My friend Mara did some consulting for a real estate remediation project a couple of years ago. A Sherwin Williams store had been one of the first settlers, and that company was supportive when it came to preserving and protecting the underlying Native American shellmound. As a way to decorate the surrounding wall/fence while the work was being done, they figured they’d make haiku out of Sherwin Williams paint colors and affix them to the fence. Mara asked for some verse. She referred me to the “visualizer” part of the Sherwin Williams website. She told me how to do a color search for any word.

It was more fun than refrigerator magnets. I was charmed when I noted that one of the few haiku I’d ever written (posted March 8, 2011) contained two paint colors (wisteria and morning sun):

wisteria blooms
pilloried between fence slats
face the morning sun

It was selected and affixed to the fence.

Also selected was this (using intimate white, wickerwork, and rainwashed):

intimate white left
to age on old wickerwork
in rainwashed comfort

And my favorite (fireworks, still water, distance, salute, and dark night):

fireworks over
still water in the distance
salute the dark night

The project is done now and the fence is no longer there. But I have a pdf of Mara’s report, and it includes pictures of the postings. I’m sorry to say “in” was left out of the last line of the “intimate white” verse. Yeesh. Everyone can count to 17. But so it goes.