Poetry Monday :: Funny

Every Monday is Poetry Monday.

Mimi of Messymimi's Meanderings and I have taken over the hosting duties, mostly the supplying of the prompts - only temporarily we hope - while Diane at On the Border is taking a break for health and relaxation, travelling the world with her husband as far as we can tell.
 
We just hope she's going to take back over once she returns home again.

  I have something to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others via the links, would you please leave a comment.
  Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.

Funny - I'm not very funny today, but then I remebered this verse ... it is funny and it even contains the word funny.

I eat my peas with honey;
I've done it all my life.
It makes the peas taste funny,
But it keeps them on the knife.

- - - - - - -

Up and coming:
February 10: Funny (today)
February 17: Fidgety
February 24: Fluffy
March  3: Station
March  10: Ghost
March  17: Steam
March  24: Orange
March  31: Turn

Jeg er hjemme igen ~ I'm Back

Kære læsere, venner og bekendte i blogland.
Så er Uglemor landet igen. Det varer lidt, får der kommer fuld fart på bloggen, men det kommer.

 -- 🦉 -- 💙 --

Dearest readers, friends and acquaintances in Blog-land.
MotherOwl has landed, and will slowly ease back into blogging.

Poetry Monday :: Funky

Every Monday is Poetry Monday.

Mimi of Messymimi's Meanderings and I have taken over the hosting duties, mostly the supplying of the prompts - only temporarily we hope - while Diane at On the Border is taking a break for health and relaxation, travelling the world with her husband as far as we can tell.
 
We just hope she's going to take back over once she returns home again.

  I have something to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others via the links, would you please leave a comment.
  Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.

Today's prompt is Funky. That's a funny, chameleon like word that changes with the surroundings - context is king.

Funky smells make my nose wrinkle.
Funky music make my legs twist and hop
So I put on my most funky gear
And go dance with a winkle
Go skipping the bop -
No I'm not gonna stop -
With a large grin from ear and to ear.

- - - - - - -

Up and coming:
February 3: Funky (today)
February 10: Funny
February 17: Fidgety
February 24: Fluffy

Månedens farve FebruarColour of the Month February

Så er der ikke så længe til at det bliver februar. Og på søndag er det den første søndag i februar. Tid for en ny farve.

-- 🩵 --

January is not with us for long. And Sunday will be the first Sunday of February. Time for a new colour.

-- 🔹💠🔹 --

     Jeg blev inspireret af Rivers besøg i Adelaides botaniske have, hvor hun så og fotograferede Chihulys udstilling af glaskunst.
     Det her ligner en elefant, syne jeg i hvert fald - og det gav mig assosiationer til en elefant i en glasbutik, der så blev til en glaselefant.
     Det var svært at vælge mellem de mange skønne blå nuancer, så vælg endelig en anden, hvis der er en der tiltaler dig mere.

-- 🩵  --

This time I was inspired by River's visit to Adelaide's Botanic Gardens, and the Chihuly display of blown glass art.

To me this looks like an elephant - a glass elephant - and as the Bull in a China shop is an elephant in a glass shop in Danish, I fell for it immediately.

And as I had a hard time deciding which of the deligthful blues were best, you're free to use any that suits you.

     I dag er det bloggens 13 års fødselsdag - og den fejrer Uglemor med en lille ferie væk fra al elektronikken. Så jeg vil advare om manglende UgleMor-tilstedeværelse i blogosphæren i den kommende tid.
     Der vil måske komme et par forhåndsfabrikerede opslag, men ingen kommentarer eller svar.
Jeg vender tilbage!

-- 🔹💠🔹 --

Today furthermore marks the 13th birthday of my blog / blogoversary. I'll celebrate by keeping away from anything digital for a little while.

Hence be warned: MotherOwl will be away and MIA from the Blogosphere for a week or more. A (preposted) post or two will probaby show up, but no comments amd no answers.
... I'll be back!

Godt nytår ~ Happy New Year

Igen er Uglemor hverken senil eller tosset. I dag er det det kinesiske nytår.
Glædeligt SLANGENS år

No, MotherOwl has still grown neither crazy nor senile.
Today is the Chinese New Year.
Happy year of the
SNAKE

Poetry Monday :: (Praise the) Silver

Every Monday is Poetry Monday.

Mimi of Messymimi's Meanderings and I have taken over the hosting duties, mostly the supplying of the prompts - only temporarily we hope - while Diane at On the Border is taking a break for health and relaxation, travelling the world with her husband as far as we can tell.
 
We just hope she's going to take back over once she returns home again.

  I have something to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others via the links, would you please leave a comment.
  Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.

Today's prompt is Silver. Silver is a metal, I like gold better for looks, but for uses - nothing compares. So an ode to silver it is - modern, free form - versatile as silver itself. 

Silver is a versatile metal:
The bane of vampires and werevolves,
the source of life for photos and X-rays,
and for vanity; mirrors and spoons.
In our banks you find coins and a bullion.
In the band aid it kills the microbes.
And it filters our water,
makes current from sunshine,
and always it pleases our eyes.

