Category: 2023

March 21 – My Best Colors

Denise Krebs4 Comments

March 21, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

I remember when my kindergarten students learned The Rainbow song and sang it at our end of the year celebration. I loved their sweet voices and the parents went all out, with each little group wearing a different rainbow color. Leigh Anne Van Eck has planned a color party during the Slice of Life. (You can participate too.  Just go to her blog, let her know you are participating, and see what others have written about their best colors.)

My best red is everything in my favorite color–fire-engine-candy-apple red, my eyes are captured by the reds of a lifetime. I can’t get enough. It’s always been my favorite.

Just a few red eye-catchers in my camera roll.

My best orange is the monarch butterfly, thriving and living its best migratory life with ample milkweed.

My best yellow is lemon pie filling, made with fresh January citrus from Arizona.

My best green is the ephemeral green of a California springtime. (By summer this will all be brown.)

My best blue is that sky, always that sky, (and perhaps a blue tsunami in 2024, as well.)

My best indigo is a new pair of 501 jeans in seventh grade.

My best violet is my friendship with Vinolia.

And in honor of springtime, here is a 32123 palindrome poem (for 3-21-23) that I learned about on Kim Johnson’s Slice of Life.

whispers of
tender
green
trussing
sunshined buds

I am participating in the March Slice of Life Challenge: A slice a day for all of March. Thank you, Two Writing Teachers!

March 20 – Open Writing Poetry with You

Denise Krebs11 Comments

March 20, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

This week it is time for Ethical ELA’s Open Write. It’s always so joyful to spend time with this supportive writing community. (Lots of us are part of Slice of Life and the group that writes poetry at Open Write, like Maureen, Joanne, Kim, Glenda, Britt, Fran H., Barb, Margaret S., Molly, Heather, and me…Have I missed anyone else? Please tell me in the comments).

We meet five days a month and every day in April, when it’s called #Verselove. Below I’m posting a poem I wrote yesterday. You can join in on this week’s past prompts– Saturday, Sunday, and Monday–or join us Tuesday and Wednesday for more writing wonderfulness.

On Saturday, I wrote a whole post about the inconceivable junction between artificial intelligence and poetry. [On an aside: You may want to read the essay, published today, on Two Writing Teachers by Beth Moore, “We Need to Talk About AI Essays.” Fascinating.]

On Sunday, we wrote a Pile Poem on Canva, using a beautiful mentor poem by Amy Kay.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Amy Kay (@amykaypoetry)

Mocha Productivity Being with my love Making beautiful things A heart decluttered, yet full Being Grammy to my sweet Milo Recognizing the birds in our yard Having our house become our home Being able to sleep as long as I want Many ways to make a vegetarian Reuben The four subtle seasons of the Mojave desert These freshly washed, tightly-fitting flannel sheets Finding a treasure that I need in a second-hand store Sweet memories of a time when I had young children at home Eating mint chocolate chip ice cream while laughing with loved ones A masala tea soy latte from my kitchen delivered with love from Keith

And today, on Monday, we shared poetry on Flip (formerly Flipgrid.) Do come over and join the conversation. Find the link at the Ethical ELA site. (There is an invitation to give opinions about the use of AI in the poetry classroom.)

In April, we will have daily prompts. Please join us. If you are interesting, check out these Tips for Verseloving, created by our founder, Sarah Donovan.

I am participating in the March Slice of Life Challenge: A slice a day for all of March. Thank you, Two Writing Teachers!

March 19 – A Photo Album of our St. Pat’s Dinner at Home

Denise Krebs15 Comments

March 19, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

I finished painting this morning. (By the way, this morning ChatGPT wrote a poem about my painting. I was a bit rattled, and wrote about it here.)

First photo of our new door
This is how our door has looked for the past year.

We finished up some home improvement jobs this week and looked forward to sharing the updates and celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with my brother, sister-in-law, and sister, who fortunately all live close to us.

Belated St. Patrick’s Day jewelry making station
My husband did all the cooking and preparing. I was the occasional sous chef today.
Guinness on ice
I suggested we only put green veggies on the veggie tray, but he added a little color too.
Our new benches and table
We had a traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal.
The best picture with these special people

I am participating in the March Slice of Life Challenge: A slice a day for all of March. Thank you, Two Writing Teachers!

Open Write – March 18, 2023

Denise Krebs3 Comments

Today at Ethical ELA, Stef is leading us in a provocative discussion about AI use in poetry. Why tech? we are asking over the next three days. You are invited to join us at Ethical ELA Open Write and add your voice to the discussion.

After today’s activity, I am thoroughly befuddled.

