GeekMom discussion

I hope everyone is doing well! I have a discussion question below but feel free to discuss anything you want as it relates to The Hobbit.

Here's my question: Biblo is thrust into this adventure and doesn’t get a lot of time to protest. Part of his background longs for adventure but another part just longs for peace and quiet. What do you think you would do if you were Bilbo when the chance for riches and adventure, but also possibly death, came knocking at your door?

Remember to pack my second breakfast!

I would like to think I would jump at the opportunity to go on an adventure but I would more than likely stay in my house and read about others adventures instead of creating my own.

I wish I could "Like" comments here -- love Annie's response!

I think Bilbo was pretty darned trustworthy to follow a dozen guys he'd never met on such an adventure. Sure, Gandalf was there to encourage him, but still....

I wouldn't have done it. I'm all for adventure in my personal endeavors, but with the amount of information presented -- and with how annoying the dwarves seemed -- I'd have said "No thank you" to everyone.

-Patricia-the-wuss

Isn't that what every day life is?! :D

I'd like to think that I would jump at the chance at adventure - especially when I was younger. Now that I have a child, following dwarves to steal a dragon's treasure would be harder - do dwarves provide childcare? *L*

I wish I could "like" Annie's response too!

I totally agree with Mandy. When I was single, I would have gone in a heartbeat!

Now that I'm a mom, I'll leave the dragon hunting to others. :-)

I don't even open our front door when someone unexpected comes knocking when I'm home alone, so I would miss my chance at adventure!

I'm pretty risk-averse; at best, I would have had my second breakfast at the end of a nice scenic hike and then headed back to my hobbit-hole.

I don't think Bilbo exactly gave his informed consent, though I suppose he could have turned back early on rather than let Gandalf whisk him out the door.

I can relate to Bilbo. I'm an introvert who needs the anti-social, hide in my Hobbit Hole kinda days but I also have big dreams and am not content to just do the norm every day. I want adventure! I want to slay dragons!

And I'm impulsive sometimes so I think I would have found myself in exactly the same position as Bilbo- off an adventure before I could think about it and wondering every day how in the world I got there. ;)

On another note, I am reading this aloud to my kids and it is an EXCELLENT read aloud. Some books are just meant for reading aloud and this is certainly one of them. The words just flow off the tongue and feel good in your mouth. We are loving every minute of it.

For most of my life, a definite "NO." But lately I've been having a Need To Do Something Drastic And Different type issue, and... I really think I might. But like others have said, now I CAN'T. I CAN'T just pick up and leave for adventure-- I've got kids and other responsibilities!

But Bilbo's living pretty much a life of leisure, with no immediate family or really any obligations that we know about. And he's middle-aged for a hobbit. In short, MID-LIFE CRISIS. I think he might have been LESS likely to follow his Tookish instincts if Gandalf had come a few years earlier, but now he's primed for a change.

And I kind of feel that way right now. But I'm not an independently-wealthy bachelor.

I imagine my answer would depend entirely upon what kind of mood my toddler has been in during the day.

If he'd been the lovely, wonderful, kind, polite and enjoyable child he can be - then no, I'd happily stay at home thank you. If however he'd had a screaming, shouting, throwing things at mummy and generally being a little git kind of a day then I'd be packing my bags and out that door before any thought of "second breakfast" had even entered my head. Anyone who's seen me storm out of my house to Zumba after a bad day can attest to that. Give me a dragon and a sword, it wouldn't know what had hit it once it got a dose of angry mummy full of pent up toddler based frustration!

I'm definitely the "play it safe" type. I would love to think that I would go for an adventure, but the sad reality is that I would probably stay in my cozy house and prefer to read about the adventures of others. It takes both types - - adventurers and home-keepers - - though, to make the world go round and that's something I console myself with. :)

Well I had adventure thrust upon me 4 weeks ago (more on that later) and I would wager that Bilbo never really got a chance to make a decision... it all happened so fast he was just acting on autopilot (people! must make tea!). Even the following morning when he had another chance to say no, he was given 15 minutes to make the rendezvous. In that situation, you don't think, you just GO!

As for my adventure.... well I had a baby on my bathroom floor. Yes, I knew I was pregnant and all but I was NOT expecting to have 3 contractions, water break, one more contraction, then pushing at 37 weeks!! I had just meant to go lay down for a bit. Even after my water broke, I was expecting to go to the hospital, but I thought I should pee first (hence the reason for me being in the bathroom). In that kind of abnormal situation, what can you do but go with the flow?

I completely agree with Lori. I need a push to get out of my antisocial hiding place. I dream of adventure and exotic lands, but I'd rather spend my weekend smuggling my kids and taking care of stuff at home.

Bilbo did not have Frodo at the time and I think that's a huge consideration. If I go on an adventure, I'll have kids in tow, at least for another 10 years.

