(no subject)

I really have got to get rid of this fear of heights. It's got to the point where I can't even stand to look over a wall with a significant drop behind it, even when there's no chance that I'll fall.

Maybe I'll sign up for a bungee jump, or something. Or are there any slightly less drastic ways to start getting over it?

(no subject)

All around me darkness gathers,
Fading is the sun that shone;
We must speak of other matters:
You can be me when I'm gone.

Flowers gathered in the morning,
Afternoon they blossom on,
Still are withered by the evening:
You can be me when I'm gone.

--Neil Gaiman

I can't get that poem out of my head, and I don't know why. Oddly haunting, isn't it?

Musings on Tolkien!elves, and on FotR

You know, I don't know why everyone always brings up the thing about movie!Legolas and "oh, I almost had a facial expression". He's an elf! He's not supposed to show much emotion, and I think Orlando does a damn good job of playing him, so it's not fair to criticise this one aspect that makes perfect sense anyway.

Take the scene in Moria. The phrase "Ai! A Balrog!" works perfectly well on the printed page, but spoken? Naaaah. So what's the alternative? A good actor who knows how to show emotions in an understated way. The sheer terror on Legolas' face when Gandalf talks about the Balrog shows how bad this threat they're facing is. Legolas is several thousand years old, and has undoubtedly faced many terrible enemies, and yet he's terrified at the prospect of this particular beastie? He didn't need to say anything, the look on his face said it all for him!

Bottom line: elves don't show their emotions, except in extreme circumstances. I'm glad they're portrayed that way in the movies, because that's how it's supposed to be. [/rant]