The Shiki Monthly Kukai

January 2007 Kukai

Here are the results for the January 2007 Kukai, wherein our Kigo subject was "Blizzard" and our Free Format subject was "Temperature".

Congratulations to Bill Hudson, winner of our Kigo section and to Ann Schwader, winner of our Free Format section!

Those who were given less than three points and who requested anonymity in such a case are so noted.

(214 = 12) would indicate that the poem above received two 3-point votes, one 2-point vote, and four 1-point votes.

January 2007 Results
Kigo Theme: Blizzard	Free Format Theme: Temperature
First Place -- 35 pts blizzard the barber's attention not all mine Bill Hudson 3,4,18) = 35 pts Second Place -- 22 pts blizzard . . . the garden Buddha’s enduring smile Nancy Smith (0,7,8) = 22 pts blizzard . . . in the knitted throw the scent of Mom Alice Frampton (0,6,10) = 22 pts Third Place -- 20 pts six feet under ... even this blizzard can't reach you Kathy Lippard Cobb (2,4,6) = 20 pts Fourth Place -- 17 pts after the blizzard~ a cloud of breath from the doe's nest josh wikoff (3,2,4) = 17 pts first blizzard — the smell of the sky on her palms Jacek (1,4,6) = 17 pts Fifth Place -- 16 pts the touch of a single snowflake ~ blizzard's end Paul Hodder (1,4,5) = 16 pts ** I was thinking that most submissions would have the blizzard approaching or going on. Here the blizzard is only just over, making the poem a rarer observation. ** I like the focus on the sense of touch -- on the single flake signaling the end of the million snowflakes. January blizzard she paints flowers on the wall Sjs (1,3,7) = 16 pts blizzard — now i know what colour is for Pia Sosua (0,4,8) = 16 pts blizzard warning she adds hot cocoa to the grocery list carmel lively Westerman (0,3,10) = 16 pts ** I really liked the simplicity of this. Sixth Place -- 15 pts blizzard he lifts the child into his shadow citygirl (1,4,4) = 15 pts Seventh Place -- 14 pts blizzard night feeding the sled dogs by headlamp Ruth Powell (0,3,8) = 14 pts Eighth Place -- 13 pts blizzard the view from my window erased Beth Powell (0,1,11) = 13 pts Ninth Place -- 12 pts blizzard . . . the warmth of your breath Collin Barber (0,4,4) = 12 pts blizzard's over — our snowman hides in a drift Zhanna P. Rader (0,2,10) = 12 pts Tenth Place -- 11 pts wood smoke — the blizzard blows snow on and off the roof DeVar (1,2,4) = 11 pts night blizzard the volume in the car just above a whisper Agnes Eva Savich (0,3,5) = 11 pts Eleventh Place -- 10 pts even the spiders abandon their webs blizzard warning Pris Campbell (1,1,5) = 10 pts late funeral- the blizzard even whiter Ron Moss (0,3,4) = 10 pts blizzard only static on tv Meredith Stern Cavalieri (0,1,8) = 10 pts Twelfth Place -- 9 pts sakura snowflakes a pink blizzard descends ... petals in my sake. Martin Hunt (1,1,4) = 9 pts ** A lovely image. blizzard buried a little deeper under the duvet Lynne Rees (1,1,4) = 9 pts school vacation a blizzard outside the butterfly house tom painting (0,2,5) = 9 pts night blizzard the lights of the village go out one by one Petar Tchouhov (0,2,5) = 9 pts Thirteenth Place -- 8 pts loose tooth — news of a blizzard out west Laurene (0,2,4) = 8 pts Fourteenth Place -- 7 pts after the blizzard you reach out for my fingers icicles melt kjs (1,0,4) = 7 pts summer wind . . . suddenly caught in a blizzard of blossoms Richard Kay (0,3,1) = 7 pts Fifteenth Place -- 6 pts blizzard the cat spins in my arms Dany Fisher (0,2,2) = 6 pts fierce blizzard — shadows of the fire between us Magdalena Dale (0,2,2) = 6 pts cattle fade into the sky blizzard wind Ann K. Schwader (0,2,2) = 6 pts tax time coming a blizzard of paperwork P. Williams (0,2,2) = 6 pts from a blizzard of cherry blossoms a bird's nest Mary Lee McClure (0,2,2) = 6 pts Sixteenth Place -- 5 pts blizzard so many hands reaching out doris kasson (0,2,1) = 5 pts the blizzard back east on the news - my unworn scarf -Deborah P Kolodji (0,2,1) = 5 pts blizzard in all directions all paths Dorota Pyra (0,2,1) = 5 pts white bicycle through the shop window blizzard