And here we have Habakuk, my grumpy gnome, shooting away at a werewolf with his old shotgun  loaded with silver (he's partially modelled on Hard Haid Moe).

- - - - - - -

Up and coming
January 27: Silver (today)
February 3: Funky
February 10: Funny
February 17: Fidgety
February 24: Fluffy

Fredagsfrustration: Blogger vs. WordPress

Dette er også en forklaring på, hvorfor jeg ikke kommenterer så meget på WP-baserede blogs.
Hver gang, jeg vil lægge en kommentat på en WordPress-blog skal jeg skrive e-mail, navn, og valgfri blogadresse. Lige meget hvor ote jeg udfylder den der med at huske mine data, er de væk næste gang. Nogen gange kan de huske så meget, at de auto-udfylder, når jeg starter, men for det meste ikke. Og så skal jeg også lige være synsk.

-- ✎📧 --

This is also an explanation why I don't comment much on WP-based blogs.
Every time I want to leave a comment on a WordPress blog, I have to enter email, name, and - optional - blog address. No matter how many times I move the slider to remember my data, it's gone the next time. Sometimes it auto fills in when I start typing, but mostly not. And I also have to be psychic:

Nederst i den hvide firkant - under min mailadresse, som jeg har skjult, står der: Fortsæt læsning/Continue reading - det skal man trykke på for at offentliggøre sin kommentar uden at abonnere på blogen. Det står der bare ikke hver gang, som her man ser. Nu har jeg lært at klikke midt i det hvide, men de første gange var det godt nok sært.

 -- 📧 ✐ --

At the bottom of the white square - below my email address, which I've hidden - it says: Fortsæt læsning/Continue reading. You have to press this to publish your comment without subscribing to the blog. It is, as can be seen here, not always visible. Now I've learnt to just  click in the middle of nowhere, but the first few times I felt quite weird.

Words for Wednesday :: How I became a Shoplifter - a Dream

Historien findes her på dansk.

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable event with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words provided by a number of people.
The prompts for January are provided by Elephant's Child and can be found @ Elephant's Child.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

- - A - - B - - C - - 

This week's prompts are:
Kiss
Hope
Grinned
Dark
Shock
     and/or
High
Places
Fiends
Friday
Why

I only used some of the words, as can be seen. Not in any particular order either. 

A Friday a few weeks ago I had an appointment in a big city. I arrived about an hour early because even if it was snowing the trains and buses were less delayed than I had expected. So I hoped I could do some shopping. The first two errand were quickly done, as the places were either closed for repair or for holidays.
     I also needed some minor items that were sold out or not in stock in my small town. First I went to some Target-like shop. They had one of the items only, cheap, but equally poor quality. The bookshop had the same item only, but in a super-luxury edition; and I won't pay more for a notebook than for a nice meal at a restaurant! Then I went to a big supermarket advertising that they carried everything. They did, but what a mess; No price tags, things in a jumble on all shelves ... luckily I found a scanner and checked the prices. Both items were reasonable, and the notebook was on sale. They were both the last of their kind. There were more notebooks, but only dark pink ones!
     With twenty minutes to my appointment, I got in line. There were TWO manned tills open, and queues as long as my arm. Oh well, my appointment is just around the corner and down a street, maybe three minutes, I can make it.
     Ten minutes later, the brand new employee at the till had served one or two customers, and it was the same at the other till. Another employee walked by and I asked if he could please open another till. "I'll try," he replied and ran off to the left. A little later, he passed by again, this time closer to the till, and a man asked the same question and got the same answer. I looked at the clock ... five minutes to go. When I looked up, he was helping one of the two customers at the self checkout. I looked around in despair.
     There was my way out! I spied Exit without payment, Complaints & Customer Service written on a sign above an exit. "I'll go there," I thought, "and let them look after the goods until I can return and pay." At the door I was quickly let through by a smiling young man. But then ... there were at least twenty people with numbers in their hands waiting to be served, and behind the counter a single tired and dejected-looking young man. What to do now? I wound my way through the crowd towards the take-a-number thingie -- and the exit.
     Then I thought "What the heck!" and just walked out, still with my unpaid items visible in my hand. Nothing happened, no beeping and no one shouting at me.
     I rushed across the road, down the side street and up the stairs, just in time to put the goods in my bag before my name was called.
With a shock I realized I was now a criminal, then I grinned at how easy it all was - and then I woke up.

Sunday Selection on a Tuesday & Colour25

I saw these early signs of spring Sunday Morning, but when we returned from mass, the sun had already set. The same repeated itself Monday. only I returned from the outcomeful meeting - I do not know if outcomeful is a word, if not, it totally needs to be.

Today I returned from PE and ophthalmologist (my eyes are not worse - YAY) in time to snap a photo. If these do not fit New Start Yellow, nothing does!

