Composing some poems/Thinking of spring/A small dinosaur/My cherubs bring. Ah, spring is a crazy time of year! (Image via Wikimedia Commons)

Well, it’s officially official! The 21st in Japan was the spring equinox, and the 20th for North, Central and South America. And, my elementary school students graduated on Friday, which is another sure sign that the season is about to commence. Peak cherry blossoms are predicted for March 29th in Tokyo. Spring has sprung! The season’s begun!

And one of my favorite late-night shows announced a fun hashtag contest. #SpringBreakHaiku “winners” may have their winning tweets read on Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show. There are so many fun little creative contests associated with the show, but this one hits all my sweet spots. I love spring! I love breaks! And I adore a cute haiku!

They’ve already chosen their favorites, and you can view them on the gallery here: https://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/photos/hashtag-gallery-springbreakhaiku/3122635

This was one of my favorites.

I wrote about ten poems for the hashtag, and posted five.

My favorite darling.
Strewn across the floor:
Beer bottles from five nations.
Passed out guys from three.

Of course, you know the haiku police were out there, saying mean stuff about people’s numerical abilities. (For the record, the modern haiku doesn’t have to stick to a 5-7-5 syllable pattern. But try telling pedants that!) So, just out of silliness and spite, I posted this:

There once was a girl from Kentucky
Who went to Florida to get lucky.
She ran into an ex-,
Said, “Thank you, next.”
And hooked up with a guy much less sucky.

#SpringBreakHaiku #IrishHaiku

How about you? What silly little word games are you playing to keep your skills sharp?