February is National Haiku Writing Month, or NaHaiWriMo for short.

During NaHaiWriMo, people pledge to write one haiku every day for the month of February.

This may not seem like a difficult task. After all, a haiku is just three little lines. Plus, I’ve been posting haiku on my haiku web site, Haiku By Two, for the past three years.

But in recent months, I’ve often struggled to get my ideas into haiku. After so many successful months of haiku’ing, I felt like I was losing my haiku muscle.

NaHaiWriMo has come along just in time. I’m pledging to the cause and I hope, in doing so, that I’ll be able to rekindle my creativity.

Head to the NaHaiWriMo Facebook page to learn more about the event.

And by all means, check out my NaHaiWriMo thread on Haiku by Two to see how my resolution plays out.

Are the holidays over yet?

In the past four weeks, I have surely eaten more than my fair share of cookies, candies, breads and just about anything else that converts to pure sugar as soon as it enters my blood stream.

And we still have New Year’s yet to celebrate! Ugh.

I know what I need. A workout.

Luckily, I know just the place to go. About a month ago, before I really started in on the holiday binge, I tried a new workout: BarreAmped.

It just about knocked me to the floor. But right about now, I’m thinking that’s exactly what I need to get rid of these excess calories I’m building up.

If you’re searching for a new workout, too, check out my article: Blanaced Barre & Pilates Opens in Wayzata.

Or go straight to the Balanced Barre & Pilates web site to sign up for a class.

I got to try something new this summer. And I got paid to do it.

I took an early morning spin on a stand up paddle board, and this article — A New Way to See the Lake — was the  result.

The fine ladies of Wai Nani Surf & Paddle taught me the ropes. Their stand up paddle boarding club is a big hit in the Lake Minnetonka area, and after trying it out, I could see why. It was a calm way to enjoy the water, and wasn’t hard to learn how to maneuver the board at all.

In fact, I’m one of those pictured paddle boarders out there in the middle of the lake.

A bright spot in my spring was getting to meet Sigourney Weaver.

Ms. Weaver came through Minneapolis as part of the Smart Talk women’s lecture series. I was a featured blogger for Smart Talk this year, and getting to meet Ms. Weaver was a great finale to a wonderful series of events. I couldn’t believe how tall she was!

And of course I posted haiku about Sigourney Weaver‘s talk.

I also taught English composition courses at a local technical college this spring. I’d forgotten what a chore it is to grade papers! That task kept me out of trouble — almost.

I did find time to escape to San Diego.

And my haiku’ing partner, Alison, and I were interviewed about our haiku habit by another haiku-minded site. Check out the finished interview here: Five Questions for Haiku By Two.

I survived winter! Granted, I’ve lived my whole life in Minnesota, so I’m used to the long drag of dark and chilly months that comprise winter in these parts, but this year it feels like a major accomplishment to have outlasted winter. We had so much snow! What was the final count? 90 inches? Almost 90? Just over 90? Well, you get the idea. There was a lot of white stuff covering the ground.

A key to surviving a snowy winter is to keep busy and not let the snow stop you from getting out there and having fun, and I tried to do just that.

It helped that I had a monthly date to attend the Smart Talk Connected Conversations lecture series in Minneapolis.

As an official Smart Talk blogger, I got to go backstage and meet the amazing women who came to town, like Bette Midler, Alison Levine, and Isabella Rosellinni.

I penned haiku about each of the events that you can read on Haiku By Two.

Luckily, the speaker series isn’t done yet and I still have a couple more events too look forward to this spring.

I also continued to review restaurants for Metro Mix, a web site about all the great things to do in the Twin Cities. And I kept up with my freelancing business by continuing to write articles for my regular publications.

Now that spring seems like it might actually be ready to appear, I’m feeling re-energized. The extra hours of sunlight are helping me dream up new projects. I’m excited to see what spring has to bring.

I picked up a new writing assignment penning restaurant reviews for Metro Mix Twin Cities.

One of my first assignments back in August was to try all the new foods at the Minnesota State Fair. The list was long and included deep-fried bologna on a stick (pictured) and deep-fried pig ears (they weren’t that bad).

I’ll also be blogging for the Smart Talk lecture series in Minneapolis. The lecture series doesn’t start until January, but I’m already excited.

I’ve been attending this lecture series for years so transitioning into a role where I’m writing about it will be a snap. This year’s line up of speakers includes Bette Midler, Isabella Rossellini, Sigourney Weaver, Ann Compton and Alison Levine.

I’ll get to go back stage to meet all of the speakers before their events. Then I’ll blog about the whole experience on my “er files” blog. I’m also going to try and write haiku about each event, which I’ll post on Haiku By Two.

And speaking of Haiku By Two, the site has seen a jump in its daily readership. It’s averaging about 400 visitors a day. At least twice a week that number hits 450. In the grand scheme of things, I know that’s just a drop in the bucket compared to what, say, The New York Times sees in one day. But for a little ol’ haiku site . . . well, Alison and I are quite proud.

Promise you’ll stop by and check it out.

My web site is getting a face lift!

Stay tuned throughout the summer months.

Pages will be re-posted, links will be added and details will be tweaked.

So exciting!