Monday, December 31, 2012

Drawn Conclusions

I began this blog one year ago, the idea for it coming to me and evolving over the month of December 2011. I thought it would be an interesting experiment to record my year in the form of one haiku each day. As you might have noticed by the numbering, I posted two haiku in the same day without realizing it, May 4th, amusing considering it's science fiction nerd connotation ("may the 4th be with you"). #125 was posted at 12:30 in the morning and #126 was posted at 7:30 pm. 

Posting multiple haiku a day was obviously the least of my problems since it only happened the one time - pretty good since I wasn't able to establish a regular posting schedule given my erratic work hours amid other responsibilities. The hardest part was in early April when my roommate and I moved into a new apartment and lost our at-home internet. Writing haiku wasn't difficult, it was getting to the internet to post them. I often had to write a bunch ahead of time and post them in advance, or let days slip by without posts, then backdate them when I could get to the internet again. It was very frustrating.

But I persevered, and I did succeed in writing at least 366 poems, one for every day of the year (2012 was a leap year). I tried very hard to stick to the original intention of traditional haiku that included seasonal key words. It proved to be quite difficult, however, mostly because the days in the seasons do not change all that much. Though seasonal haiku do make up the bulk of the blog, I feel.

I came up with my own little theme briefly during the summer. I tagged them "words," and they were mostly comprised of definitions for unusual English words, or incorporated uncommon words into the haiku. I had a lot of fun with that series! Words included callipygian, abstemious, curmudgeon, and festoon among others. Click here to read them all.

I don't quiet know yet what my writing challenge will be for 2013. I think I'd like to start an online literary magazine, but I will need quite a bit more free time than I have right now to do so. I'd also like to return to some of my early novels and rework them. I just hope I can find the time!

Time passes quickly;
Sometimes, it's hard to keep up.
Or too exhausting.

There is haiku #367 to complete 2012 and begin 2013.

Sunday, December 30, 2012

#366

Three days off from work?
I don't know how it happened,
But I'll make good use!

Saturday, December 29, 2012

#365

The church bell sings out:
Six o'clock! It's six o'clock!
Time to go to work.

Friday, December 28, 2012

#364

The roads are icy,
And in the shadows of night,
They are dangerous.

Thursday, December 27, 2012

#363

A creature of snow,
Stones for eyes and sticks for hands,
Now guards the back door.

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

#362

Family dinner
With turkey, stuffing, gravy
Is good for the soul.

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

#361

A fit of damp snow;
A spinning car on the road.
Driving in winter.