Tumblewords

Fractals Photos Poetry Prose Watercolor

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Senryu for Magpie Tales

Tess Kincaid, of Magpie Tales, offers the following image as writers' prompt:




image:  Bert Stern


her cellophane wrap
easy to see, hard to read
a first grade primer


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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

X for ABC Wednesday

Xiphias, a swordfish.


According to Wikipedia, the swordfish is named after its bill resembling a sword.  This makes it superficially similar to other billfish such as marlin, but upon examination their physiology is quite different and they are members of different families.

original watercolor sketch


After I battled one of these for nearly a day before bringing him close enough to the boat to permit a quick touch before the deckhand returned him to the ocean, I hardly knew whether he was a marlin or a swordfish. But I did notice he was huge and heavy. 


Have you challenged an Xiphias?


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Tuesday, December 20, 2011

W for ABC Wednesday


Wishing you a cozy warm winter with a wealth of spirit, energy and joy!

Wishing you a wonderful 2012!



original watercolor



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Sunday, December 18, 2011

Senryu for Magpie Tales

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following image as writers' prompt.










image: Lee Friedlander, 1966

folded arms
detached his shadow
saved her heart


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Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Viatical for ABC Wednesday

A viatical settlement is the sale of a life insurance policy by the policy owner before the policy matures. More information can be found at Wikipedia.

An early Christmas present (from me to me) of the Kindle Fire means that I'm reading with renewed enthusiasm. Added to this is the ability to digitally download Kindle books from the local library. The most recent series of books on my list comes from author James Grippando, creator of lawyer Jack Swyteck. Reading the second of his series, Beyond Suspicion, brought up viatical and I remembered when that word was prevalent in investing terminology.

And never let it be said that I read more than a couple of chapters before playing a bit of Angry Birds. All this excitement brought housework to a complete stop.

Do you buy gifts for yourself or am I the only one who does?















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Monday, December 12, 2011

Haiku for Magpie Tales #95

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following image for writer's prompt.


image by Mostafa Habibi



house of sand
an escaping dream
twist of time


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Tuesday, December 06, 2011

U for ABC Wednesday

 Please follow the link to see others' entries for the letter U.


One of the oldest USPS sites that I'm familiar with. As far as I know, this delightful place didn't have a local post office aid.

The mail is now delivered  by boat and distributed by which ever body is on hand to keep the boat near the dock while the pilot passes over the mail and whatever groceries were requested from the store in a small town on the other side of the lake.


Are you familiar with an older version?


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Monday, December 05, 2011

Senryu for Magpie Tales #94

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following image for prompt.



Lunch, George Tooker, 1964, Columbus Museum of Art



dark of rye
color-free milled wheat
artful knead


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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

T for ABC Wednesday

A portable tenderometer from Google search


I don't have a tenderometer (instrument for measuring tenderness of fruits and vegetables) and probably never will but it would have been handy several times during the last month because an Asiatic pear ripens differently than a Bartlett and yesterday I ruined a costly avocado by cutting it too soon.

Maybe it would be a handy item to have but because tenderometers are used for commercial purposes, I'm on my own again.

The anagrammer page touts Scrabble words, anagrams and several varieties of tenderometers.



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Sunday, November 27, 2011

Fibonacci for Magpie Tales #93

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales prompts writers with the following offer:






red
ruby
nostalgia
abandoned by heirs
those golden tales forever curbed



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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

S for ABC Wednesday


Sun Salutation is my favorite yoga movement, although this time of year it could be named snow salutation. I'm not so fond of snow and there's surely not much sun to be found.

I prefer the easy yoga. Simple stretches are good and easy to do. That's my key: Simple and slow. 

I credit yoga for my recovery from a two-month battle with pneumonia several years ago which left me unable to stand or walk. A couple of physical therapy visits in conjunction with yoga returned me to the walking state. I don't skateboard now but I never did and I'm sure not planning to learn that sport! It just doesn't fit my simple and slow motto.

Do you stretch with yoga or do you skateboard?

Image courtesy of :    http://www.livingwordsofwisdom.com




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Sunday, November 20, 2011

Tanka for Magpie Tales #92

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following visual for writers' prompt.






breath of Om
hatha yoga tryst
lotus grants
layers bendable
for flexible M


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Tuesday, November 15, 2011

R for ABC Wednesday

Rocking and Rollicking in the Rakings

Gotta envy the energy of the young, but on the other hand, where would this one be without the raker?


