The Ringwraith Review

[Idesinholde]

@SilarienMinioness Mudwrestling Matches? It does sound like something we'd compete in! I stole your wife and kept her, I might not have deserved her considering I could not remember the plaza name BUT I'm sure I won.. you might have won her back eventually though..

1. What is your favorite emotion to role-play? And if you don't RP, what do you think WOULD be your favorite? Hmm being clueless and convinced I am fabulous I suspect.
2. You must choose: would you rather wear foo pink toe stockings (visibly, so in sandals and with a skirt/shorts) to work/a class presentation or give a weird speech in front of a crowd? I would never wish to be known as someone who'd commit such a horrendous fashion faux pas, so weird speech it is!
3. Another choice: beard of bees or maggot gloves?Both sound like experiences that would make me hyperventilate and scream but if I HAD to.. the beard of bees.

[Dimcairien Luiniel]

1. What is your favorite emotion to role-play? And if you don't RP, what do you think WOULD be your favorite? I've been having a lot of fun expanding my repertoire of characters and their emotions, but I think playing slightly incompetent, but well-meaning characters are the best
2. You must choose: would you rather wear foo pink toe stockings (visibly, so in sandals and with a skirt/shorts) to work/a class presentation or give a weird speech in front of a crowd? Weird speech hands-down. Public speaking doesn't terrify me, and I've probably done my fair share of strange speeches in my past.
3. Another choice: beard of bees or maggot gloves? Huh, both sound downright terrifying, but if I had to choose, maybe the maggot gloves? I'm probably less likely to scream at the sight of them.

[Gwai]

1. What is your favorite emotion to role-play? And if you don't RP, what do you think WOULD be your favorite? Decreased morals. Not sure that's an actual emotion, but having the most fun with that
2. You must choose: would you rather wear foo pink toe stockings (visibly, so in sandals and with a skirt/shorts) to work/a class presentation or give a weird speech in front of a crowd? Weird speech for-schizzle. Anything is better than foo pink toe stockings with sandals. Gives me nightmares about high school days (shudders*
3. Another choice: beard of bees or maggot gloves? I guess maggot gloves, although not crazy about either. I've dealt with maggots before though, and it was disgusting but they don't try to make me have a huge walking allergic reactions like bees do

[Moriel]

1. What is your favorite emotion to role-play? And if you don't RP, what do you think WOULD be your favorite? Complete neutrality, amorality, and rage are all pretty high up there. Particularly when any one or more of those applies to an elf.
2. You must choose: would you rather wear foo pink toe stockings (visibly, so in sandals and with a skirt/shorts) to work/a class presentation or give a weird speech in front of a crowd? Weird speech any day, that's my wheelhouse.
3. Another choice: beard of bees or maggot gloves? Maggot gloves, maggots never hurt anybody.

[Menolly]

1. What is your favorite emotion to role-play? And if you don't RP, what do you think WOULD be your favorite? Slightly absent-minded, very clumsy...oh shire, I'm RPing myself. Honestly RPing any variety of incompetent is super fun.
2. You must choose: would you rather wear foo pink toe stockings (visibly, so in sandals and with a skirt/shorts) to work/a class presentation or give a weird speach in front of a crowd? Probably the stockings just because preparing the speech would be a lot of work and putting on the stockings would be zero work, but honestly I'd be fine giving a weird speech while wearing foo pink toe stockings with sandals. I have no fashion sense anyway, and a lot of public speaking experience.
3. Another choice: beard of bees or maggot gloves? Funny story, I actually have held a handful of maggots, and it was gross, mostly because they were surprise maggots, but I survived. Either would be fine as long as the bees were calm and not agitated.