Lech Szeglowski (0,2,1) = 5 pts old beech in the blizzard-- the trunk cracks -- LGD (0,1,3) = 5 pts desert highway the road slips beneath a sand blizzard Darrell Byrd (0,0,5) = 5 pts Seventeenth Place -- 4 pts Bride sails into rice laughing at blizzard she steps into limo yositaka (0,2,0) = 4 pts blizzard — the whimpering sound stops pamela molhuysen (0,2,0) = 4 pts three-day blizzard — strangers coming to the aid of strangers Ana Cadarin (0,2,0) = 4 pts January blizzard — an uninvited guest dresses in white Audrey Downey (0,0,4) = 4 pts tête-à-tête a blizzard makes the world disappear Earl Keener (0,0,4) = 4 pts morning blizzard a cat licks spilt milk from the kitchen floor Polona (0,0,4) = 4 pts after the blizzard — a rabbit hops across the dark street Marylouise Knight (0,0,4) = 4 pts the blizzard: cat and I crunching dry food Linda Marucci (0,0,4) = 4 pts Nineteenth Place -- 3 pts blizzard warning eating soup with chopsticks Rap (1,0,0) = 3 pts blizzard facing one another the white wood and a man Ginka Biliarska (0,1,1) = 3 pts blizzard — the isolated houses the abandoned cars miorita (0,1,1) = 3 pts here comes the blizzard . . . your breath carried to me on a whisper Bill Kenney (0,1,1) = 3 pts blue note — the sound of blizzard in the bottle jordi climent (0,0,3) = 3 pts second blizzard — my son-in-law buys a snow blower Ida Freilinger ((0,0,3) = 3 pts blizzard week — the comfort of liniment beside the log fire John Daleiden (0,0,3) = 3 pts blizzard warning all departures flash cancelled Edward (0,0,3) = 3 pts new snow banks in the blizzard ewe with lambs -- ushi (0,0,3) = 3 pts caressing the edge of my snowboard; long blizzard Kosuke Miyata (0,0,3) = 3 pts stillness of the snowbound dawn january blizzard Karen Briggs (0,0,3) = 3 pts Twentieth Place -- 2 pts blizzard a Volvo broadsides the ski parking tram mike farley (0,1,0) = 2 pts morning blizzard . . . a snow-topped weed shaking long after the gust Bruce Ross (0,1,0) = 2 pts New Year's moon a blizzard of light incubating dreams Patricia Boutilier (0,1,0) = 2 pts holiday blizzard world travelers receive the gift of patience shanna (0,1,0) = 2 pts red squirrel chatters from bough of leafless birch blizzard warning Eric Marin (0,0,2) = 2 pts blizzard conditions — a pair of Chinese temple dogs look down from the shelf Karen Cesar (0,0,2) = 2 pts year-end blizzard a flurry of shoppers leaves the mall (anonymous) (0,0,2) = 2 pts blizzard — upright old boot calming a snowflake -- Charles Hansmann (0,0,2) = 2 pts crossing the river coming towards me: the blizzard max verhart (0,0,2) = 2 pts halted drive — tightening grip of the blizzard's hand Jim Swift (0,0,2) = 2 pts snow globes — this one's got a blizzard in it (anonymous) (0,0,2) = 2 pts Twenty-first Place -- 1 pt dog day afternoon — Dairy Queen Blizzards freeze our insides Mike Montreuil fierce blizzard — falling faster than snowflakes few ravens Rita Odeh blizzard all over — snow on power lines on snow (anonymous) a blizzard son's body at 39 degree C (anonymous) inside in a blizzard — whiteout of desire William M. Gottlieb no road out I pine for a blizzard of stars Darrell Lindsey a trace of blizzard through the crack forced entry Barbara Snow I cannot see which path to take winter storm Jerry Dreesen Sleeping Beauty, Fairy Princess and Spiderman lie unwoken, the blizzard defeats the dawn Anton blizzard — curled in her den the bear sleeps on Leslie Montgomery steely sky the grandma's joints agree on a blizzard RaV New Year’s Eve blizzard party plans relocate to the house next door Elizabeth Fanto blizzard — waves of snowflakes frightened by headlights Corneliu Traian Atanasiu the blizzard's roar fades; her whisper-green eyes Sean Perkins breaking small branches the blizzard buries the weathervane Francine Banwarth blizzard winds snowflakes cartwheel through the park (anonymous) public shelter the blizzard's sound pushes through the window crack Martin the old dog reluctant to go out -- first blizzard --Irene Golas a walk in the park — me and the poets' statues lost in the blizzard. Cristian