Winners 12/19/2011

Judges! Thanks a lot, really, your commitment is making this process very easy, you amazing fast organized people, thanks for your efforts, and for the amazing different tastes too! Great picks for this week XD
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edited

Winners & H'ms

**Britt
**Dollwithafrown
**Girl

-Sybillene
-Thomas
-Melissa
-Abed (Lebanese Pheonix)
-Everlasting
-Jenni
-Narphangu
-Karla

Brittney, way to go girl, you won countless times on the other account! But I can't remember the exact number, however since you joined back you won once and this is your second, despite of the many H'ms...Well done
"Listen to me" is a very well written poem, that moved 3 judges and hence you snatched the 1st place by obtaining 21 points! The highest score this week.

As for the 2nd place, congratulations for Dollwithafrown, your 3rd win since 2011-11-10. Beautiful poem for this week, and beautiful avatar!

3rd place was taken by my beautiful Girl, such !a great poem Meme, loved it so much, well done your 1st ! Make sure it's not your last, keep writing!

********Comments and Votes***********

Listen To Me (10+4+7 )= 21
by Britt

" nakedness of vulnerability"
that phrase right there, made this piece for me,not to add that the write speaks in such a self-assure tone,this tiny stanza held such wisdom, such power,such strength.it is the perfect description of the state in which one closes a chapter to start another

"No longer will I be led by heartache,
but I will be followed by wisdom."

this write has what one would call
"personal-growth" written all over it
it is to move on,it is acceptance,
what a beautiful,spirit lifting write..
Miss Britt really out did herself here,
I'm inlove. (10)
----

Some titles work some don't, some can make and break.The title of this poem helps make what is a very good poem even better, and for me is the crux of the poem. Having said that it doesn't end there. The first four lines are strong and grab the reader pushing the reader forward. Well done a strong message.(4)

----
What a quote!!! How much positivity and rawness this has really made me think. I feel this way, and it just made me listen.This poetess is brilliant beyond brilliant in making the reader really feel something. (7)

************************************

Drunken Lullabies (7+7)= 14
by Dollwithafrown

Your rhetoric is fantastic. What I found especially enjoyable was the use of contradicting terms which was very consistent throughout the entire poem. Related to this, I even felt stabs of melancholy reading this, however there was always a small gleam of hope the entire time.

"Must we starve on crumbs from long ago,
to break our sorry past?
Must we use our fears to guide us,
like a sculptor uses hands?
Must we swim to the end of the ocean,
just to see if there's any hope of another existence?"
Beautiful (7)

----
"Midnight's the most delicate of times, where even
the devil can raise his hand for a glass of water."
^
BRILLIANT.

I don't know where to start, explaining all the things I want to say about this piece it is so refreshing,this writer plays with her words so so so good, it is unbelievable.

by matching the most unusual things with each other..
"unripe earth."
"brittle skin"
"callow eyes"

this write has a high level of creativity, and although it is in the friendship section it could be interpreted in so many levels.. I was hooked from the beginning, and props to the people who nominated this Jewel,what fine taste. (7)

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An Old Photo Album
by Girl

Pure Magic! The first stanza was a little difficult to get my head around, but once I did I saw brilliance because it was well thought out and a great quote too!
I loved the concept of looking at the past and someone special and realizing how much that person was there. The ending made me think that maybe
you had grown apart from him in some way. Awesomeness! (10)

************H'ms With 10 points*************

As most poets do
by Thomas

Very worth of recognition and my top pick for the week. A short poem but full of depth, your use of language was cleverly phrased yet simple, to create a powerful uncluttered poem. The second and third stanza's are your most effective tying the whole poem together. The structure with the three lined stanza's is also very effective, yet each stanza is able to stand alone yet all are interlinked, culminating in a powerful finish, well done. (10)
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Procrastinator Mantra
by Narphangu

Narphangu. You are something special. I get a sense that there was either sleep deprivation or caffeine involved in the writing of this poem. Could be wrong but this feels a lot like stream-of-conciousness writing...
like everything that came to your head was written with a non-stop flow like a waterfall. Regardless of the manner in which you wrote it, it is fantastic.
An extremely unique and intriguing write. It kept me on my toes and made me smirk quite a bit - more so than any poem I've read this week.(10)

