Notes to Poem:
Happy Monday!


Preface: While reading the Monday, January 21, 2019 issue of San Jose Mercury News's Sports Section, on the NFL Championship Games won in overtime by the New England Patriots and Los Angeles Rams, a quarter-page ad on page C4 grabbed my attention. The Bay Area News Group invites readers to write about their favorite workplace. They'll publish a special edition in June 2019 on Bay Area's Top Workplaces. The illustration at the bottom showed a coffee cup with the words "Happy Monday!" floating on the top. Since Monday is my favorite day of the week, this poem poured out.

Commentary on Poem: "Happy Monday!"

Mercury News ad of coffee cup
with "Happy Monday!" on surface
greets my day like a buttercup
for "Monday's child is fair of face."

Mercury News
1-21-2019 ad

"Happy Monday!" Coffee Cup
Photo in ad inspiring this poem

5-petals Buttercup
(Ranunculus)

Monday's Child
Nursery Rhyme
"Monday's child is fair of face." begins the poem in Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes that my 8-year-old niece Elisa sang to me back in 1985. "Monday's child is fair of face, / Tuesday's child is full of grace, / Wednesday's child is full of woe, / Thursday's child has far to go, / Friday's child is loving and giving, / Saturday's child works hard for a living, / But the child that is born on the Sabbath day, / Is bonny and blithe, and good and gay." This rhyming poem inspired me to write a rhyming sonnet as the "Happy Monday!" coffee cup conjures a buttercup blooming. Whenever I see buttercups on hike trails, they lift me up, their bright yellow openness embrace me with joy.
Photo Sources: Mercury News Ad (wisdomportal.com); "Happy Monday!" Coffee Cup (wisdomportal.com);
Buttercup (agpest.co.nz); Monday's Child (footnotemaven.com)

After a relaxing week-end
most people don't like to return
to work— but Monday is my friend
that I look forward to and yearn—

Least Favorite Day of the Week
Poll by weddingbee.com

Favorite Day of the Week
Poll by strawpoll.me

Favorite Day of the Week
Poll by goodreads.com
Monday is the least favorite day (51% of 67 votes) polled by weddingbee.com. Saturday is the most favorite day (35% of 53 votes) with Monday at the bottom (2% of 53 votes) polled by Strawpoll.me. Saturday is the most favorite (41.4% of 111 votes) with Monday at bottom (2.7% of 111 votes) polled by goodreads.com.
Photo Sources: Least Favorite Day of the Week (weddingbee.com); Favorite day of the week (strawpoll.me);
Favorite day of the week (Poll by goodreads.com)

It's my favorite day of the week
when Labs are open again—
for me Monday is never bleak
feeling the fresh heavenly rain,

Monday Calendar

Foothill College Krause Center Computer Lab

Mercury & Three Graces
Since I don't have a computer at home, rely on the Mac computers at Foothill College to do my work. After Foothill College closed their Palo Alto Middlefield Campus and moved to Sunnyvale, I've relied on the Mac computers at Foothill College Krause Center, Los Altos Campus. I use Computer #96 to the right of the clock, since BBEdit is installed on that computer, for me to write in HTML. In Botticelli's Primavera (1478), at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Three Graces are dancing to entice Mercury. But he is more focused probing the clouds with his caduceus above the orange tree, to bring down the rain. I imagine myself to be Mercury, not enticed by earthly pleasures,
but in quest of spiritual enlightenment (symbolized by rainfall).
Photo Sources: Monday Calendar (mastergolflivestream.co); Foothill College Krause Center Computer Lab (krauseinnovationcenter.org);
Mercury & Three Graces from Botticelli's Primavera (wisdomportal.com)

writing poems in HTML—
drinking from the old sacred well.

Wishing Well
by Michael Humphries
HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) is the writing code of the Internet.
I've taught HTML at Foothill College (1997-2000). Now, I use it every day, writing poems and haikus, typing Stanford lectures, designing web pages, sharing photos from hikes. My web site WisdomPortal.com had free web hosting for 17 years (1998-2015). It went offline (April 26, 2015) due to excessive hacking. Back online again (May 23, 2019) to share interesting news on poetry and enlightenment. This labor of love is like drinking from an ancient sacred well. The Well has long been associated with spiritual nourishment. Typed "Well Symbolism" from 8 symbolism books in my Library. It is so refreshing learning something new every day, and a great
joy to share wisdom with others. May these Notes add more insights to
my poem. Photo Source: Wishing Well (occultopedia.comm)

— Peter Y. Chou
    Mountain View, 1-24-2018