Jeg så de her tidlige forårsbebudere søndag morgen. Men da vi endelig vendte hjem fra kirke, var solen allerede gået ned. Det var den også mandag, da jeg vendte hjem fra et resultatfyldt møde i København, Men i dag, da jeg vendte hjem fra øjenlægen (mine øjne er ikke blevet værre - juhu!) en time tidligere, var der lige præcis lys nok til at fotografere de her små erantis. Hvis ikke de passer til New Start Yellow,, er der vist ingenting der gør.

Poetry Monday :: Sheep & a 008

I was at a meeting today, travelling for hours by train, and I had decided to write a poem there. seated in the train, I realized I had forgotten today's topic! Oof. And I lost one of my home knit and deliciously warm mittens as well. What a luck the meeting was a nice occasion, with nice and encouraging people and with a very good outcome. Now it's late - and sheep is a thing to count to fall asleep. But Poerty Monday needs a poem. These three small ones have to suffice.

Sheep is one of those words
That are hard to use if you think
now what is the plural ... herds?
It'll bring you right to the brink.

-- 🐑 --

Sheep is one of those words
that makes me stop up and think
of jacalopes, Boundin' and birds.
You know that a sheep can be pink!

-- 🐑 --

Sheep are a wonder indeed!
From pastures where they go and feed
they bring you whatever you need
to keep you in warm socks and tweed.

And today on my way to the meeting, walking the streets of Hillerød, (where I met the 001) I saw a car with number 008.

- - - - - - - - - -
Up and coming topics:
January 20: Sheep (today)
January 27: Silver
February 3: Funky
February 10: Funny
February 17: Fidgety
February 24: Fluffy

Friday Frustrations on a Saturday and in English

This is a translation of Fredagsfrustration kun på dansk - Uduelig mad, bavl og konsekvenser realising that the majority of my readers are English speakers or readers.

The past month has been crazy with food and food-related news. I'll tackle two here, but the rest are just as absurd. On 30 December, TV2.dk wrote that the Rule of 5 can reveal dangerous food
Just a few quotes from the article:

A good rule is to look at whether there are more or fewer than five ingredients. If there are fewer, the product is fine. But if there are more than five, you should go in and read if there's anything you don't understand," says Anne Tjønneland.

What's not good, however, are fizzy drinks and crisps. Sweets in general shouldn't be eaten either. The same goes for long-life ready meals.

Perhaps more surprisingly, veggie products, including certain types of plant-based drinks, also get a thumbs up from some researchers.

In the 1970s, product declarations began to be widely used on many food packaging. Since then, the concept of e-numbers came into use. The latter describes additives that are so difficult to explain that they have their own coding language, i.e. an E followed by a numerical code.

I have a few comments on this:

-  The Rule of 5:
If there are fewer than 5 ingredients, the product is OK - but chips are not OK. Strange, isn't it? Most crisps consist of potatoes, sunflower oil and salt. 3 ingredients, none of them with weird names.
     Many questionable sausages and the like consist of meat, emulsifier, water and spices.

- Vegan goods:
They are deeply surprised that some vegan products are ultra-processed. Pretty much all of them are, and I've been saying this for a long time.

- E numbers:
They state that: "The latter [i.e. E numbers] describe additives that are so difficult to explain that they have their own coding language, i.e. an E and a number code after it."
     This is totally wrong. There are plenty of E numbers that cover ordinary, well-known substances. The E numbers are a standardisation, the E stands for Europe, and the list was introduced by the EU so that we can all recognise the substances regardless of where the product is manufactured. (Wikipedia tells us: E numbers, short for Europe numbers, are codes for substances used as food additives, including those found naturally in many foods, such as vitamin C, for use within the European Union)
     The common ones I can think of are E330 = citric acid, E300 = vitamin C, E440 = pectin, E553 = talc and E901 = beeswax.
     I'm certainly just as uncomfortable - or maybe even more so - with glucose-fructose syrup or hydrolysed vegetable protein, for example, which have no E numbers.
     And I wonder how many people are offended by carob, carrageenan, sorbitol, monosodiumglutamate, and many others where you're allowed to write the common name instead of their E numbers (E410, E407, E420 and E621 respectively)?

I think you can go completely wrong with these rules. For example, try reading the ingredients of Mou organic meatballs: Pork and beef (60%), water, EGG WHITE, onion, WHEAT FLOUR, potato flour, breadcrumbs (WHEAT FLOUR, salt, yeast), salt, beef fat, white pepper.
     A total of 11 ingredients! But not one I don't have or couldn't easily make at home in my own kitchen - and here we are at what I believe is a much better rule: COULD I DO THIS MYSELF?
     Could I chop the meat, mix it with salt, add water, egg whites, onions, flour, breadcrumbs (which I could make myself), salt, pepper and fat and then cook the buns in salt water? Yes, I could do that. So it's OK.