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Colors of an uncut diamond
by Everlasting

This one struck me as the outstanding poem of the week, very uniquely crafted, in the way the poetess used the symbolism of "colors" to metaphorically depict
the changing moods of a girl recovering from heartbreak. The blues (depression) are gone, "the pink abounds" (feelings of love are back), though there is still a "tiny bit of black" that remains (some doubts/suspicion remain) presumably from a prior relationship gone sour. Then she goes on to project caution (the color green)
when entering a new relationship with a desire to retain self-control (a whole lot of grey) rather than plunge headlong again in a relationship, which may or may not work out.

It is really a well thought of poem, presented as a riddle, to project those delicate emotions in a way that only a girl can imagine, with a finesse that a good writer needs to have.

The concluding stanza is again a brilliant piece of art, the way she etches the lines "a raw diamond without shape" (i.e. uncut diamond) waiting for that diamond cutter (right lover), who can give her the
"shape" (love again). This poem, by combining the color symbolism to reflect the changing moods of a girl who has just recovered from a bruising loss, and ready to love again, truly won my heart. (10)

**********H'ms with 8 points***************

Thistle
by Sibyllene (4+4)= 8

This write had my attention since last week,so taking in consideration that last week was very hard and this poem would roll over, It gets my vote now.

Sibs has mad skills,
and she had my heart in her hands
when I reached this ;

"Little thistle, wild and wary:
too sharp to ever be plucked,
too cutting to be crushed
by a wavering heel,
too careful, far too careful
to be loved
by anything at all. "

the repetition at the ending only added even more emotion to an already heartfelt write..
Its like you want to pluck the little thistle up and just love it..even though it is too careful to be loved.

I don't think this poem is just about a simple thistle though, I believe there is so much depth to it,
If I was to say what I understood, from my point of view.
this write can go out to anyone who ever felt like they
were too troublesome to be loved, too undeserving,
it even had me thinking about the quote

"love me when I deserve it the least,because its then
when I need it the most" but that's just my humble opinion. Such vulnerability and tenderness in one little poem...

Way to go sibs! (4)
----

Another brilliant nature poem, craftily written, on nature's beauty (thistle flower) that comes with its thorns (protectors). The flower, a delight to look at, is unlovable (unlikable), and is best left alone in
its natural environment (weeds). The thistle flower though lovely, come with its 'thorns", for which the poetess has done an admirable job of depicting their beauty and the blight that will even make the Scottish envious. Deserving nomination and possible win,
for a talented write. (4)

*********H'ms with 7 points**************
All the poems
by Melissa

Sadness want frustration immediately spring to mind when I read this poem, making the reader almost want to reach out and touch this frosty subject and shake him to the core of what is before them.
A beautifully crafted piece. The gift of a good poet is to be able to touch the reader and portray what they are feeling, seeing. You won't touch everyone all of the time, with this you did me. (7)
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Our winter
by Jenni

Another deserving poem, by Jenni, this week, who seems to have mastered the art of sad poetry, in a very short time. The poem's title "Our winter",
so aptly describes the wintry emotions between lovers, using "November's wounds" to capture the emotionally "bleak December".
The choice of words using wintry feelings to symbolize the frozen relationship is astute, and you as a reader can feel the emotion laden chill deep within. The outcome, "that our winter might last", and poem ending note, "but to be honest I do not miss you any less", is uniquely
written, suggesting she is going to truly miss him. It is difficult to select just one stanza that stands out, as each is well thought of and the poem as a whole has a great flow and does so well to capture the gloomy sentiments
of a break-up. This stanza particularly stands out to me:

With tears freezing
upon your heart
I ponder, wondering
whether you and me
is all we'll ever be
or if it might turn
into us.. again.

