Wow! Another month of 2022 has wrapped-up already. I know February is the shortest month, but sheesh, it really flew by!
I want to give one last February shout-out to Sandra, from What Sandra Thinks for providing an inspiring list of prompts for the month. They were very open ended which provided nice flexibility of interpretation. While, I made some additional posts in addition to the daily prompt posts, it was nice to have a regular source of inspiration each day.
Here is a recap of the top three posts and the worst performer (based on number of views) for February.

No. 1: Get Your Golden Shovel (series)
The Stats: 67 views for top post (200+ views for all posts in the series)
The Gist: A poetry collaboration series based on the Golden Shovel form. Members of the writing and blogging community joined to provide some very creative content.
The Take-away: What a blast! I was super happy with the collaboration and had a fun time myself. This series will be back (in a slightly modified format for poetry month in April). Stay tuned and I encourage you to give it a try (it’s a great form for both established poets and newbies).

No. 2: Apples Eating Zebras
The Stats: 30 views
The Gist: A poem! This is actually another Golden Shovel poem but not part of the above mentioned series. I kinda got addicted to the form and was playing around with it on an ad-hoc basis.
The Take-away: I adore this poem. It was supper fun to write and even more fun to share. Thanks for all of the appreciation received. If you missed this one be sure to check it out!

No. 3: Daily Droppings: “You Knew?”
The Stats: 29 views
The Gist: This was the first post in the new series “Daily Droppings” which sourced its inspiration from Sandra of What Sandra Thinks. The prompt for this post was “You Knew?”. It tells the tale of a very serious violation of privacy.
The Take-Away: I’m not sure why this one performed stronger than the others in the series. Perhaps it’s just a result of being the first and getting a few extra views throughout the month.

The Flop: Daily Droppings: “Title”
The Stats: 6 views
The Gist: A shameless promotion of my five indie published titles.
The Take-away: You all apparently don’t appreciate shameless promotion. But I ask you, as an independent writer, how else to spread the word of my babies? It’s quite the dilemma. On the positive side, I did manage one sale this month (up from 0 for the past six months)! While the timing suggests it wasn’t related to this post, I’ll take it as a silver lining.
Be well,
Monty

- Patterns in the RoundBe well, Monty
- The Wanna-BelieverToday I pray for the first time,As a wanna-believer,For a taste of life’s colorful palette;To feel your love, your acceptance;To accept that I’m worthy ofContinue reading “The Wanna-Believer”
- The Heretic (an essay of sorts)For the most part, I don’t give a shit about results anymore. I know, I’m a heretic. Especially at work where the mantra is all’sContinue reading “The Heretic (an essay of sorts)”
- Sweet or Savory?I always thought I was sweet, but lately I’m wondering if I’m more savory. We are ultimately all complex in temperament and taste so notContinue reading “Sweet or Savory?”
- Playing with Tea TimeI’m playing. At times I may call myself an author, a poet, an illustrator, or other such titles, but at my essence I’m a childContinue reading “Playing with Tea Time”
- Running Free (a Paint Chip Poem)No Love For Fatties invites us to join in on her Paint Chip Poetry by creating our own poem inspired by the paint chip colorsContinue reading “Running Free (a Paint Chip Poem)”
- 我爱你 (I Love You)This is a culmination of my recent work exploring the use of Chinese characters and exploring “found patterns”. 我爱你,meaning “I love you” and pronounced “woContinue reading “我爱你 (I Love You)”
- Abundance of Love (爱)These images were created by writing in script the Chinese character “爱” (pronounced “ai”, meaning love) and repeating/overlapping in various configurations. This is a follow-upContinue reading “Abundance of Love (爱)”
- 我 Found PatternThis image was created by writing in script the Chinese character “我” (meaning “I”) and rotating it in four directions, repeated four times. Those ofContinue reading “我 Found Pattern”
- Awaiting6:06 am MondayI’ve been up for sixty-six minutes. The air conditioning unit is already working hard. Downstairs the TV is blaring. I snuck down toContinue reading “Awaiting”
- Dancing with FansBe well, Monty
- Another Time10:57am Sunday morning. I was supposed to speak to my brother today but he was a no show. I wrote him a poem a weekContinue reading “Another Time”
- Winter’s ScenesBe well, Monty
- Turned On3:32amSitting in the broken darknessTyping by the glare of a screen that’s well past its bed time, turned onBy my restless mind and compliant touchUsuallyContinue reading “Turned On”
- More Found PatternsBe well, Monty
- Hand WorkBe well, Monty
- Slipping Out of My MindThis is not a poem. These are my words slipping out of my mind onto the page. Escaping the cage of needing to mean somethingContinue reading “Slipping Out of My Mind”
- Found PatternsBe well, Monty
- Found PatternsBe well, Monty
- Cherished (a Paint Chip Poem)No Love For Fatties invites us to join in on her Paint Chip Poetry by creating our own poem inspired by the paint chip colorsContinue reading “Cherished (a Paint Chip Poem)”
- PerhapsPerhaps I am a yellowed and creased paper with a bold headline announcing a Monday from yesteryear’s breaking news. Perhaps I am a spider, crushedContinue reading “Perhaps”
- FigurativelyBe well, Monty
- “Re-Souled”He spoke of a soft heart;Of kindness and acceptance;Supple from hard use,Like a pair of well-worn boots;More than once “re-souled”. His face familiar,This man, aContinue reading ““Re-Souled””
- “Re-Souled”He spoke of a soft heart;Of kindness and acceptance;Supple from hard use,Like a pair of well-worn boots;More than once “re-souled”. His face familiar,This man, aContinue reading ““Re-Souled””
- Art at PlayBe well, Monty
- Within the WallsI slept within the wallsSqueezed between the heavy plasterSmothered by insulation andTangled in wires A kick of my healBreaks through into yellowed lightExposing studs fromContinue reading “Within the Walls”
- Working at ArtBe well, Monty
- Moody Waters (a Paint Chip Poem)No Love For Fatties invites us to join in on her Paint Chip Poetry by creating our own poem inspired by the paint chip colorsContinue reading “Moody Waters (a Paint Chip Poem)”
- Warning LabelJust me pondering “what if?” What if I came with a warning label?Fine print of legalese oversharing about the unwanted side effects that you riskContinue reading “Warning Label”
- Sweets (a Paint Chip Poem)No Love For Fatties invites us to join in on her Paint Chip Poetry by creating our own poem inspired by the paint chip colorsContinue reading “Sweets (a Paint Chip Poem)”
- Lady in WoodBe well, Monty