Let's try the vegan version:
     Beyond Meat meatballs, ingredients: Water, pea protein* (14%), rapeseed oil, coconut oil, flavourings, smoke flavour, rice protein, dried yeast, stabiliser (methyl cellulose), potato starch, salt, potassium salt, spices, herbs in variable proportion 0.5% (Parsley, rosemary, sage, basil and oregano), apple extract, garlic powder, corn vinegar, concentrated lemon juice, onion powder, pomegranate extract, emulsifier (sunflower lecithin), colour (beetroot red), maltodextrin, carrot powder.
*Peas are legumes. People with severe allergies to legumes such as peanuts should be cautious when introducing pea protein into their diet due to the risk of pea allergy (MotherOwl adds: or intolerances, peas are high FODMAP; as are apples, onions, garlic, and I think pomegranates).

   There are a lot of ingredients - 24 in fact - of which Flavourings is in fourth place, and there are several where I think... how the heck do I do this?
     Pea protein ... how do I get the protein out of the peas? Ditto with rice protein and what about sunflower lecithin?
     Methyl cellulose and potassium salt... (E461 and E508 that is). COULD I DO THIS MYSELF? No, I couldn't. NOT OK

I'm happy to repeat myself from a long time ago:
     What if instead of all kinds of crazy diets we stopped eating cheap rubbish and ate a little less, but of a decent quality, and only ate things we could reproduce in our own kitchen - things that my grandmother would also understand. I think the most important question to ask is:

COULD I DO THIS MYSELF?

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

The other news is about a week old, here we read -- also from TV2news:

Fishmonger thrown out of board for statement about fish from aquaculture

According to the owner of a fish shop in Aarhus, salmon from aquaculture is actually not suitable for human consumption. Take a look at this:

Jakob Clausen from Denmark's oldest fish shop is no longer part of the board of the Danish Fishmongers' Association.
He has been kicked out of the trade organisation's board because he announced on Tuesday that he will no longer sell salmon from aquaculture in his shop.

Yes, if someone tells the truth, you should just throw them out of the 'good' company. I hope the truthful and brave fishmonger continues as he started, and if I lived in Aarhus (in Jutland, so I won't just go there), all my future fish purchases would be made in that shop!

According to the article, Lars Poulsen, head of the secretariat of the Danish Fishmongers' Association, believes that aquaculture is a natural part of the fishing industry and that customers can choose which fish they buy.

Fine, then just note on the signs which fish are from aquaculture, so we can choose! This one is for packaged fish in the supermarket - but at the fishmonger... what do we do there when it's not on the signs?

Fredagsfrustration ~ Kun på dansk ~ Uduelig mad, bavl og konsekvenser

Den seneste måned har det været helt vildt med nyheder om mad og fødevarer. Jeg tager her fat på to, men resten er lige så absurde. Den 30. december skrev TV2.dk  at 5-reglen kan afsløre farlig mad
Lige et par citater fra artiklen:

En god regel er at se på, om der er flere eller færre end fem ingredienser. Er der færre, så er varen fin. Men er der flere end fem, så skal man gå ind og læse, om der er noget, man ikke forstår, siger Anne Tjønneland.

Hvad der derimod ikke er godt, er sodavand og chips. Slik bør vi i almindelighed heller ikke spise. Det samme gælder langtidsholdbare færdigretter.

Mere overraskende er det måske, at også veggieprodukter herunder visse typer plantedrikke får en løftet pegefinger fra nogle forskere.

I 1970'erne begyndte varedeklarationer at blive udbredte på mange fødevareemballager. Siden holdt begrebet e-numre sit indtog. Sidstnævnte beskriver tilsætningsstoffer, som er så vanskelige at forklare, at de har fået deres eget kodesprog, altså et E og en talkode bagefter.

Dertil har jeg nogle kommentarer:

  5-reglen:

Er der færre end 5 ingredienser er varen OK - men chips er ikke OK. Sært, ikke sandt. De fleste chips består af kartofler, solsikkeolie og salt. 3 ingredienser, ingen af dem med underlige navne.

     Mange betænkelige pølser og lignende består af kød, emulgator, vand og krydderier.

Veganske varer:

De er dybt overraskede over at nogle veganske produkter er ultraforarbejdede. Det er de stort set alle sammen, og det har jeg sagt og ment længe.

E-numre:

De siger: "Sidstnævnte [altså E-numre] beskriver tilsætningsstoffer, som er så vanskelige at forklare, at de har fået deres eget kodesprog, altså et E og en talkode bagefter."

     Det er ganske simpelt forkert. Der er masser af E-numre, der dækker over helt almindelige, velkendte stoffer. E-numrene er en standardisering, E'et står for Europa, og listen er indført af EU for at vi alle skal kunne genkende stofferne lige meget hvor varen er fremstillet.

     De almindelige, jeg lige kan i hovedet, er E330 = citronsyre, E300 = C-vitaminer, E440 = pektin, E553 = talkum og  E901 = bivoks.

     Jeg er bestemt lige så utryg  - eller måske endda mere - ved for eksempel glucose-fruktosesirup eller hydrolyseret vegetabilsk protein, der ikke har nogle E-numre.

