Happy Valentine's Day! Since you’re here at the GeoZone Blog, we assume you are celebrating the occasion in style, so we thought we would give you a special treat—poetry from our technical staff (a.k.a. geeks in residence). The following is a compilation of famous poems given a geospatial spin, songs that never made it, and original works from several of our blog authors and Coastal Services Center staff. Enjoy.

H0w D0 1 L0ve Thee?

by Nate Herold
Based on How Do I Love Thee by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Oh, Binary Data, how do I love thee?
Let me count the ways...0...1.

Hurricane Haiku

by Melissa Ladd

Where were storms near you?
You need Hurricane Tracks Tool!
This Valentine's Day.

An Ode to Metadata

by Matthew Carey

Oh Metadata! How My Love for You Has Grown.
As an undergrad I ignored you so.
Your endless lines of text did not dazzle and excite my mind,
Like the vibrant and voluptuous vectors that I lusted after those many years ago.
As I matured through my graduate experiences I learned that although beautiful,
Those entrancing polygons were meaningless without the data about data I needed so.

When I was lost and abandoned. Not knowing what "fhh_norm_lp" meant to represent.
You embraced me, and tenderly showed me, "Female headed households normalized to the number of light poles" was the author's intent.

It is true that every now and then my appreciation for you dims.
But, with the hair pulling frustration caused by your absence my need for you is shown.
Oh Metadata, how my love for you has grown.

The Electromagnetic Spectrum Reflect Infrared

by John McCombs
Based on Roses are Red

Vegetation reflects infrared
The sky scatters blue
Mid-IR is great for wetlands
Electromagnetic spectrum we love you

Ode to Marine Cadastre

by Cindy Fowler and David Stein

Twinkle, twinkle little app, how I love you ocean map.
Overlay the boundary line, raster vector you combine.
Pulling services near and far, your geo-caching is a star.
Help our country plan for wind, could be CMSP in the end.
Thank you, thank you everyday. You’re our hero in everyway.

Valentine’s Day Data?

by Melissa Ladd

Romantic Night In!
Spent provisioning data?
Spouse begs to differ.

Registry Romance

by Anna Verrill and Nikki Hefner

A GIS file
As romantic as can be
Found in registry

The Tide

by Maryellen Sault

The tide comes in
The tide goes out
Shifting sand, there is no doubt

Mapping the mean high water line
With photography and lidar combined
Creates a detailed accurate vector
That serves as the land and water connector

Ensuring safe navigation
For every generation
Is why I love shoreline mapping
And that, my friend, is worthy of hand clapping!

Shot Through the Heart

by Tashya Allen
Sung to Bon Jovi’s “You Give Love a Bad Name”

Shot through the heart, and you're to blame, Digital Coast
You give products a good domain name

Not just data is what you sell
You promise me tools, then give me all the trainings as well
Applying it has a hold on me
With Stories from the Field, now I can see what’s going on in Ozaukee

You're loaded from soup to nuts, yeah
There's nowhere to run,
No one can save me, the damage is done

Shot through the heart, and you're to blame, DC
You give data a good domain name
Not just land cover for my geography, but by multiple time frames
You give data a good domain name
You give data a good domain name

Your partners have smiles all over their lips
Because their stuff is on your list
A coastal managers dream, it’s like the fourth of July
Your totally awesome site, I can’t say goodbye

Shot through the heart, and you're to blame, DC
You give data a good domain name

My Data is Like a Red, Red Rose

by Nate Herold
Based on My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose by Robert Burns

My data is like a red, red rose
That’s newly sprung in June:
My data is like a melody
That’s sweetly played in tune.

So fair art thou, my Digital Coast,
So deep in love am I:
And I will love thee true, D.C.,
Till all the sea levels rise.

Till all the sea levels rise, D.C.,
And the hurricane tracks all collide:
I will love thee still, D.C.,
Because resilience planning will have saved my hide.

So fare thee well, Dig Coast,
Fare thee well for a minute or days a few.
But I will visit your website again,
And download data and tools anew!
 

Help us make things a little interesting for our staff...Vote for your favorite by placing that poem's name in the comments. Please note: Your comment will be placed in moderation and will not show up immediately.