PJ Demographics – Subscribers in All 50 states and 72 countries
PJ Online
PJ Policies
Subscription information
Welcome
I am pleased to have you as a reader. If you enjoy the PJ, please encourage others to subscribe. If your country is not listed in the demographic section at the end, please let me know so I can update the list.
An anniversary issue of the Poetical Journal will be out on Sunday, February 23, 2014.
December Issue: Mule deer taking in the sights
Opening Comments from Bob
Final Issue for Year Twelve: This issue contain three poems, The New Daily Desk Calendar, No Time, and The Great Conundrum. These are rather serious poems discussing life. You have an opportunity to write the ending to the first one. Likewise, the vignette speaks to such decisions. The pictures on the web page follow my annual January tradition of selecting some of my favorite photographs from the year. I trust you will enjoy seeing them a second time.
Yahoo Subscribers: Over the last two months, Yahoo has blocked my newsletter. With the December one I made the effort to send it out in small groups. This situation has caused me, due to the policy of the company that sends out my newsletter, to lose over a thousand subscribers. I have contacted Yahoo regarding the situation and hope it is resolved. I will find out with this mailing.
Next Month: The 23rd of February issue begins Year Thirteen. We will head to Las Vegas as well as experience through pictures some of Utah's winter.
.Three Poems this Month
The New Daily Desk Calendar
The pages are glued one on top of the other,
thick and voluminous,
with quotes of wisdom
appearing on each sheet.
Each represents
markers of the future.
2014 stands on the case,
waiting.
With each daily tear
history passes.
Should I wonder, worry
about the future
or . . .
Comments: You finish the poem. Please send me your endings. I am curious.
No Time
Too busy to take the much needed nap.
A thousand, no two thousand
things to do.
What will others think
if I doze off for ten minutes or so?
“Laggard, lazy, sluggard”
pejorative terms I might hear.
My nerves are frazzled,
where am I?
Am I working on the spreadsheet?
My head hurts.
I feel a cold coming on.
Enough self-pity,
back to work.
Comment: The above speaks to the common disease of modern humans. I sometimes joke that the person's last words are "Wait, I don't have time."
The Great Conundrum
Age is the great conundrum
where the mind
believes youthful
but the body says otherwise.
In time,
one or both betray the other.
Comment: None needed
March Issue: Peach blossoms at Sun Yat-sen Park on Maui
My work currently appears in six books. They are offered for sale on line. To order any of the six, click here.
A Respite in Time (2012) This 184 page book consists of vignettes, mostly one or two pages in length, which provide thoughtful comments on life. They have appeared in this newsletter over the last ten and a half years. The costs are $15 (PB) and $24 (HB) plus shipping. To order, click here.
Lit Bit (2011) is a small anthology that includes three of my poems and three of my photographs. The cover photo is also mine. The cost is $10 plus shipping. To order, click here.
A Slice from the Apple with the Taste of Poetry (2010) is an anthology of poems written by members of the Apple Valley Poets, a very talented group that formed almost eleven years ago. This book contains a wide variety of poetical genres and will appeal to all lovers of poetry. The cost is $10 plus shipping. To order, click here.
An Oasis in a Cluttered World (2006) is a book that allows you chapter by chapter to immerse yourself in a quiet refuge as you forget the chaos of the world. Through poems, vignettes, and recommendations it beckons you to let go, relax, and savor life’s many riches. The cost is $11 for paperback and $18 for hardcover. To order, click here.
Wisdom from the Journey (2004) As stated on the cover leaf, “My wish is that this reading journey will provide you with a bit of respite from everyday life, generate a few laughs, cause good feelings about yourself and humanity, encourage introspection, and at certain times twinge your conscience on critical issues and thoughts. Upon reading the last page, I hope you will smile and say, That felt good! The cost is $10 for paperback and $17 for hardcover. To order, click here.
