Writing in Montreux

The Jethro Tull said hi,
bonjour, grüezi* in Montreux
and proceeded to play.
And I’ve almost finished my
seven lines in Montreux,
looking out on the lake,
listening from far away.

– Leonard Blumfeld (© 2013)

*Swiss German greeting (more or less like "good day!")


The challenge was to write seven lines in a place where one has never written before:

One poem.

7 lines in length. 

Make it perfect.

Poets United

Selfie, helfie, shelfie, footsie - new words explained and illustrated

While watching the news on Al Jazeera this morning, I learned some new words from a short special they did.

Selfie – a self-portrait shot with a smartphone and shared on a social media site. Apparently invented in Australia in 2002.

(The example shown is actually a double selfie. Looks like I'm about to say something to myself.)


Helfie – a self-portrait showing only the hair or top of the head of the person.

(Low-quality, taken with front camera.)


Shelfie – a self-portrait taken in front of a book shelf.

(Shows my erudite and eclectic taste in books and some knicknacks gathered over the years, just like a proper shelfie should.)


Footsie – well, that's my own little gift to social media. A traditional footsie (foot shot).

Common features of all four are a. shot with a smartphone and b. shared using social media.

Bless the weird world of social media!

All pictures taken with a Sony Ericsson Xperia.

Jotted down

Don't just get caught up in the rush of the day, LEONARD. You could have a feeling of acceleration, like time is flowing by too quickly. But if you can take a few minutes and breathe, you could have some important insights. Your analytical mind is processing lots of information now, and you could come up with some exciting concepts. Take moment to jot your thoughts down so that they aren't lost!

(Today's web horoscope)

So the first thing I jotted down right on command was the horoscope itself, easy as 1-2-3. Thank you, Windows, thank you, Cut, & thank you, Paste.

Time is flowing by too quickly. I've been complaining about that for years to that elusive goddess called Time.

That is the first important insight, no matter that I've had it many times before. And what good has it done (like most important insights)!

My mind is indeed processing lots of information, albeit in a somewhat dazed state. Comes with Monday morning.

So these thoughts jotted down. No guarantee, though, that they won't be lost.

PS1: I love that personal computerized LEONARD. My horoscope knows me!
PS2: Added a picture from the scene of the crime.

The seven days haiku

Seven more days! I’ll
be waiting at the station
for her to arrive...

– Leonard Blumfeld (© 2013)

A contribution to Haiku Heights and Seven.

Note
Actually a very abbreviated version of one of my favorite Bob Dylan songs – Seven more days.
This one is more or less fictitous (but I do wait for my love regularly, about five days out of seven).

Seven more days in a live performance by Ron Wood:

The limited appeal horoscope

This was in the mail this morning:

Today, being slightly more aggressive than usual would heighten your appeal, which is limited by Neptunian fog.

I'll try, I'll try! I am worried about my appeal.

(But could anyone explain to me what Neptunian fog is and why Neptune has it out for me?)

– Leonard Blumfeld

Happens to include the words aggressive, heighten and limited, which were demanded by 3WW today.

The Let Them Eat Cake Variant Haiku

Grass cake, grass pudding,
grass soup, grass dumplings in grass
sauce should fatten you.

– Leonard Blumfeld (© 2013)

Written on the theme of grass at Haiku Heights.

Alludes to the quote ‘Let them eat cake’ misattributed to Marie Antoinette, queen of France, beheaded in 1793, and a satirical film about the Ceausescu regime of Romania, in which the dictator’s wife recommended grass as a solution for the starving Romanians.

The lifetime achievement haiku

Pointed hats, pointed
people in undershirts and
different attire.

– Leonard Blumfeld (© 2013)

First haiku in the artists haiku series.

Tarot and horoscope today

Tarot says:

Your emotional situation isn't that great today. With the Hanged Man and the High Priestess there's precious little chance of you spreading your wings. You're feeling rather discouraged and apathetic about work and towards those close to you, or towards your partner if you have one. Don't let it get you down - the sun's bound to shine tomorrow! At work, you may feel that your abilities are not being fully appreciated. Despite the obvious talents lavished upon you by the Empress, the Hanged Man is about to sow the seeds of doubt in the admiration of your colleagues or your friends. You'll do everything right and then you'll be criticized for doing a bad job! The image people have of you today will be enough to drive you crazy!

 Horoscope says:

You could feel lighthearted and a bit silly. Your sense of humor will be stimulated. People don't always realize that you are a kid at heart! You might spend some time cracking funny jokes. Or you could have fun sending some silly e-mails to your friends. You'll be entertained by TV or movie comedies. You might even come up with a comedy routine of your own. Celebrate the laughter in your life. 

Theoretically, if there was some universal truth to tarot and horoscope, these two should have something in common for the same person on the same day.

So – what to make of this?
a. The two do not seem to have a common denominator.
b. Thank God I don't have to work today, so will hopefully do without the seeds of doubt in my colleagues and my poor image.
c. In view of b., I'll skip the silly e-mails to my friends suggested by the horoscope.
d. Pretty poor universal/celestial/spiritual showing from whoever did tarot/horoscope.

The den haiku

The lion’s den – used
to be the dragon’s lair – what
awful putrid strench!

– Leonard Blumfeld (© 2013)

Written for Haiku Heights and den.

Note
More than anything, this one plays with fixed expressions and treats them literally.

The black haiku

I have to turn my head until my darkness goes
– The Rolling Stones, Paint It Black

You said, paint it black,
so I did. Now everyone
calls me negative.

– Leonard Blumfeld (© 2013)

Written for Haiku Heights and black.

Note
Goes to show that you should not always listen to what people say.