     Og hvor mange stejler mon over johannesbrødkernemel, carrageenan, sorbitol, det 3. krydderi, og mange andre, hvor det er tilladt at skrive det almindelige navn i stedet for deres E-numre (henholdsvis E410, E407, E420 og E621)?

Jeg mener, at man gå helt galt i byen med de regler. Prøv for eksempel at læse ingredienserne på Mou økologiske kødboller: Grise- og oksekød (60%), vand, ÆGGEHVIDER, løg, HVEDEMEL, kartoffelmel, rasp (HVEDEMEL, salt, gær), salt, oksefedt, hvid peber.
     Hele 11 ingredienser! Men ikke én jeg ikke har eller let kunne fremstille hjemme i mit eget køkken - og her er vi ved det, jeg mener er en meget bedre regel: KUNNE JEG SELV!
     Kunne jeg selv hakke kødet, røre det med salt, tilsætte vand, æggehvider, løg, mel, rasp (som jeg selv kunne lave), salt, peber og fedt og så koge bollerne i saltvand? Ja det kunne jeg godt. Altså er det OK. 

Så prøver vi lige den vegansk variant:
     Beyond Meat kødboller, ingredienser: Vand, ærteprotein* (14%), rapsolie, kokosolie, aromaer, røgsmag, risprotein, tørret gær, stabilisator (methylcellulose), kartoffelstivelse, salt, kaliumsalt, krydderier, urter i variabel andel 0,5% (Persille, rosmarin, salvie, basilikum og oregano), æbleekstrakt, hvidløgspulver, majseddike, koncentreret citronsaft, løgpulver, granatæbleekstrakt, emulgator (solsikke-lecithin), farve (rødbederød), maltodextrin, gulerodspulver.
*Ærter er bælgplanter. Personer med alvorlig allergi over for bælgplanter som f.eks. jordnødder skal være forsigtige, når de indfører ærteprotein i deres kost på grund af risiko for allergi over for ærter.    
     Der er rigtig mange - faktisk hele 24 - ingredienser hvoraf Aromaer er på fjerdepladsen, og der er flere, hvor jeg tænker ... hvordan pokker gør jeg.
     Ærteprotein, hvordan får jeg proteinerne ud af ærterne? Ditto med risprotein, og hvad med solsikkelecitin?
     Methylcellulose og kaliumsalt ... (E461 og E508 altså). KUNNE JEG SELV? Nej. IKKE OK

Jeg gentager gerne mig selv fra for snart længe siden:
     Hvis nu vi i stedet for alle mulige fortænkte kure holdt op med at spise billigt bras og spiste lidt mindre, men af en ordentlig kvalitet, og kun spiste ting, vi kunne reproducere i eget køkken - ting som min mormor også ville kunne forstå. Jeg mener at det allervigtigste spørgsmål at stille er: 

KUNNE JEG SELV?

--- --- --- --- Hvis artiklen fra nettet er taget ned, ligger den på min brokke-log HER --- --- --- --- 

Den anden nyhed er vel en uges tid gammel, her hører vi -- også hos TV2

Fiskehandler smidt ud af bestyrelse for udtalelse om opdrættede fisk

Ifølge ejeren af den aarhusianske fiskeforretning er den opdrættede laks faktisk slet ikke egnet som mad til mennesker. Se lige her:

Jakob Clausen fra Danmarks ældste fiskeforretning er ikke længere en del af bestyrelsen i Danmarks Fiskehandlere.
Han er nemlig blevet smidt ud af brancheforeningens bestyrelse, fordi han tirsdag fortalte, at han ikke længere vil sælge opdrættet laks i sin forretning.

Ja, hvis nogen siger sandheden, så skal man da bare smide dem ud af det "gode" selskab. Jeg håber den sandhedskærlige og modige fiskehandler fortsætter som han er begyndt, og hvis jeg boede i Aarhus, ville alle mine fremtidige fiskeindkøb ske i den butik!

Lars Poulsen, der er sekretariatschef i Danmarks Fiskehandlere, mener ifølge artiklen, at opdræt er en realitet i branchen, og at kunderne selv kan vælge, hvilke fisk de køber.

Fint, så skriv lige på skiltene, hvilke fisk, der er opdrættede, så kan vi vælge! Denne her er for pakkede fisk i supermarkedet - men hos fiskehandleren ... hvad gør vi der når det ikke står på skiletene?

Floriane did not get us :: Words for Wednesday and Echoes

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable event with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words provided by a number of people.
The prompts for January are provided by Elephant's Child and can be found @ Elephant's Child.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

- - A - - B - - C - - 

This week's prompts are:
Ancient
Life
Water
Melody
Lied
      and/or
Medal
Speaker
Cords
Paper
False

This is an echo of my Friday Frustrations and more from November 2023 onwards. I only used one of the Words for Wednesday: Water. I'm still not totally out of my poetry writing spell, so a poem is what you'll get.

Floriane's winds have blown
and the waters all have grown
but our tunnel's dry as a bone
we can run to the bus and go home.

Catching the bus during the storm Floriane - January 2025.

