To the merriment

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

I think there's a place for this thread. It shall be somewhere we can all come to reminisce; to salute those times in Barrowdowns history which have made us laugh. Let us speak about those moments of comedy, and remind ourselves of a major reason why we give so much of our time to the forum.

One of my favourites is when Estelyn tried to chase a newcomer called pug of crydee all over the boards in an attempt to tell him that this isn't a chatroom. I don't think anyone else ever found out how the story resolved, but the exasperation emanating from the always-gentle words of Esty was highly apparent, and very funny to the lazy onlooker.

Or Saucepan Man's now famous self-provided image of himself involuntarily spitting a mouthful of coffee all over his computer screen when faced with a not-too-accurate description of himself in the How do you imagine other BDers thread. This was definitely a fall-out-of-your-seat-laughing moment.

My final example is what I consider the funniest post I have ever read: SamwiseGamgee's retelling of a fight to the death between a Warg and a Yeti which really kickstarted The Warg and Warg Rider Appreciation Thread. It is either a damning indictment of my work ethic, or a marvellous testament to the post, that my most vivid memory of second-year University was the disruption caused to a computer room full of students by my uncontrollable giggling at that wonderful tale.

Please share your merry memories of the Downs.

Peace.

[mark12_30]

I have searched and searched for it, all to no avail. Perhaps when the boards were moved, the thread was (GASP) deleted. But long ago in the shadowy past, when Fellowship was getting its Oscar-Snub, Lush was retelling her story of Oscar Night. Lush had gotten over the snub and moved on, and was merrily revelling in Ewan MacGregor. "When I saw that he was wearing eyeliner I nearly licked the screen, " quoth she.

I laughed so hysterically that my dog sat up and watched me with her head tipped to one side. Three years later it STILL makes me laugh out loud. Roggie of Morgoth owes his flame-proof eyeliner to this very moment-- to Ewan MacGregor, seen through the eyes of Lush.

[HerenIstarion]

I remember funny debate between Spellcheck Man, Da Abbreviator and Typo Girl (inspired and impersonated, no doubt, by some of the mods, Mr. Underhill most likely, or maybe BW himself). It was part of the first campaign for good English and reasonable writing skills on the Downs. Or maybe it was the first among numerous campaigns of the kind I had a chance to be an eye witness of

Original thread haven't survived the Great Migration, but scraps of it lingered as part of Rimbaud's (SP?) The Phantom Menace, (post #57)

PS So don't get surprised at recent visits of registered Inktomi Spiders - it is an age old tradition of administration around here, to have theatricals (with a moral), it seems

[Estelyn Telcontar]

I chuckle when I remember a thread Lush posted three years ago, where she told the story of meeting Viggo Mortensen while shopping one evening. Only after quite a few astonished and envious reactions did people realize that it was April 1st!

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Having had a vague memory, I made to track down and old war of sorts... and I then got pulled into rereading an entire six page thread. On my way from the initial post linking to a hilarious quiz that Lush created while bored in Durham, all the way to the end, I discovered a few half-forgotten laughs.

Lush's inadvertant proposal to Heren Istarion and his subsequent agreement, so long as there were not too many festivities and formalities involved.

Eomer of the Rohirrim's kind explanation of the genetics involved with the inborn pinkie (ie: little finger) extension observed during British Beverage-Imbibing.

The origin of my official imaginings of Eomer in a kilt, brought on initially by Saraphim's refusal of a marriage proposal that Eomer was unaware he had made, followed by his determination to win us all over. This is possibly where his terrifyingly large fan club originated.

Continuing through the thread, another laugh was brought on by Saraphim's declaration of war between the Uber-Dorks and the Cheeky Brits. At the very first, it was not an official war... until Eomer declared it so himself. Page Four is where the war really kicks off, seeing as how this is where whipped cream and argyle come into play. The war continues to crack me up as the phantom pops in just long enough to make the offer of the winner becoming his secretary. After a record set for number of pages allowed to continue off-topic, Lush tries really hard to steer us back on course. It uh... doesn't actually work. And then, after Gil-galad's final post suggesting that everybody stalk him... the thread dies.

