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Sunday Scribblings #45: Of Orange Skies and Cornerstone Challenges

September 13, 2020

I last scribbled about two weeks ago, and today’s post is an attempt to highlight as always, the days that went past and those ahead. And we lived under orange skies for quite a few of those days past!!

Sunday Scribblings #45: Of Orange Skies and Cornerstone Challenges

Poetic Sundays

The Mini-Monoverse

I spent the last few poetic Sundays traveling the world; and while I will be bringing you forms from different corners again, I will be exploring invented poetic forms. While all forms are invented one way or the other, these forms classified as ‘invented’ are fairly new, and became popular via online poetic communities.

What is the Mini-Monoverse?

Like the name implies, this poetic form is a short verse with short lines. It was invented by Emily Romano, and is a fun verse to try writing.

The Mini-Monoverse’s characteristics

  • has two five-line stanzas or quintains
  • Is syllabic: each line has three syllables
  • Rhymed: stanza 1: a/a/a/a/a; stanza 2: b/b/b/b/b. And if you choose to add another mini-monoverse, then stanza 3: c/c/c/c/c; & stanza 4:  d/d/d/d/d.
  • Story-teller: Ideally, the mini-monoverse tells a story (optional)
h/t:
  • ShadowPoetry (and you can also find great examples of this form – by Emily Romana, the form’s creator – here)

My Example Mini-Monoverse : About Those Orange Skies

My first attempt.

Those Hazy Days
Orange skies
Weird and nice!
Wow! Surprise!
More such cries!
Something flies?

Two or three
Crows maybe,
By that tree?
Hard to see.
Mystery…
-Vidya Tiru

Since I Last Scribbled

I am sure many of you have seen or heard about the orange skies phenomenon that swept the Bay Area early this past week. It was certainly eerie walking under what seemed like Martian skies.

Check out the pics below as I captured the sun shining through a layer of dense smoke on Monday, the 8th of September. The next pic is of the almost blood-red moon on the night of the 8th. And the last one is just one of many pics I took of those now famous orange skies.

The surprising thing was that while the orange skies were a result of all the smoke from the fires around us (we are safe however since the fires closest to us are now contained), we could not smell any smoke on that particular day when the skies made the news. According to what I gleaned from articles, this was because a layer of marine fog had drifted in between the smoke and us earthlings. That fog ensured we did not smell the smoke; and the sun filtering through those two layers created those Martian Orange Skies!

And a note: each of these pics are from the same location (my backyard) pointing at the sky in the same general space.

Orange Skies

My Most Recent Posts

Since my last Sunday Scribblings…

Other Updates

I have always been inspired by other bloggers who seem to have boundless energy; and I always wonder how they do it. So I decided to join two of them, as they host The Cornerstone Content Blog Challenge (for September 2020) Martha and Jeanine are among the best hosts you can expect to have for such a challenge. While it is halfway through the month, feel free to jump in if you want (click on the link for the challenge for details).

I admit I am already playing catch up, and hope to make up for the lost days by mid-week.

cornerstone content

MyPhotoADay

My bookstagram attempts
ONE
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Book Review: The Book of Lost Names by @kristinharmel ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ This was one of those books I wanted to keep reading; and yet wanted to reach the end to find out what happens. A book that gave me all those warm fuzzy feelings and those teary eyed moments. Definitely was not surprised to hear this book sold out and had an official relaunch campaign last week.. Harmel has created wonderful characters, and then proceeded to spin together their stories – of love, sacrifice, of duty and of helping others in need first, of family, of the love of books, and last but, not the least, secret codes and math – into a book that will constantly tug at heartstrings, amaze and inspire as you read it; and then stay with you long after you close it. Perfect for readers who love women’s fiction, WWII fiction, historical fiction, or romance, or books about books; in short, perfect for readers! You can read the complete review on my blog here – https://bit.ly/2Rmr1Pm A big thank you to @netgalley and @gallerybooks for the digital review copy of this book. All opinions are my own. QOTD: Would you rather write secret messages in a numerical code or using a made up language? My answer: I am unable to choose between these two as I do love both numerical codes and made up languages equally well!! . . . #thebookoflostnames #kristinharmel #historicalfiction #historicalromance #netgalley #gallerybooks #ww2 #worldwar2 #ww2france #ladyinreadwrites #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookish #booklover #booknerd #bookworm #bibliophile #bookblogger #bookblog #booklife #readeveryday #alwaysreading #bookrecommendations #bookreviews

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TWO
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Book Review: The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ A truly fascinating read with characters you want to root for. Like with the previous titles that went by ‘The x of Lost x’ that I read recently, the title of this book first grabbed my attention. Who were these lost friends? What information did this book contain? And then the blurb ensured I was going to read this one. An historical fiction set in dual POV between two timelines (one for each POV). I loved how @author_lisa_wingate addresses hard issues gracefully, and smoothly blends fact and fiction to give us a book that is meant to be read and remembered. Heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time, bringing tears and smiles as it teaches, informs, inspires, uplifts, and holds the readers’ interests from the very beginning to the end (and oh so cleverly too)! You can read the complete review on my blog here – https://bit.ly/2FzBiFm A big thank you to @netgalley and #ballantinebooks for the digital review copy of this book. All opinions are my own. . . . #thebookoffriends #LisaWingate #historicalfiction #netgalley #ballantinebooks #ladyinreadwrites #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookish #booklover #booknerd #bookworm #bibliophile #bookblogger #bookblog #booklife #readeveryday #alwaysreading #bookrecommendations #bookreviews

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The Others
ONE
TWO
THREE

Upcoming

On My Blog and Home-front

My Blog

Look for a review of a great read for young ones tomorrow. And of course, more varied posts as I play catch-up on  The Cornerstone Content Blog Challenge.

My Home-front

Not much new here. College-app-work continues; and look forward to a post/pics of the finished benches my son built for his Eagle Project (with the help of his friends).

This Week’s Celebrations

Here are some of the fun ones I know I will enjoy celebrating.

Wrapping up my Sunday Scribblings

So dear reader, this was it for my Sunday Scribblings. I would love to hear your comments on my post(s), poems, poetic Sunday section, and anything else. And which of these days do you plan to celebrate (or any other)? 

Linking this to the Sunday Post over at the Caffeinated Reviewer and the Sunday Salon.

2 thoughts on “Sunday Scribblings #45: Of Orange Skies and Cornerstone Challenges”

  1. Oh, those orange skies. And the photo of the moon is surreal. I hope that the wildfires are soon brought to a halt. I’m sending good thoughts and prayers your way.

    The little poetic form is a perfect delight. Mini-monoverse is completely new to me. I read lots (over 200) picture books every year, and many of them, I find, are written in verse. The verse often reads like sing-song. I wish picture book authors would explore some alternatives to traditional verse.

    Your photo-a-day highlights are, as always, beautiful. I’ve never shared my reviews on Instagram. I always feel like I neglect Instagram.

    I hope you stay safe in the coming week.

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