Book?

The Haiku Club may become a book! I'll be contacting members about it very soon ...

Easter

Easter is an odd holiday, with its uneasy mix of pagan and Christian beliefs -- we're quite blasé about the cards depicting bunnies, eggs and fluffy chicks that jostle with flowery crosses and Biblical quotes about resurrection. You have until Monday, March 31 to nibble on your chocolate Easter treats while writing a haiku about this peculiar spring holiday.

Haiku Contest

Beth was kind enough to forward me info about an upcoming haiku contest sponsored by the Magpie Haiku Poets, in association with Eleventh Transmission. There are prizes, plus publication for the first three winning poems, too. Entry is free, and the deadline for submissions is April 30, 2008. More info can be found on the website here.

London

This is London calling. One of the world's great cities, its rich history and appearance as a central or supporting character in innumerable stories, songs, films and personal remembrances serve as testimony to its timelessness: eternally old, but always new. Thanks to Andrew for the theme suggestion. Deadline is midnight, Sunday February 10.

varmints

when i was a kid
at the cinema, they’d play
some short films to start.

rabbits throw anvils
at singing baboons; talking
pots chase magic spoons.

man, i’d love to see,
today, mickey’s marching brooms –
the movie starts soon…

…but what’s up these days?
i’m harpooned with all these ads:
“BUILT FORD TOUGH!” “BUY SNACKS!”

i don’t want ads or
film trivia, you maroons!
bring back my cartoons!

Film

From the first silents to today's glossy Hollywood blockbusters, film has been a huge part of our culture. We've idolized stars, sung along to theme songs, memorized favourite lines, encountered alien life forms, and traveled all over the world (and beyond), while sitting in the dark staring at a glowing screen. You have until midnight of Sunday, January 27 to write about your celluloid dreams.

The Label Says It's Organic...

Cheerful bright boxes
at the grocery store propose:
"Soylent Green tonight!"

Summer: lines composed on a beach

You maniacs! You
blew it up! Ah, damn you! God
damn you all to hell!

The Future

It's The Future, my friends! Will we be whizzing around in our own personal shiny metal spaceships, or will we be in helpless thrall to our merciless squid overlords? Utopia, Dystopia, or something in between? You have until midnight of Saturday, January 19 to foresee The Future...

I'm late preparing for Thanksgiving too

cruel calendar
just a few hundred days left
must start shopping now

Holiday

The madness of the season is upon us! The tinned Christmas music in the stores, the aggressive commercials on TV, the frantic faces of shoppers--for many of us, it all adds up to an increasing yearning for a simpler holiday time. So. This month's theme explores the good, the bad and the ugly of what Holiday means these days. Deadline is January 2, 2008.

and I'm wearing a lot of layers, too

wind-swept, featureless
the Flats chill me bone deep
tomorrow: the bus!

Cold

November brings a crispness to the air, and the first frosty indications of winter in the early morning. With the drop in temperature comes our new theme: Cold. It might be a bout of cold feet, getting the cold shoulder, out cold, or just feeling chilly--it's up to you. Deadline is midnight, November 30.

Last Night

As darkness descends
the beast emerges, hovers,
surveying the street.

It chooses its first
and creeps closer, arm extended;
claws scratch at the door.

Thirty houses and
three chocolate bars later, the
red dragon crashes.

I'm having trouble with a title, too

pristine new pumpkin
canvas for much clever art
damn this carver's block!

Jack o' Lantern

Evil spirits flee,
frightened by the fiery gaze
of his glowing eyes.

my neighbourhood on Hallowe'en

tiny Chinese kid
scared, no costume but big eyes
oh, have a candy

Hallowe'en Bedtime Chez Moi

Two black ninjas strike:
Rustling through the bag of treats
Under bedcovers.

Sweet and juicy

Tempting toffee coats
scrumptious red apples, crisp with
hidden razor blades.

Hallowe'en

Hallowe'en is our next theme, and brings us an opportunity to explore the macabre, be it good (happy memories of childhood trick or treating) or not so good (witches and ghosts and mummies--oh my!). Deadline is midnight, October 31.

Does the Warranty Cover Freaking Out?

The moribund Mac
stares blankly, indifferent
to looming deadlines.

Stress

Our next theme (courtesy of the mysterious Sly Revolutionary) is something that we can all relate to: Stress. Whether it's work stress, city living stress, or just a general anxiety about things, you have until midnight of Sunday October 14 to write about your jitters.

The 39 Steps

Code song grimly hummed,
they hurtle over the moors
in flight from menace.

Flight

Flight is our next theme, which could be a flight from the cold (like the migrating Canada geese), a flight into the unknown, a flight from one's fears (like a Hitchcock movie), or flights of fantasy. Let your imagination take flight. Deadline is midnight, Sunday September 30.

The Physiology of Taste

"You are what you eat,"
declared Brillat-Savarin.
Today: I'm pad thai.