And that, my friends, is one of my favorite public forum experiences. Mind you, some of the insane PM encounters leave me giggling to no end. And so to end this very linked post... Great thread idea, Eomer. I'd rep you, but I can't for awhile.

Fea

[Lhunardawen]

Who could ever forget the famous gauntlet Fordim slapped Mithalwen with in the CbC thread for "Strider"? It led to an untimely comparison of Faramir and Aragorn which ended tragically. Well, not really...just with Esty's reprimand.

[Encaitare]

Lush's inadvertant proposal to Heren Istarion and his subsequent agreement, so long as there were not too many festivities and formalities involved.

Oh dear, let's hope the future Mrs. Istarion never finds out about that!

[Mithalwen]

Originally Posted by Lhunardawen

Who could ever forget the famous gauntlet Fordim slapped Mithalwen with in the CbC thread for "Strider"? It led to an untimely comparison of Faramir and Aragorn which ended tragically. Well, not really...just with Esty's reprimand.

Oh no... it was merely adjourned to another place (The coming of age club) and immortalised in merchandise.

[Elennar Starfire]

Bravo, Fea! Perhaps with all those links, someone will bring the thread back to life.

[Nimrodel_9]

Or Saucepan Man's now famous self-provided image of himself involuntarily spitting a mouthful of coffee all over his computer screen when faced with a not-too-accurate description of himself in the How do you imagine other BDers thread. This was definitely a fall-out-of-your-seat-laughing moment.

Oh, I loved that! My parents were watching a movie when I started laughing uncontrollably. They ended up kicking me off the computer, all thanks to SpM.

This is probably something very few noticed, but in the New Members Introduce Yourselves thread, Gil-galad told me I could call him Sugar because of a random title to my post. I began calling him Sugar and a couple people were wondering why. I still call him Sugar.

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

Fea, that thread made me laugh so much. Probably because I am such an insufferable egomaniac...

Another single comment that made me burst out laughing was Helen's "Did your face atrophy?", which essentially begged for a stern warning from the moderator. I think we were talking about smilies, or something. A brilliant example of off-the-wall humour.

And also the 'bear/bare' fiasco which I think only Mithalwen knows about. Suffice to say, I confused the two words, with highly embarrassing consequences.

[the phantom]

I was looking back through some threads today and I found something I had forgotten about- an extremely silly pun by me in the Freudian slip thread.

It started with Finwe's post. And I responded here.

Yeah. It's pretty bad. But it sure made me laugh.

[the phantom]

This thread would certainly be incomplete without a link to Rimbaud's latest jest.

His crazy caption for this picture made me laugh longer and harder than anything else has in recent memory.

[Lindolirian]

One time a few years back I was surfing around the Quiz Room and I saw this newbie post in one of my favorite threads. I think his name was The Saucepan Man or something ridiculous like that. I thought to myself, "Ha! I like this new kid on the block...I hope he sticks around."

Then it got even better when the Quiz Room was nearly falling apart and Beren87 and his following started lobbying for a mod there, with Beren as the lead candidate, and me somehow...(go figure). B-W in his sensible fashion took no notice and after a while Beren stopped coming to the Downs and the crazy newbie I liked a way back was suddenly Quiz Mod.
The moral of the story is... it was fun to watch. Oh, and The Barrow-Wight is always right.

[Encaitare]

phantom -- Wow... that's absolutely amazing. I will never think of Huorns the same way again! *continues to smirk uncontrollably at the thought, as a thousand euphemisms rampage the brain...*

[Lush]

Oh boy. I am still just as good at making a fool out of myself as I was back then.

Let's see. To this thread I would add about 75% of anything that Rimbaud posts.

Fond memories of Entish Bow tom-foolery are also up there. Squatter was brilliant in that. And in general.

One of the more hilarious instances of newbies-gone-bad that I remember was a character named Zones that, as I recall, seriously tested the Barrow Wight's patience with meaningless threads and nonexistent grammar. Unfortunately, the brilliance of Zones has been lost in the great move. *tears*

Also, and I will never, ever, forget this, I remember a conversation with Estelyn in which she pointed out her "favourite" new member of the Downs. The memeber in question had just started a thread entitled "wot an eru????"

