billet-doux

Today's word is

billet-doux

First of all, this isn't a word, it's a phrase, an expression, and obviously not really an English one.  Yeah, okay, it's always good to know what these mean because writers will use them, especially writers of the past.  This one has always felt so corny to me, though.  It's another that feels to me like the person employing it must always be slightly ridiculing the subject to which s/he applies it -- or in this case, the sender or recipient.  Not sure why I feel that way.

At any rate, I am still very behind.  I hope to catch up fully with my posting today or tomorrow, barring catastrophes.  This is a nice quiet week.  Unfortunately, I saved up too many things to do during this nice quiet week!  Ha!  Hoist by my own continuing failure to understand time.

Oh, well.  Thanks for your continuing patience.  And as always, I hope my laggardliness doesn't prevent you from playing!

Later.

*****
12:00 p.m.
Uh...I just realized that this word is actually hyphenated, which of course does make it a word and not a phrase.  Doh.

I still don't like it, though.  But that's me.

More later.

*****
Thursday, December 1, 2005
So after all that public despising of this word/expression, I got in an argument later that day -- no, argument is too nice a word; it was really more like being victimized by someone else's snit -- which inspired this.  (My poetic muse is a twisted little freak, I think.)

Do not send me from the room
with the cranky syntax
of your dark mood,
or if you do,
use the prodigious talents
hiding in your heart
and that impressive cranium
to bring me back.
Craft me some light doggerel
and beam it to me over the wires
or slip a billet-doux
full of big words and naughty ones
under my hurt-closed door.
Make it silly.
Use scented paper
even though you know
it will make me sneeze.
Then respect me
for the rest of the day,
even if my door never opens
until bedtime.

Comments

[melissa]

I'd call it a wordish. It's really a phrase that functions as a word in English.

My lover, Wordreference.com, has it as a word in English and in French as a non-hyphenated phrase.

Still, word or phrase, who wouldn't want to get a couple billet-doux?

[firebird]

Billet-Doux (Haiku) for you:
............................

Let the darkness come!
Sara, for you it is dawn
Always, in your heart

Autumn frosts reveal
Your soul's transparency--in
Backlit reds and golds

Let the darkness come--
In your heart is the sunrise--
Sara, full of grace

[firebird]

Sara, your billet-doux poem is vivid and touching, and I am sure we have all been there! As for your poetic muse being "twisted"-- if it weren't for twisted relationships we would lose most of our reasons for writing.

My little Haiku was written as a thank -you present to you for your hard work, cheerfulness and inspiration, even on crummy days.
Since it kind of is a billet-doux, I posted it on that day.

[Sara]

It's very nice, Firebird. I, of course, am unworthy. But it's a beautiful poem.

And by the way, this is not work, I promise, just exercise, a fun little game for stretching the brain muscles. (Mine have gotten horrifyingly flabby in middle age.) Thanks for playing!

[moose]

Oh, it's late, late, late, but it popped into my head this morning before breakfast without asking, a...

Senryu Called Billet-Doux

a whispered love song
in a small red envelope
for your ears only

[firebird]

I love your little poem, Moose!
I'm confused -- isn't it a haiku?
Please educate me.

[moose]

Senryu is the same 5-7-5 form as haiku, but the content differs. Senryu focuses on human (sometimes humorous), rather than strictly natural/seasonal subject. These forms are apparently hard to pin down and strictly define these days. You can read a lot more about it if you google "senryu."

I'm glad you enjoyed it! Thanks.

[Sara]

Oh, I love it, Moose. :) Sorry it took me so long to respond.

Incidentally, Firebird, I like this site very much for an exploration of the real definitions and differences: http://www.ahapoetry.com/ The Wikipedia entry is also very useful, and succinct: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haiku

There. Now you don't have to google. ;)

[moose]

Thank you, Sara. At one of your links I found a description of the "pivot" which I had not known about (at http://www.ahapoetry.com/tanka.htm — scroll down to look for the description, the anchor link doesn't work). That'll make writing haiku and tankas much more interesting! I'd heard of the pause or cutting word in haiku, but this description of a pivot is intriguing.