Poetry Challenge #144-Global Garbage Collector Day
Boy howdy, where would we be without those garbage trucks to roll down the street gobbling up trash! Buried under piles heaps mounds of smelly yuck is where. Pee-yew!
It’s not easy or safe being a garbage collector. In fact, it’s one of the “Deadliest jobs in America”—and that was before CoVid struck.
An “average” garbage day in NYC
One fella, John D. Arwood, (Pres. of Arwood Waste), knowing what a smelly world this could be, designated June 17th as Global Garbage Collector Day, in honor of the hard-working, under-appreciated trash collectors who keep our communities clean. Let’s join in the celebration!
Poetry Challenge #144
Hip-Hip-Hooray! It’s Global Garbage Collector Day
Write a garbage poem—it can be about a garbage truck, garbage collector or kinds of garbage. Toss in as many words that include the letter g as you can. And, at least one onomatopoeia.
Can you make your poem sound like a garbage truck roaring down the street?
Set your timer for 7 minutes
Start writing!
Don’t think about it too much; just do it!
For extra fun, read Trashy Town by Andrea Zimmerman & David Clemesha, illustrated by Dan Yacarrinao. Here’s a link to the Trashy Town Read-aloud.
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge MORE THAN 1500 days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.
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Poetry Challenge #143-Click My Bic
There’s a saying that “Necessity is the mother of invention.” Before ballpoint pens, people used fountain pens—pens that needed to be dipped or refilled with ink and whose sharp points worked only on paper. If you wanted to write on any other surface (wood, coarse wrapping paper, leather) you were out of luck.
The first patent for the ballpoint pen was issued in 1888 to John J. Loud, a leather tanner who often needed to write on the leather. This pen had a metal ball for the point (where it got its name!) that couldn’t fall out or in but rolled on the surface. It worked well on leather but was pretty messy on paper. Many years passed before the Biro brothers found a solution for a new sharper point.
June 10, 1943, recognized as National Ballpoint Pen Day is actually the date Laszlo Brio applied for a fresh patent for their ballpoint pen design. What made it fly was the British Government bought the licensing rights for the war effort as they needed a pen that would not leak at higher altitudes. It wasn’t until many leaky pen efforts later, in 1954, when Parker Parker Pens introduced “the Jotter,” that ballpoint pens became popular.
Poetry Challenge #143
All I Do Is Click My Bic!
In honor of Ballpoint Pen Day and inventions, write a poem about your favorite pen (and if possible, use your favorite pen to “pen it!”)
Is your favorite pen a ballpoint? Or some other kind? What does it feel like? What does it look like? What color does it write? What’s the best thing it has ever written?
Set your timer for 7 minutes
Start writing!
Don’t think about it too much; just do it!
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge MORE THAN 1500 days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.
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Poetry Challenge #142-You Can Say That Again...
“Play it again, Sam!”
Today is National Repeat Day! (What? Care to repeat that?) Today is National Repeat Day. As if we need an excuse, it’s a day set aside for folks to “seek out activities and experiences” to do over again. Repeating a root canal or Hurricane Katrina are not suggested for this day.
Celebrate by repeating some of the tasks of the day. Wash the dishes twice. Make the same meal for lunch as you do for supper. Watch Groundhog Day twice.
Send duplicate text messages. Or? As the saying goes “If it’s worth doing once; it’s worth doing again,” or if you’d prefer Bogie: “Play it again, Sam!” (Even though, in Casablanca, he never actually said that.)
Poetry Challenge #142
You Can Say That Again! . . . “That”
Repetition can be used in poetry in many ways. You can repeat a sound like a long o sound or an l or t sound.
You can repeat a word several times in the poem like the word “bells” in a famous poem by Edgar Allan Poe.
You can repeat a phrase or a whole line. Or you can repeat a verse like the refrain in a song.
Choose a way to repeat from the list above and write a poem that uses some repetition.
Set your timer for 7 minutes
Start writing!
Don’t think about it too much; just do it!
just do it! just do it! just do it! just do it! just do it!
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge MORE THAN 1500 days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.
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Poetry Challenge #141-Grape Popsicles!
It rarely freezes in San Francisco, but boy, when it does . . . Grape Popsicle!
Here’s the story: in 1905, 11-year old Frank Epperson “was outside on his porch, mixing water with a powdered flavoring to make soda. Upon going inside, he left it there on the porch with the stirring stick still in it. That night something that rarely ever happens in San Francisco happened: temps dipped below freezing! The following morning, Frank discovered the drink frozen to the stick.”—NPR July 22, 2015
Popsicles are now as much a part of summertime as, well, the sun! Who hasn’t sat on the steps hot afternoons slurping ice treats? Trying to catch the sweet syrup as it dripped down your hand. Or maybe you’ve made your own popsicles, the way we did. We used to fill ice cube trays with whatever sweet drink was on hand: cola, root beer, Kool aid, lemonade—and yes sometimes grape juice—stick in toothpicks for sticks and wha-lah! What about you? What memories come to mind when you think of popsicles? What was your favorite flavor? Grape?
Poetry Challenge #141
Popsicle Daze
In recognition of National Grape Popsicle Day (May 27th), write a Tongue Twister about Popsicles. A tongue twister is a phrase that’s hard to say multiple times in quick succession or sometimes even once. Sally sells seashells by the sea shore and Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers are two tried trustworthy tongue twisters.
Tongue Twister Tips:
There are three key elements in the twistiest tongue twister: alliteration, consonance & confusion.
· Alliteration: words that begin with the same-sound. Lucky Lucy liked_____tricky twisters twist ____.
· Consonance: repeated consonants within a word or phrase. Think "pitter patter" “slippy splinter splitter”…
· Confusion: Fool the reer’s eye and trip up their tongue with consonant combinations that are almost the same, but not… as in soldier’s shoulder or chains clang. And change the endings of words—s ending are really slippery.