Mocanu Twenty-second Place -- no points this time Pleasure of skiing Turns into catastrophe When blizzard occurs Edith a 'bama blizzard heavy brown water shoulders by under the floor assu blizzard conditions I wait in the barn till it's over Richmond Williams Alabama blizzard snow lightning never seen before Rose Marie Stutts, EdD blizzard! a frothy wave advances ferrying the horizon (anonymous) falcon storms feeding flock feather blizzard Mike McCulley earlier sunrise the blizzard of circulars dies down gourdman he came to fix the phone still here for breakfast -- blizzard family miriam chaikin blizzard — uprooted tree in the lap of grass vishnu p kapoor Shedding my parka The blizzard is left outside Now the real storm starts DJ the windblown snow creates a blizzard in my mind G.L. Hill first flurries fall school kids crowd the window thinking blizzard April Serock blizzards in america another aussie summer hot summer day Michael Flack the tv screen all white— blizzard back east (anonymous) battling a blizzard — pushed towards the fireplace by my African parrot Daniela Bullas trapped in the house her new baby girl "Blizzard" Betty Kaplan white blossoms whirling Incense-Burning Mountain April blizzard Jazmine On TV another blizzard -far away James M. Thompson School break ending, new semester harbinger: paper dot blizzard. (anonymous) Late blizzard, low flying buzzard - hungry bird. Trevor Camp middle of the blizzard kitten’s mew I wake sweating J. Marcus Weekley blizzard forecast — snow on TV screen even heavier robert naczas white blanket — no horizon to see a blizzard Cornelia Colorado Horses huddle tail to wind Blizzard blurs sky Mary E. Gray blizzard... drift under the covers piling up zzz's art General Comments: This contained many haiku not using "blizzard" as kigo-- a pity, as it limited those eligible to receive votes. Seems to me the kigo are always a bit better than the free format. This time I'd have loved to redistribute 2 pts from one category to the other :0 So many really good ones!	First Place -- 29 pts white breath nothing between it & the moon Ann K. Schwader (1,8,10) = 29 pts ** A lovely image! ** Nicely shows the temperature situation, since the clear nights of winter are the coldest ones. Strong visual, too. Second Place -- 24 pts fifteen below a man with ski mask enters the bank Richmond Williams (0,5,14) = 24 pts Third Place -- 21 pts icy mustache the last rusty lug nut begins to turn Edward (3,2,8) = 21 pts ** I can feel the relief, too-- not just the cold-- felt by someone stuck doing a job with no escape from the elements! tropical night ~ the long kiss of our skin as we pull apart Paul Hodder (2,4,7) = 21 pts ** wow, what a perfect way to describe that heat and magnetism of two bodies. this is going in my favorites file as soon as I find out who the author is. I wish I had written it myself. Fourth Place -- 16 pts the shadow of the old crow in flight — deep winter cold John Daleiden (2,3,4) = 16 pts three in the morning — I dig for bed socks in the dark Marylouise Knight (0,4,8) = 16 pts ** I like how this one 'shows' the situation rather than 'tells' us what is going on. It's what I wanted to be able to do with my submission. Fifth Place -- 15 pts monsoon — he tests a drop of milk on his wrist cate juno (1,3,6) = 15 pts winter dusk even the snowman looks cold Meredith Stern Cavalieri (1,1,10) = 15 pts red wine — she takes off her sweater, smiling Ana Cadarin (0,5,5) = 15 pts Sixth Place -- 14 pts cold wave the recruiter drops my son off Earl Keener (0,1,12) = 14 pts new year's day the collective gasp of northern swimmers Susan Constable (0,1,12) = 14 pts Seventh Place -- 13 pts one hundred ten degrees halfway through the book on anger management Laura Orabone (0,3,7 = 13 pts Eighth Place -- 12 pts midday heat — the stoplight turns more slowly David Grayson (1,3,3) = 12 pts warm weekend a toy hedgehog emerges from the snowmelt mike farley (1,2,5) = 12 pts Ninth Place -- 11 pts cold wind — the inflatable Santa, deflated Israel López Balan (0,4,3) = 11 pts desert