Jeff

[cinesthetic. @TheCinesthetic]

Most movies end when the story is over. THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING (2003) had one final goodbye left. “Into the West” arrives after the journey is done and somehow carries the weight of an entire trilogy. No wonder it won the Oscar.

[friendscallmeJay @Jaypotta]

13 years ago today Jason Isbell released Southeastern and I fucking wept upon hearing “Elephant” for the first time. Core memory. Highly suggest.🐐

[The Culturist @the_culturist_]

Tom Bombadil is the most mysterious character in The Lord of the Rings.

He's the oldest being in Middle-earth and completely immune to the Ring's power — but why?

Bombadil is the key to the underlying ethics of the entire story, and to resisting evil yourself...

Tom Bombadil is an enigmatic, merry hermit of the countryside, known as "oldest and fatherless" by the Elves. He is truly ancient, and claims he was "here before the river and the trees." He's so confounding that Peter Jackson left him out of the films entirely.

This is understandable, since he's unimportant to the development of the plot. Tolkien, however, saw fit to include him anyway, because Tom reveals a lot about the underlying ethics of Middle-earth, and how to shield yourself from evil.

The hobbits meet Bombadil early on in their quest, before they reach Bree and the Prancing Pony Inn. He rescues Merry and Pippin from Old Man Willow, and invites the hobbits to stay at his house in the Old Forest.

There, the hobbits realize something strange about him: the Ring has no power over Bombadil whatsoever.

When he wears it, he remains visible. He treats it as a plaything, making it disappear with a magic trick. Indeed, at the Council of Elrond, Gandalf rejects the idea of giving the Ring to Tom, for he would likely misplace it or forget about it entirely.

So just who is he, exactly?

When Frodo asks this very question to Tom's wife Goldberry, she simply responds "He is." It's a cryptic answer that echoes God's famous answer to Moses in the Book of Exodus: "I am who I am."

Thus, many theorize that Bombadil is God, some kind of angelic being, or even the spirit of the Music of the Ainur (due to the fact that he is constantly singing). But Tolkien's letters reveal something considerably more interesting…

In April 1954, Tolkien wrote:

"The story is cast in terms of a good side, and a bad side, beauty against ruthless ugliness, tyranny against kingship… but both sides in some degree, conservative or destructive, want a measure of control.But if you have, as it were, taken a 'vow of poverty', renounced control, and take your delight in things for themselves without reference to yourself… then the questions of the rights and wrongs of power and control might become utterly meaningless to you, and the means of power quite valueless…"

So, Bombadil is a representation of what it means to take pure delight in the world around you — to experience people and things simply as they are, without any thought for what they could be or how you could use them. And this is why the Ring has no power over him.

To Bombadil, the One Ring is simply a ring, and the possibilities of what can be achieved through its power are of no importance. He is able to resist its evil precisely because he is entirely content with the world around him.

At the end of the story, having accomplished what he set out to do in Middle-earth, Gandalf pays Tom a visit before returning to the Undying Lands:

"I am going to have a long talk with Bombadil: such a talk as I have not had in all my time."

If Bombadil is the epitome of simply enjoying life and being, Gandalf is the epitome of doing. He guides the hobbits, fights the Balrog, and runs up and down Middle-earth to help destroy the One Ring.

But now that he's finally liberated from doing, he immediately heads to Bombadil's. He does so with a sense of relief, as if he's at last able to access a purer and higher mode of being — a sort of innocence that cannot be fully experienced by those consumed by doing.

Of course, by this Tolkien doesn't disparage the value of action. The entirety of LOTR displays the importance of rising up against evil, even in the face of all odds. But with the inclusion of Bombadil, he does remind readers that fighting isn't all there is.

Bombadil reminds us that while it's important to strive and *do*, it is just as important to occasionally step back and *be*. Indeed, your ability to do so plays a crucial role in helping you resist the allure of evil…

Read the full piece here:

https://t.co/aqK2daehIL

The unsung hero of The Lord of the Rings...

[Jeff @GoldmanJeff]

@ThrillaRilla369 The Martian

[Jeff @GoldmanJeff]

@niyetsel Flowing

[Jeff @GoldmanJeff]

@ThatEricAlper And a socket wrench set on the way out!

[Today in History @TodayinHistory]

The choir in the Sagrada Família is putting on the performance of a lifetime.

The vocals perfectly complement the stunning visuals of Gaudí’s cathedral!

[Christopher Hazard @hazardc]

I need to go back and really give this video the full restoration it deserves
Jerry Garcia Band - Rhapsody in Red
Coming soon!
March 17, 1978 - Capitol Theatre - Passaic, NJ
#jerrygarcia #jerrygarciaband #gratefuldead #livemusic #RockAndRoll

[American Debunk @AmericanDebunk]

The laugh is what I might miss most.

Here’s a laugh compilation.

[Backstage @Backstagebs1]

The fact that “Baba O’Reilly” was created by a simple switch on an analog organ is just so fucking cool.

always assumed it was a synth patch. Human creativity and analog gear will always remain undefeated

[The Adorable Pups @TheAdorablePups]

Every time his toys go in the washing machine 😂

[Philip Melanchthon Wegmann @PhilipWegmann]

The famed @UnionPacific Big Boy, the world's largest operating steam locomotive, chugs east through Allen County, Indiana on its coast-to-coast tour in celebration of America's 250th anniversary.

[TheTruth @TheTruth8240]

Stephen A Smith DESTROYS Lebrons GOAT Case

"He played 23 years,he still has 2 less titles than Michael Jordan, Michael Jordan played all 82 games 8 times, how many times did Lebron do it?, Michael Jordan is a 10x Scoring Champion, how many times did Lebron do it?, Michael Jordan is 9x All Nba defensive player, how many times did Lebron do it?, theres nothing to discuss. Michael Jordan averaged over 30 in the postseason 7 times, how many times did Lebron do it?, theres nothing to discuss, hes approaching year 24 and still has 2 less titles"

(Via The Late Run Show)

[Mühendislik Harikası @muhendisIiktr]

Mühendisler, elektrik iletmeyen özel bir sıvı kullanarak çalışır durumdaki elektrik ekipmanlarını temizliyor.

[Jeff @GoldmanJeff]

Beautiful! Paradise-level weather and vistas. Math skills are suspect, though. Folks all the way on the East coast are watching the Golden State attempt to count votes. Anyone out there concerned about the current process or how it's perceived in states where they have official tallies election night?

[Jeff @GoldmanJeff]

@Duke5563 @elonmusk My home office was in St Paul during my work career.
And, FWIW just completed this puzzle ( we live in a town called Woodstock!)

[Jeff @GoldmanJeff]

@Duke5563 @elonmusk Must be accompanied by the soundtrack! 🤘

[Jeff @GoldmanJeff]

@YN_Washington @stephenfhayes Indiana skyline 🏙️ edit coming

[George Washington 🇺🇸 @YN_Washington]

They put the skyline on the cover and the entirety of Chicago got hit with the worst Madden curse of all time

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

Rubiks cube and graph theory.

[🎞️ jagarikin]