The Keith Hamilton Cobb

Message Board

Birthday Calendars

2002

2003

2004 also found Here

It was a brain child of the message board's charming Lea to produce a birthday calendar with Haiku poetry for Keith Hamilton Cobb in the fall of 2001.

I volunteered to produce the calendar because of my photo editing skills and the availability of the calendar formatted program that I possess.

The 2002 Calendar

The first year, was the roughest.

Chasing after participants and trying to convince them that file size matters.

Forgiving those who did not have the skills to write Haiku poetry and searching the web for suitable illustrations to accompany their poems when they where not able to produce one themselves.

It was completed in a timely manner, reports of it's arrival in New York where noted.

All 3 of the calendar I produced where completed on schedule.

The first calendar was smaller than a standard sized page, printed on heavy bond and bound with white ribbons so that it would hang from an amethyst tie tack of my design that accompanied it.

Myself I chose October, but since no one had volunteered to do Sept. I took a silly poem from my friend Echick and used her monkey avatar as comedy relief for September.

It had a little whimsical touch too, the mouse on the bottom right corner of March, you flipped the page over and there was a cute little message on the back from Monique.

Some of the signatures where emailed or snail mailed to me for scanning and adding to the pages.

Jan ~Lea

Enjoy the silence,
the freezing night - Just stay,
watch the northern lights.

* February~The Batty One

At 4 AM I'm sleepless, yet dreaming:
slowly walking at the rivers edge.
A wishing star falls from the frozen February sky
and fro a moment I'm no longer alone.

March~Monique

Cold: then you arrived.
Melting, felt love bloom for you.
Ecstasy, sweet heat.

April~Queen Tiye

For Keith: A haiku Duet
Ancient as the moon
Resplendent shining glory
Shows forth in your mien.

Proud son of glory
Whispers of the ancestors
Name you their great hope.

* May~Tina

Fantasy and dream is he.
Seen from a distance.
A smile, a look, inviting.

* June~Scorpio True

Our stars don't align
But nonetheless I dare to
Wish that you were mine.

July~Kimmer

Birthday cake, birthday candles
Merrily we age.
Mama said there's be days like this,
Getting older's all the rage.
Hope you have a wonderful birthday!

August~Betsy

Strolling on a deserted beach, the summer sun setting low
The Ocean's voice echoing softly in my ears and harmony all a glow
The delicate taste of summer air and a gentle breeze caressing my face
You are my dream, my one desire in such an enchanted place.

* September~Echick

A chick who obeys
My new shirt covered in drool,
My weak heart flutters

October~L.D.Neill

Original art

Peaceful, powerful,
Fall entreats diversity,
Death brings renewal.

* November~ Mare Serenitatis

Handsome and clever,
Lion heart, warrior genes-
perfect Nietzschean.

* December~Lil

Photo edit by L.D.Neill

A voice that commands
Eyes that melt the hardest heart
Awe inspiring mind.

"*" indicate the illustrations/pictures that I contributed.

Birthday Calendar 2003

This year was a little smoother as the participants all sent me their own illustrations.

The format changed to landscape only for the second and third renditions, printed on full sized photo glossy paper, the illustrations and date pages where printed separately. The pages, some sent in to the office by the members, where to be positioned in the plastic sheet protectors that I bound together with shortened key chains.

You will note that on a few of the months there is a smaller version of the above picture/illustration, this was to insure that the put upon staff of Warrior Poets had an easy time of matching the separately sent pictures with the proper month.

Tincture to the pages where added for posting on the web only.

January~Lea

It's the love you meet
is reflection of you
you are the center of wheel

Watch to my eye to
see yourself there-
all is reflection of you.

February~Glenna

It is said"
Failure is divided into
Two categories
Those who thought and
never did, and those
who did and never thought.

May your imagination
free your mind giving
you the gift of freedom
to dream the impossible.
May you obtain your
freedom by daring to
Dream!

March~Onelove

No publicly published poem.

April~MaidMotherCrone

Above the snow
we are covered in,
it may be still
so cold it hurts
to breathe.

But underneath,
we are
every one fallow
earth dreaming,
only waiting for
wise warm hands
to turn us
lush and live,
to turn us
into Spring.
January 27, 2003--K Kahan

May~L.D.Neill

Pooh!

June~Roz

"This is where we use to come. To just breathe....
We would converse on whatever we wished.
WE would contemplate our dreams and fates.
We would bathe in these waters. Alone or together.
Come back to breathe. Relax...Be free...Once more....With me.

July~Stilletto

Panther
Prowling, hunting, sleeping, growling
Sleek Blackness
Quickens my pulse
Warms my blood
Majestic Beauty
Consumes me, overcomes me and turns me
I am the cat
Prowling hunting, sleeping, growling

August~Magess

Tower picture by
"Neal Friedenthal"

Strung over the world and through
like silk
lines
spread locomotive life

Cross in concentration.

Almost magical
man, a
consummate consumer drinks in these streams,
to power

Would drain the Earth
to power

Would chase the point perspective
to power

Seeks convergence
against entropy

Work.
Energy.
Power.

September~Flechete

Nothing that I can do will change the structure
of the universe. But Maybe, by raising my voice
I can help the greatest of all causes - goodwill
among men and peace on earth.
Albert Einstein

October~Aurora

Amber Eyes in Fall
Seeking truths of Life and Times
Find Love Autumn's Bliss

November~MaidMotherCrone

For Keith Hamilton Cobb
in November

O you dark bard, you
amber-eyed troubadour,
your voice speaks songs
our bones know.
So tell us heady galliards,
eloquent pavanes, and
watch us go--
merry leaves dancing
down the smoky wind
on the knife-edge
of seasons changing.
Hear us singing
in our many tongues
and smile.
This is one of
your songs.