heat the highway turns into shimmering waves Darrell Byrd (0,1,9) = 11 pts Tenth Place -- 10 pts mild winter — only the animals wear fur audrey downey (0,2,6) = 10 pts last dance my ring finger swells in the heat Ron Moss (0,2,6) = 10 pts Eleventh Place -- 9 pts January 12th — the extra blanket still in the closet Laurene (1,2,2) = 9 pts Thanksgiving morning the hatchet handle ice cold Alice Frampton (1,2,2) = 9 pts Twelfth Place -- 8 pts illiterate my tongue frozen on a doorknob gourdman (1,2,1) = 8 pts empty mailbox... making my way back jacketless Scott Mason (0,2,4) = 8 pts 32 °F the fireman's boy lights a candle Petar Tchouhov (0,2,4) = 8 pts mercury rising~ beads of sweat pool in her bellybutton josh wikoff (0,1,6) = 8 pts school day — the thermometer reads 98.7 aom (tim) (0,1,6) = 8 pts Thirteenth Place -- 7 pts frosted branches — in the hollow of my hand warmth of your lips Magdalena Dale (1,1,2) = 7 pts snapping photos the gingerbread burns Sandra Nickel (1,1,2) = 7 pts disagreement — the warmth of her tone drops to zero Nancy Smith (1,0,4) = 7 pts Fourteenth Place -- 6 pts my breath breathing me... 38 degrees citygirl (1,1,1) = 6 pts lovers meet behind closed doors — temperatures rise Mike Montreuil (0,2,2) = 6 pts an icy path wearing the tub's warmth to the back door Barbara Snow (0,2,2) = 6 pts after the hurricane in the dark heat only the stars move Patricia A. Boutilier (0,1,4) = 6 pts Fifteenth Place -- 5 pts holding my own hand under the blankets — the cold Linda Marucci (1,1,0) = 5 pts rising temperature mom finds the kids playing doctor doris kasson (0,1,3) = 5 pts global warming . . . earthworms sunbathe on the sidewalk Collin Barber (0,1,3) = 5 pts icicle drips a tone between hot and cold Mike McCulley (0,2,1) = 5 pts country house a grasshopper on the thermometer Marica Kolcheva ((0,2,1) = 5 pts coldest night The Salvation Army hands out blankets Beth Powell (0,0,5) = 5 pts Sixteenth Place -- 4 pts summer night . . . lying spread-eagle in a pool of sweat Richard Kay (1,0,1) = 4 pts long night — temperature outside drops as their baby’s rises Elizabeth Fanto (1,0,1) = 4 pts fishing boat on the mooring line still hanging icicles Dorota Pyra (1,0,1) = 4 pts night swelter . . . my lip still bruised from your bite Kathy Lippard Cobb (0,2,0) = 4 pts holding the tea cup now the perfect temperature to drink Bill Hudson (0,1,2) = 4 pts frozen afternoon a little snow drift covers the birdhouse roof Bruce Ross (0,1,2) = 4 pts the dog's tongue hanging out... hot midday Patrick Wafula (0,1,2) = 4 pts zero centigrade — the warmth of the school principal's smile Mary Lee McClure (0,0,4) = 4 pts minus twenty — a cat parts the vertical blinds DeVar (0,0,4) = 4 pts sunburn the heat off his back under the cool lotion Leslie Montgomery (0,0,4) = 4 pts bare skinned limbs — cherry trees blossoming in January Kosuke Miyata ((0,0,4) = 4 pts a builder lunches under the scaffolding midday heat Lynne Rees (0,0,4) = 4 pts Seventeenth Place -- 3 pts lobster sensing something was up leapt from the pot miriam chaikin (0,1,1) = 3 pts new year — ominous blossoms William M. Gottlieb (0,1,1) = 3 pts Walking on brown leaves even warm winter is late birds twitting of spring ashi (0,1,1) = 3 pts absolute zero — not even a hot or ice tea with my biscuits… Daniela Bullas (0,1,1) = 3 pts scorching hot day — a butterfly under the sunflower’s hat Corneliu Traian Atanasiu (0,1,1) = 3 pts dripping icicles remembering the sunset in Hawaii Sjs (0,0,3) = 3 pts temperature dropping — steam rises from a sidewalk grate Karen Cesar (0,0,3) = 3 pts cool shady gum trees scorching summer sun smells of eucalyptus Michael Flack (0,0,3) = 3 pts back in the mall the blast of hot air that lost mitten -- ushi (0,0,3) = 3 pts ** It's such a stunner to go from the cold outside to that blast of hot air right at the mall entrance. The lost mitten is a nice note of humor. twelve below — ducks dive in the river to worm up robert naczas (0,0,3) = 3 pts Eighteenth Place -- 2 pts the hot tea warming my hands – it is snowing miorita (0,1,0) = 