Because of all the hype about AI in schools, I was glad to see Stef’s prompt this morning about using an AI tool to help with our poem. It was my first time using ChatGPT. I expected I might be able to get a good start on a poem, get a list of words to use, or some such thing. I didn’t know what to expect.  But yikes! My prompt was “Compose a triolet poem about painting a door jamb”

While it was working

The final poem followed the abaaabab pattern of rhyming and was eight lines long. It made grammatical sense, and I wouldn’t be embarrassed to “turn it in.” No editing, it looks like this:

Painting a door jamb, oh what a chore,
Brush strokes smooth, with care and precision,
Soon the wood will be shining like before,
Painting a door jamb, oh what a chore,
But the effort is worth it, that’s for sure,
To freshen up a home is a noble mission,
Painting a door jamb, oh what a chore,
Brush strokes smooth, with care and precision.

Then I second-guessed my use of the word “jamb.” Did I spell it right? Is that really the door jamb I have to paint today, or is it the door frame? We recently had the door replaced, so after my mini research, I determined that most of the frame needs to be painted. I went back to my FrIeNd? at Chat GPT with a new prompt: “Compose a triolet poem about painting a door frame”

Painting a door frame, a task at hand,
A fresh coat of color, a sight to behold,
The brush strokes glide, so smooth and grand,
Painting a door frame, a task at hand,
Transforming the space, as if it was planned,
A touch of beauty, a story untold,
Painting a door frame, a task at hand,
A fresh coat of color, a sight to behold.

Oh, my word! I thought maybe they would just replace jamb with frame. But no. It’s a whole new poem! Recently I read an eye-opening review of ChatGPT and the use in the classroom by a Slice of Life writer, Lee Ann Spillane at the Portable Teacher blog. There is a site called GPTZero that detects AI use. I added my fully-generated poem to the detector and got this message, “Your text is likely to be written entirely by a human.” OK, that was disconcerting.

Then I tried another idea Lee Ann had given. Add a prompt to ChatGPI: “How likely is it that ChatGPT wrote this poem?” and then cut and paste the poem. So I tried that and got a rather non-committal response:

It is highly likely that ChatGPT wrote this poem, as it is within the capabilities of the AI model to generate creative and original poetry. However, it is also possible that the same poem could have been generated by another language model or human author.

Hmmm…what would ChatGPT say if I asked that about a poem that I wrote all by myself? So, I tried that with the latest poem I wrote for yesterday’s Poetry Friday post:

Our Mourning Doves

This is the doublet of doves,
cooing and pursuing,
who wait for their eggs,
their purpose renewing,
and fly back to their nest
with hope and love brewing.

Oh, I’m heart-broken. Here was the response:

It is also highly likely that ChatGPT wrote this poem, as it is a simple and straightforward piece of verse that falls well within the capabilities of the AI model to generate. However, it is again possible that the same poem could have been created by another language model or human author.

Earlier I had also dared to click on the “Regenerate Response” button:

Painting a door frame, it’s quite a task,
Sandpaper and primer, to prep it right,
Brushing on paint, with steady hand, I bask,
Painting a door frame, it’s quite a task,
The finish will gleam, no need for a mask,
My efforts rewarded, with hues so bright,
Painting a door frame, it’s quite a task,
Sandpaper and primer, to prep it right.

I may be here tomorrow regenerating poems, up to my eyeballs in a poetical existential crisis.

On a positive note, I noticed the poems it created at our Open Write session were always rhyming. I tried to get it to write a poem without rhyming. I asked it to write a poem like Mary Oliver would, then to write in free verse, finally I just wrote “stop rhyming.”

OK. Thanks for that.

March 18 – Painting and a Slice of Life Meet Up

Denise Krebs13 Comments

March 18, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

Today I spent the morning reading posts for Poetry Friday and Slice of Life; smiling, sighing, and sometimes gasping at the effective writing and beautiful poetry; and commenting on lots of blogs. I was trying to avoid starting the painting job of the door jamb on our new door. But, alas, I finally started sanding at 1:15 p.m. (PST). About 30 minutes later my alarm went off on my watch. It was time for the Slice of Life Meet Up. Hooray! I could stop now!

Thank you, Fran McCrackin and Sally Donnelly, for hosting the meetup today. It was so nice to meet these lovelies. Today on my slice, Sally wrote in a comment, “I’d love to hear your voice and see the face that matches this lovely blog!!” This sweet comment, and the fact that I had been disappointed I didn’t get to meet Sally in person in Anaheim last November at the NCTE Conference, made me join the meeting. It was great to hear her voice and see her face, as well as Fran McCrackin. Then it was a fun surprise to see who else came and to see and hear them, as well. Now it’s even more meaningful to read their posts. We had a great discussion about writing and slicing ideas. I think everyone went away with more ideas to slice for the next two weeks.

After the Zoom meeting ended, I went back to finish the sanding and painted the primer coat. Tomorrow I’ll finish the painting.

Nice to spend an hour with you, Sally, Fran McC., Fran McV., Megan, and Alice!

 

 

I am participating in the March Slice of Life Challenge: A slice a day for all of March. Thank you, Two Writing Teachers!

