What do you "assign" to the Shire?

[Lalwendë]

No such thing as 'prom' when I grew up. Instead we had The School Disco. In the 80s this was at its height of fashion. It consisted of getting dressed up in as much plastic, primary coloured jewellery as possible (all bought for 20p from the market), your best Chelsea Girl pixie boots and sticking half a ton of gel and hairspray on your hair. Then you'd spend the night flitting between the bikesheds where you had some cider stashed and the school hall where you would dance round your handbag to Duran Duran, while avoiding the lads windmilling their arms around in a semblance of 'dancing'. Later you would all laugh and jeer when you found one of your friends snogging a horrible lad behind the stage and try to avoid more horrible lads when Spandau Ballet came on as the last song at the incredibly late hour of 9.55pm.

But the nostalgia for such events, especially when you reminisce with your old friends, firmly belongs in The Shire.

[Bêthberry]

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

But the nostalgia for such events, especially when you reminisce with your old friends, firmly belongs in The Shire.

Hmm. Hmmm. (and that's not Hooom, hooom. ) I would have thought that nostalgia belongs with the elves, in Rivendell or Lothlorien. Aren't the elves the ones who reminisce about the good ole days?

[Farael]

Men In Kilts... no, while you ladies may have a strong interest in men wearing what amounts as a skirt, what I'm most interested on is a band by that name (in which, obviously, the men on the band wear kilts). Best band ever.

I also assign small, hometown bands. There is nothing like being able to chat with them after they're done their show, sure it'd be awesome to talk for two seconds to some rockstar while ten thousand crazy girls scream and yell that they love him... but I much rather have a short discussion on whether or not their last CD should have been longer. And of course, have them call me by my name not "dude" or something. Really cool band, good music, good people going to their shows.... I hope they make it big for them and so that I can say "I've been following these guys since the start" but at the same time, it'd be awful to loose the closeness you have with smaller bands.

[Celuien]

Working on ATM posts at 1:45 in the morning while munching on Rice Krispies Treats, sipping milk and playing with kitty. More generally, all of the fun things that help unwind after getting home from a busy night on second shift go to the Shire.

[littlemanpoet]

Originally Posted by Farael

Men In Kilts... no, while you ladies may have a strong interest in men wearing what amounts as a skirt, what I'm most interested on is a band by that name (in which, obviously, the men on the band wear kilts). Best band ever.

Thanks for the reminder to do this:

I assign to the Shire the best, absolute best, free Festival of the Arts in all of the States, happening his coming weekend in Grand Rapids, MI. Seven stages, starts Friday noon and doesn't end until Sunday 7pm. Folk, rock, jazz, classical, dance, improv, et cetera. and there is a Fife and Drum band too! I will not be missing it. Oh! And great food! Booths and booths of food, international fare and American. Philly Beef Steak Sandwiches. English Pasties. Suvlaki. Szechwan Chicken. You name it, we got it. Come on to my home town and enjoy! There's still time to plan. And PM me if you show up; we'll arrange to see some shows.

Festival Link

Take a peek!

[Celuien]

Originally Posted by littlemanpoet

Philly Beef Steak Sandwiches.

Ah - the cheesesteak! Best ones are found at this little place I know just outside Philly...

Festival looks like great fun.

[Mithalwen]

Despite the fact that the mix of sunshine and showers is making the hedges and lawns grow like weeds and the weeds grow like triffids.... the garden brings more joy than grief. Now after bluebells and lilacs ...the first roses have arrived. The very first being on the "mystery" rosebush. I bought it as a "Winchester Cathedral" and it should be cream... however it is the most glorious pink and an "old fashioned" sort..... lovely. Clearly belongs in the Shire.

[Lalwendë]

What's a cheesesteak? It sounds lardy, but good!

I'm also assigning gardening things to the Shire, namely finding interesting plant variations, like the double headed acid pink busy Lizzies and the variegated blue/lilac lobelias I've been putting out, which I imagine Rosie Cotton and all Hobbit lasses might have loved. I also assign Pinks and wallflowers because they smell wonderful and are so old fashioned. And hanging baskets, too. But I assign slug pellets to Mordor with the snails because I've had to resort to them to keep the infestation under control and I hate it because they don't die in a pleasant way and it makes me feel guilty.

And I assign getting excited about holidays because I'll be on mine this time next week. Woo-hoo!