A borrowed photo, a child called Sweetcheeks


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Monday, November 14, 2011

Tanka for Magpie Tales

Tess Kincaid, Magpie Tales, offers the following image for writers' prompt #91.




image source: Google images, unknown photographer



Cheshire cat
dissembles in fog
Alice scans
infertile landscape
the music silent


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Tuesday, November 08, 2011

Q for ABC Wednesday

Quoz  (absurd person or thing) rocks and rules. Stricken by absurdity flu, much of the media misses the news by pandering to the quoz

I can sense a rant by this quat (insignificant person) coming on, so I'm going to quickly quit this post on quoz.

Downside of the quackers is a watercolor sketch based on a photograph.

Have you seen down from under?


~ ~ ~


Two of my novels and several chapbooks of poetry are available in various formats through Lulu Publishing and available as e-books on Nook and iTunes. Thank you.



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Sunday, November 06, 2011

Tanka for Magpie Tales #90



Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers this image as writers' prompt.







farmer's child
her hands man-like strong
she hid them
wished for model-slim
I saw mother's grace


 ~ ~ ~

Two Nanowrimo novels and several poetry chapbooks are available as e-books or print on Lulu Spotlight  as well as Barnes & Noble and iTunes. Thank you.


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Tuesday, November 01, 2011

P for ABC Wednesday

An example of a paraprosdokian

You do not need a parachute to skydive. You only need a parachute to skydive twice.

If you feel the urge to snort, giggle and roar, follow the link where you'll find an assortment of paraprosdokians and suddenly you'll be passionate enough about them to begin writing your own.


Do you know paraprosdokians?


Fractal image.

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Sunday, October 30, 2011

Senryu for Magpie Tales #89

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following image as a writers' prompt.





Sunday gray
dulls loblolly pines
silent mind


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Friday, October 28, 2011

CIN Magic

Thanks to Kindle, Amazon and the Public Libraries for offering the new CIN venue. I'm using KindlePC for reading as I await delivery of the soon-to-be-released Kindle Fire.

The first book I read via CIN was The Tiger's Wife: A Novel by Tea Obreht.

Haunting, lyrical and literary, this book written by a young woman born in 1985 received several awards and places the author firmly on the path to stardom.

The Tiger's Wife is a book I'll not forget and surely will want to re-read at another date.


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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

O for ABC Wednesday




What a challenge it is to wait until after the morning oatmeal to search for ABC topics. Today, I found two that work together and caused me to laugh at the same time.

I learned that if a person is well versed in oikology (the science of housekeeping) he would be unlikely to locate oose (furry dust that gathers under beds).

I solved one by replacing my ordinary bed with a waterbed which goes all the way to the floor and prohibits oose. However, should a leak occur I'd have a bigger problem than a little dustbin of oose. It might require the use of oikology.

Do you have loose oose  or are you talented at oikology?



Image: Fractal O


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Sunday, October 23, 2011

Senryu for Magpie Tales

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following image for writers' prompt # 88







guided by hindsight
he edits life's errata
squeaky clean memoir

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Tuesday, October 18, 2011

N for ABC Wednesday




It's hard to have a negative numb down day when there's a rainbow on the north wall!

This piece of fun fell through the peekhole in the front door or bounced from a southern window off the grandfather clock or a multiple of crystals. Needless to say, it pleased me. 

Do you welcome indoor rainbows?













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Monday, October 17, 2011

Haiku for Magpie Tales



Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following visual for writers' prompt #87.





the head chef
plucks, strips down and browns
line dancing

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Saturday, October 15, 2011

Fractal Haiga




summer folds
into storage bins
hunters moon



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Tuesday, October 11, 2011

M for ABC Wednesday

The image is from Wikipedia.


Magpie


This is the first year I've seen magpies in my yard. For several weeks, they've rocked small limbs and pestered squirrels while they remain firmly in possession. With long tales and clearly defined black-and-white feathers, magpies race past the windows, bathe in rain puddles and shake themselves dry in the surrounding pines. I'm pleased they've chosen to anchor here for now.