[Arnyn]

1. What is your favorite emotion to role-play? And if you don't RP, what do you think WOULD be your favorite? Rage. Blind, seething, all consuming rage. There are so many different ways to portray it, and it's never quite leads to what you expect (cue the tape of my Towers of No Return character eating the spider)
2. You must choose: would you rather wear foo pink toe stockings (visibly, so in sandals and with a skirt/shorts) to work/a class presentation or give a weird speech in front of a crowd? I've acted, and substitute taught before, weird speeches are my jam
3. Another choice: beard of bees or maggot gloves? A bee beard would make me look like Chuck Wendig, maggot gloves... no thanks darling.

You're up, @Frostbite ! Rage away! (Also, you made me lol with Chuck Wendig)

[Mazana]

1. What is your favorite emotion to role-play? And if you don't RP, what do you think WOULD be your favorite? Anger. I've never had the chance to RP it, but I think full on cursing, screaming, stabbing anger would be very therapeutic to RP. Hehe.
2. You must choose: would you rather wear foo pink toe stockings (visibly, so in sandals and with a skirt/shorts) to work/a class presentation or give a weird speach in front of a crowd? Weird speech! The weirder the better.
3. Another choice: beard of bees or maggot gloves? Beard of bees, though you'd have to sedate me quite heavily if you don't want me to scream.

[The Good Hunter]

Thank you @Arnyn! I'm glad someone got the Chuck Wendig reference!

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of?
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play?
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue.

[Taethowen]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? These days? *Any* fiction. I've been terrible the past few years of making time to read.
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? *whispers in shame* I haven't actually read any Shakespeare.
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue.

A small stone building on a hill in the country, trees on the north side, a brook to the south. There's a big bay window with window seats, and lots of throw pillows, on the south-facing wall where you can watch the brook when your eyes grow tired, and a large fireplace on the north wall with an elaborately carved mantle. The building is longer from east-west than it is from north-south. There is a wooden double-door for entry on the eastern wall, with a tall narrow window on each side of it.

The eastern wall is mostly cleared, kept as a walkway stretching from north to south. The floor is polished, dark wood. The shelves of books are all in the center of the building, stretching all the way back to the western wall. The bookcases are the thick, wooden types you definitely don't want to fall on you. There are a couple of tables with cushioned chairs at the southern and northern ends of the library, between the bay window and the shelves and between the fireplace and the shelves. Each table has a lamp, a stack of papers and index cards, and a cup filled with pens.

Each row of bookcases is softly lit with lights inset along the shelves.

[Mazana]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? I just read Circe by Madeline Miller, and I need more of that "Greek mythology told differently" kinda thing.
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? Ehehehehe
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. A manor at the end of a tree-lined avenue. Slight Downton Abbey vibes. The library taking up the back of the house, opening to a greenhouse, then to the gardens. Tables and seats outside, if you want to read in the sunshine. The glass of the greenhouse letting you stare up at the rain from a safe place while you try to imagine the things happening in the book you're reading. All the books I ever wanted to read. Where there are no books lining the walls from ceiling to floor, there are huge windows that let the sunshine in. Clean, gauzy curtains that float in the breeze. A sunbed, a hammock, a soft couch for leisure reading. For serious work, a study table with enough leg room for me to sit with crossed legs, enough space to spread out all my highlighters and pens and papers and timers. Multiples of each pen/highlighter, because I'm afraid of running out. A lamp from the left side. A two-tiered, extra wide book stand that can hold a laptop, because multitasking. A coffee corner, with a coffee machine that grinds the beans and makes the fancy schmancy milk stuff for you at the press of a button. Clean, soft carpet and pillows, for reading on the floor. A chair in front of the fireplace, a table with whisky for when a book calls for alcohol. Sound insulation from the rest of the house. Light with a dimmer switch, voice-activated AC & heater stuff and lighting and curtains and all that. Scented candles because why not? A reading room like the one in the State Library of Victoria, Melbourne, which I still think about to this day. I can go on and on and on. I love this question.