All spring of 2024 the tunnel was closed, we ran, sometimes illegally under the descending gates to catch the bus  ... the road was almost closed as well, bothering traffic in and out of town, but it was worth the trouble, just compare this:

The tunnel January 2024

to this:

The tunnel January 2025.

Poetry Monday :: Fiction

Every Monday is Poetry Monday.

Mimi of Messymimi's Meanderings and I have taken over the hosting duties, mostly the supplying of the prompts - only temporarily we hope - while Diane at On the Border is taking a break for health and relaxation, travelling the world with her husband as far as we can tell.
 
We just hope she's going to take back over once she returns home again.

  I have something to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others via the links, would you please leave a comment.
  Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.

Today's prompt is Fiction. This is a thing I would not willingly live without.
My poem is a partial repost from almost five years ago, just carefully improved and updated.

My old partner in crime

I wrote my first fiction some time before school,
Wrote poems of sons and stories of cats.
A decrepit typewriter, ancient as time
Was my friend and my partner in crime.

I once had as homework to tell us a tale
Of ghosts from a place that I knew.
I wrote of a troll, of a church and a hill
Oh, the tale ... I remember it still.

As an end to the story I wrote, as was true:
If I didn't have no books at all
I would write me some books, at a terrible speed.
Just for to have something to read.


 - - - - - - - - - -

January 13: Fiction  (today)
January 20: Sheep
January 27: Silver
February 3: Funky
February 10: Funny
February 17: Fidgety
February 24: Fluffy

005, 006, 007

Some days ago it snowed. I went shopping. Our pedestrian streets have been remade, they are now neither pretty nor good, as they are quite slippery when wet or filled with snow. I think that whoever made this decision was not feeling very sharp that day. Even I who am not afraid of taking a fall, waddle like a penguin when snow is falling. Maybe I could survive a fall (I can) but my shopping bags, containing milk, eggs, and soft drinks in bottles ...
As I was waddling along, I noticed a car turning into our pedestrian street, people living there are allowed of course, as are delivery vans. I jumped into a snowdrift and looked - nonplussed - at the car. It was a

005

Then today on our way to mass, I saw this car in the park site near church.

I was almost late for mass, and the Owlets wondered what upheld me.

For the last week or so a 007 has been mocking me, parked where I normally go shopping - but no 006 anywhere to be seen, so now I had caught that one I though to myself that it would be nice and easy, I would just go there tomorrow and look for it ... But on our way home from mass, in that very same park site ...

Seven numbers in seven months, now I only need 83 ¼ years to complete the challenge.

-- 💛 --

Thursday our crafting guild celebrated the new year. The cake we ate, may with a bit of good will pass off as New Start Yellow:

Words for Wednesday January 8 & IWSG

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable feast with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words are provided by a number of people.
The prompts for January are provided by Elephant's Child and can be found @ Elephant's Child.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

- - A - - B - - C - - 

This week's prompts are:
- the elephant in the room
- as busy as a bee
- as happy as a dog with two tails.
- chicken hearted
- a wolf in sheep's clothing
- cat got your tongue
- having a whale of a time
- ants in your pants

I'm in a poemy mood right now, probably set off by The Man in the Moon Stayed up too Late from Tolkien's birthday and the Lay of the Three Holy Kings from Poetry Monday. What ever the reason the sayings came together in a crazy rhyme inside my brain very early this morning when the roaring winds woke me up. I repeated the verses to imprint them in memory, but only the first stanza stayed with me till the alarm sounded. Maybe the rest will re-surface - or I'll invent some more - but until then, this crazy rhyme.

The elephant inside the room
is sweeping with my brand new broom.
The family, busy as a bee,
are all pretending not to see
the big and sturdy elephant
who - agile, yes and elegant -
hangs in a trapeze.

- - A - - B - - C - - 

The monthly Question from the Insecure Writers' Support Group was luckily only due today, January 8th, which is the second Monday of January. I am thankful as this have given me time to gather my flying feathers and thoughts.

January 8 question - Describe someone you admired when you were a child. Did your opinion of that person change when you grew up?

My answer - As a young child I was fascinated, awed and inspired by people doing "superhuman" things, ballet dancers, acrobats, inventors and mountaineers. The one I admired most was not one, but a pair.
In 2019, I wrote a verse about them, and since I'm in a poetic mood, I re-publish it here. The verse is not good, but it expresses what I want to say. Tuesday was library day in my childhood.

My childhood heroes lived inside a book
They were brave, they were fearless, they had what it took.
They climbed up a mountain so terribly tall
and then wrote a book on their brush with the wall.
I read of their merits, and all through the night
I dreamed of oxygen bottles, snow blindness, and fright.
My mother who came in to hear what I said
Heard me talking of 3000 feet and aid
She forbade me to read,
but I never agreed.
So I secretly read
of the dangers they met.
Every Tuesday I sought out a new book
About Hilary and Tenzing and the route that they took.