The Wanderer: A Poetical Journey (2002) is my first book. You join me on my around the world trip that I took in 2001. The cost is $5.50 for paperback and $14 for hardcover. To order, click here.
Supporting the efforts of the Poetical Journal is greatly appreciated! To support, click here.
To view the product page of other unique gifts, please click here.
February Issue: This was taken from the grounds of our Kihei, Maui condo.
March Issue: Thompson Road on Maui
April Issue: Following a hike down a rather steep trail on the Big Island, I was blessed with this shot.
Vignette this Month: A Bit of Sadness
I recently became reconnected with a classmate Don that I hadn't talked with in decades. Part of the reason we we able to connect was through our class group on Facebook. In cleaning out my old pictures and slides I came across ones from a graduation party I attended that was held at my mother's church many years ago. He was in the pictures along with two others. I informed him of the photos, and he emailed me that he would like to have them..
In his thank you note he mentioned that he had run into Vernon, the other boy in the picture, while stationed Okinawa. Vernon was in the Navy, and evidently, his ship was in port. Don also told me that he had heard that Vernon had died while in prison. For some reason that really hit me. I did not know Vernon well though I recognized the face when I saw it in the picture. I remembered him as a quiet person who hung out with a group totally different than the ones I knew. Like what often happens following graduation, we go our separate ways, and classmates become only memories.
I thought of how life's journeys vary for each of us. A number of classmates have already passed either in war, by accidents, or from disease. One sometimes wonder what has allowed one's self to survive thus far. I can think of many times when a split second swerve in the car has permitted me to continue onward. Is it divine or karma or pure luck? Whatever the reason, I am pleased that I am still here. To the Vernons who have gone before me, I am grateful that our paths intersected, if only for a brief time. They continually remind me of my mortality and the need to savor each second, to make something out of this life. For who knows, the next swerve may not be quick enough.
If you have a guest vignette you would like to submit, please do so. Not only will I enjoy reading it, but if agreeable with you and space permitting, I will print it in a future issue. The vignette should be written in paragraph form and relate a personal story or event. Equally important, it should fit the overall tenor of this newsletter. Ideally, it should not exceed twenty lines. Please send to bob@poeticaljourneys.com.
Recommendations:
Cooper's Hawk Winery and Restaurant, Easton Mall, Columbus, OH: At the suggestion of my wonderful sister-in-law and her husband we decided to eat at this upscale restaurant. This was her second time there. She had rave reviews from the first visit. She was right on! Four of us were dining there during our recent Christmas visit to Ohio. The full-bodied tomato soup received a 9.5/10 and the hardy lobster-crab soup, a 10/10. Entrees included beef tenderloin (10/10), glazed salmon (9.5/10), and the two pork tenderloins (avg. 9.5/10). The service was friendly and efficient. The two wines, a Shiraz and merlot, were a bit light but enjoyable. This restaurant is low-keyed and attractively decored. There are opportunities also to taste a large variety of the wine options. The restaurant should appeal to the 30-45 crowd. However, we old-timers thoroughly enjoyed our dining experience.
Please take a look at the online book and gift page
May Issue: Water cascading through the Stream Garden at Schnormeier Gardens
..Quotable Quotes
“It is not only the blind man that can fall into a pit. Sometimes it’s one who can see." – Rumi
"Your gifts are magnificent, and they are yours and yours alone, but they don’t have feet." – Tara Mohr (Expert on women leadership and well-being)
"The beauty of self-compassion is that instead of replacing negative feelings with positive ones, new positive emotions are generated by embracing the negative ones.– Kristin Neff (Associate Professor of Human Development and Culture at the University of Texas at Austin. She is the world’s leading expert on self-compassion.)
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do, so throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore, Dream, Discover." – Mark Twain (American author and humorist–I used this quote in an earlier PJ but really liked it and decided to list it again.)
July Issue: Morning view of South Dakota's rolling hills
August Issue: Snowy Mountains, WY (It was a rainy day.)