[Winddancer]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? Fantasy
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play?The one that stays lost..
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Something like this:

[Dimcairien Luiniel]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? Honestly, in the last three months I've read more fiction than I have in the last five years. Between reading LotR with you lot, Narnia with another group of friends, and trying to read the Outlander series, I'm keeping busy.
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? Comedy: Much Ado About Nothing, Tragedy: The Scottish Play. And Winter's Tale gets a special mention for having the best stage direction ever "Exit, pursued by a bear." (Totally didn't catch the word "lost", but I like my answers about the found Shakespeare plays, so it will stand)
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Why must you ask me this question???

It is a large building in a beautiful countryside. The rooms have large windows to allow for natural light. Bookcases fill the centre of the library. Around the edge of the library close to the windows are dozens of comfy couches and chairs. There are a few desks scattered about. The whole atmosphere is welcoming and relaxing.

Nestled in one corner is a little tea shop, as a hot cup of tea can always make a book better.

[Boromir88]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? Horror mystery...I'd like to read more Stephen King books. And the rest of the Dexter series. I met Jeff Lindsay at an independent bookstore, seemed very down to earth and I was a pretty big fan of the Showtime series based off his novels. I've only managed to read the 1st one of his Dexter series (Darkly Dreaming Dexter) and the Showtime series kind of really botched the final season.

2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? Love's Labour's Won. It was in a really good Dr. Who episode.

3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Exterior and interior would be a replica of the New York Public library. It's like my happiest place on earth and anytime I'm able I make an excuse to travel to NYC so I can spend at least a day at the public library.

[KingODuckingham]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? Fairy tales of all stripes. I have a huge collection of worldwide mythology that I'm working my way through, I can't get enough, even though I've already read a ton! They are short and sweet and I wish to know them complete.
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? There appear to be only two, from my cursory research, so it's a bit of a 50/50 I suppose.
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Design it? Too much work, if expense is no issue I'll pay somebody else to do it. My own library, such as it is, is rather haphazardly arranged already, I can't imagine the nightmare of actually needing to organize every book I'd wish to own.

[Lail]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? More mysteries. I really enjoy them but I only pick them up every now and then.
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? I don't know enough about his lost plays to pick, but my favorite not-lost play was always Macbeth.
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. If expense and space are no issue, then it will exist in some kind of lateral dimension in which I can always access it whenever and wherever I am so that every time I move, I don't have to leave behind more books! And the access-point to the library itself would be near-weightless, thus allowing me to bring my library everywhere I go!

As far as the space itself? I'd love a cozy greenhouse-library crossover with a little outdoor garden and lots of plants. While probably not practical due to humidity, you said I'd have the expenses to make it work so I'm going with it!

[Zôrzimril]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? The genres of all the books I've had recommended to me on Discord by lovely Plaza folks
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? I don't know much about his lost plays. I loved teaching Macbeth!
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Floor to ceiling built-in shelves, slidey ladders like in Beauty and the Beast, lots of different kinds of seating options (couches, bean bags, desks). And then just like, every book ever?! The pic @Winddancer posted above checks a lot of my boxes, honestly. OH ALSO lots of special editions of my favorite books (and in lots of different languages), because pretty book covers <3

[Moriel]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? Whatever I feel like reading at the moment.
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? Cardenio/Double Falsehood and Love's Labour's Won are the only plays generally categorized as "lost". There are plenty of both known and probable collaborative texts, and others that are at least partially attributed but apocryphal. Limiting my answer to the "lost," well, no known text of LLW exists. But I'm going to choose it anyway, because Dr. Who.
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. The Long Room at Trinity College Dublin, but with lots of comfortable seating and a few fireplaces.

[Lirimaer]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? N/A
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? I don't know anything about his lost plays.
3) Design your own library, expense and space are no issue. This has been something I have done since I was a kid. Basically a mix of my local library and the Dragon Book Shop when I was growing up. Roaring fire, giant fluffy rugs, squashy armchairs/sofas, books everywhere, wooden built-ins - balconies, little inglenooks here and there, ladders that slide, spiral staircases, secret passages, large window seats by enormous windows. Drink dispenser. A domesic cleaner to keep it all looking cobweb and dust-free.