Actually, I should have more examples that don't involve newbie faux pas (God knows, I've been there, I'm not trying to be a crabby hypocrite)... I just can't think of any right now.

[Nilpaurion Felagund]

And also the 'bear/bare' fiasco which I think only Mithalwen knows about. Suffice to say, I confused the two words, with highly embarrassing consequences. (Eomer)

I assure you it did not escape notice.

I choked to death--thrice--when I read those posts.

[Lindolirian]

Originally Posted by Lush

Let's see. To this thread I would add about 75% of anything that Rimbaud posts.

Say, weren't you two supposedly married once upon a time? I remember something ridiculous like that, or perhaps it was you and someone else. O well, all I know is that Lush is always being chased by the He-Wights.
EDIT: Ah yes, nevermind... it was Squatter. Thanks Helen! (see below)

[mark12_30]

You mean the time she proposed to Squatter? He immediately denied wearing eyeliner.

[Nilpaurion Felagund]

I silently watch the competition for the longest thread.

The two competitors are Crazy Captions and Palantir of Fortune.

But it looks like Crazy Captions will still win hands down.

Not exactly merry, I know, but I find it fun to watch.

[lord of dor-lomin]

I was reading through "Do Balrogs Have Wings" when I stumbled upon this gem of a quote from the phantom.

When the suspicious HoME quote is later called a fake, he defends the quote here.

Gave me quite a laugh.

[Lindolirian]

I remember waaaay back in the day... like yesterday when two of our most reputable members announced their engagement. That was (is/will be) merry.

[AbercrombieOfRohan]

Shelob's post describing me in the How do you imagine other BDers? thread.

It will always have me in stitches. It is the most surprisingly true description of me I've seen anywhere.

[AbercrombieOfRohan]

Fordim's post.

Funnily enough I'm waiting for mine as well.

[Bêthberry]

Originally Posted by mark12_30

I have searched and searched for it, all to no avail. Perhaps when the boards were moved, the thread was (GASP) deleted. But long ago in the shadowy past, when Fellowship was getting its Oscar-Snub, Lush was retelling her story of Oscar Night. Lush had gotten over the snub and moved on, and was merrily revelling in Ewan MacGregor. "When I saw that he was wearing eyeliner I nearly licked the screen, " quoth she.

I laughed so hysterically that my dog sat up and watched me with her head tipped to one side. Three years later it STILL makes me laugh out loud. Roggie of Morgoth owes his flame-proof eyeliner to this very moment-- to Ewan MacGregor, seen through the eyes of Lush.

Helen, consider this substitute as my Christmas present to you:


Helen on balrogs and eyeliners


Lush's screen affair

And, well, as this fits in so well with Eomer's wonderful thread idea, I shall link to the entire thread, which has given me wonderful laughs all over again just now. Ou sont les éclats de rire d'autan?

An idea about the "fangirl" problem we've been having

[Lalwendë]

Jesse's Jokes

This week I 'ave mostly been laughing at smut from davem

One of the threads that's had me doubled up with laughter has been snow angels, especially when, considering that at my age I should really know better and get some dignity, I found myself getting carried away and playing with pudding and action figures. Not only that but I provided everyone with hard evidence of my deeply silly sense of humour.

[The Squatter of Amon Rûdh]

I seem to remember that we had a lot of fun at the beginning of Lush's thread 101 Things Barrow-Downers Would Never Post. However, the most fun I've had outside of the Entish Bow saga exists now only as a broken link in Estelyn's defence of my reputation (post #225).

The thread was called Gaudeamus igitur: Lupercalia est! and was an abortive attempt by yours truly to satirise a spate of 'happy festival' threads that had been cropping up for some months. Somehow it turned into a wide-ranging and utterly inconsequential conversation between a number of now rather senior members who ought to have known better. We succeeded in moving Mithadan to verse, Turambar to a defence of Wordsworth and Lush to another of her proposals of marriage, but, sadly, nobody to anything Tolkien related. I think that the whole fiasco was deleted in the May 2003 spring clean.

