Hold on to your hats, Haiku-ers! There’s a new look and format on the way for our beloved Sensational Haiku Wednesday meme! (Later this month)

I’ve been discussing my thoughts with a trusted friend and fellow haiku writer recently, and we agree that structure is important for haiku. Oh sure, there are many different ways to write haiku, some ancient, some modern, some free-form. The whole idea for this meme though, was to write haiku in its most recognizable form and structure, and that means using a 5/7/5 syllabic measure.

Haiku? Senryu?
Nature, tradition, or fun?
Count five, seven, five!

The set structure may annoy some who prefer to write it in a more free-form manner, but it’s important to me that we keep this meme true to the original form and vision. I’m the kind of gal who needs structure along with freedom. An oxymoron? Maybe, but it’s important to me, and because this form of haiku appeals to me, it’s the reason I started this meme back in 2009.

Creatively, we all want to be stretched. By providing a prompt each week – you know I don’t always stick to the “easy” ones – and facing the challenge of writing in a specific structure, we are often stretched further than is comfortable! Doesn’t it make it that much more satisfying when we can come up with something in the face of that challenge? You bet it does.

The changes won’t affect most of you, except that I’ll be laying things out a little differently, and making the participation rules more clear.

For example:

• Linking: When you post your link, link to the blog post with your haiku on it, and not to the main page of your blog. This will keep the time line clean! These links stick around forever, so if we want to find your haiku post months or years down the road, we can. All this time I’ve been “fixing” your links (you didn’t know that, did you!) to point to the correct place, but that just causes me extra work. So, I ask that you please post the correct link from now on.
• Structure: If at least one of your haiku is not in the structure of 5, 7, and 5 syllables respectively, I’ll remove your link from the list. Yikes, that sounds heavy-handed, doesn’t it? You get why that would happen though, so it’s all good.
• Reciprocate: If you participate and post your link on my website, you must have a link back here on your post. It’s only fair. It can be one of the graphics I’m putting together now (yay, choice!), or even just a text link; I’m easy. Most of you already do that, but occasionally I’ll come across someone who doesn’t. I’ll be removing those links too.

Change is healthy! We have such a fabulous group going here, and I hope that all of you will continue on with us and not be chased away. I value each and every one of you, and look forward to your participation and camaraderie each week.

May 2012 mark the beginning of a Tide of Love, Happiness and Bright futures for all of us. May those who need someone special find true love. May those facing scary debt find the strength and methods to turn it around this year. To those who need caring, may you find a good heart. And to those who crave haiku, may you find your way here to join our wonderful community!

P.S. I’m behind on updating the “Hooked on Haiku” list – can you take a moment to see if you’re there? If you have been playing consistently within the last few months (at least 3x, in a row) you should be, so let me know if you’re not, and I’ll get you added!

Happy Haiku-ing!

I came across a great haiku submission for our “Sensational Haiku Wednesday” meme today, and thought I’d put my 2¢ into the mix.

The Teen and I were discussing the “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Holidays” politically correct nonsense just yesterday. Depending on where we would go in our shopping travels, we’d hear both, and more often than not, the “Merry Christmas” would sound like a challenge, rather than the heartfelt sentiment it’s meant to be. The Hubby and I spent a few days away in Pennsylvania this week, and heard the same thing there. In one case I was purchasing a gift in a small store, and the owner handed me my change, looked me square in the eye, and ground out “MERRY. CHRISTMAS.” as though she were daring me to make something of it. Frightening.

How far we have fallen that such simple words can bring us to hurl them as epithets.

The Teen and I both have friends who are Muslim or other “non Christian” faiths (or no religious faith at all, like our family). We got to thinking about those friends, and came to the conclusion that not a single one of them would have a problem with someone saying “Merry Christmas” to them. It would not cause them to recoil from the wisher, make them angry, or cause them to feel insulted. In fact, one of the Teen’s friends is a lovely Muslim girl who makes it a point to wish people a Merry Christmas during this time of year, even if she herself doesn’t celebrate it. She gets it, and she’s still a kid. There is hope for us yet.

Who thought this whole “politically correct” change to the holidays up, anyway? No doubt a group of small-minded, narrow-thinking “do-gooders” who couldn’t bear the thought of a single person being insulted for any reason, and figured it needed a rule. No matter that the kind of person who would be insulted by being wished “Merry Christmas” is likely the kind of person who would find fault or imagine ethnic segregation in just about anything anyway. Fortunately, that isn’t the vast majority of people. All people, and that means people of all race, creed, and colour, appreciate kindness and good will. We are not so different that it could possibly be any other way, except in the small, damaged groups of people who take it upon themselves to cause trouble for people who aren’t looking for it.

Past the obvious Christian roots and meaning to the holiday, Christmas can mean many things, and will depend on those who celebrate it. I grew up and continue to this day to believe that Christmas is a time for family. It’s a time for extra love, extra joy, and perhaps also a time to get past the minor things that caused us angst or hurt throughout the year. It’s a time to celebrate being together, eat good food, and sing great songs. (Unfortunately it also means extra bills and calories, but we don’t need to go there just now!)