[Gwai]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? Detective stories. I've been on a fantasy and sci-fi kick for too long and need to circle back
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? Keep 'em that way. I've been listening to Patrick Stewart's sonnet-a-day, and I'm maxed out with Shakespeare
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Exactly like the one in Beauty and the Beast. And like Sil said, slidey ladders are a must!

[Silky Gooseness]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? All of them, I just need more time OK?!

2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? ermmm Twelfth Night 2: Thirteenth Night

3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Infinite. Infinite library. Contains books that should’ve been written and never were written, most notably the COMPLETE A Song Of Ice And Fire, Doors of Stone, Endlords, and The Captal’s Tower, and about twenty undiscovered Terry Pratchett books. And Thirteenth Night by Shakespeare, of course.

[Dwim]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? Not a genre, just more Tolkien. It's been so long since I've read everything. I'm currently reading through the Silmarillion again. But I'm going to re-read EVERYTHING, and then read the other things I never read.
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play?
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Comfortable and quiet. It is mine. If I don't like someone or the way that certain people tend to act, they won't be there. I will never have the thought "gee I wish x book were here" or "gee there aren't enough books about x here". There will also be restaurants inside.

[Eldy Dunami]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? Honestly, most things other than sci-fi/fantasy (especially epic fantasy), which used to be my bread and butter. I've been gradually trying to expand my horizons in recent years, but my reading habits shifted to primarily non-fiction a long time ago (fanfic notwithstanding ).
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? Don't think I can answer this one.
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Those big multi-story interior spaces (as mentioned above are definitely cool). But if space is no expense--presumably meaning this isn't a home library--my thoughts immediately go to my favorite library that I've visited, which is the main reading room of the Library of Congress in Washington, DC. It has the little balconies and narrow staircases in alcoves around the edges, but the main attraction is the overall grandeur. Some people consider it ostentatious and I can't really mount a counterargument to that, but the feeling of doing research while in that space is without comparison in my experience. Plus, since it's the LOC, so it's sometimes the only place within a single day's travel distance that I can find really obscure Tolkien studies works.

I can't find any of my pictures of the room offhand, but here a couple I just found via Google Image Search (click for full size):

[Giliathriel]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? There's a lot haha. I typically stick to Fantasy, but I really do enjoy Sci-Fi and thrillers, I just find myself sticking to what's comfortable.

2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? I feel uncultured but I don't really know Shakespeare anything lol

3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. I hate the idea of destroying land to make my dream library come true, so I'd probably want a tower to maximize vertical space. Out in the middle of a forest, probably overlooking a lake? Each floor would be circular, with a little alcove jutting off of each floor as as a reading/sun room, lined with couches and various other comforts. The top of the tower would have a retractable roof and telescope. The alcoves would hang off the side of the tower in different spots on each floor, to maximize potential sunlight.

[Elenhir]

1) What genre of fiction do you think you should read more of? Myths and folklore.
2) What is the best lost Shakespeare play? One time old Billy wrote a play in his sleep. It made just as much sense as some of the others. When he woke up, he forgot it. That one counts.
3) More a thought exercise than a question, design your own library, expense and space are no issue. Powell's, but now it's a library.

[The Good Hunter]

Alright, I was trying to give everyone a chance to get the correct answer to the first question but you've all failed. There are so many of you here that talk to me and know I write horror and not a one of you mentions It? I'm not angry, I'm just disappointed. As @Elenhir got the closest (folklore is horror wrapped up in older skin) I'm leaving it to him to decide the questions next.

[Elenhir]

Well, that's a mistake. We'll start out light, but this'll learn you.

1. How's the weather?
2. When was the last time you broke a bone?
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger.

