2025 Snowflake Challenge: Day 4: Goals

Challenge #4

Since this is the start of a new year, this challenge will be to set your own goals!

My goals fall under the categories of Reading, Ficcing, Poetry, Crafting, Health & Fitness, and Personal.

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Poet's Corner: Address by Rae Armantrout

I am reading the poetry collection Versed by Rae Armantrout. It won the Pulitzer Prize in 2010. This is from that.

Address by Rae Armantrout

The way my interest
in their imaginary
kiss

is secretly addressed
to you.


*


Without intention

prongs of ivy
mount the posts
supporting the freeway.

It would be possible to say
each leaf

circumscribes hope

or that each leaf,
fastidiously coming
to one point,

suggests a fear
of the unknown.


*



These glossy,
laced-up, high-heel boots

(each leaf)

addressed to you

All of Agatha: The Pale Horse

This series of entries is commentary on my lifelong quest to read all of Agatha Christie's works in UK publication order. It was begun in January 2021.

I enjoyed The Pale Horse [1961]. Summary:

A dying woman, Mrs Davis, gives her last confession to Father Gorman, a Roman Catholic priest, but along with her confession she gives him a list of names and a terrible secret. Before he can take action, however, he is struck dead in the fog. As the police begin to investigate, a young hero begins to piece together evidence that sets him upon a converging path.

Mark Easterbook is the amateur detective in the case. He is actually a Mogul scholar (a scholar of the Mogul period) but gets drawn into a diabolical conspiracy. It really is a clever scheme, I think, and smacks of And then there were none but the villain is not as cool as the one in that book. Nevertheless, excellent murder weapon and use of red herrings and blinds in the form of the occult.

I listened to an audiobook version narrated by Hugh Fraser which was solid. I hurried a bit through it because I wanted my first completed book of 2025 to be an Agatha Christie, but I am saving the next two for February and March because we've hit two of my all-time favorites: A Caribbean Mystery and At Bertram's Hotel--and I have a jigsaw puzzle to go with them! Rapture! Joy!

My poem: Getting the Most Out of Your Hobonichi Techo

[the first prompt was to write about how you are going to tackle the year, in the style of the poem I posted last Thursday: Everything is going to be amazing by Lauren Zuniga. The title and subheadings are from my planner.]

Getting the Most Out of Your Hobonichi Techo by okapi

Dump all-or-nothing. You’re gonna kiss a sweet X in
today’s box, and fuck what may in yesterday’s or tomorrow’s.

Turning the page to a new year

Yes, you can. Not everything, no, not all-dot-things,
but you can do good, do right, do one itty-teeny-to-do
thing which future-you won’t have to pray for (or cry about)

Time Table

Ink’s already bleeding. Page’s already wrinkled. Good. So are you.

Sample Symbols and Icons

Start like that. Whittle. Whistle. Drop a pair of coins in the coffers
at each and every turn. Wait. Keep faith. Wait. Keep going. There.
Plunk’s turned to plink.

How to Have Fun Keeping a Diary

Piss out that stream of consciousness and doodle down those demons.
Hours, days, weeks, months. Ours, ways, streaks, once
and future, Always Queen. Write it down—now.

Oodles of Noodles

Dole out that heroin-grade daydream like candy. Nar-can, you
jumped-up little shit. Cookie is a sometimes food. GET IT?

Word to Remember

This is the Year of the Snake. Shed.

365 Day Check-Off Sheet

Does it even matter? Yes. Shut up. Yes.
Work in Progress means work’s
in progress means you’re still, and it’s still, and there’s still
Time.

Go on. Do it. That mop won’t floor itself.