Watermark

Janus

From Wikipedia:

In Roman mythology, Janus (or Ianus) was the god of gates, doors, doorways, beginnings, and endings. His most apparent remnants in modern culture are his namesakes, the month of January and the caretaker of doors and halls: Janitor.

...Janus was frequently used to symbolize change and transitions such as the progression of past to future, of one condition to another, of one vision to another, the growing up of young people, and of one universe to another. He was also known as the figure representing time because he could see into the past with one face and into the future with the other.

This is the time we look ahead, and back. A time for reflection, as light slowly grows again here in the north. So here's a question: a year from now, what do you want to see, when you look back?

End-of-Year Quizzes

I found the Death Test at MOLLY.COM:

This is sooner than I'd planned... and is it really possible to die of loneliness? For an introvert, to die of loneliness? Is that the same thing as a heart attack? (I messed with that image, btw.)

Then I found What's Your Fortune? at Scientist, Interrupted:

Your Fortune Is

It's ok to let a fool kiss you, but don't let a kiss fool you.

The Wacky Fortune Cookie Generator

Hmm, kisses. I'm going to get kisses...

... and, from the same source (this seems to be a silly scientist -- the best kind) What Chinese Year Should You Have Been Born Under?

You Should Have Been Born Under:

You are totally loyal, faithful, and honest. However, you don't trust others to be as ethical as you are! * Straight forward and direct, you really aren't one for small talk. * You are a great listener - and an agreeable companion when you're in a good mood! * You are most compatible with a Tiger or Horse.

What Year Should You Have Been Born Under?

Finally, from Dick Jones, THE ACME SELF-ANALYSIS KIT:

Others see you as sensible, cautious, careful and practical.  They see you as clever, gifted, or talented, but modest.  Not a person who makes friends too quickly or easily, but someone who's extremely loyal to friends you do make and who expect the same loyalty in return.  Those who really get to know you realize it takes a lot to shake your trust in your friends, but equally that it takes you a long time to get over it if that trust is ever broken.

That's probably pretty close. To take this test, go here first. Then, and only then, go here.

So, we have a bit of prognostication, a bit of self-analysis, and a bit of silliness. A good way to exit a year, no?

Almost time for the New Year Haiku

Three years ago, Andrew told me there is a tradition of writing a 'positive' haiku on the first day of the year. So I wrote one, and it became a collaborative poem dance. I forgot in 2006. We did one here at Watermark again last year, but I was late, and lax, and it was brief.

This year, folks are landing here again from searches for new year haiku, and I'm being much more consistent in my posting, so I decided to start early with a reminder to you all: the Watermark New Year Haiku Collaborative Poem Dance will appear here again this year, on January 1, 2008. That's Tuesday!

I'll put the post up early Tuesday morning, and you are invited to add your haiku in the comments, or you can email it to me at blogdiva AT sbpoet DOT com. Include a link to your site if you have one. Over the following few days, I'll pull the poems up into the post.

Any haiku form is welcome -- including American Sentences.

Here is a not-so-positive haiku, to send this year out:

year's end -
       the cat box full
              of old shit

 

 

RELATED POSTS:

• New Year Haiku 2008
• New Year Haiku 2005
• New Year Haiku 2007

SEE ALSO:

• small poems
• small poems @ Watermark
• Poem Dancing @ Watermark

A Year of Cats

Watermark's resident cats -- Spike & Boo -- have had several visitors this year. Here is a quick overview of 2007's kitties (click the image to see the large version - and originals -- at flickr):

 

More 2007 cats:

• The Carnival of the Cats at Carnival of the Cats
• On Sunday, the new carnival will be at: IFOC 
• Weekend Cat Blogging last weekend was at WCB: Christmas Edition!; this weekend you will find it at Welcome to TGH WCB # 134-New Years Edition!;
• Bad Kitty Cats Festival of Chaos is at The Catboys Realm and will be at Zed Monster & Megan at Bad Kitty Cats Journal
• Friday Ark #171 at Modulator

(I wish I could remember where I got this.)

Winter River

 

Snapshot Poem| Moon Island

  This week's prompt is Moon Island, which I used for another long-lines exercise. Again, I've done it as an image; click it to bring it up larger.

Below the cut, the poem in text, with broken lines:

Merry Christmas!

Don't send a lame Holiday eCard. Try JibJab Sendables!

Happy Holidays!

 

Winter Solstice

It was dark and cold and Grandmother said let's make a picnic, we'll hang the beaded sun on the ceiling, have lunch from a willow basket. She laid out great-grandmother's quilt, orange and yellow and blue, a homespun lawn on the carpet, and I in my nightgown and she in her lavender dress, ate tuna and crackers and chocolate off delicate china plates.
 



   

 

Winter Solstice

It was dark and cold and Grandmother said let's make a picnic, we'll hang the beaded sun on the ceiling, have lunch from a willow basket. She laid out great-grandmother's quilt, orange and yellow and blue, a homespun lawn on the carpet, and I in my nightgown and she in her lavender dress, ate tuna and crackers and chocolate off delicate china plates.
 



   

My Lonely Christmas Tree

UPDATED December 30, 2007: Look at all those presents! Such generosity of feeling -- and I don't even know who some of you are. Thank you so much for making this fun!

I'll be taking this off the top of Watermark later today, and replacing it with Almost time for the New Year Haiku. I hope you have fun with that, too.
 

Look at that: no [lots of] presents [!!!]. I'm going to leave this at the top of Watermark for a few days, hoping for visits from virtual Santas.

You can be [are] my virtual Santa[s]!

[But you must have flash.]

Blessed Solstice

 

This image is by catnapping, who gave me permission to post it. I hope she won't mind that I played with it a bit. Her work brings me pleasure all year long.