[Winddancer]

1. How's the weather? Fredegaring hot
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? Never have!
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. Well because I really like fantasy and last time I read horror it was Lumley and sucked big time. S/O really likes him, so gave it a go and it was aaawful (Necroscope)

[Boromir88]

1. How's the weather? Sunny and hot, but I'm not going to complain

2. When was the last time you broke a bone? I broke my wrist in 10th grade playing baseball. So that was, oof 15 years ago.

3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. I did say I wanted to read more Stephen King, to be fair. I guess that's where I made my mistake, Stephen King could be considered horror, but Stephen King is not a genre.

[Taethowen]

1. How's the weather? Surprisingly pleasant for the end of July in Oklahoma. Cool and breezy. We've had days of storms and the cold front that came with them is *delightful*.

2. When was the last time you broke a bone? Never.

3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Because I have actually been hardly reading at all the last few years, hence my general answer of "more fiction". But as for horror... it's mostly not my preferred genre, though I will admit I have ready very little of it at all. The closest thing I read to it is probably thriller/suspense.

[Dimcairien Luiniel]

1. How's the weather? Hot, lovely SoCal in July/August.
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? Never broken a bone, unless you want to count spinal surgery - about half my spine is fused together to correct scoliosis.
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. I like fantasy and haven't really delved much into horror. It isn't my favourite genre to read.

[Zôrzimril]

1. How's the weather? Mid-70s Fahrenheit and breezy, which is a lovely reprieve after so much humidity and temps in the 80s/90s recently
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? Never officially broken one, but I suspect that my pinky broke when it accidentally got slammed in a car door when I was a kid
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. I said that the genres of books recommended to me were on my list, and since @Frostbite has recommended books to me, I'm sure the list implicitly includes horror. But I don't seek out horror because I scare easily

[KingODuckingham]

1. How's the weather? Over 100 degrees Fahrenheit during the hottest parts of the day, and we have no air conditioning wheeeeeeeee
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? Sophomore year of highschool, so like 17 years ago. Was playing basketball, tried to rebound against a guy who was probably nearly twice my weight. I fell hard.
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. Ehh I feel like a lot of fairy tales are pretty horrific when they aren't sanitized by Disney so...

[Idesinholde]

1. How's the weather? Too hot; especially with the pools closed because of you know what.. 31 Celsius /88 Fahrenheit
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? I've actually never broken a bone; milk was my favorite drink as a child.
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Mostly because I missed that round, but regardless my answer would have been fantasy or detective.

[Silky Gooseness]

1. How's the weather? Muggy.

2. When was the last time you broke a bone? I have also never broken a bone. Didn’t you break your wrist about 15 years ago @Elenhir? I have a vague memory of you being in a cast??

3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. Because I already read exactly as much horror as I want, which is a sprinkling of Poe and Lovecraft short stories amidst jollier stuff; and the occasional Clive Barker. In these days I’m looking for escapism when I read, and the purest form of that is fantasy.

[Lail]

I'm shocked at how few of you have broken bones! You are all very careful, full of calcium or live in bubbles...either way, well done!

1. How's the weather? Hot but it could be worse. I'm counting down the days til fall.

2. When was the last time you broke a bone? Broken fingers playing rugby >10 years ago.

3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. I usually do most of my reading before bed and it would give me nightmares. I'm easily scared.

[Menolly]

1. How's the weather? Like Mordor without the orcs this past week. I'm so over it.
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? Two and a half months ago, but I walked on it unknowing until two weeks ago.
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. I'm sad I missed the last go! I actually have been reading more horror lately and enjoying it. I always feel like I should read more historical fiction, but so much of it seems romance focused, which, ew.

[The Good Hunter]

1. How's the weather? It's the middle of summer in the desert.
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? High school, 2005. Went up for an easy dunk, slipped off the rim and landed on my elbow
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. Oh honey, there's nothing you can do the make me angry. That being said, I need to read more frontera literature (Gabino Iglesias is both, go read Coyote Songs and Zero Saints).

