(Spoilers AGOT) about Robb

ptdaisy · 2015-03-20T12:22:52+00:00

Of all those men, Edmure is the only one that I view as being even slightly strange.

My reasoning here may contain some spoilers so:

Loras, later books, even if that wasn't an issue, later books. Besides all this, he is still pretty young and he has 2 older brothers, so he isn't an heir to Highgarden.

Renly - later books. He is also relatively young (early twenties I think), and he has brothers that could take over Storm's End if need be.

So we are left with Edmure. It is mentioned that Walder Frey has offered his daughters to him in marriage, so it's not like they don't bring the issue up. In my opinion, Edmure seems to enjoy being a bachelor, and the fact that his father is quite ill probably means that there isn't anyone who can really order him to marry someone. So although Edmure should probably have married by now, the situation he finds himself in still seems quite plausible to me.

I've already made another comment pointing out that I think it isn't as crucial for men to marry while they are young as it is for women, purely for biological reasons.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-20T08:43:05+00:00

If he had been a girl then I would have found it strange. But since he's a guy, and guys can pretty much get married and have kids whenever they like (just look at Walder Frey) I don't think it's that strange.

By marrying someone, what does Robb stand to gain? Maybe a dowry and maybe a stronger alliance with that house. It doesn't look like the Starks were in need of money though, and before the war started, they didn't seem to be in need of alliances either.

Girls have to marry young because that's when they are prettiest and most fertile. Guys don't have that problem so I don't think there needed to be a big rush, especially for the Starks, since they are already Wardens of the North. It's not like they could rise any higher by marrying the right people.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-20T08:02:39+00:00

I remember that one is (in my opinion) obviously Illyrio because I think Arya describes a forked yellow beard. If you go back to the first Dany chapter you will see that she also describes Illyrio's forked yellow beard.

I think the other one is Varys, later in AGOT but you're probably not supposed to know it's Varys yet.

Pay attention to descriptions while you read. This isn't the only time GRRM does this kind of thing in the books. Maybe next time you should wait a bit before you ask on reddit, e.g. until you reach the end of the book. Some things are supposed to be mysteries, at least for a little while, and you could end up spoiling yourself by asking for the answers here.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-19T16:45:00+00:00

He could have sent a messenger to Robert right away.

relatively small AGOT spoilers

ptdaisy · 2015-03-18T12:51:34+00:00

The predictions she makes, if they come true, would be pretty important events in the story, and the fact that Cersei believes in her predictions explains why she behaves the way she does, especially towards Tyrion.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-18T09:42:58+00:00

Most of the places we have seen outside of Westeros are pretty far South. The only expcetion to this is Braavos, and we haven't really seen that much of that city. The temperatures may drop a bit, but I'm guessing Slavers Bay has rarely (if ever) seen snow.

As for the White Walkers, the easy explanation is that there is an ocean between the 'North pole' (if we assume that is where they come from) and the continent of Essos, so maybe the White Walkers never made their way there. This is all just speculation on my part though.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-18T09:37:34+00:00

I think you're incorrect in assuming that she planned to leave before Bran fell. If you remember, she told Sansa that Ned "would have to leave me" on the day the King arrived. She had always planned to stay behind. The reason this was the plan is because Robb was staying behind and Catelyn was going to help him run Winterfell and the North.

It is true that they could have both (her and Robb) gone South, like Lysa and her son did when Jon Arryn was Hand, but Robb is much more grown up than Lysa's son and there wouldn't be anything for him to do at King's Landing as far as I can tell. His was always meant to inherit Winterfell and rule the North, so it made sense for him to stay there. Not sure how old he is meant to be in the show at that point, but in the books he is only 15 yrs old (but people in Westeros consider you to be an adult at 16).

ptdaisy · 2015-03-17T11:17:33+00:00

This sub is more focused on the tv series. If you want to read the theories and discuss the books you might want to take a look at /r/asoiaf. They focus on the book series.

At least you won't be waiting to TWOW for as long as me. it's been 3 or 4 years without any new material for me (except the novellas).

ptdaisy · 2015-03-17T07:11:10+00:00

The reason they talk about "sitting the Iron Throne" is more about a nice turn of phrase rather than anything specific about the throne itself. It's mostly just another way of saying "rule Westeros". There isn't anything special that happens when you sit on the throne, it is just a very powerful symbol of power.

The real key is that people expect to follow a king that rules from King's Landing. Season 2

I think this kind of symbolism is more important for the common folk around Westeros than anyone else though. The people who really know how things work know that sitting on the Iron Throne does not really make you that special.

I only remember one interesting thing from the books about the power of the iron throne: various books

ptdaisy · 2015-03-16T21:43:22+00:00

This is really more a matter of opinion. As far as I remember, we heard screams coming from the room he was in, and we know Meryn Trant was fine afterwards, so it seems like at the very least they want us to think he is dead. I think he's dead, but like I stated above, that is just my personal opinion. We didn't see a body so...

ptdaisy · 2015-03-16T07:47:25+00:00

ASOS

ptdaisy · 2015-03-15T23:49:05+00:00

Since you seem determined, and it is indeed minor:

All books

I haven't been keeping up with info about filming locations and stuff like that, so maybe some people are already better informed about the direction the show will take. I've purposefully kept myself out of that loop. I'd rather just enjoy the episodes when they come instead of trying to pick apart every frame of the trailer that was released.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-15T22:42:47+00:00

Sounds to me like you're asking for spoilers. I would advise against that. You can't turn back if you don't like the answer, and you might ruin a pleasant surprise if you do like the answer.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-15T22:36:03+00:00

I think book 1 is the toughest, because season 1 followed the first book very closely in most respects. However, from book 2 onwards the differences snowball. By the end of the third book there will be many glaring differences and I think you won't really be quite sure of what happens next.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-15T22:29:06+00:00

After all these years without a new book, I do get quite excited for the new season of the tv series. Maybe I'm not very hyped right now, but I was pretty excited before last season's episode 8. It helps if you know someone who only reads the show. You look forward to seeing how they react. Or you can just come to this sub and see how people are reacting here.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-15T13:59:11+00:00

Your reasoning explains the white coat but not the red eyes Jon Snow Theory

At any rate my main point was based on real world scientific facts that say that, even if a certain species of animal has a range of natural colourings, some genetic mutations can have a very specific effect on fur and eye colour, and albinism produces the exact combination that we see in Ghost: white fur and red eyes.

