by Amy Crocker

Did you know San Francisco had a Poet Laureate? You should. SFist has mentioned her before. Our Laureate, Diane DiPrima, is in charge of putting the spirit of our fair city into iambic pentameter (or free verse, sonnets, odes...it's up to her).

DiPrima was active in the beat generation and has written plays, memoirs and stories over her long career. She will give her inaugural address tonight at the Main Library at the Civic Center. The event begins at 5 p.m. and is free and open to the public. She was named to the post last spring by Mayor Gavin Newsom.

And in honor of this momentous occasion, we propose a haiku contest. Let's keep the subject matter to San Francisco. Will there be a prize for the best one posted below? Probably not, but hey, it's worth a shot. (We might have a BART ticket lying around SFist HQ somewhere. Or not.) Remember, the poems have only three lines, the first with five syllables, then seven, then five.

Here's our entry to get the party started:

Our city is swell
When you can see it, alas!
One point for the fog.

Do better in the comments.