I was telling a friend of mine that I just didn't get the Haiku. Now, I think I do. At least I learned something from college.

By definition Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry in three metrical phrases of 5,7, and 5. But of course, you all knew this, as did I. Haiku poetry is branded into our heads from preschool. My problem with them was that they seemed out of sync, almost silly. I mean they don't move with intensity like Sir Walter Scott.

Border Ballad

March, march, Ettrick and Teviotdale,
Why the deil dinna ye march forward in order!
March, march, Eskdale and Liddesdale,
All the Blue Bonnets are bound for the Border.
Many a banner spread,
Flutters above your head,
Many a crest that is famous in story.
Mount and make ready then,
Sons of the mountain glen,
Fight for the Queen and our old Scottish glory.

Come from the hills where your hirsels are grazing,
Come from the glen of the buck and the roe;
Come to the crag where the beacon is blazing,
Come with the buckler, the lance, and the bow.
Trumpets are sounding,
War-steeds are bounding,
Stand to your arms, then, and march in good order;
England shall many a day
Tell of the bloody fray,
When the Blue Bonnets came over the Border.

Or Robert Burns

A Bottle And Friend

There's nane that's blest of human kind,
But the cheerful and the gay, man,
Fal, la, la,

Here's a bottle and an honest friend!
What wad ye wish for mair, man?
Wha kens, before his life may end,
What his share may be o' care, man?

Then catch the moments as they fly,
And use them as ye ought, man:
Believe me, happiness is shy,
And comes not aye when sought, man.

I won't bore you any longer, so here is my attempt at Haiku.

Horizon sunset
Painted fingers streak the dusk
Prairie's kiss goodnight

The following blog I wrote a few weeks ago, but decided not to post it. This morning Sissy passed away in her sleep.

Good-bye, Old Girl, we'll miss you!



Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.






Sometimes even more.

I think it was a little over a year ago that Sissy started her down hill slide into senior dog. There's a tumor on her spine between her shoulder blades. There for a while we thought we'd have to put her down since she couldn't even walk. But under veterinary treatment the swelling reduced and Sis was back to her normal old self, at least for the most part.

Sometime over the year she began acting like a dog. I know, I know. She is a dog, but you'd have to know Sis and her temperament. She would sit on furniture like a human. She never once got into the trash, and she'd only eat certain treats. So her acting like a dog was weird. Totally weird.

For the last several months we've watched her play with the other dogs, something she has never really done. Yeah, she'd run around, but never take them down to the ground or play tug-o-war. She's even played with us.

She's once again beginning to show signs of doggie dementia. Some days are worse than the others. Last night she had difficulty walking. When that occurred we began giving each other the look. You know the one, that asks "is it time?" But today she is fine, she seems to be in perfect health. Even if she barks at every little sound as if someone is breaking in the house.

The cool thing is we've been able to spend a good year with her. Since my daughter, the one pictured, works at a vet clinic and has for a few years, we'll know when it's time. I have a feeling it won't be too long. But you never know, she may surprise us.

Well the storms lost their bite by the time they got here. We did get lots and lots of heavy rain and some hail, but by then I was pretty much asleep. Or at least I should have been. I got woke up shortly after 2. Three out of four of my babies have asthma. One of them has the type of asthma that produces a lot of coughing. It kind of reminds me of croup. The other two have the type of asthma where one second they are fine, and the next they are struggling for air and if they don't receive immediate treatment, then things get really, really bad,really, really fast.

Once we were at a family function about 30 miles from home, when an attack occurred. At the time, we didn't know how bad my son had asthma, in fact we had thought he had outgrown it since he hadn't had an attack since he was a baby. The other child was on preventives and since she only had problems in early summer and this was in the middle of winter, we had no inhalers. I can remember being in the car on the way home and in a matter of minutes, ds went from an active talkative child to a full blown attack. We had no meds and were at least 45 minutes from the nearest hospital. At that time, we had no cell phones. Dh flew down the highway, literally doing 90-100mph. When we approached the exit to either go home or continue to the hospital which was still many minutes away, and we would have to deal with traffic lights, I knew we wouldn't make it to the hospital, so we went home where I could begin treatment immediately and call the ambulance if need be. Since then there have been a few episodes, none as dramatic because we know his triggers and try to keep them away. It's the reason why kitties and bunnies aren't allowed in our home.

Well the pollen has been extremely high for the last several days. Yesterday, the boy began coughing but it didn't seem like anything serious. We are all fighting allergies. But when he starts coughing we remove all dairy from his diet(another allergy). Mid-afternoon I had to leave to take the youngest to piano, when we returned, ds had already left to hang with his friends. He called to check in and seemed fine. He came home for a minute and seemed fine. Thirty minutes and two ice-cream bars later, he walked into the house and he was in trouble. We did all that we were supposed to. He improved for about an hour. After a few hours of sitting on the fence as to whether or not we should make an ER (I hate ER's) trip, he finally improved enough for us to sleep. Then around 2 all hell broke loose. No we didn't have to go to the ER. Right now he's sleeping. And he's breathing much easier, even if it is somewhat labored. I'll wake him up in a bit and make him take his inhaler. I'm sure we'll have to go to the doctor's office today to get one of their superduper treatments that seem to have that magical touch.

I have a definition paper due Friday. I was kind of pleased to see that the topic is wide-open. I am thinking about writing on romance.

In Lit we are beginning the drama unit. I think it'll be interesting.

I'm trying not to freak completely out with all that I need to do by April 2. I've never missed a deadline, but the task is very daunting. I know I can do it(I've got to keep telling myself that).