2 pts temperature control the puppy sleeps near the furnace vent (anonymous) (0,1,0) = 2 pts warmth — under the quilt he joins her vishnu p kapoor (0,1,0) = 2 pts beads of sweat — roll into her deep wrinkles (anonymous) (0,0,2) = 2 pts on a plum branch swaying with the wind~ two lovebirds Rita Odeh (0,0,2) = 2 pts cold north, hot south — linked by the stewardess (anonymous) (0,0,2) = 2 pts midnight bath — steam clouds waft by frozen panes (anonymous) (0,0,2) = 2 pts outside my window a crocus peepin' into a warm winterland pamela molhuysen (0,1,0) = 2 pts light snow falling past present and future already white max verhart (0,0,2) = 2 pts cold hands — warm embrace dancing snowflakes Ginka Biliarska (0,0,2) = 2 pts temperature drops.. without you its a two blanket night shanna (0,0,2) = 2 pts cold snap: we scramble to find lost mittens --Irene Golas (0,0,2) = 2 pts eight below even my leg hair doesn't grow daphne’s respite (0,0,2) = 2 pts Nineteenth Place -- 1 point en route to mars — photons fill solar sails ship temperature rockets Eric Marin shedding my coat in the arboretum midwinter day tom painting frozen days feral cats huddle under my floor furnace Rose Marie Stutts, EdD seething summer heat 120 in the shade... icy beer daydreams. Martin Hunt mercury shrunk in on itself--sparrows all puffed out P. Williams tropical new year 25 degrees C fifth day first rains gillena slush on my tires at midnight it turns into ice -- LGD thirty-eight degrees troops goose-stepping in hobnails across my brain dsnake1 My hands tingle The horse's scent rises Winter riding DJ more than any diamond heats her blood- one illicit touch April Serock chipping away at the frozen windshield fingers numb (anonymous) january frost another handwritten date a year too young RaV Cold morning, hanging icicles. You have left. Trevor Camp temperature rising the young woman takes off her winter coat Bill Kenney ice in the desert between the two an average day Jim Swift fierce, frigid wind — polar bear cubs snuggle up to their mom Zhanna P. Rader Twentieth Place -- no points this time Uncontrollable heat Makes the globe loose balance A threat to us all Edith cocoa cools enough inhale slowly then down the first draught and warmth spreads assu A/C broke over-sexercising no spit left yositaka filled bar — on the white coffee falls the sweat jordi climent breath frosts from bed curling at chin and chest two warm cats Bridget Cougar twenty-five below the layered look seems sane Ida Freilinger arms gather clothes, stiff from the line mercury falls Ruth Powell a cold wind blows chilling my bones yet my heart is warm G.L. Hill feeling guilty all those snow storms on TV — a sunny 82 Betty Kaplan all day inching down caterpillar, cellar steps trade-show thermometer -- Charles Hansmann bitter chill her lipstick stains fade  —coffee cup James M. Thompson Sweat wind-wicked away, ninety-degree autumn low, fast-moving brush fire. (anonymous) niagara falls wintry mist pelts the walkway i fall Karen Briggs from the steaming swimming pool to goose bumps and the smell of chili J. Marcus Weekley the cold gray, opening — dawn light Sean Perkins this winter — blossom of jubilee plums two months too early Cornelia impending rain air on the skin after shedding a sweater Agnes Eva Savich Shirtsleeve weather When will winter begin? Year starts in warmth Mary E. Gray 31 degrees — the thought it might snow in Los Angeles -Deborah P Kolodji well above zero — bringing the snow canons in for the World Cup track Cristian Mocanu icy cold snap yet... campus crossing, ruddy-legged she sports jogging shorts art General Comments: Could have used 12 votes...so many good ones!

Thanks to our poets who entered the January kukai and especial thanks to our guest poets, Roberta Beary and Mike Farley, who lent us their work for the kukai samples!

Call for submissions for the February kukai should go out Monday, February 5. See you then!

With much appreciation,

Robert and Jennie, co-secretaries
Gary Warner, web host

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