Congrats on your adventure Bettina

Holy crap, Bettina! Congrats!

Eek, Bettina!! I hope you and the baby are doing okay!

I sometimes think of my move to NC as an adventure. My husband (who was just my fiance at the time) and I decided that we needed to move away from Michigan. He started looking for a job (since he had more experience in his field) and we could have moved anywhere.

We actually almost moved to Cincinnati but we never heard anything back after the 2nd interview. He got hired at a job in NC a few months later and we were off to a state neither of us had been before. It was very scary and exciting!

I would love to say I'd just pack up and go, but since I have a family, that's not so easy.However, since it is my opinion, yes I would go. I have a "travel bug" so as long as I have a chance to pack comfy shoes and a camera, let's go!

I'm a huge introvert, and I would have been very freaked out had a large group of dwarves invaded my home. But, had I been sing,e and with o kid, I probably would have wound up going more because everything happened so fast and Gandalf was pressuring me so much. I also agree with RockinLibrarian that this seems like a mid-life crisis for Bilbo.

I have packed up and gone on sudden adventures before. A few years ago Jet Blue had their All You Can Jet sale, where you could fly as much as you wanted, but just for Sep 7-Oct 7. I was supposed to be moving across the country then. But my husband and I decided to just do it. So we packed one carry on each and set off! We stayed in hostels in Costa Rica, Columia, Dominican Republic and Mexico, all with about one week's notice. No dragon slaying, but we rappelled in CR and got lost in Bogota. :)

Contemplating the phrasing of my reply, but really enjoying the responses so far. Wow to Bettina - I would rather face a dragon sans magic ring than labor and delivery sans drugs!!!! Amazed at how many people have already said what my gut tells me: wish I could, but probably wouldn't. Nasty things, adventures. Make you late for breakfast!

Oh sorry! I guess I should have added that yes, she was perfectly healthy and I had the quickest/easiest recovery ever. And, Autumnglory, with proper education and training, labor and delivery is actually easier without drugs :)

In all honesty, I'd probably have just gone along with it as Bilbo is. I'd been torn with saying no or seeing what happens...of course with two kids (as someone else mentioned) I probably would say no. Amazing how your way of thinking changes are kids. Before I'd squeeze between cars in traffic if I thought it was reasonable, now I won't try it.

And delivering in the bathroom! That is awesome! I have friends who delivered at home (planned) with no drugs and said it was fine. I, on the other hand, my last one was turned side ways and didn't drop and I was in full blown labor.

Id probably go a few years ago, but now i have people depending on me i wouldnt be so keen

Okay - now that I'm not hunting and pecking on my iPod, I can try to phrase a decent reply. (And Bettina, thanks for the info... I've had my one-and-only, so I won't have a chance to try it; still, it's nice to know that there are options for those braver than me!)

If I had to place myself in the world of the novel, given the personality that I have, I'd likely wind up going along - but not because I wanted to. I'm a nurturer with a preposterous need to help people and tend to want to please them - even if they aren't close friends; I can't stomach the idea that I might be letting someone down when they need me, or that I've caused people not to like me. I'd probably be incredibly intimidated by Gandalf and not dare cross him - and, while discombobulated by the sudden plethora of dwarves, I'd do as Bilbo did and get everyone settled as could be. And then, seeing that they needed a burglar, and not wanting to ruin their quest, I'd probably go along...

But in the back of my head, I'd probably be conducting a constant monologue about how this is NOT a Good Idea, not at all, and that why should I feel any sense of obligation to these dwarves I've only just met, who really don't seem to think much of me, who could just as easily find someone with the proper skill set, and geez I wish they'd just tell me to go home already...

Also, I'm an introvert who has learned to behave like an extrovert - people who don't know me well wouldn't ever suspect, I think. As a result, I wind up in the peculiar position of being able to interact quite cheerfully with just about everyone and even look like I'm enjoying myself - which I am, at times - but after a certain period of time, I need to go off on my own and recharge my batteries. On a quest such as this one, that's a recipe for getting eaten by trolls or giant spiders.

Congratulations on your new baby Bettina! And you definitely have a great story of how she came into the world!

I'm loving all these responses -- and our stories of adventure. We're fortunate in that the Air Force hands our family an adventure every 2-3 years when we have to uproot ourselves and head to a new location. So far we've been going to new locations but I predict our next location will be someplace we're already familiar with...which is very comforting to me.

So glad I found this group!

I'd like to say I'd stand up for myself and not go on adventure with 12 strangers and a wizard who tricked me. I'd love to say that my children and my homebody routine would keep me home. But knowing my people-pleasing personality, I'd be out the door with the dwarves just like Bilbo. And "shoulda coulda would" would have been in my head the entire time lol.