Virtual Brush Box

Music of the outside world. Serious. TODAY. Saint John the Divine. Christmas Eve Lessons and Carols, 3:45pm to 5:30pm EST US. Last year, the lesson were read in a variety of languages. Not so serious. ClassicFM: We can’t stop watching these hilarious ‘silent monks’ singing the Hallelujah Chorus, 2019.

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Please imagine this in 3-D. Each corner – top and bottom – of each gift box is overlapped by the corner of a smaller gift box. Two layers of large red boxes. Four layers of small green boxes. Eight layers of small red boxes. And so on until there is a fractal cloud of gift boxes.

[Fractal Alphabet]

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. Free fiction 4U. Whatever: End of the Year PR Missives From Scrooge & Marley.

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Crenellated Conundrum

What?

Crenellated Conundrum is a kenning for jigsaw puzzle & honorable mention in a poetry contest.

Poetry?! Moi? Yup, that’s the word they’re using.

Thank you to ambyr for posting about the contest.

Why?

Artifact Puzzles hosted a contest to come up with kennings for jigsaw puzzles.

Winners. Note “Poetry Contest” in title & my name among the honorable mentions.

Back to What?

What is a kenning, you ask.

Allow me to quote from the contest.

A kenning is a micro-poem where you replace a common thing with a short poetic description.  

Examples of Kennings:

• “pale orb” = moon
• “winter’s blanket” = snow

Kennings are often just 2 words, but they can be longer. 

Contest: propose the best kenning for a jigsaw puzzle.

Source, Micro-poetry Contest: Propose a Kenning for “Jigsaw Puzzle”

Harvard weighs in, The English Language Today, Yesterday, Tomorrow: Kennings. Cited in the contest entry, above.

I found that any investigation of kennings quickly morphs into a discussion of Old Norse.

Two-Word Entry

Crenellated or Crenelated? Double Ls looked better to me but survey said double was UK and single was US. I entered Crenelated. They switched to Crenellated. Glad they adjusted it rather than reject the entry for misspelling.

Four-Word Entry

Cleverly Cut Tactile Logic

According to Internet surfing, a kenning has a specific form. I decided that perhaps each word should have have its own kenning? Therefore, a two-word phrase ought to have a four-word kenning.

Jigsaw -> Cleverly Cut

Puzzle -> Tactile Logic

I like each half. Not sure the four work together as a unit.

Easy To Appreciate, Hard to Do

Once you start looking, kennings are everywhere. Calling a kid a rug rat is a kenning. (I think?)

As I understand it, Bilbo uses kennings in his discussion with Smaug, “I am the clue-finder, the web-cutter, the stinging fly … I am Ringwinner and Luckwearer; and I am Barrel-rider.” Goodreads > J.R.R. Tolkien > Quotes > Quotable Quote. From the chapter “Inside Information.”

They are easy enough to grasp. Pale orb = moon. Okay. It’s word usage. I completed skipped over the poem/poetic descriptors the contest information. I figured I’d be able to come up with handfuls. Not so much. These two were the limit of my inspiration.

Winners page. AP: Poetry Contest Winners: Kennings For Jigsaw Puzzle. Screenshoted & posted here in case they take theirs down. Accessed 22 Dec 2023.

Admin

In other news. The plan was for this to be a cute, Christmas-themed fragment of fiction, perhaps another entry in the Quantum Truck series. [Part 1], [Part 2]

Wasn’t happening. Instead I had posts piling up for Saturdays in January. So, I’m using those now and taking the rest of December as a vacation from fiction writing. I will start afresh in January.

Onwards!
Katherine

Photos of the outside world. Ars Technica: Daily Telescope: Tracking the Sun’s path every day across the sky. Berger, 12/18/2023.

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Homewood Star
Homewood AL USA
December 2023

Homewood Star: PHOTOS: Star Lighting & Christmas Parade, Sweeney, December 5, 2023.

Technical Details

Star, f/13.0, 1/250 sec., 50.0 mm, ISO 100. Manual mode & auto-focus.

Post production. Resized, border, & watermark.

Lesson. Take all the shots. You may know what you want. You may be right. Or you may find the best one is the one you only took as a scene setter.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the horse world. The Backyard Horse Blog: Equestrian Winter Reading Challenge, with recommendations to get started.

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The Up

Cookies from the SSF Christmas party. Food was eaten. Ugly sweaters were worn. Santas were dirty. Surprise horses were delivered. I deliberate try not to know about pending horses. I don’t want to have to keep the secret. [Party Horses]

Do I love the chance to wear my trophy vest from Nationals? Yes. Yes I do. [More Thoughts, More Loot]

The Down

Don’t be sad about a comfort ride.
Be glad that a comfort ride exists.