The hopes of an"us", is what can bring true lovers together, and rekindle love again. The "you" and "me" is what will snuff out the embers again. A very "affective" write, deserving of a win, in my opinion (7)

************H'm with 4 points**************
7 Checkpoints
by Lebanese Phoenix

It almost feels ridiculous to only give this a 4 but it was such a strong week. I didn't fully understand the meaning of this but I understood it was a love lost between light and darkness and reminiscence of past times and heartache.
Unique, Strong, Unusual but Clever (4)

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Unreadable Beings
by Karla

I will get the bad news out of the way.

"You bite me and blow me,
looking at me with eyes
squeezed by doubts:
I need this vague blackness
in your blue eyes.
I need the moon forever hungry
or asleep on your lap."

I didn't enjoy the wording in this stanza, it seemed to rough when compared with the rest of the poem which I take to have a very deep and delicate sensual meaning.

The rest of the poem was fairly strong. I found some of the line breaks to be a bit jarring but I found myself looking past this because your writing are almost magical at times.

The tragedy in this poem is something that many of us have felt, and that we all CAN feel. You've brought the topic to life in a way that not all can. There is something masterful about that.

I especially liked this:

"You have two faces
and both hide my Venus and your Mars
naked and abandoned
when our words rise and fight
for what you can't give me today. (4)

Ms Sunshine

Thank you judges for the win :) Thanks to Yaki for her little prompt she threw out to MMers... thats how I wrote that piece.

Congrats to the other winners and HM's as well. Thanks Nana!

"'Midnight's the most delicate of times, where even
the devil can raise his hand for a glass of water.'
^
BRILLIANT."

YES.

Congrats to winners and HMs. This was a great week for poetry, it seems.

Congrats to the winners and HMs and thank you for the HM too. :)

Indeed, great poems
Congrats

Great work, Judges, you picked some good ones.
Congratulations, folks.

Congratulations and well done winners and HM's! :] Great job and thank you judges for all the hard work!

Congrats all to the winners and HM's!!!

Well done!

x

Congratz errybody!

Congrats dudes and dudettes. :)

Meme.. Britt..Dollwithafrown
and all other HMers ;)

Honestly speaking, I would have preferred KARLA's also to be on the front page. It is........ breathtaking, mind blowing.. fo shizzle its bizzel!

"It is........ breathtaking, mind blowing.. fo shizzle its bizzel!"

Hahaha, how eloquently put.

Hahaha :p

Wow. Didn't even know my poem was on the list! Thanks for the HM!

Congrats to the winnahs and the other HMs, too!
Thanks Nana for posting! You're Sunsational. :P

Sunsational
^
hahahahahaha that was really funny lol, creative girl :P

Congratulations everyone, great work. :)

Woah, thank you so much! Congrats to the other winners and HMs, also. Wonderful work. c:

Congrats winners, it's great seeing you on the front page. Also to the Hm's for some rockin' poems.

A clap for the judges and Sunshine, your dedication each week is awesome.

Congrats!

Congrats everyone!

..

Congrats, winners and HM's.

Congrats winners & HMs

Yaay :)
And much thanks to all the judges.

Congratulations to the other winners and HM's, for all the great poems.

Finally, thanks nana for keeping us updated, luv ya !!

Congration winners and HM's :)

Congratulations, poets! The judges have been very much "on the ball" so far. It's really nice.

One note - I think the last section of the first comment on my "Thistle" poem actually belongs to the diamond poem by Everlasting right above me.

Well done all invloved :)

Sibs : It seems like it. Thanks for the note.

Thankk you sibsib, edited XD and sorry my mistake :]

Congrats all winners and HM's. It seems that there was a 4-way tie again for the 3rd place (10 pts each) between:
An Old Photo Album by Girl
As most poets do by Thomas
Procrastinator Mantra by Narphangu
Colors of an uncut diamond
by Everlasting

The computer chose the 3rd winner probably based on some criteria.
The scores suggest that 4/5 judges best scores (10) were not shared/supported by any other judge. Definitely, raises a question mark on an antiquated scoring system, that needs to be updated.

^Agreed.

I think Sibs is looking into this one at the moment. I brought it up last week and, as far as I know, she was going to ask Janis how a poem is actually selected when there is a tie situation.