September Issue: Guardsman Pass, UT
A Bit of Humor
A bit of laughter is healthy for the soul.
Some boy scouts from the city were on a camping trip. The mosquitoes were so fierce, the boys had to hide under their blankets to avoid being bitten. Then one of them saw some lightning bugs and said to his friend, "We might as well give up. They're coming after us with flashlights.
To see a few contest winners from the past click here: If you were a Grand Prize Winner and would like to have your picture posted holding your print, please e-mail me.
November Issue: A dash of color
October Issue: Fall in the mountains of Utah
November Issue: Snow among the aspens
December Issue: Snow has arrived on Mt. Timpanogos in Utah.
PJ Forum
If you have comments, recommendations, or suggestions for the PJ, please e-mail them to bob@poeticaljourneys.com. While I often cannot print all of the comments, I personally respond to all.
"Merry Christmas Bob! And may 2014 be a great year for you and yours!" – Bobbie from TX (Ed. Thank you for the best wishes!)
________________________________
I had no other comments from subscribers. However, my Face Book posting of the lights from downtown Salt Lake City generated 32 likes and 11 comments and the lights at Alum Creek, 22 likes and 12 comments.
Reader Demographics
Geographically, subscribers reside in all U.S. states. Subscribers also live in Albania, Argentina, Australia (New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia, & Western Australia), Austria, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Canada (Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, & Quebec), Chile, Croatia, Denmark, Egypt, England, Estonia, Fiji, France, French Polynesia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guyana, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica - W.I., Japan, Kenya, Korea, Lithuania, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, New Zealand, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Scotland, Serbia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad - W.I., Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Venezuela, Vietnam, Wales, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
If your state, province, or country is not mentioned, please let me know.
PJ Online
To read some of the back issues of the PJ, go to here.
The next issue will be out on February 23, 2013.
Until next time - joy and peace,
Bob
PJPolicies Guest Poetry: Often readers send me a poem stating they would like it included in the PJ. Many of the poems are well written. Although I enjoy reading them, at this time I do not include guest poetry as part of this newsletter. Instead, I suggest that they submit them for inclusion in the Guest Poet section of my web site. A number have chosen to do so. However, time limitations and quality govern the number that will be accepted. I currently am not accepting poetry from minors. ----------------------------- Guest Vignettes: On occasion, I publish guest vignettes submitted by one of my readers. If a guest vignette is submitted and selected, the author understands that there is no remuneration provided; the vignette will be included in the e-mailed and web site versions; and will remain posted until I choose to remove it from the site. In all cases, the guest vignette remains the property of the guest author who has given permission for its usage as described in sentences one and two.
----------------------------- Privacy: I take it very seriously. Your name will never be sold to a third party nor will we disclose at any time your subscription information. ---------------------------- Unsolicited Mailing: The PJ is never sent unless requested. If you believe you received the PJ unsolicited, please notify me. I will unsubscribe you. ------------------------------ Reproduction and Forwarding: While the material is copyrighted, you have permission to forward all or part of this newsletter. You may also quote from it. Out of common courtesy (We will forget all the legal jargon and requirements.), I would appreciate at least a mention or a footnote. -- Much appreciated!
------------------------------ Recommendations: All recommendations are personal ones offered for your information. I receive no remuneration of any kind from the sources or individuals being recommended – other than when I recommend purchasing my books. Actually, many are never aware of their listing. One may ask, "Why do you provide recommendations for specific establishments or locations, especially since many of your readers are worldwide and may never be able to use the information?" The key word is "may." When I travel, I plan much of the itinerary myself. This planning includes reading and listening to recommendations from professional and personal sources. My wish is that any suggestions provided will assist some readers as they make their plans. (Incidentally, I have already received feedback that readers use them.)
Subscription: To unsubscribe click on your individualized unsubscribe e-mail at the end of this newsletter. (Not appropriate for this web page.)