On the writing front: I worked on my manuscript as long as I could until the lightning really rolled in, which leaves me with 100 pages left to shine. Then it goes under the bed to get acquainted with all the dust bunnies. AND then I can totally focus on my other projects that I want totally completed before Nationals.

Well back to life,

Renee

I think they are leaving. I no longer see the hundreds upon hundreds upon hundreds of ants.

Spring Break is over and it is time to get back to school work. At least I'm on the downside. There is about 6 weeks left in semester. I can do 6 more weeks. For my lit class we just finished up our poetry unit. Writing poetry for me was like pulling teeth without Novocaine. I wrote a Ballad, which I don't think it really classifies as a ballad. We'll see when I get my grade. I also wrote a shaped verse, which was fun and challenging. A sonnet, which is unlike anything Shakespeare would have done. And lastly a Haiku. Now that was interesting. If i find the guts, I might post them here in the future.

My break didn't go as planned. I had in mind to read for pleasure. Read for pleasure some more, and write like the 50 mph gusts of winds we are currently receiving. Unfortunately my wind lasted one day, and it was only a small burst. I wrote about 1500 words on Cherish Me for the week. I was able to go through and add some more shine to Hellion's Highlander. I'm about 2/3 of the way.

The funny thing about HH is that it has been polished, and polished, and polished, so much so that my brain fills in words that aren't even there, or misspells them. That is where beta readers come in handy. They see things that you don't. They see things your critique partners missed, and they let you know when they are confused by something. Unfortunately, I didn't pick up a beta reader until after I sent requested material off. At first I was embarrassed. But now, I'm not too bummed by it. If I miss my chance this go around that's okay. Don't get me wrong, I really, really would like to find representation. The right representation. And I'd really, really, really love to have a contract. But I know this is a tough business and with the economy the way it is, the business is getting tougher. We all want our stories to be published. We all want to see our names on the bookshelves. But why? Is it for fortune and fame? Or is it because you've got to tell a story?

We're in for a round of hellacious storms this afternoon and into the evening. Fun, fun. You all know how I feel about those. I woke up with a minor migraine, I'm sure due to the front coming in. Which means the migraine won't leave until the storms fire up and move on. The weather guys are on the fence. Some say we could see large, long lasting tornadoes, others are down playing the threat. Oh well, as usual we won't know until it gets here. I try to convince myself that there is nothing I can do and worrying over the fact that storms are on the horizon will only serve to give me a heart attack. But, there is just something about imminent storms that sets my phobia to uncontrollable levels. I've experienced them. I've seen the shear power of them as they spin around churning up whatever is in its path. I've seen the aftermath.

People pay damn good money to vacation with storm chasers, which baffles me. Heck, they can rent my home for a month for less, and probably see more. Back to seriousness though, this year I pray no towns are wiped off the map. I pray death and destruction are at a minimal. I pray this year we have a record low of tornadoes and not record highs.

First off, no these aren't mine. This image comes from Purdue University's Entomology Department.

A few years ago, a friend who lives in the same neighborhood as I asked if I was having an ant problem. My reaction was something similar to full blown hives and an itchy throat. You'll more likely find me with a snake in my hand than me having anything to do with ants. My phobia is for good reason, or at least to me it is. When I was a small child, I stepped into a fire ant hill. It's one of those memories that you're not to sure you recall correctly. Kind of hazy, but when I see ants on a frenzy with human flesh on National Geographic, my memories are all too real.

So, when people talk about ants invading their homes, I shiver, and then thank God it's not mine. That was until about a two weeks ago. At first there were just a few on the shower wall. Now there are hundreds, if not, thousands of those little buggers.

There is no humane way of getting rid of them. It's me or them, and I can't afford to move at this moment. At my mother's advice, I sprinkled boric acid in their trail hoping they'd soon disappear. They did for about a day. I'm obsessive about doing dishes, nothing is allowed to be left unrinsed in the sink. I spray Lysol kitchen cleaner down on the counters, hoping it will deter the nuisance. But they keep coming back. Today I bought ant traps. Prayerfully, between the boric acid, the Lysol, and the traps they'll disappear. If they don't, I might have to pitch up tent in the back yard.

And before you say it, yes I know there is a lot to be learned from carpenter ants.

I bought two books today. One is from Steeple Hill's Love Inspired Historical line. It's called The Widow's Secret by Sara Mitchell.


Backcover Blurb- Love Inspired Historical

When Jocelyn Tremayne saved her husband's reputation, she lost everything--including her faith in God. The idealistic bride once had a future all New York society envied. Now the young widow is suspected of an unthinkable crime. And to clear her name, she must uncover a conspiracy...and endanger her disillusioned heart.

Although Secret Service agent Micah MacKenzie needs Jocelyn's aid to infiltrate the city's most privileged circles, he's determined to keep her at arm's length. But the more she risks to help him find the truth, the more he sees the wrongly judged woman she truly is. Now he will do whatever it takes to win her trust, rekindle her belief--and prove his love.

The other is Harlequin Historical's His Cavalry Lady by Joanna Maitland.


Excerpt comes from Mills & Boon.

Secrets, disguise and passion!
Alex instantly fell for Dominic Aikenhead, Duke of Calder, knowing that he would never notice her – because, to him, she was Captain Alexei Alexandrov, a young man and a brave hussar!

Alex longed to be with her English Duke just once, as the passionate woman she truly was.

To be swept off her feet, wearing the finest of gowns, would be a dream come true. But there was danger in such thoughts. What if Dominic ever found out the truth?


Click on the author's name and it'll take you to the author's site.

By the way, I'm over at Romance Roundtable today.