I have not read of them since, only from afar followed their decorations and deaths, so my opinion is still the same as that made by six-year old me: They were great!
And to forestall eventual comments on the disparity of those two: To my young eyes those two were best mates and inseparable co-heroes. I never got that one was supposed to be inferior. The unfamiliarity with either language made both names equally exotic to me ;) Norgay Tenzing was just as foreign and unusual to a 6 year old Dane as Edmund Hilary. People in my world had names like Hans Jensen, Kirsten Pedersen, Jens Westergaard, Peter Bang, Gerd Hansen,  Bente Nielsen, ... those names probably sound strange to you - just try guessing which are men and which are women.

Poetry Monday :: Epiphany or Seed :: Updated

Today is Epiphany. Time to undress the Christmas tree and put it outside - poor thing; we have sleet and 2 degrees above zero. It's time to take down the big window advent calendar. And while I do so, I'll be composing a poem for today, Poetry Monday ... at least I hope this will happen. Else you're in for a re-post from another year.

--  --  🟨 -- 🔥 -- 🤕 -- --

I dag er det Hellig tre kongers dag. Tid til at afpynte juletræet og sætte det udenfor; stakkels træ, det er slud og to grader varmt og blæsende. Knapt nok vejr at jage et juletræ ud i. Det er tid til at tage den store adventskalender ned fra vinduet. Og mens jeg gør det, tænker jeg over dagens mandagsdigt. Ind til videre dette lille, kun let gnavne opstød:

Sluk det du tænder,
og tænd det du slukker.
Luk det du åbner,
og åbn det du lukker.
Læg tingene tilbage hvorfra de kom,
eller smid det ud hvis tingen den er tom.

--  --  🟨 -- 🔥 -- 🤕 -- --

De hellig tre konger så hjertensglad er en herlig melodi, med sjove fødder og interessante rim. Jeg har prøvet at oversætte den til engelsk ... om det er lykkedes, ved jeg ikke, men originalen kan høres i en gammel indspilning nedenfor.

--  --  🟨 -- 🔥 -- 🤕 -- --

In church yesterday we sang this tune - I don't really want to call it a hymn, because the melody is a lilting dance. I tried translating/recreating it so that it can be sung to the tune and mostly rhymes and have equivalent meaning. I hope I just somewhat succeeded. Link to an old rendering of the tune below.

De hellig tre konger så hjertensglad fra hjemmet de droge til Betlehems stad, de toge sig for den rejse så lang at finde Jesus i krybben trang.	The holy three kings so happy at heart from home a journey so long did they start. They travelled to Betlehem far away to find a babe, in a manger he lay.
En stjerne dem viste til Jødeland og hen til den himmelske frelsermand, og barnet de fandt så dejlig og skær hos okse og asen i stalden der.	A star shone over their journey each day led them to the saviour-king in the hay And a child they did find, lovely and fair With oxes and ass in the stable there
Og ned så faldt de på deres knæ, da barnet derinde de fik at se, og røgelse, myrra og røden guld de ofred den Herre så frydefuld.	And down they finally fell to their knees, as they saw the heavenly child, King of Peace, And frankincense, myrrh and precious gold they gave to the child as was former foretold.
Så droge de hjemad til deres land og prisede Gud, deres skabermand. Lad os og falde den drot til fod, ham ofre et angerfuldt hjerte og mod!	And then they went homewards each to his realm and praised their Creator with glee overwhelmed. Let us also fall to our knees before Him And give him our heart filled with thanks to the brim!
Han er den Jakobs-stjerne klar, en kvist af Israel åbenbar, en kilde, der springer af nåde stor, en Herre over alt englekor.	He is the star of Jacob we know, a sprout of Israel that we see grow, a fountain that springs with graces for all, a Lord of angelic choirs - born in a stall.
Thi bør os stedse at være glad med frydesang udi allen stad, indtil vi hos ham, vor glæde kom fra, kan synge det evige halleluja!	For this we ought to be glad and rejoice with blissful singing and joyous noise, until we in Him - the source of our joy - eternally sing our hallelujah!
Tekst: Peder Nielsen Kjøge 1693. Melodi: Østrigsk julevise	Lilting translation by MotherOwl, Christmas 2024. Music: Christmas song from Austria

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Up and coming:
January 6: Seed / Epiphany (today)
January 13: Fiction  
January 20: Sheep
January 27: Silver

Sunday Selections & Colour25

Today, for the first time, I get to use the optimistic colour for January.
It was surprisingly hard to find anything at all in this colourway. 
I did my best.

- 💛 -

I dag kan jeg for første gang bruge januars optimistiske farve.
Det var overraskende svært at finde noget med den farve. Jeg forsøgte virkelig.

Ornament fra vores vindues-adventskalender. Den er altid i posen til Luciadag. Den gule farve symboliserer lyset.

- 💛 -

An ornament from our window-advent-calendar. It belongs to Saint Lucy's day as every year. The yellow is supposed to symbolise the light

Mit thekrus og næbbet på thehætteuglen er også cirka den gule. Ja, vi skal have en ny thehætte, men symaskinen skal lige repareres først.