There are some fun posts that are still part of the forum. In the fifty-seventh post of littlemanpoet's thread The wrong kind of details: the components of wonder (aka lmp's rant), Kuruharan proposed a rather unusual mythic pairing, which cracked up both me and the discussion. Then there was the creation of a legend, when Mister Underhill, whose keyboard has been the fount of much classic comedy, first suggested the idea behind the indispensible instrument of Tolkienology which he later christened 'the Travest-o-meter™', in a thread called A curious evening in Oxford. Bêthberry has thoughtfully indexed the creative process at post 62.

[Mister Underhill]

Originally Posted by Squatter

Mister Underhill, whose keyboard has been the fount of much classic comedy

Flatterer. I can only return the compliment: besides the post to start off the "Curious Evening" thread -- which is a strong contender for best post, ever, anywhere on the Downs -- you had at least as big a hand in the development of Travest-o-technology™ as I did. Also, you proved again that brevity is the soul of wit with a short but exceptionally funny post in Sport in Middle-earth that makes me chuckle out loud to this day.

Although the Straight Way to many of the old threads has been lost, clever mariners can still navigate to the ancient shores, as in this link to the aforementioned battle between Spellcheck Man and his nemesis. Look here at lindil's Should all posts be polls? to laugh while you learn why polls are not generally accessible on the Downs.

I have more merry memories of times on the Downs than I can count. Most of the older ones involve half-joking, half-serious analyses with Sharkey, or impromptu iron poetry with the Wight, or the interpretation of the prophesies of Malbeth. Also, I miss Maril; she was always good for a laugh.

Originally Posted by Lush

One of the more hilarious instances of newbies-gone-bad that I remember was a character named Zones...

"Zones for ops!"... I haven't thought of that for years.

And speaking of, does anyone else remember -- I think his handle was Gimli son of Gloin? I'm sure that kid still holds the record for most bans and reinstatements, not to mention dramatic farewell-I'm-leaving-forever posts. There was one old thread in particular that gave me a few days of laughter, where I pretended that he was a character that I had created, but I can't seem to turn it up either here or at the old site. I think we lost more stuff in our periodic UBB corruptions than we realized at the time. Maybe that one was another victim.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Originally Posted by Mister Underhill

And speaking of, does anyone else remember -- I think his handle was Gimli son of Gloin? I'm sure that kid still holds the record for most bans and reinstatements, not to mention dramatic farewell-I'm-leaving-forever posts.

*gets ready to break some records*

Farewell, my loves, I am leaving you for eternity! Do no lament; no, do not anguish, for I will be far happier where I do go...

However before I leave, I shall post several of my fondest memories for you to know me by:

The impromptu creation and immanent administrative squashing of one Inktomi Slurp Spider has provided me with countless laughs.

One late, late night in the chat room where the phantom and I kept Esty up long past her bedtime. I shudder to think... when I finally took my leave, it was past my own bed time.

Keeping tabs on the ever dynamic Fill-in-the-blank-ship on their Quest for Reunification.

Forhedgethistledim: our dear professor has provided me with laughter beyond explanation. Most especially when he and our supreme Wightness agreed to become espoused... or at least when they released that their RPG characters were.

And now... I bid you adeau. Farewell, my doves, my sugarsweets, and do not miss me too badly for my departure... shall only actually last a few hours.

[Child of the 7th Age]

Speaking of merry blasts from the past

How I miss Birdland aka Bird ! Who could resist her impish posts on the original Entish Bow, or her brief, humorous comments in the Books and Movies forum. As someone who'd actually worked with films, she had a fun and insightful perspective on PJ.

Her post comparing the new VLASIC pickle commercial with Gollum's dialogue in the Hobbit was typical of her offhand wit. Since this dates from 2002, I can't seem to link to it so here it is:

Gollum should sue!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Quote:
"Is it nice, my preciousss? Is it juicy? Is it scrumptiously crunchable?" - Gollum, The Hobbit

I heard the brand new ad campaign for Vlasic pickles as I was cruising the Downs, and almost fell out of my chair.