At last week’s lesson, I was offered a ride on two other horses. I opted for Optimus.

Of course, I hate myself. I want to be bold and dashing and daring. I’ve had my moments. I have not had many of them lately. My disgust with my current state is not news. [Taking On Challenges 2011] [Lessons, Theory Vs. Reality & Further Considerations 2019]

I’m trying to grant myself more understanding.

I really did feel better after the ride. [Emotional Support Horse]

The In-Between

In other news. Opt does not approve of my treat selection. Milton is a quantity over quality kinda horse. He doesn’t care if it’s Hershey’s or Fassbender&Rausch. Just gimme! I’d be happy to buy special treats, say for loading or shipping, but he really doesn’t seem to see a difference. So, we buy large bags of small treats at Tractor Supply. I had a pocketful from the morning’s walk. I offered one to Optimus. He was disdainful. ‘I don’t know what you call these, but these are not peppermints!’

Fassbender&Rausch is a store in Berlin and is my personal standard for chocolate. Looks like it is just Rausch these days. Did you know there are International Chocolate Awards? Hat tip to T. But I digress.

The Ribbons

Got around to staging a reenactment. [Show Report]

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. My friends are retiring (waves Hi!). I’m starting to qualify for senior programs. I’m not ready to be the same age as old people.

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Shaft Bells with Leather Strap from Big Black Horse.

Coach Kate, Whip Hand Farm, is also getting into the sounds of the season.

Bliss with bells. YouTube video

While we are on the subject bells, History.com: 8 Things You May Not Know About ‘Jingle Bells’, Klein 2016, 2023. Hat tip to Kate.

Admin note

I have enough lawyer blood in me that citations are important. The source of the opening sentiment has been lost in the mists of time. I saw it, I think, on a t-shirt. Or perhaps on social media. It stuck with me. So, thank you to the anonymous wearer or poster.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. AAHA: Reindeer: Current research, how they came to North America, and the origin of the red-nose myth. 2014. Note date. “Current” is no longer accurate. Article still interesting for reindeer history.

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Pell City
Alabama USA
January 2023

In the spirit of previous pauses. [Cat Pause], [Cat Pictures Please, Observer Effect]

Onwards!
Katherine Walcott

Awareness of the outside world. Shelby County Reporter: Brandon Horn becomes first Calera student accepted to Ivy League school, Bowen, February 28, 2023. Belated news. Just saw it an old issue of Shelby Living for sale at the feed store. I wonder how he is liking his first Hanover winter. Shelby Living: Making History, Bowen, May 14, 2023.

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At Home

I like keeping our horses at home. I have mentioned this before. [10 Little Things About Having Horses At Home 2016] [30-Year Barniversary 2022]

I really don’t mind the wet mornings, the hot days, the occasional – for us – frozen buckets.

I like the ability to go to the barn several times a day to feed or turn out, or see if Rodney wants more me time. and I can come back later. [Feeding Protocol]

I love being able to provide forever homes.

We can’t jet off to Paris on a moments notice. But would we? We’d still have dogs & cats, so arrangements still have to be made.

Daily morning walks would not be possible.

This is not likely to change, not happily, not after 30 years. [Why Not Rack Off Into The Sunset? 2019] [This Is Why I Don’t Board My Horse 2020]

Not At Home

What if we had never moved out to that first farm? What if we had never brought Previous Horse and Mathilda into the backyard? What if we boarded to this day?

No trips to the feed store for bags of feed. No unloading of hay bales. No control of what they ate.

More commuting. Fewer pitchforks.

All the vices above would be versa. For example, there would be more chance that I would rehome a horse who didn’t work out. We would probably find retirement venues for the elderly. It’s hard to keep lawn ornaments on full board.

There’s one big change that I have been thinking about lately – People.

More people. More horse friends. More news of the latest tempest in a teapot.

More chances of other horses to ride. [Other People’s Horses]

If I were looking for a new horse, I’d know more horses, more people selling horses, more trainers who might assist in the process.

More lessons. More volunteer opportunities. More clinics. More competitions.

In short, more connection to the horse world.

I’d make a lot more progress in my riding. Would I be happier? Shrug. Parts of me would.

My barn. It is enough. I am happy.

My inner jump rider howls in frustration.

[Split Personality 2017]

Onwards!
Katherine