[Dwim]

1. How's the weather? A perfect winter's day. And by that I mean it felt like a spring day. Yes I'm in that other hemisphere.
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? A few years ago, one of my middle toes. I kicked it on a rock as I tried to jump up onto the verandah. It wasn't too bad afterwards though. I still managed to play soccer with it.
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. Because horror is actually a genre I've read more than most in the last few years.

[Gwai]

1. How's the weather? Hot and humid, thunderstorm at night. Makes good boating weather. No hurricanes yet!
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? Age 10 or so, broke my nose
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. I don't feel I need to read more horror. I read horror here and there, but it's not my go-to, and I'm okay with that.

[Eldy Dunami]

1. How's the weather? 83 F (28 C), with 66% humidity. Better than a lot of recent days, where we've had temperatures in the upper 90s (heat indices approaching 110 at times) with humidity at 80% or higher.
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? Never; I've been lucky.
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. Meaning no disrespect to the horror genre, I don't really like being scared, honestly (kind of a wimp ).

[Elenhir]

The next set of questions go to @Menolly, for thoroughly horrifying me with a mental image that I'm sure my imagination took well beyond her reality.

[Moriel]

1. How's the weather? Blustery, cloudy, muggy.
2. When was the last time you broke a bone? I broke my wrist in three places in 2010 in a tap dancing accident. I also have 2-3 fractures in my L4 vertebra but nobody knows when that happened or if i was born with it.
3. Why did you not (or would not, if you missed the last go) answer 'horror' as Frost wanted? Be brutal; we can change that disappointment to anger. Because I read what I want and horror doesn't usually make the list. I don't have anything against it, but there's generally nothing pushing me to seek it out. Now that I associate with Frost though..

[Menolly]

Ooh I caused horror. I feel so...accomplished? Thanks @Elenhir! If it was about the broken bone, I'll just say having a very high pain tolerance isn't always a good thing.

1. Tell me about an excellent food you ate and why it was excellent.
2. What's your favorite obscure fun fact to share about a subject you love?
3. What's the worst book you ever managed to read cover to cover?

[Moriel]

1. Tell me about an excellent food you ate and why it was excellent. I had a goat cheese soufflé as part of a dinner in a fancy London restaurant once and it was absolutely divine both in taste and the fact that I wasn't paying for it.
2. What's your favorite obscure fun fact to share about a subject you love? There are several Welsh words for jellyfish, among them, the proper: slefren fôr, and the much more charming: pesgod wibli-wobli A runner up: Tarcomlad (pronounced approximately towgovluv) is the third singular perfect passive of the verb Do-ecmalla, to gather, collect, bring together, amass. I still desire to Old Irish to tell me what exactly is its major malfunction when it comes to verbs.
3. What's the worst book you ever managed to read cover to cover? It's a tie between the entire Twilight series.

[The Good Hunter]

1. Tell me about an excellent food you ate and why it was excellent. I love menudo and I got to have a bowl of it recently and that made me very happy since it's been hard to get in the pandemic
2. What's your favorite obscure fun fact to share about a subject you love? an old friend from Ireland once created an entire dungeon synth album using the recordings of various old toys he programmed into a keyboard. The results split the dungeon synth community but I still think it was a work of surpassing ingenuity. When I reviewed it on my old website, I was able to talk about the mode of musical transportation and how the origins of the sound effect how we receive it (or not) and what that says about us as an audience. The Old Toy Maker
3. What's the worst book you ever managed to read cover to cover? Almanac of the Dead, by Leslie Marmon Silko. I had to read it for class (two classes actually so I read it twice) and it's an important book to read to gain a perspective on indigenous fiction and expand what we think about it but oof, it was a rough read because the characters are all bad parodies, barely held together, and caricatures, oh and it's 800 pages that I had to read and analyze in a week each time

[Boromir88]

1. Tell me about an excellent food you ate and why it was excellent. I tried lamb for the first time on a a vacation/road trip exploring Texas. San Antonio is a fabulous and lovely city (I went for the river walk and the Alamo, but this lamb I ate at a restaurant along the river was delicious). I tried lamb again at a restaurant when I came back home, not at all the same. So, I will only eat it again if I ever go back to San Antonio.

