Not All Who Wander Are Lost…..

All that is gold does not glitter

Not all who wander are lost

The old that is strong does not wither

Deep roots are not reached by the frost

From the Fellowship of the Ring by JRR Tolkien….a poem about Aragorn who is the heir to the throne of Gondor.

Sometimes I feel like I’m wandering and I am lost. More times than I’d like to share. I always liked that little poem. Somehow it keeps me a little grounded when things are not going as planned. The best laid plans of mice and men seem to have a will of their own at times don’t they? As does the One Ring.

Greetings again before I forget! I’m glad you are all back. I hope those of you who got hit by that Nor’ Easter this week are in recovery mode. We didn’t get hit too bad up by me in Dutchess county. About 4 inches of the white stuff and that was it. I was very thankful for that. A friend of mine in South Jersey got about 24 inches of snow. He’s still shoveling out.

On a personal note I’ve been trying to lose a bit of weight for my winter vacation. Trying not to look too much like an over the hill old man in a bathing suit kind of thing. It’s those damn holidays! I lose control on Thanksgiving and it’s all downhill after that. I’ve been doing pretty good on the weight loss thing the last week or so. You know watching what I eat and all. So I get on the scale and it’s reading 193.6. I’m trying to get down to around 190. So I’m excited. I had my tee shirt and underwear on so I’m thinking hey I wonder if I’ll break 193 without this stuff on. Okay so this is getting real personal so if you want to just skip ahead  you can. I can take it. I’ll understand. So I get back on the scale without the stuff on and it reads 194! What’s up with that!!! Then I hear the scale say, “It’s never gonna happen Jim.” Like in a really low voice so I wasn’t sure if I was hearing things. (It actually sounded a bit like my Mother-in-law) It kind of reminded me of the time in the Fellowship of the Ring when the Ring spoke to Aragorn. “Bless us Aragorn Elessar, bless us.” Creepy right? After I got off the scale I got dressed and had a brownie for breakfast.

On a Hobbit Hollow note I wasn’t able to work this weekend for a couple of reasons but I was able to take a few pictures of a couple of things that I thought might be of interest. So let’s move on.

The wheels are really turning now. Ethan cleaned up the house the other day before he went back to school. Boy, this thing is really starting to shape up. The living and dining area is going to be awesome when it’s done. There’s a lot of little framing projects I’m going to have to do all over the place. I was kind of thinking that I would tackle the circular hallway first which would really be fun to do. It would really get the Hobbit House flavor going, if you know what I mean. Here’s a picture looking through the living room window bay.

View out of the living room window.
View out of the living room window.

I was also thinking of Terence’s idea of a circular window on the side of the house. I did a couple of sketches on how I could make it work. I don’t think it would be too much work the way I’ve got it drawn. Have faith Lord of the Rings fans we’re going to get a circular window into this project by hook or by crook! I guarantee it. I mean look at the side of this house. It’s just ripe for a circular window. Just like in the movies!

Side of the house. Circular window location?
Side of the house. Circular window location?

You have to use your imagination here but I think this will look really cool if I can get the size and details right. Scale is a big thing here. If it’s too big or small it might look stupid. I also think I’m going to bring my excavator friend back and have him make the pond a little bigger and deeper. You know the whole swimming with the fishes thing can get a little dicey if you don’t have the right depth. Very important if you catch my drift. It’s attention to the minor details that make the difference in the end.

Okay, I gotta watch how much I put into this blog. I could get myself into a whole lot of trouble if I’m not too careful.

Well I hope you all have a pleasant week. Enjoy!

Jim

PS: Anybody have any idea when trout season opens in New York?

 

 

 

 

4 thoughts on “Not All Who Wander Are Lost…..”

  1. Son-in-law
    small game season is Sept to Feb 29.
    I hear what your saying about weight,hate to admit it but you look fit,then again your wife looks great,so cut out that 2nd brownie.
    Have a great vacation,
    I’ll check the pond while your gone for that octopus.
    love ya
    mother-in-law

    Reply
    • Thanks for the compliment. First one in 25 years but I’ll take it. I’m obviously not going to loose any sleep waiting for another one. Oh yeah, check the deep end for the freshwater octopus. Make sure you wear a life jacket though. The embankment there is a little unstable and I don’t want to be blamed for you falling into the pond.

      And one other thing. I’m leaving you $100 so you can feed my son and daughter while I’m away. I don’t want to come home and hear they’ve been eating TV dinners at a buck fifty a pop.

      Love ya too,
      Jim

      Reply
  2. Son-in-law.
    Trout seasons opens in NY on April 1st,unless there’s calamari and scugilli in your pond your not getting me near it,so get another plan.
    Another thing 3 pounds isn’t going to much of a difference in a bathing suit,have another brownie or 2.

    Love ya
    mother-in-law

    Reply
    • Okay so that’s interesting. I didn’t know you were keeping up with that sort of thing. You wouldn’t know when small game season starts would you?

      As far as the weight is concerned it’s not how much you weigh it’s how you feel. And I would feel a lot better at 190 than at 193 for your information.

      See you soon,
      Jim

      PS: I thought I saw a fresh water octopus near the deep end of the pond the other day. You really should take a look.

      Reply

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