In the ad, a couple of children are apparently about to share some Vlasic pickles. One child asks: "Is it juicy? Is it crunchable?" The tag line of the commercial is "Vlasic pickles. Juicy and crunchable!"

If this wasn't lifted straight from Gollum's most famous line, I'll eat my hat!

I'm afraid I'll never be able to look at a jar of Vlasic pickles now without busting out laughing. A shame, really, for they are pretty good pickles. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

_____________________________________

Alas, Bird, you are missed....

[Mister Underhill]

Yeah, Birdie is missed, and Diamond18 too -- she only very rarely shows her head in here these days.

Fea, you're gonna have to work a lot harder than that to beat ol' Gimli, but you're off to a good start. Next time you decide to leave forever, mention how the Downs has changed for the worse, and don't forget to emphasize that you won't be coming back. Ever. You might also want to consider creating a second account so that you can use an alias to post about what a shame it is that Fea is leaving.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Originally Posted by Mister Underhill

You might also want to consider creating a second account so that you can use an alias to post about what a shame it is that Fea is leaving.

How do you know that I haven't already? Oh, I forgot...

Me... leaving... permanently.

The 'Downs just keeps getting worse. It's those old misers like Underhillo and Squatter that keep this place from growing and changing with the times. These days discussions run the risk of stagnation and concentration on boring topics like "Was this canonical?" and "Who determines canonicity, the book or the reader?" and "Just what is this canon thing anyhow? A camera? Or a badly spelled gun?" and it's people like them that still deny the coming of the inevitable: swoon rooms. If there was a swoon room, you bet I'd stick around. But since there isn't, and my entertaining memories of the phantom who be short aren't enough to keep me here, I regret to inform you that this is the end. I am leaving. Goodbye.

[Aiwendil]

I had completely forgotten about Gimli son of Gloin. It seems that most of his theatrics have been deleted, but a search turned up this small sample. For a real laugh, look at what he posted only a few days later, cheerfully addressing "Mr. B" as if they were old chums.

[Lush]

Blazes! It seems my polygamy practices have been exposed!

The Lupercalia thread is a classic; for something that's been deleted long ago, its ghost is surprisingly active in my mind.

I also remember a few hilarious moments referring to someone known as "the late-night rhyming Underhill." Oh dear.

Then there was that time when Sharkey thought it would be funny to pour salt on my wound when Italy bombed out of the World Cup. And it was funny, let me tell you.

I would be remiss not to mention Marileangorifurnimalium. It's been years, and I still remember how to spell her name. Lots of funny stories there. I miss her.

[The Squatter of Amon Rûdh]

Alas for Gimli Son of Gloin. This wasn't really the place for his unique style, but even so he hung around the guest book for ages trying to get his account reinstated.

How could I not have mentioned Birdland and Marileangorifurnimaluim? I refuse to mention either in the past tense, because no-one with an active account has truly left. I prefer to think of them in the forum Avalon, waiting for the Downs to have need of their wit.

Anyone remember Maril's controversial thread Hobbit Sex Ed? Come to think of it, she also started The Agony of Poor Spelling, where Birdie can be seen in action, trying hard to pull the usual suspects down from their high horses.

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

There was a bit of drama that still gets me giggling, though I forgot the details a long time ago. Perhaps someone can help me.

There was an argument on a thread which descended into pretty severe abuse from at least one of the antagonists. I think that the fight was between a newcomer and one pretty well-established Barrowdowner. I do believe that the veteran was simply trying to debate in a calm manner but the newcomer was having none of it—taking things extremely personally, etc. It ended with the newcomer saying this (paraphrased slightly):

"If you don't like my point of view, then UP YOURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The posts were swiftly deleted by a moderator and that troublesome newcomer was never heard from again (I think). The veteran, to the best of my knowledge, shrugged it off very casual like. Anyone else remember this? I can't remember such violence on the Downs.

Not exactly merriment but very funny all the same.

[Lalaith]

Eomer, that row rings a bell. I think it was on the movies forum, but I can't for the life of me remember who was involved.

[Mithadan]

Another example of Marileangorifurnimaluim's wonderful humor can be found here. I recommend it highly.