Words, Words, Words: National Poetry/Poetry Writing Month

Poets: mad, bad and dangerous to know.

As regular readers of this blog know, my writing style is nothing if not prosaic, often employing half a dozen words where others might use fewer than half that number. My tendency toward long-windedness and fondness for run-on sentences aside, I would like to hereby declare my deep, enduring appreciation of the art of poetry.

You may not immediately appreciate the the extraordinary power of poetry, especially if you've been preconditioned by long exposure to dusty selections from “The Norton Anthology of Literature” or other such abominations.

To fully appreciate the pervasiveness of poetry in your every day life, consider how much poorer life would be without the following:

Song lyrics

Oh, that Savage Love...

Shakespeare's plays, sonnets, et. al
That birthday/anniversary/etc. card you still cherish
The King James Bible
Gravestone epitaphs
Dirty limericks
“The Odyssey” (and it's attendant film treatments)
“Where the Sidewalk Ends” and Shel Silverstein's other books
Dr. Seuss's books (as well as any animated holiday versions thereof)
The musical “Cats” (Well... you can't win them all...)
Sam Shepard (Win!)
All of the really clever bar bathroom graffiti
The inscription mounted inside the pedestal of The Statue of Liberty


Today's exercise: Enjoy a poetic adventure

National Poetry Writing Month: http://www.napowrimo.net/
National Poetry Month: http://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/41

Next: We The Burrito: A Message from the Cocktail Party 


Addendum from The Senior Council Member:

"As regular readers of this blog know, my writing style is nothing if not prosaic, often employing half a dozen words where others might use fewer than half that number."  (30 words)

"I write using six words where merely two will do." (10 words)

Less than half of six is 2 at most (sticking to integers).
30/6 = 5
5*2 = 10
;-)