A January week

I have returned to an old habit—following the Capture Your 365 daily photo prompt challenge (#CY365), and pairing the photos with a few lines. I’m finding it’s really quite doable if I keep up with it.

So, without ado, here are some of this week’s captures:

Last Saturday’s prompt was WITH WORDS. Here is the photo and poem I cobbled together from the week’s words in my 2018 Word-A-Day calendar.

(Photo © 2018 by V. Nesdoly)

On New Year’s Day the BENTHOS froze
under our polar bared toes.
Our Christmas treats we now CONTEMN
against our hopes of getting slim
(though with bold APPETANCE they still beckon
our calories we’ve resolved to reckon). 
PROCRUSTEAN as resolutions are
without them we won’t go as far
their value is at least HEURISTIC
and though our methods are simplistic
to fight holiday excess PIACULAR
our hopes still burn for the spectacular. 

Sunday, January 7th the prompt was WHITE.
We met our newest grand-dog on Sunday. His name is Henry.

Henry (Photo © 2018 by V. Nesdoly)

Tuxedo Henry— 
natty polka-dotted socks
fashion forward tail

Monday, January 8th’s prompt was SPLOTCHES (OF WHITE). This photo doesn’t really answer the prompt, but it had to be taken. (The next three photos are of my grandchildren.)

(Photo © 2018 by V. Nesdoly)

Little Santa girl
delivers the best gift—
herself

On Tuesday, the prompt was ODD ONE OUT.
Two moments made my photo day, and inspired a tiny poem:

(Photo © 2018 by V. Nesdoly)

(Photo © 2018 by V. Nesdoly)

Caught
in the act
of play

On Wednesday the word was MINIMAL.

Hooded Merganser (Photo © 2018 by V. Nesdoly)

Study in white, black, 
brown, with amber eye
Hooded Merganser

And finally yesterday, Thursday, the challenge was to photograph EXQUISITE. Oh boy… it was a very unexquisite day here but I did escape the dull and dreary indoors for an even more dull, dreary, and damp out. And I found something exquisite!

Nandina also known as “Heavenly Bamboo” (Photo © 2018 by V. Nesdoly)

Leaves of flame, embers
of berry warm this soggy
January day

(I just had a great suggestion from Joy in the comments below about making the verse above more comfortable in its skin…. changing it to a rhyming couplet or a quatrain. I’m opting for the quatrain. Thanks, Joy!)

Here’s version 2:

Leaves of flame
embers of berry
warm this soggy
January

(All poems above © 2018 by Violet Nesdoly – All rights reserved)

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This post is linked to Poetry Friday. Our hostess today is Jan, who directs the poetry traffic at the Book Seed Studio (what a fabulous name for a blog!). Thanks Jan!

 

 

Carrier Pigeon

Carrier Pigeon

Bird Lady has tossed her breads.
Clay pigeons, come leave your beds
time to stuff stool pigeon heads!

Dockyard pigeons, homing too
from bridge girders and the zoo
Pigeon Forgers, drop by, do!

Pigeon-chested, pigeon-toed
pigeon-heated by the road…
full tums all—that is the goad.

© 2016 by Violet Nesdoly (All rights reserved)

Poetry Friday regulars will recognize the Jane Yolen-invented form of this ditty (a septercet: seven syllable lines, three lines to a stanza, any number of stanzas), my attempt to rise to this month’s challenge at Michelle Barnes blog Today’s Little Ditty.

(If you’re curious about what some of these pigeony figures of speech mean, check HERE.)

And now, I’m soon off to Bellingham and Poetry Camp! Hubby and I even did a reconnaissance trip a few weeks ago when I needed some software that was only available south of the border. On that outing we scouted the campus of WWU, so I even have my bearings (sort of).

See some of you this weekend!!

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This post is linked to Poetry Friday, hosted this week by Karen at Karen Edmisten: Mom. Writer. Consumer of Coffee (I like that last!).

 

 

Autumn Song

Market Collage (Photos © 2015 by V. Nesdoly)

Lettuce has bolted
rhubarb has plumed
cabbage grown plump
the onions have bloomed

Apples hide stars
tomatoes mandalas
green pews hold peas
mushrooms umbrellas

Beets count their rings
like old hickories
cauliflowers
are albino trees

Turnips love purple
radishes red
carrots, potatoes
won’t get out of bed

Corn’s teeth are stained
peaches and cream
gherkins escape in a
dill pickle dream

Pumpkins grow fat
like full harvest moons
goose gang flies south
honking its tunes

© 2009 by Violet Nesdoly

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Happy October! This time of year begs for a seasonal poem. I dug this one out of my binder. I believe I wrote it in 2009.  It makes me wish I had a garden to harvest. The next best thing is a Farmer’s Market. The photo is a collage from the amazing Kelowna Farmer’s Market. I took the photos when we visited in late September last year.

This post is linked to Poetry Friday, hosted today by Heidi at My Juicy Little Universe.

 

January, February

It’s January, all must change
my resolutions cry it!
I’ll clean the cupboards, shine the glass
completely change my diet.
The constant list of things I need
has changed from Christmas treats
to organizers, storage boxes,
and a set of sheets.

It’s February, nothing’s changed
the bathroom scales decry it
(that frozen stash of Christmas treats
has sabotaged my diet).
The hopeful list of things I pledged
discreetly tucked away.
Ten months to do just as I please
until next New Year’s day.

© 2004 – Time of Singing, Winter 2004-2005 (also published in Calendar, 2004)

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Happy New Year!

Today’s poem is a re-post. It first appeared here in 2009, but I wrote it long before that. I’m afraid it’s the ongoing story of my New Year’s Resolutions. Some things never change!

This post is part of Poetry Friday. You will find many more Poetry Friday poems linked at Betsy’sI Think in Poems blog.