Poetry Monday: Puzzles ..... and Funnies

It's Poetry Monday, and this week's topic is ..... PUZZLES.

Join Diane, MotherOwl, Mimi and me as we work our magic, turning puzzles into poetry. You can leave your poem in the comments or post on your own blog; if you do the latter, please leave a comment so we can find you and your poem. Use the topic, or choose another; the idea is to have fun and exercise our brains.

*****

I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'm not a mathy person.

It's fine if you are a mathy person. More power to those who enjoy numbers and have an aptitude for them.

But that's not me. I'm a word person.

So it would be easy to guess what interests me in the realm of puzzles.

(Once again, I'm illustrating my poem with pictures, with the hope that you will not notice how short my poem is.)



*****

How To Entertain Me

Su-do-ku?

No-can-do

my solution to Sudoku puzzles

Spatial toys?

Real killjoys

This pile of stuck-together blocks will, theoretically, fit together to form a cube. Unfortunately, that remains theoretical when it's in my paws.

But -- wordplay?

I say Yay!

please ignore the fact that one of the obvious words you can make with these tiles is "smut" -- Pixabay beggars can't be choosers

And a pun?

Oh, what fun!

*****


This seems like a good time to break out all the puns and wordplay memes I've been collecting.

And because there are a couple of regular readers here whose first language is not English, I've put some notes under the pictures to explain the jokes. I hope that helps. I think wordplay must be very difficult in a second (or third or fourth) language. It was even difficult to explain some of these, I found. If you're not having fun reading, feel free to ignore them! This is supposed to be enjoyable :)

escapea (escaped pea) = escapee (one who escapes)

boulder (a large rock) = bolder

stock =  soup base; laughing stock = someone who is the subject of a joke; humerus (arm bone) = humorous

Alpacalypse = Apocalypse (and while llamas and alpacas are not the same thing, they look enough alike that it makes the joke work)

90 degrees = a right angle in geometry = a corner

alterNEIGHtor = alterNAtor (car part)

I think this one explains itself . . . I think

helium = heal 'em (heal them); curium = cure 'em; barium = bury 'em

open toad = open-toed (like a sandal)

hay = hey; and that's a roll of hay kitty is sitting on, and, well, it's kind of a dumb joke, isn't it?

"end construction" really means "end OF construction", but "End Construction" is also the kind of thing you would see on a protest sign, too

... puffin (for everybody who's not familiar with this bird) - a play on the phrase "huffing and puffing"

giddyup is what you say to a horse to make him go; also, giddyup = get up

shift is a key but it's also a word for the hours you spend at a job

explains itself, I think

mustache (see kitty's white mustache?) sounds like "must ask"

this time, toad = towed

explains itself, I think (a Roomba is an automatic vacuum cleaner that moves around by itself)

plethora literally means "a lot"

"rain, dear"= reindeer, that guy above with the antlers

. . . and that something is a nose!

"in a nutshell (acorn)" = a short explanation

stuffed = full because they ate so much AND stuffed with stuffing

stables = where horses are kept; this is meant to sound like the phrase "the tables have turned", meaning something now is happening the opposite to the way it used to be

Toucan (the name of this bird) = two can

an oying = annoying

a Yamaha is a brand of motorcycle

For more puns and corny jokes I've posted in the past, see here and here.

And for even more puns, go here.


*****

Hope your week is filled with hahahahas -- or at least a chuckle or two.

Next week's topic will be ..... your choice of gnomes, combs, and/or foam ..... something for everyone! Thanks, Diane.

Good luck :)

Poetry Monday: Blue

It's Poetry Monday, and this week's topic is ....... BLUE.

Join Diane, MotherOwl, Mimi and me as we tackle this topic. You can leave your poem in the comments, or post on your own blog. If you do the latter, please leave a comment as well so we can find you and your poem. Use the topic, or choose another; the objective is to have fun and exercise our brains.

*****

It's a picture poem this week, folks. I looked through my old photos and anything blue that caught my eye made it into the poem.

*****

Blue is . . . . .

The inverted bowl of a summer sky

Tiny forget-me-nots nodding in a gentle breeze

Ocean waves meeting boulders along the shore

Early evening sky as a backdrop for the moon . . .

. . . and for a lamp along a walking trail

A bluebird looking for a sunflower seed

A fuzzy snowflake blanket beneath a fuzzy cat

The promise of fine weather through gray storm clouds

The dish that holds my sewing pins, now a half a century old

. . . and the first -- and last -- pincushion I ever made, equally old

Christmas 2019 bird ornaments made from felt and love

The bluish cast of cold winter snow, crisscrossed by deer tracks

And a welcome sight for a tired traveller . . . the sky as I near home

*****

Over to you, readers -- what does blue bring to mind for you? I hope it's good, whatever it is.

Next week's topic will be ....... PUZZLES .......

Good luck!

Poetry Monday: Relatives . . . and Funnies

It's Poetry Monday, and this week's topic is ..... RELATIVES.

Join Diane, MotherOwl, Mimi, and me in tackling this topic. You can leave your poem in the comments, or post on your own blog; if you do the latter, please leave a note in the comments so we can find your poem. Use the topic or choose another - the intention is to have fun and exercise our brains.

Eagle-eyed readers might note that I've made a change to my Profile in the right sidebar. I've finally put into actual words the expectation I've always had in my head about comments here, including poems submitted for Poetry Monday. No more mind-reading required :)

On to the main event!

*****

It was only a couple of weeks ago that we had the topic "connections" and I apologize to participants for suggesting "relatives" for this week because it is so similar.

It was unintentional -- chosen without remembering the previous topic.

It hit me about a day later what I had done, and I've been struggling all week (as you may have, too) to come up with a different angle to write about.

And thus we come to Sunday evening, the pressure is on, and I am still racking my brain.

I have already fallen down several internet rabbit holes, including articles about our relatives the monkeys (who share about 93% of human DNA), the chimps and bonobos (who both share almost 99% of human DNA), great apes, lesser apes, Curious George, prehensile tails, why macaques might have better dental hygiene than some of us do, and . . . procrastination, because by now that topic seems like a better fit, and the "rules" for Poetry Monday, such as they are, allow for choosing a different topic. But it feels like that would be a stinking, low-down, rotten thing to do when it's my choice of topic to start with :)

So, I am resorting to my usual trick when the ideas won't come -- writing a very short poem with the hope that I can find at least one tiny nugget of truth and convey it.

*****

And Now I Bequeath It To My Offspring

I don't know just how
I acquired my chin
But the blame for my nose
Falls fully on my kin

*****

And now, in honour of the first "angle" I was exploring for this week, I offer you some funnies with our simian friends in them . . .

My personal favourite this week :)

*****

Next week's topic will be ......BLUE.

Good luck!

Have a good week, my friends!