Do you have magpies in your world?
 












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Monday, October 10, 2011

Haiku for Magpie Tales


Tess Kincaid offers the following picture for writers' prompt #86.


image: Michael Sowa, from The Little King


dream crasher 
December shadows
the down side


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Tuesday, October 04, 2011

L for ABC Wednesday





Lottery

Some time back I read The Tontine, a two-volume novel by Thomas Bertram Costain. Certain parts of it stayed with me and I recently searched for more information. I plan to read this again.

A tontine begins with a number of people investing their funds in a manner which allows the survivor to be rewarded with the full sum.

Another type of lottery is the tombola in which each entrant wins a prize. I'd be in favor of this one.

Our lottery claims to use the money for funding schools which I've always found a little strange.

And, yes, I play the lottery even though winning is unlikely as being lit by lightning. Do you?


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Sunday, October 02, 2011

Haiku for Magpie Tales #85

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following image for writers' prompt.







october sun sets
on wings of the elephants
fermented cities


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Tuesday, September 27, 2011

K for ABC Wednesday












Kale is headless cabbage according to the Wikipedia page. The first time I tasted kale was when a daughter used it as garnish on Tuscan Sausage Soup and I loved the flavor but failed to do anything about it - a fine kettle of kerfuffle.

After reading the Wiki...page, I searched for recipes and found a kazillion which range from soups to chips. It appears to be a very healthy vegie. It's even possible, not probable, that I could grow some next season.

Yesterday, a daughter brought me a batch of the tastiest kind of her homemade vegetable soup with a 'side' of fresh kale. Now I'm thinking kale chips.

Are you a kale liker/lover?



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Monday, September 26, 2011

Fibonacci for Magpie Tales #84

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers this image as prompt #84.




tempo rubato

her
lapse
of faith
shadow like
travels ankle high
rejoins to greet the midnight door


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Tuesday, September 20, 2011

J for ABC Wednesday












Juju represents a form of witchcraft, according to know-it-all Wikipedia.

Juju would be my favorite activity right now if I could push autumn to the side while enjoying a bit more summer. The weather only recently turned delightful and it's now making its departure. I'm just not ready for cold.

A little juju, or maybe a lot, might be a very good thing for me.

Are you ready for fall?



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Monday, September 19, 2011

Haiku for Magpie Tales #83

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following image for writers' prompt #83.



The Snake Charmer, Henri Rousseau, 1907


in his dream
the jungle charming
morning chic 


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Tuesday, September 13, 2011

I for ABC Wednesday






Izzard is a new word to me. It sounds unlike its meaning which is: the archaic name for the letter Z. I think of Harry Potter, Oz, hen parts, crawling snake-like things and such. I doubt I'll ever have a chance to use this word even though I'd love to.

Would you use it?











 

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Sunday, September 11, 2011

Haiku for Magpie Tales #82

Tess Kincaid prompts writers with this image: The Revenant, 1949, Andrew Wyeth




egg compounds
ghostly brush overs
Rorschach blurs



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Tuesday, September 06, 2011

Haiku for Magpie Tales #81

Tess Kincaid of Magpie Tales offers the following photo prompt for writers on post #81.




loose pebbles
swallow, clank and drop
yesterdays

 
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H for ABC Wednesday






I'm on the lookout for a humgruffin. It would give me great pleasure to call someone a humgruffin just because the word is surely a quirky one that belongs in a poem, a knock-knock joke or a backpack of fave sayings.

Humgruffin is defined as 'a terrible person'. Maybe I know a lot of them or maybe I know only one or none. Terrible is not very definitive. The more I think about it, the more I'm not sure I'd know one if I found it. On the other hand, I'm pretty sure I know many.

How many do you know?
 









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Tuesday, August 30, 2011

G for ABC Wednesday



A gracious geranium hosts a hyper hummer who'd been sipping sugary nectar from the feeder before spying the real thing.

The picture is a little blurry (okay, it might be a lot blurry) because these little guys move far faster than my camera. She grazed my ear as she gallivanted from one end of the deck to the other.

A chance to catch her in a still shot came soon after this when she flew up to examine a fly strip. Glad she didn't get glued to that, although it would have been an easier photo capture.

Is your shutter speed as fast as the general hummingbird?



















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