- 💛 -

My mug and the beak on the tea cosy owl do also spout approximately this yellow.Yes, we need a new tea cosy - but the sewing machine needs repairs first.

En julekugle. Jeg elsker bling og glitter, så denne er en af omkring 20, der kom med hjem for en tre-fire  år siden. Godkendt af Storesøster.

- 💛 -

I love glitter and colours, this bauble is one of approximately 20, I brought home 3 or 4 years ago. Approved by BigSis.

The Second Oopsie-Moment of the Day

And one more Oopsie, MotherOwl. Among your Keepers You had:

Birthdays - of people known and not so known, mostly poets and writers. I like to cite and celebrate.

and yesterday, Friday, January third, was the 133rd birthday of one of my favourite writers: J.R.R. Tolkien! MotherOwl! You had ONE JOB!

I am as I may have told, still trying t improve my drawing skills by drawing the prompts from the Facebook-based group 365 Days of Drawing Prompts. The prompts for Thursday and Friday were Best Memory and Creativity. I let out the "Best" part and combined them to show some good blogging / creativity memories, that I miss: The TUSAL (Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long) challenge hosted by Daffycat every New moon (More explanation here). But since May 2021 no more TUSAL posts were posted on her blog, everything went over to Facebook. And as I am not a big fan of things happening on Facebook, sadly and reluctantly I stopped my participation in this fun Stitch-A-Long. I still miss this challenge - and many more of the same sort from when the blogosphere was more of a a place for lighthearted stuff and fun challenges than it is today.

Yesterday I drew a New moon with a ball of yarn hanging from its upper horn, and an ORTs jar half hidden behind the lower ... Well, why not just show you?

And all this a very long detour to tell why I choose The Man in the Moon Stayed up too Late for this year's belated celebration of Tolkien's birthday.


The Man in the Moon Stayed up too Late
There is an inn, a merry old inn
beneath an old grey hill,
and there they brew a beer so brown
that the Man in the Moon himself came down
one night to drink his fill.

The ostler has a tipsy cat
that plays a five-stringed fiddle;
And up and down he runs his bow,
now squeaking high, now purring low,
now sawing in the middle.

The landlord keeps a little dog
that is mighty fond of jokes;
When there's good cheer among the guests,
he cocks an ear at all the jests
and laughs until he chokes.

They also keep a horned cow
as proud as any queen;
But music turns her head like ale,
and makes her wave her tufted tail
and dance upon the green.

And O! the rows of silver dishes
and the store of silver spoons!
For Sunday there's a special pair,
and these they polish up with care
on Saturday afternoons.

The Man in the Moon was drinking deep,
and the cat began to wail;
A dish and a spoon on the table danced,
the cow in the garden madly pranced,
and the little dog chased his tail.

The Man in the Moon took another mug,
and then rolled beneath his chair;
And there he dozed and dreamed of ale,
till in the sky the stars were pale,
and dawn was in the air.

Then the ostler said to his tipsy cat;
"The white horses of the Moon,
they neigh and champ their silver bits;
but their master's been and drowned his wits,
and the Sun'll be rising soon!"

So the cat on his fiddle played hey-diddle-diddle,
a jig that would wake the dead:
He squeaked and sawed and quickened the tune,
while the landlord shook the Man in the Moon:
"It's after three!" he said.

They rolled the Man slowly up the hill
and bundled him into the Moon,
while the horses galloped up in rear,
and the cow came capering like a deer,
and a dish ran up with a spoon.

Now quicker the fiddle went deedle-dum-diddle;
the dog began to roar,
the cow and the horses stood on their heads;
The guests all bounded from their beds
and danced upon the floor.

With a ping and a pong the fiddle-strings broke!
the cow jumped over the Moon,
and the little dog laughed to see such fun,
and the Saturday dish went off at a run
with the silver Sunday spoon.

The round Moon rolled behind the hill,
as the Sun raised up her head.
She hardly believed her fiery eyes:
For though it was day, to her surprise
they all went back to bed!

IWSG and Words for Wednesday ~ Sorry!

Oops, MotherOwl. Among your Keepers You had:

Words for Wednesday - Link - hosted by Elephant's Child, and a perfectly enjoyable writing Challenge.

and

IWSG (Insecure Writer's Support Group) - Link - A question to answer every first Wednesday - can do!

MotherOwl! You had ONE JOB! Wednesday January first came and left without a Word or IWSG from you ...

At the very least I can bring the Words for Wednesday for January 1st:
Beginning
Masquerade
Towel
Shadow
Life
     and/or
Ending
Spring
Journey
Forager
High
Brougt to us and thought out by Elephant's Child.

I've added a new label to my collection today: OnlyTheWords.

- - A - - B - - C - - 

The monthly Question from the Insecure Writers' Support Group is luckily not due until January 8th. Thanks to an understanding crew giving a poor MotherOwl some time to gather her flying feathers.


January 8 question - Describe someone you admired when you were a child. Did your opinion of that person change when you grew up?