With these elements in mind, begin by brainstorming phrases that come to mind with you say grape or popsicle. Listen . . . I think I hear the ice cream truck now!
Set your timer for 7 minutes
Start writing!
Don’t think about it too much; just do it!
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge MORE THAN 4 YEARS ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.
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Poetry Challenge #140-ARRRRROOOOO! for Rescue Dogs!
Have you ever rescued a dog or do you know a rescue dog? The ones I know are wonderful—and lucky. They have nice homes after starting out in less than perfect situations. They’re smart and happy and full of love.
Poetry Challenge #140
ARRRRROOOOO! for Rescue Dogs!
In honor of National Rescue Dog Day*, celebrated every 20th of May, write an ode to a rescue dog. An ode is short poem praising something. Think about what that rescue dog looks like, acts like, sounds like, anything that makes the dog special. You can write it to your dog friend if you want!
Set your timer for 7 minutes
Start writing!
Don’t think about it too much; just do it!
Along with writing an ode to rescue dogs, here are other ways to celebrate & share the “puppy love” with a big ARRRRROOOOOO Donny Osmond style!
*National Rescue Dog Day was founded by Tails that Teach to honor “the honor the inspiring ways rescue dogs become a part of the human family and increase awareness about the number of dogs in shelters.” Here are some ways you can celebrate:
Volunteer at your local shelter. Taking dogs for walks, grooming and giving them plenty of affection improves their socialization.
Shelters always need donations. Financial donations are always welcome. Most shelters have a list of constant needs, such as blankets, bleach, toys, treats, and leashes.
If there is room in your life for a rescue dog, consider adoption and giving one a forever home.
Consider fostering. Many dogs abandoned to shelters require some medical care or rehabilitation in a home setting before an adoption can take place.
Remember to spay and neuter your pets. Overpopulation is the number one reason shelters exist.
Trick your old dog into thinking it’s new with treats like these vitamins from topdogvitamins.com
Share your Ode to A Rescue Dog on social media, use #NationalRescueDogDay
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge MORE THAN 4 YEARS ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.
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Poetry Challenge #136-Happy 50th Earth Day
The first Earth Day was April 22, 1970—fifty years ago! It is now celebrated by millions of people all over the world who care about our planet.
Check out One Square Inch of Silence which was founded on Earth Day in 2005 to find out how you can participate in expanding naturally silent spaces around the globe.
“The concept of Earth Day was established in 1969 at a UNESCO Conference in San Francisco. On March 21, 1970, a sanctioned Proclamation was signed by Secretary General U Thant at the United Nations. On April 22, 1970, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson founded Earth Day.”—National Day Calendar.
On this day each year—for the past 50 years—people around the world, promote green campaigns to save the Earth.
Poetry Challenge #136
Happy Earth Day
One way to celebrate our world is to write a poem about it. Because haiku is usually written about nature, today is a great day to write one (or two or three).
Haiku usually has three lines with 5 syllables on the first and third line and 7 syllables on the second.
Think about what you most appreciate about Earth on this Earth Day and write a haiku celebrating that trait.
Set your timer for 7 minutes
Start writing!
Don’t think about it too much; just do it!
Share your Earth Day experiences using #EarthDay on Social Media.
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge MORE THAN 4 YEARS ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.
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Poetry Challenge #132-Little Red Wagons Get Rolling!
The last Wednesday each March is Little Red Wagon Day, a holiday established by Radio Flyer in honor of their Little Red Wagon’s 100th birthday “to encourage kids to get outside, get active and go wherever their imaginations take them.” Let’s give it a whirl—with words!
Poetry Challenge #132
Little Red Wagons Get Rolling!
Norman has a little red wagon—that’s how he rolls! Bennett & Jack have one, too. How about you?
Do you remember bumping along the street pulling a little red wagon? Or maybe, as my brother and his friends did, attaching the wagon to your dog’s leash and trying to get him/her to tow you?
If you had a Little Red Wagon who or what would you fill it with? Or, if you’re the passenger, who’d be pulling the wagon? And where would your adventuring take you? Imagine the rhythm of the wheels rolling along. What does it sound like? What does it feel like?
Create a rhythmic Little Red Wagon poem by first creating a refrain evoking the sound and feel of the ride. See if you can use the refrain three times in your poem. *
Set your timer for 7 minutes
Start writing!
Don’t think about it too much; just do it!
*Social Media inclined: use #LittleRedWagonDay and tag @RadioFlyer to share
**Watch Radio Flyer the Movie!
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge MORE THAN 1400 days ago! (APPLAUSE!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.
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Poetry Challenge #131-The Miner's Lot
Sometimes it’s time to mine your writing for gems. These gems can become a take-off point for a new poem or story. Or, to paraphrase The Byrds:
There is a time, time-time-time/
for every stage-stage-stage/
Of a poe-eeemmmmm/
a time to create/a time to write/
a time to revisit/a time to rhyme/
a time to delete/a time to combine . . .
Poetry Challenge #131
Working In a Poem Mine, Digging Down-Down-Down
Read through some of your older poems. Pick a line or phrase that you like from three different poems. Then put those lines in some sort of order and write a new poem. Add words or lines as needed.
Set your timer for 7 minutes
Start revising!
Don’t think about it too much; just do it!
And, if you, like Mary Poppins, think a song will help the job along. Here goes (and forgive me Lee Dorsey):
Working in a Poem Mine/Digging way down-down/Working in a Poem Mine/Digging way down-down/Working in a Poem Mine—Yeah! I wrote some words down/Working in a Poem Mine . . .
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge about 1400++ days ago (who’s counting?). We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.