher. Relaxing your throat does the opposite, which makes your voice come out deeper. You don't need to teach yourself to keep your voice low, you just need to teach yourself to keep your throat relaxed, and your body will naturally lower your voice. (And if you want a higher voice, just switch it around and tense up your throat!) It can take a while to get used to, and may even feel like you're straining your voice at first, but rest assured, it's merely due to your body being unused to the practice, just like all other vocal practices beyond what a person typically does. Just don't purposefully strain your voice/hurt your throat by trying to force anything; voice training such as this can be uncomfortable at first, as it is unfamiliar, but it shouldn't become a source of pain. Remember to drink water frequently when first making this a habit to help your throat adjust, and you should be fine.

This has been random voice tips from *checks credentials* some random plural who takes voice lessons. Hope this helps someone out there.

[mikesbasementbeets]

byler in every episode -> 2.06. the spy

[critter-wizard]

ep 43 had me tearing up in a fucking shopping centre ‼️‼️

b+w alt version that I truly couldn't decide if I liked it more . Also I included a lot of thoughts in the tags but they're somewhat incoherent<3

[overcastedsays]

ULTRATOBER // FIRST - Limbo

no text version

[mintjeru]

it probably wasn't the smartest decision to start an ongoing 1000+ chapter webnovel when i know it'll consume my every waking thought but here we are

open for better quality | no reposts

[cubedmango]

「30歳の童貞に片想いすると魔法使いになれるらしい」 (from cherry magic volume 11 special edition) — english translation

[lilacthebooklover]

me, looking at the most toxic, awful, horrendously unhealthy fictional relationship in the world: why can't i have what they have? :(

[bugeyedfreaks]

I still haven’t been able to pick up a copy of the new PPG comic but you know what? I saw this panel online from it and…

…if this is like a Super Zeroes-esque comic where the girls are envisioning alternate versions of themselves with different destinies and if Blossom wants to be a detective GOD! BLESS! whoever wrote this ‘cause it’s perfect.

Bubbles as a bunny and Buttercup as a wrestler are also both perfect but that goes without saying. 🙏

[front-facing-pokemon]

[tealviscaria]

Say no more.

[pinketine]

[eerna]

No disrespect to you or anything but do you ever worry your ask box and blog becomes a bit of a toxic negative echo chamber?

Sometimes, yes! So I try my best not to give into it. I delete all asks which attack someone personally or get too mean in their criticism, and I definitely don't respond mean to anyone for their opinion. You'll notice there's been a number of asks with which I've disagreed, I don't cherry pick only those I 100% agree with, and I haven't really made any drama about it. I don't shy away from compliments or pointing out the positive aspects of stuff, either (this current Arcane roll is straight up a mix of me going YAYY and NOOO the entire time), and after every complain session I try to reblog and talk about positive things. I'm sure I still miss the mark sometimes, but I'm trying my best!

[muirneach]

sometimes tennis fans will say a string of numbers and you just have to deal with that. saying stuff like ‘omg 67162762726 was such a crazy match i love it’. like yeah thats normal sure whatever

[boatemboys]

i have to ask, What is the cumphantom incident-

this is the funniest ask ive ever received anyway the cumphantom incident is just when joe hills misspelled cubphantom and its the funniest thing ever to me. why can nobody spell the 3 letter name and why is it always an unfortunate spelling