I have been wished “Happy Hannukah”, “Happy Kwanzaa”, “Happy Diwali” and many other things throughout the year, and take it all with the spirit in which it’s intended; as a wish for my happiness during a special time.

How can anyone have a problem with someone wishing them well? Let’s stop being ridiculous, people.

Merry Christmas, my friends.

WHY won’t some of you enable Name/URL for your blog comments? WHY?

Don’t you know you’re stopping people like me, who obviously have a LOT to say, from leaving you love and adoration (ok, not always) and other comments? Don’t you want to hear from us? I know you do, because I’ve had some pretty pointed comments from people in the past who expected me to visit (which I did) and comment (which I couldn’t). My Sensational Haiku Wednesday people in particular are regulars that I adore, and a few of them are preventing me from leaving my thoughts on their fantastic haiku! I’m super busy, like most people with 2 companies to run, 2 busy kids, a husband, and numerous other IRL activities on any given day. I can’t try to track your email address down and send you a note every time I find I can’t comment on your blog… you know? Sometimes I do, but often… I just move on.

I feel a little like I’m intruding in a xenophobic society when I go to leave a comment, and can’t. Like, because I won’t use Blogger, or WordPress.com, I’m not welcome. Rather like a child peering through the toy store window, I guess. Only I’m not so much envious of the other kids playing inside as annoyed as all get out that I can’t speak my mind on what you’ve written. So often I come across a truly excellent blog post, and want to leave my thoughts with the author, only to find that I can’t. Argh.

Given what I know about how most bloggers think, I’m fairly certain this is not at all how you intended to come across, my bloggy friends. Given that most of us are reaching out to people in the world in this special format, it’s not that some of us are so picky that we’d only allow mirror images of our own blogs to come in. That defeats the whole purpose of getting out there, and meeting all kinds of new and wonderful people.

Yes, I guess I did just call myself wonderful, didn’t I… well, that’s ok, I think you’re all pretty wonderful too!

But you annoy the crap out of me.

There, I said it.

I’m going to bet that most of you don’t even realize that your blogs are set up to ostracize so many people. Maybe you’re not even aware that there are bloggers out there who don’t use free blog services at all, and who can’t (or won’t) use those spammy comment services like “OpenID” that so many people insist on. We are definitely in the minority, you’re right about that. But we’re out there, and there are a lot of us.

So, how do you set your Blogger account to allow Name/URL, you ask? Oh, I’m so glad you asked that :)

and further down the page…

What about your WordPress.com account, you ask?

Well, I did some homework, and it turns out they’re like a limited version of a full WordPress setup (like I use, in my own pro hosting account). The answer there, my friends, is Akismet. Akismet all the way! It’s a fabulous free (unless you choose to donate to them) plugin that catches 99% of all spam attempts on your blog. The odd one that does get through can be thwarted by setting it up so only people you’ve previously approved comments for can post without being moderated. So it will be held in moderation until you either say “yep, spam” and mark it so, or allow the comment. I personally hold all comments that contain a URL for moderation (not including Comment Luv, which is another nice plugin that I use). Check out your settings in your account and you’ll see what I mean in there. WordPress also comes with Akismet preinstalled, and all you need to do is set it up by getting your API key – all from within your account. Easy-peasy.

So now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, I’m hoping it will alleviate some of my blogging stress. You don’t want to cause me stress… right?

Happy Blogging!

I hate that the rss feed is so instant, because it was published for literally 3 seconds before I caught it!

Anyone know of a way to prevent the RSS feed from being that instant? I’d LOVE to hear about it, because clearly I keep doing this and probably will do it again.

Anyway… I’ve been writing and scheduling because I anticipate I’ll be pretty busy over the coming weeks, and don’t want to get so burnt out that I forget to write and publish our weekly haiku! This will also give me some leeway on other posts, which I haven’t been doing lately. It’s summer time, and along with working my usual long hours, I’ve got 2 kids driving me nuts hanging out and in need of mental stimulation.

Tomorrow I think we’ll take a run to Hungry Hollow to hunt for fossils – Wee One has never done that, and The Teen suggested we go again, because it was so much fun the last time we went, when she was the wee one.

Hope you’re all enjoying your summer!

No, I’m talking about the Fabio of today, who is not taking getting older gracefully, and rather seems to be desperate to recapture the adoration of middle aged women. Instead, he is coming across as a creepy, flaccid, aging man with piggy eyes who can’t get a grasp on the fact that his youth and glory days are behind him. Come on Fabio, really? Rolling around on a piano? Were those “babes” on either end there to prevent you from falling off and breaking a hip? You set my “ewwwwww” alarm off!

Nope, Fabio should accept that those days are gone. Old Spice should slap the Marketing Department on their collective heads, and bring back Isaiah Mustafa.

What were they thinking, replacing someone fresh and sexy (and funny) with someone so… not?

Don’t get me wrong – I find many older men extremely sexy. A huge part of their appeal comes from within, and in a word, it’s that they’re confident! Being comfortable with who and what they are. Ricardo Montalban was sexy to his dying day. Also not my type (not in to Latino men, personally), but he was absolutely sexy. Sean Connery? Sexy. Pierce Brosnan? Sexy. Fabio? NOT sexy.