Here is a copy of my original suggestions (12-9-11) I sent to the mods in the hope they will post a discussion as to how to make judging more fair:

All the poems on the nomination should be voted on, not just the 3 best one's. The scoring could be on a 1-5 scale as follows:

1= subpar
2= average
3= Above average
4= Superior/Very Good
5= Outstanding/Excellent

When judges vote on all the poems it allows for a much closer competetion, a lot more fairness when total scores are calculated, and a dilution of favoritism or pay back wins (it does exist in our psyche, regardless of how much we pretend to be fair).

Here are addl. suggestions to the above:

1) Judges should only be allowed to use 5 x 2, 4 x 2, (or any similar scheme by consensus) but can use 3,2,1 unlimited times, to score all the nominated poems. The limitation on use of 5's and 4's will disallow the judges picking a 5 for all their winners (was a concern of one of the mods).
This way an individual judge will not be pressured to pick just 1 top and 1 second poem, as with more and more good quality poems, it is probably increasingly difficult for them to pick just 1 top poem.

2) As all the other remaining 4 judges will also be forced to vote on your top rated poems (the two 5's and the two 4's), ties would be very unlikely.....though by laws of probability, every once in a while (not every week) it may happen. At which point, one can use other criteria such as counting the # of votes/comments to break the tie.

I am curious what other senior (and junior)members who have been here a long time think about this suggestion, or if this has been already hashed and trashed in the past, then let it go out again.

I think it gets a little confusing... But in the end it does seem better than what we have. It may be trickier to explain it to judges and get the hang of it, having so many judging. They're suppose to read every poem as is so it shouldn't be too much more work.. though it does sound like a lot.

When judges vote on all the poems it allows for a much closer competetion, a lot more fairness when total scores are calculated, and a dilution of favoritism or pay back wins (it does exist in our psyche, regardless of how much we pretend to be fair).

^^^^

I'm going to agree with this statement. When Sibs compiled a list on another thread showing all the weekly winners going back to March of this year there were only two non-club members who had won.
I've said that first because I feel it's relevant to what you propose as a new scoring system and...I don't see how it will make much difference? I don't really see the difference between giving a poem a 1 or just disregarding it all together. Yeah..it may look like the judges have read it but....they could just have skimmed it also.

There is a member still on this site who was told they would never win the weekly contest and...to date they never have. Nothing to do with their poetry...some of it is outstanding but...this person fell in with the right crowd and then fell out with them...yes...before you all jump on your boxes...it was in the past but..just my example about how things still work on this site today...you're popular or you're not....it's that simple.

"..you're popular or you're not....it's that simple."

actually that's not completely true...
I've seen people win that are almost never around..
that never post here..that never say anything :x
or are they popular behind the walls?... ha..

Maybe not but...there's a very good chance they are in some club or another!

I think most judges accept the position with full intention of being as fair as possible. That is why they are chosen. Any subconscious, natural bias cannot really be helped.

However, the suggested new scoring system would certainly provide a closer and more illuminating contest. I like its cleverness. Two poems that would normally only score a single 10 each could now score a 5+3+3+3+3 and 5+1+1+2+1, giving more delineation. The question is will it be worth it. The outcome from this week's contest leads me to think that it will.

As Britt mentioned, judges have to read all poems anyway (bless them). This means they are silently and swiftly forming impressions of them already- and now they give them a quick score. I would find this easy, as long it's only clicking one of five buttons. Another thing I like is that it doesn't force judges to rank poems against each other or give a 5 if they don't want to.

Another question is which poems should judges now comment on, as they are voting on every one. I like the idea of letting the judges choose ANY three poems to comment on- not just the top 3 or 4.

It would be tremendously hard for the mods to display the scoreboard across all the nominations. If Janis could allow ALL members to access the scores on the nominations page, then all nominees could see how well they scored.

So... it's worth thinking about, especially if Janis is being active. But if not, I think the existing system is as fairly fairish.

The people who win most of the time probably just have the best poems most of the time...

That's true Yaks but...we're talking about a tie break here or the prevention of another one????

Oh,my excuses babyqurl....

hmm...maybe they should do something about poems having to have more than a 10 to win.. mhm.