March 17 – Truths, Beauties and Appreciations

Denise Krebs11 Comments

March 17, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

 

I’ve got some green to wear.
TBA – To Be Announced:

TBA has another meaning – Truths, Beauties, and Appreciations, according to Jennifer Kesler. Jennifer, at my heart is happiest when i travel. read. write. connect, makes a habit of recording TBAs when she needs “a shift in mindset.” I thought I would try it today.

TRUTHS

  • Life is sweet, and whether I say I’m lucky or blessed or fortunate–it’s all true.
  • Another ugly truth is that I sometimes intentionally walk by people who are less so. (Like today when a man was seeking signatures on a petition for more affordable rent in our area. Did I not catch his eye and keep walking because I own my own home and don’t need to pay rent?) I would like to see this truth change; I want to stand with those who are not as privileged as I am.
  • I am much healthier and more productive now that I can get enough sleep each night.
  • Hoy me olvidé de escribir en español.

BEAUTIES

  • Mourning doves who are nesting in my yard again this spring.
  • Snow on the mountains around me.
  • My shiny polished dining room table.

APPRECIATIONS

  • The wood burning stove in our home.
  • My sister and all her expertise in helping us remodel parts of our home.
  • Poetry and art
  • My husband and his calming sense of humor.
  • We’re having a St. Patrick’s Day dinner at our house on Saturday.

I am participating in the March Slice of Life Challenge: A slice a day for all of March. Thank you, Two Writing Teachers!

Poetry Friday – This is the Mourning Dove Pair

Denise Krebs14 Comments

Today the Poetry Friday roundup is over at Laura Purdie Salas blog, Small Reads for Brighter Days. Thank you, Laura. I’m considering your poetry challenge for April. It sounds fun!

I did Laura’s poetryaction prompt from last week: “Go outside and find one thing to introduce in a poem that begins, ‘This is the…'” She wrote a sweet poem about the ash tree waiting for spring. It was inspired by the children’s book, The Lodge That Beaver Built, by Randi Sonenshine and Anne Hunter. (Thanks for those links, Laura.)

We have this very sweet pair of mourning doves in our yard. They nested last year in our yard. I believe some critter stole their eggs last spring because I saw eggs in the nest, but the next time I looked there were none (and no baby birds). But the pair are back now, they have built their nest, and I’m praying for the best.

Our Mourning Doves

This is the doublet of doves,
cooing and pursuing,
who wait for their eggs,
their purpose renewing,
and fly back to their nest
with hope and love brewing.
Image by Beto from Pixabay – When I get a good photo of our birds, I’ll add it.

March 16 – That Summer

Denise Krebs10 Comments

March 16, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

I would like to draw attention to two bloggers I read yesterday: Leigh Anne at A Day in the Life and Cathy at Doodads and Doodles.

When I read their blogs, I found inspiration for today’s post. I used Leigh Anne’s Rememory game card draw and Cathy’s Fortunately/Unfortunately post.

Here are the cards Leigh Anne chose:

a brother, sister or friend; summer; and speaking in front of people

So, I would think in this kind of game, you can get away with changing it up a little. (Especially since it’s my slice of life, I can definitely change it up a bit.) I didn’t really speak much (one word) and not in front of people, but in front of one unknown person. This was the story that came when I thought about those three cards.

Fire

“So when do you think we can get to the beach?” I asked Christine, my high school friend from across town.

“I think I can use Phil’s car tomorrow after he gets home from work. I’ll let you know what he says.”

“That would be gr…Wait! Oh, weird! There’s a strange man that just ran through our house,” I said.

“What?”

“Yeah, I don’t know who it was. I better go see what’s happening,” I bravely said, as I hung up the phone.

I hurried down the hall and saw my mom, brother, sisters, and this guy, apparently from down the street, all scurrying around, very disorganized-like. I heard, “Fire.”

“Fire?” I repeated.

We eventually (quickly) made it outside and looked up at the smoke pouring off the roof.

I can’t remember what happened exactly, but there was a garden hose and fire truck involved.

Fortunately, our quick-witted and keen-eyed neighbor was proactively saving the day.

Unfortunately, someone’s fireworks (midday? post July 4?) flew onto our roof and started a fire.

Fortunately, it was during the day, so we weren’t asleep at night when the fire could have burned disastrously longer before discovery.

Unfortunately, it started on old, dry wooden shingles.

Fortunately, it was caught early and only burned a small patch, which made an unwanted skylight that lit up our attic.

Unfortunately, we would probably need to replace the whole roof, according to the firefighter.

Fortunately, my mom had a slew of kids and sons-in-law to help with the labor.

Unfortunately (and fortunately), within the week, we were up on the roof learning how to nail down shingles.

 

Here are two unrelated photos for today:

It’s been a weather event kind of day today.
This is how our skylight looks with direct sunlight. Kind of like an eclipse; you don’t want to look up into it.

 

I am participating in the March Slice of Life Challenge: A slice a day for all of March. Thank you, Two Writing Teachers!