2. What's your favorite obscure fun fact to share about a subject you love? I love when anyone asks or I hear about the defenestration of Prague, because then I get to ask which one? I'll be honest though, it's not a subject anyone's actually ever asked me about.



3. What's the worst book you ever managed to read cover to cover? John Steinbeck's East of Eden. Necessary reading in high school. Ok it's classic American Lit, but it's also classic Steinbeck. Hundreds of pages about other people's relationships and don't need a re-telling of the Adam-Eve and Cain-Abel story set in Americana farmland. I think if I had to read Grape of Wrath in high school it probably would have been that book, but I only had to watch the movie in English class, and based off that, Grapes of Wrath probably would have been worse (I fell asleep within 3 minutes of the movie).

[Gwai]

1. Tell me about an excellent food you ate and why it was excellent. A cod fillet at a little restaurant in Reykjavik. There was a champagne sauce on it that was absolutely fantastic, with the perfect amount of mashed potatoes on the side. I don't even like cod that much, and I would go back in a second for this.
2. What's your favorite obscure fun fact to share about a subject you love? Lots of cool stuff about Oregon...fun fact it's the only US state flag that is double sided *now you know*
3. What's the worst book you ever managed to read cover to cover? I'm with Moriel, Twilight. They were easy reads, though, so couldn't stop

[Taethowen]

1. Tell me about an excellent food you ate and why it was excellent. There is a local sushi restaurant here run by a pair of Japanese brothers. Every variety I've tried there is hands-down the best sushi I've ever had. Why? Because obviously they know what they're doing.

2. What's your favorite obscure fun fact to share about a subject you love? Cotton fabric as we know it today is only accessible and cheap because of the invention of the cotton gin. Prior to that, the seeds had to be removed by hand from the cotton which is an insanely laborious, time-consuming process. So if you're writing a piece of work set in historical times, the masses would not have access to cotton for the most part.

3. What's the worst book you ever managed to read cover to cover? City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. The only reason I finished the book is because a friend asked for my opinion on it, and I legit nearly tore it in half and chucked it across the room *several* times.

[Zôrzimril]

1. Tell me about an excellent food you ate and why it was excellent. The best food I've ever had was a home-cooked meal in Korea. Lots of local, fresh, ingredients (many from their own farm!) and of course home cooked is always the best. Gah. Now I am super hungry.
2. What's your favorite obscure fun fact to share about a subject you love? There are names for different types of cases for naming things in code, and different programming languages use different cases. A few examples: snake_case has underscores, kebab-case has dashes, and camelCase has humps.
3. What's the worst book you ever managed to read cover to cover? Anything I ever had to read for school by Ernest Hemingway. (Twilight misses inclusion here because I literally could. not. finish.)

[KingODuckingham]

1. Tell me about an excellent food you ate and why it was excellent. My sister just made me a Philly cheesesteak sandwich with curly fries as a side for dinner last night, was the first time I'd had one in like 14 years. Just as excellent with its droopy cheese and thick meat as I remember.
2. What's your favorite obscure fun fact to share about a subject you love? The word dolphin is originally a Greek word delphis, a slight (we think) purposeful misspelling of delphys, which is the word for womb. The theory is that since dolphins bear live young they might have named it that to convey it doesn't lay fish eggs or something? Or maybe something less scientific and family friendly idk
3. What's the worst book you ever managed to read cover to cover? Golly I don't think I have an answer to this question, I don't remember finishing a book and thinking it was terrible. Maybe one of the later Xanth novels which were basically just pun vehicles?