11/25/2002--k.kahan

December~3eyes

A cold breath
Soft winter light
Sun rising
from death
Dawn banishes
the night

Birthday Calendar 2004

By this time one would think I could do this in my sleep.

It's never easy getting 12 volunteers to produce on schedule.

FortunatelyThe KHC Fantastic Fan Board was set up for posting the proceedings.

Unfortunately 3eyes the member who donated the page for Dec. of 2003 passed away suddenly.

In addition to a calendar cover of the map of the world showing where all the contributors lived, the birth dates of all contributors added to the calendar pages, a memorial page was added for our beloved 3eyes.

Many thanks to Ingrid for helping finance this years calendar.

January~Poem: Lil

Picture by Brigitt

What ever the cost
you stand by your principles
sticking to your guns

February~Jun

Yuki no michi, kado o magareba, kantsubaki.
(Along a road covered with snow,
Walked to turn the corner,
Found a flower of camellia.)

March~Captain Sherry

"...darkness
cannot drive out darkness..
only light can do that..."
Martin Luther King Jr.

April~Ingrid

April, month of fools

The month of April
lay before you
her bed made
of early spring

Make love to all the
days of April
let her heat you
with her touch

And be a fool not only
for the first day
but until the last
a fool in love

In the luscious month of April

May~MaidMotherCrone

A Love-song for May Day

Come, O Love,
like Spring
through open windows,
wearing the night
on your hair,
moonlight snarled in
your beard and
full in your eyes.
Beneath your skin
your heart beats the
rhythm of Beltane
drums, your blood
a bonfire singing
Rise! Wake!
Melting winter from
my bones like
drowsing eart and
cold stone, called
by portents of
thorn and blossom
from dreams
both blameless
and wild,
back into the sun
and sweet green
shadows.

June~Mare Serenitatis

The scent of moist soil
after a summer rain,
children smashing your window
with their ball,
a blackbird's song at dawn,
a rose's scent and a bee's hum
or the velvet midnight sky
full of stars:

it's the superfluous things in life
that we need to truly be alive.

July~Poem Queen Tiye

Picture: TravelerOf TheWay

Kiss the Sun
Oh noble one!
Know that your journey has begun.

Or shall I say
Arise today
Let the shackles fall away?

You know you know
The Divine bids you GO
Blaze the trail others follow.

So GO! We await
Your glorious gait
Quit Medhyo's Halls before its too late!

August~Lea

Don't ignore the world-
Even weeds have nice flowers
If you watch them close .

September~Magess

An apple
Round
Red in luscious life.
This seed of life this vessel of potential.
Sweet fruit of satisfying bite.
So wholesome they are brought in supplication to a teacher as gift. Come children and let us open our books and learn of paradise lost.
We still feel the rotted fall, still bear the tender bruises of this bitter fruit.
Bitter fruit..
This very temptation which could not be ignored
Simple, unassuming fruit of knowledge which flowed sweet juice over Eve's naïve lips.
And then she knew death.
Forbidden secrets blossomed in her mind and by fiery sword suffering began.
Damned fruit, dark apple, and still so sweet.
Such flesh that should not be denied.
To taste, to draw and suck, not miss a single drop.
Sweet and sticky.
Or juice straining in vats like wine, fermenting.
To be drunk dancing on sharp cider by the trees.
Drunk dancing close to warm bodies.
To touch and kiss warm flesh, the apples urge.
Press and roll, the midnight waters run, inviolate flesh no more, eaten to the core.
Dark secrets, sweet and bitter fruit.

October~L.D.Neill

When you give love,
It's the gift you give yourself.

November~Poem Santaman

Illustration Cami

Last rays of the sun, shining on me, winter is coming.
Trees are standing there, no leaves on their branches,
a cold wind brings in the dark clouds obscuring the
sky.
It is early but the sun has already set time to switch
on the lights and look outside, see the first snow
falling. It is winter, short cold days, freezing nights,
no warmth out there but we find it inside.

December~Karin

Twas the night before Christmas and all through Jabot
Came the sound of someone with a cast on his toe.
The clumping and stomping could wake up the dead
But Visions of brownies danced in his head.
He'd hidden the brownies deep back in a drawer,
And now he was nearing his laboratory door.
In went the key and he turned on the light,
But oh he was met with a most dreadful sight!
Beakers and test tubes all over the floor,
Cleaning this up would be quite a chore!
But over in the corner....there! What is that?
It looks like one of those strange stocking caps.
The kind with bells and colored string,
Now who would wear that kind of a thing?
The sound of a giggle came through the air,
He looked around and saw her in his favorite chair
"Well Damon, I see you've found me out.
I came to see what all the fuss was about.
I've had quite enough of eggnog and pie,
It's your special brownies I'm longing to try."
Phyllis, oh Phyllis! Why make such a mess?
But I'm glad to see you I must confess.
I broke my toe while learning to ski,
The thought of the brownies is what comforted me.
So Phyllis and Damon laughed through the night,
Eating the brownies he'd stashed out of sight.
It's the best way to spend the holiday season,
With your friends and loved ones without needing a reason.
So spend time with your family, your friends and your pet.
It's the spirit of Christmas - not the presents we get.
May this month be filled with holiday cheer.
The feeling that comes when your loved ones are near.

Birthday Calendar 2005

A lass it was time to hand the reigns over to Lea. After all, it was her baby to start with and her skills had improved over the years. I myself tried to avoid doing anything for the calendar but my month of Oct. was still not taken by the deadline so quickly I edited a photo edit from earlier in the year. Rather than a poem, a tongue twister.

Here

Birthday Calendar 2006

I only did the web layout and the month of October for this calendar.

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