Sunday, May 14, 2006

2006 Haiku/Senryuu Festival!

Welcome everyone to the first annual Memorial Day Haiku/Senryuu eFestival!

I had so much fun with my San Patricio Limerick Festival, I've decided to kick off the summer with another electronic poetry festival, this time with the ancient Japanese form of Haiku/Senryuu.

Haiku and senryuu, of course have the same three-line formal structure: five syllables in the first line, seven syllables in the second, and five syllables in the last line. I like to have one line (doesn't matter which one) that has an imperfection of plus-or-minus one syllable, just because imperfection is tragic, and tragic is beautiful. So I'd live to see your 5-8-5s, your 5-7-4s, your 6-7-5s.... whatever, as long as it's only one imperfection. Perfect 5-7-5s will be accepted as well, but they are a little obvious, don't you think?

Of course, free form haiku are welcome as well; heavy on the imagery, as stingy as possible when it comes to the syllable count.

As you know, the haiku form is related to seasons and nature. Senryuu, while sharing the same formal properties of haiku, are supposed to be funny. They can be witty political satire, golf-clappy high brow social commentary, or a juicy fart joke.

Post your haiku and senryuu in the comments section of this post, and tell all your friends. Don't forget to title your poems!

Here's one to start us off:

Fantasy Sex President
WMDs?
Warrantless 'lectronic searches?
I'm the decider.
And, we're off!
_________________
Update: I totally misspelled "Senryuu" in the title of this post, but I'm afraid to change it because of all the links I've already sent. WHOOPS.
To make up for it, I'll post this link to a hillarious, kick-ass 25 minute movie regarding the stereotypes of Chinese immigrants. Enjoy!

37 comments:

Orange said...

Comparative Poetry

Haiku, senryuu
Easier than limericks
We can all play

"Conservative Christians Criticize Republicans"

They rag on Bush, too
We have so much in common�
But they hate our freedoms

bitchphd said...

Spring, thank god.
I may survive
next winter.

Spring means
cat puke
underfoot.

Or, a revision of the first one:

Spring.
I survived
the winter.

Anonymous said...

my red maple weeps
lacy leaves dragging everywhere Snuffleupagus

Afaeyre Maede said...

Spring is here at last
Everything is in full bloom
My allergies included.

Anonymous said...

rough-legged brother hawk
flogs the canyon from the treetop
spring hangs from his fist

jp 吉平 said...

The Solution To Illegal Immigration

Invest in Mexique!
Until it's stable like Canada!
Nope, we're too stingy.

jp 吉平 said...

Futile Deployment

Can Nation'l Guard fix
Economic imbalance?
They'll just keep coming!


W's Polls Scrape Bottom

Libs hate border war
Neo-cons hate amnesty
Everyone hates Bush


Careful What You Wish For

How can we deport
Eleven million people?
Who flips my burger?

jp 吉平 said...

My People's Malinche

Putang ina mo!
Intern that Michelle Malkin!
Pinakapangit!

Anonymous said...

Don't deny racism.
People can't be illegal
But laws can be wrong.

Anonymous said...

Pinky Spring

"Skip and go naked,"
says a Portland sunny day;
"Stop that," says my wife.

Psycho Kitty said...

Ooh, goody. Ok, here goes:

Mother, and single.
Blue Wiggle starts lookin' good.
Oy, I need a date.

gordon mei said...

Seven and ten beats
are hardly enough to tell
how badly I can't count.

Milo said...

Bar-fight Satori

"Embrace the Dharma?
Wisdom and Compassion are
Written on my fists."

George Clinton Concert

"Black man in Europe?
Even white boys get down
With that crazy Funk."

And an old favorite...

"Snow on pine branches
Melts and runs away with spring.
Truth is evergreen."

Milo said...

Late-night Nirvana

"Enlightenment comes
From a tranny rimjob and
Two ounces of blow."

Dr. Mommy, D.D.S. said...

An American's Plight in Canada

"Did you vote for Bush?"
AMERICAN, not dumbass.
please stop asking me!

The joys of being a dentist...

Mmmm...inflicting pain
Only a dentist could love
a freak of nature

The shrill of the drill
indeed may cause some to cringe
but it turns me on

you can't pay for a crown
at least spend a buck or two
on a good toothbrush

Corinne said...

*the sex haiku*
i hold one red glove
fitting two, three fingers
wet, unlike leather

Anonymous said...

No spring on the net
Welcome to Earth
It is round

Why so grouchy, Dan?
Anyway, you forgot to
Count your syllables

glassblowingman said...

THE SIGN
i flipped him the bird..
he was asking for it,so
i flipped him the bird

Anonymous said...

JP

Do you really speak
All the languages above?
I am so envious.

Anonymous said...

Crashing the gate is
The new political black.
Adapt or perish, yo!

Anonymous said...

Sunset on steeple
tranforms me into 10-minute
Episcopalian

Anonymous said...

Haiku to Corinne

Tonight red glove woman
blossoms in that silken place
where fancy reigns

jp 吉平 said...

You should get that looked at.

Big goverment, bad!
(cough! homeland security,
guest worker program)

Sherril said...

If a shot rings out loud
In the forest of VP
Can HE be impeached???

Velma said...

Poor Sean Preston
His pop star white trash mommy
Is just so clueless


I hate George W. Bush
I hate that I can now say
I told you so, Mom


The rain won't stop
Water in the basement
Seeps incessantly

bitchphd said...

It could be worse, though.
You could live someplace cold.
Ann Arbor; Canada.

bitchphd said...

"We are not going to
discriminate against folks"
Says Bush, the liar.

Anonymous said...

Canada left her
Rather British marriage for
An abusive beau

Mel said...

Yet Another On Spring

After winter ends
Springtime fragrance intoxicates
I am drunk on flowers.

Ass-Grabber

I told him not to touch
Man-like, he groped me anyway
The cast comes off in August.

Anonymous said...

Leave W Alone!

Immigrants be gone
I was born in the USA
therefore I am white

Anonymous said...

Love it or leave it!

If you don't like it
go back to your own country
i can build my own deck

Anonymous said...

The Wall

Build up the wall!
Wasn't that what Pink Floyd said?
He should've said that

Unknown said...

nice blog...

Anonymous said...

Swill Bill:

Bill wrote racist swill
bet he'll be elected to
capitol hill!

Ahistoricality said...

Teacher's Seasons
Memorial Day
Spring Semester is finished
Summer Term draws near

Politics Imperfect
Politics always
trumps scientific data.
Imperial decline.

Family
"No, Spot! No, no, no!"
Child wants to learn to read
Dick and Jane reader.

Consumerism
I have three cameras:
I want one with the virtues
of all three... and cheap.

The Lone Beader® said...

Springtime Haiku

Pink petals,
Loud pattering rain;
Tulips bloom.

jp 吉平 said...

Y'all can write more but
This festival is over
Don't be a stranger!


I gave out electronic Cherry Blossom Awards to what I thought were the stand-outs, although they were all worth a chuckle. Thanks everyone!

Keep posting haiku/senryu if you want!