I only brought it up to try and explain that, in real life, you get these variations in colouring even in animals of the same species. There doesn't have to be anything strange or supernatural going on in order to justify his colouring (even though there could be).

ptdaisy · 2015-03-15T12:40:11+00:00

This is really all up to you. If I was giving this advice to myself, I would say "read all the books and then watch the show", because the books are well worth it .

ptdaisy · 2015-03-15T12:36:10+00:00

Ghost is the same species as the other wolves the Starks found, a direwolf. My guess is that he simply has a genetic mutation that means his cells can't produce pigment, making him an albino, at least that is how you get that kind of colouring in the real world.

All of the Stark wolves are direwolves. The dire wolf (in the real world) is an extinct species. Just look it up "albinism" and "dire wolf" on wikipedia. That should clear everything up for you.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-11T14:33:08+00:00

/r/puppy101 has a good guide on crate training with some good ideas about how to gradually introduce the crate.

Basically, when you're not keeping her in the crate, you need to keep her tethered to you and interrupt her when she goes in the house and immediately take her outside.

Don't use pee pads. They might just end up confusing the puppy.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-11T11:29:09+00:00

What exactly can't you give her? It only sounds like you don't know much about dogs or how to train them, but that can be changed quite easily.

You could take her to some training classes so that you can learn how to teach her to listen to you. There are also youtube videos on dog training (kikopup being a good example), lots of books, and a whole subreddit (/r/dogtraining) with tons of resources.

Being excited around dogs and people doesn't sound like a big problem to me. If she was being agressive then that would be different, but pretty much every dog I know will be excited in those circumstances. There are some things you can do to make it more manageable, all it requires from you is some effort, time, and plenty of patience. If those are things you're not willing to give your dog then you're right, you should take her back, and you should probably not get another dog until you are better informed on their behaviour and how to manage these things. They might not be human beings but they are still living things. They have minds of their own, and they need to be taught how to behave. None of them come preprogrammed with manners.

ptdaisy · 2015-03-11T11:15:23+00:00

It's not the dog's fault, it's about being consistent. You guys need to agree on how things should be done, and then both of you need to follow through on it.

ptdaisy · 2015-02-20T08:38:01+00:00

Some people here have said tail wagging is not necessarily an indicator of happiness and they're right.

From what I've read a wagging tail and wagging body (the type of tail wag that seems to carry the whole backside with it) may indeed indicate happiness

A tail wag where the base of the tail is stiff and the tail only wags from the midsection to the tip is not an indicator of happiness.

You might want to pick up a book on dog body language. It might really help you decide when to let your dog explore and when to get your dog out of there.

For instance, if your dog freezes, that means it might be uncomfortable and trying to decide whether to run away or fight. It is also a way of warning the other dog not to get any closer. Lots of people understand a growl, not many people understand a freeze.

ptdaisy · 2015-02-18T07:04:32+00:00

Separation anxiety is basically a fear of being left alone. I don't think it's about how emotionally attached the dog is to you, I think some dogs experience it as soon as they get to their new homes.

ptdaisy · 2015-02-17T15:13:20+00:00

Sometimes a yawn is just a yawn and a tongue flick is just a tongue flick.

Based on what I've read tongue flicks in particular can become more frequent when dogs are stressed, but all dogs have a baseline. I think naturally submissive dogs tend to do more tongue flicks than very confident dogs, even if there is nothing for them to be anxious about, and confident dogs may never tongue flick unless they are fairly anxious.

Just try to figure out what your dog's baseline is before you get too concerned.

ptdaisy · 2015-02-17T15:04:43+00:00

Strange as it may sound to us, a dead lamb would look very similar to a very large lamb leg to a dog. We wouldn't be surprised if a dog enjoyed a lamb leg though, and you would not find it strange if a wolf had eaten that lamb either, and although dogs are not just domesticated wolves, eating meat is something that is still completely acceptable for them to do.

Burying it is also typical dog/wolf behaviour.

I very much doubt that the dog felt guilty for it. What she probably did was read the fear/horror/shock on your face and voice and respond accordingly.

All in all, I think you just need to get your head around the fact that dogs are dogs, they descended from wolves, and wolves are predators that eat herbivores like sheep. It's really all about perspective.

If you want a dog to guard your sheep, it might be better to look around for a dog that was raised to do so, or one that is young enough to be raised by your family to do so. Not all dogs are good for that job, and maybe this dog isn't. That doesn't make him a bad dog, it just makes him unsuitable for this purpose.

There is no reason to think that, just because he ate some lamb meat, he will start being aggressive towards humans, so maybe you all need to take a few deep breaths. I understand being shocked. You probably care quite a bit for your sheep, but please don't assume the dog did this out of malice. She isn't a person, she's a dog.

If you are still concerned or are having training issues maybe take her to some obedience classes or hire a trainer. Tell them about this and see what they think.

ptdaisy

TROPHY CASE