The Hall of Fire

Scribbles, it made good sense to me. Of course, as I have often said, sense is what you make of it.

Jn, it was a great treat to share the bill with not one, not two, but three great Marimba groups playing Shona music from Zimbabwe. Probably the most infectious dance music in the world, in my humble opinion. They play seven different sized marimbas ranging from the lead tenor to those giant bass ma...

Frelga, I would be interested in more.

I particularly like the fact that you spelt the word Chanukkah four different ways in the course of your post, and still didn't exhaust all of the possibilities.

Some will recall that I mentioned that we put on a benefit concert for gulf coast hurricane survivors. One of the nice surprises is that my father and step-mother happened to be out west that weekend and got to come to the show. It was the first time that they have gotten to see us perform. My dad s...

Yes. I will probably get to keep one of his smaller works.

Seymour Boardman was my great-uncle (my mother's mother's brother). He has always epitomized for me the 'starving artist'. His paintings were just beginning to sell for significant money when he passed away this summer after a career as an artist that spanned 50 years and more. I am not generally a ...

This leaves an infinite number of paths not taken. Do the worlds, through which these other paths run, exist, or is my path the only path that is real? From the point of view of Tolkien's creation myth, I think the paths that were not taken in the thoughts of the Ainur were not created, therefore i...

That's deep.

I'm considering altering the conditions of entrance to the HoF to require that members have brains that "work funny". Warning: this is very oblique. This describes Tolkien's work very well. As vison said, his language is so very rich in meaning, so that even a short, primarily philological...

A very warm welcome for our newest members, Yov and IE. I am very happy to have both of you here.

My ideal of Net debate was Teremia's M00bies reads the b00ks thread, where a wealth of opinions was flung on the table like a heap of multi-colored jewels, each unlike the other, all adding to the brilliance of the total. (Forgive the metaphors of a severely sleep-deprived writer :oops:) Posters wo...

Queen B, to quote Sam, 'I does ask. And if that isn't nice enough. I begs.'

Sorry, Whist, but I have to disagree with you. Yes, you are a conservative (read right-wing if you wish), fundamentalist Christian, but you are not militant. You don't try to push your views on other people, and you are unfailingly respectful. That is not militant. One of the things that I greatly v...

Thing is, those powers are acquired through decades of self-discipline and practice and devotion. There is nothing 'magic' about it, in the sense we usually use that word.

That is exactly correct. The only thing that I would add is an intimate knowledge of and connection to nature.

Jn, the subject of the melding of Catholic and African animist traditions in the Americas in Voodoo, Candomble, Santeria and other traditions would be worth a thread of its own. I've been present during Yoruba ceremonies in which different Orisha (roughly equivalent to the Valar of Tolkien's mytholo...

Good observation, Faramond.

Yes, that is it exactly. Unfortunately, stupidity can sometimes be just as dangerous as malice. ETA: One thing that I don't want to see happen is have this thread osgiliate into a political discussion about President Bush. I know that some here are supporters of the president and others are not. Let...

I see what you are saying, Jn, and I tend to agree with you. But I don't think the analogy to wearing the yellow star is a good one. I'm sorry, but I don't see that type of thing as "persecution of Christians" in the way that making Jews where yellow stars was persecution of Jews. Rather, ...

Welcome, Melly, eärendil, and Semprini!

Eru, I LOVE those pictures.

vison, you may want to repost that lovely description in this thread: Nature's Beauty Painted in Your Words

For today, in honor Goldberry and Tom Bombadillo: