A Question

Remember those word association tests one needed to take in school? If not, here is an example:

red is to crimson as blue is to:
a) sienna
b) wisteria
c) cerulean
d) sepia

If as a child you were the proud owner of a large box of Crayola crayons, you will automatically know that the correct answer is C. I remember my first big box, the one with 72 crayons and a sharpener built into the back. It was so cool to say to my friends, "Could you pass me the periwinkle?" or "I need the maize" instead of "Are you done with the pale blue?" or "I need yellow." Oh, the simple joys of childhood. Now the kids are more interested in computer games, downloading music, or exchanging cell phone numbers. Times change. 

But just to take you back to the good 'ol days (for those of you old enough to remember them or even those of you who are old enough to remember the good 'ol days before mine), I am going to present a word association question today. It is not a multiple choice question. It is this:

What do these three things have in common--fishing for herring eggs in Alaska, eating Bircher Muesli in the Black Forest, and cooking with Mexican chilis.      ??????

Well, you probably notice right away that all three include a food item. Herring eggs, Muesli, chilis. And three places are mentioned. Alaska, the Black Forest, and Mexico. But what if I added the term "Spaghetti-Fresser" to the mix? That would certainly change things. A food is mentioned but not a place.

So let me tell you. All these subjects will be featured in the upcoming edition of Language/Place which has the theme "food". The story about a Southeastern Alaskan family's tradition of fishing for herring eggs and the adventures of experimenting with chilis in Mexico are two of my favorites. I think you will enjoy reading them as well.


And guess what? Your blog post could be included, too. The original deadline was November 20 but has been extended until the end of November. The blog post should feature something related to language or place (or both) as well as a food or foods. The post could be a true story, fiction, poetry, or even a journal entry. Be creative. If you are interested in taking part, submission guidelines can be found HERE.

Speaking of language, place and food, let me close with this statement. After a four week stay, my in-laws are flying back home tomorrow. For our last evening together we enjoyed good conversation and excellent food (I had the seafood risotta) at Restaurante DaVito in the small village of Michelau. A perfect evening.

Reminder and WriMos

Don't forget. If you are intererested in language(s) and place(s), you might want to join the fun at Language/Place. Submissions are open for edition 12. The theme is FOOD. Information can be found by clicking HERE.

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Today I am wondering how many people are taking part in a writing challenge this month. Almost everyone in my writing groups is doing so. Many of them are taking part in the November Chapbook Challenge hosted by editor Robert Lee Brewer at his Poetic Asides blog. Each day he will offer a prompt (and there are "two for Tuesday" prompts where you a given two to choose from). Your task is to write a poem based on that prompt. You have the option of sharing your work by posting it in the blog comments, but that is not required to take part. At the end of the month, you have time to make revisions and select your best work for the chapbook contest. For complete rules and other information, just click HERE. It isn't too late to participate.

Another event my friends are taking part in is NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writer's Month) which challenges you to write a 50,000 word novel in one month (always November) . The thing that makes this a bit easier is"Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It’s all about quantity, not quality. This approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly." Of course, the hard thing is that you are still writing a novel in one month (gulp!) and that means time for daily writing is needed. Unfortunately, my current schedule doesn't allow for that. Many people feel the same way. That is why there is (drumroll please)....the NaHaiWriMo (National Haiku Writer's Month). This actually took place in February but if I am not mistaken, in Novembet there are also daily prompts on Facebook (which can be found here) from which to write a haiku each day.

And then I noticed a few of you bloggers are doing a NaBloPoMo. I love the sound of that Na. Blo. Po. Mo. (insert smile) This, of course, is National Blog Posting Month. And the best part is there are PRIZES. Can you believe that? Unfortunately, it is a bit late to start since one needs to do a blog post every day and I've already missed the first week. Those who have started and for some reason are unable to finish need not fear, because...check this out!..there is also a prize for that. NaBloPoMo offers a consolation prize for the blogger with the best tragic tale about why he or she was unable to complete the challenge. Now how cool is that?  Even though it is too late to join in, check out the link to read the rules and learn about the wonderful prizes I will not be receiving. Bummer.

So, back to my original thought. I wonder who is taking part in what. I know my friend Terri is writing haiku, Connie, Laurie, and Jodi are both taking part in the chapbook challenge AND NaNoWriMo. What about you? What are you doing this month? Tell me about it in the comments section. And don't forget, the submission period for the Language/Place blog carnival has begun. Those of you taking part in NaBloPoMo might want to write a post which is related to language or place and food. That will fill at least one day for you and you can submit it. Hint, hint.