Balloons – An Iambic Quatrain – #NaPoWriMo

Image- UFunk

BALLOONS

Balloons adrift with me in tow.

Direction where? I do not know.

It’s fun to soar above the clouds,

away from noise and bustling crowds.

#AprilPrompts is Back! – Well, Sort of…#NaPoWriMo14

Hiya, The second annual #AprilPrompts is back…well, without the prompts! I got side-tracked, knee-deep in courses, and didn’t properly organize #AprilPrompts2014 for National Poetry Month. I had been chomping at the bit for a course in rhyme and jumped at the chance of taking famed poet, Renee LaTulippe’s Inaugural Lyrical Language Lab. Of course, it had to be this month. Then, I also committed to Angie Karcher’s new RhyPiBoMo (Rhyming Picture Book Month), where when you check in, not only do you get a lesson in rhyme and poetry forms, there’s a bonus guest post by a distinguished author! Long story short…I’m writing at least one poem a day, so I figured why not post using prompts from elsewhere? Here’s my first attempt at a limerick:

 TIGHT QUARTERS

There once was a boy from Manila,

who wanted his own pet gorilla.

His hut was too small,

for a mammal so tall.

So he settled on a chinchilla.

Completed 2ND ANNUAL FOOD FIGHT #Poem – Refrigerator Duty

There’s been a lot of food flinging over the past several days, but it’s got to come to a close because stuff is starting to stink to high heavens around here. Here’s the completed story…

Image- The Family Groove

REFRIGERATOR DUTY

“Clean the fridge,” Mom said in a huff.

“Get rid of all the nasty stuff!”

“Fuzzy, moldy, stinky or green,

throw it all out. Make it all clean.”

 

 Lou and Sam grabbed for their noses.

The interior smelt nothing like roses.

As they dug deeper and deeper,

nary a food was deemed a keeper.

 

 Refuse was piled high to throw out.

Sport then burst in and let out a shout,

“I’m starving! What’s this? Some good eats!”

He thought the waste was delectable treats.

 

The kids snatched up plates and played keep away.

Sport wouldn’t get sick on their watch today.

But Sport thought he was being had.

Kept from a meal, he soon grew mad.

 

 “Sport, you shouldn’t eat this on a dare!”

Just then a glob WHIZZED through the air.

Tossed towards Lou, but missed by a trace.

That’s when it splatted upon Sam’s face.”

 

Pfftt! Sam looked up with a devilish grin.

And threw back a pear, rotten outside and in.

The smell of the peach made Lou feel ill.

The squish of the squash gave him a thrill.

 

Lou threw that squash hard as he could,

and PLORF he got Sport really good.

Then Mom came in, looking real mad.

And Sport realized he hadn’t been had.

 

“This is atrocious!” his mother screamed.

TAP-TAP-TAP! Is this a dream?

“Is this what I get when I ask you to clean?

Now I have to turn really mean.”

 

With that, she grabbed up the messiest glob.

And, SPLINK, gave it a lob.

It WHACKED Lou smack dab on his head.

He grabbed a glob of sandwich spread.

 

As spread flew from his finger tips,

Lou slipped CRUNCH onto moldy chips.

 

Not moldy chips! Not moldy chips!

Why couldn’t I slip on Onion dips?

Or day old pasta? Even jelly beans?

At least, I could have LICKED them clean.

 

“The fridge is now clean, spotless in fact.

Enough fun and games, get the kitchen intact.

Sport, don’t you try to sneak out that door.

Help Sam and Lou or you’re grounded,” Mom swore.

 

Realizing they would be stuck in all day,

if the huge mess was not mopped away,

the three shook hands, then divided the tasks.

First on the list, POP on the gas masks!

Image- TV Tropes

Thanks to everyone who helped grow the story. It was fun wasn’t it? :0)

Read all the finished Food Fight stories over at Marcie’s blog. Judging starts this week!

Month of Poetry – WILD AT HEART – #Poem #MoP14

The Lantern is a Japanese 5-line form shaped like a lantern with a syllable pattern of 1-2-3-4-1. 

WILD AT HEART

Raw

Untamed

Boundless urge

No cage can hold

Gone

HICCAPUFF HEATS UP CHRISTMAS – Susanna L. Hill’s 3rd Annual Holiday Contest

Image- whistlerblackcomb.com

Happy Holidays!

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Folks are shopping and baking and trimming the tree. Me, I’m still in my PJ’s in the afternoon posting my entry for Susanna Leonard Hill’s 3rd Holiday Contest!

This year’s theme is to “Write a children’s story about a Holiday Mishap, mix-up, miscommunication, mistake, or potential disaster (a la Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer :)).  Your story may be poetry or prose, silly or serious or sweet, religious or not, based on Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or whatever you celebrate, but is not to exceed 350 words not counting the title.” 

So grab a cup of hot cocoa. I hope you enjoy my story…..

HICCAPUFF HEATS UP CHRISTMAS

Everyone in Christmastown buzzed with excitement. Everyone except Hiccapuff. A dragon with hiccups does his best to stay out of the way.

It was Christmas Eve, and Santa was ready for lift-off, but his nine famous reindeer weren’t. They were stricken with the rare reindeer sickness, SleepThroughChristmasItis. Santa’s reindeer were grounded!

“I’ll fly your sleigh, Santa!” shy Hiccapuff volunteered.

“You’re nothin’ but trouble, dragon,” snorted Jingle Elf, Santa’s pilot.

Hiccapuff nervously HICC-A-PUFFED, and torched a snowman.

Jingle rolled his eyes, “See what I mean!”

“He’s our only hope. Let’s fly!” shouted Santa.

WHOOSH. Santa flew down a chimney.

“HICC-A-PUFF!”

Jingle’s pants lit up! “OOH, HOT, HOT, HOT!” He scooted his butt through the snow. “Aim ‘em somewhere else!”

Poor Hiccapuff hung his head and hiccupped off the ledge.

“He almost fried me, Santa!” Jingle complained.

“He cleared the streets of snow,” Santa smiled.

But Jingle’s grumbles were all Hiccapuff heard.

As they glided over the ocean, Hiccapuff noticed sad faces watching them pass.

“Ignore them, Hiccapuff,” Jingle snapped.

Instead, he HICCED some PUFFS, rocked the sleigh, and scattered tons of presents.

Eyeglasses settled on Old Whale’s nose. Octopus slid eight slippers on his tootsies. And Dolphin twirled in his tutu!

“You’ve wasted gifts! You’re nothin’ but…”

Santa interrupted, “Hush, there’s work to do.”

Hiccapuff thought Santa was disappointed in him. But Santa realized that the sea creatures should have been on his gift list all along.

They finished delivering presents, and as they soared home through the Milky Way, BOOM, BING, BANG…asteroids blasted the sleigh! Brave Hiccapuff mightily torched them to smithereens! But he got hurt, and the sleigh fell into the sea.

Santa and Jingle awoke in Christmastown. Dolphin and Octopus had towed them home. Old Whale swam poor Hiccapuff to shore on his broad back.

Everyone cheered when Hiccapuff opened his eyes. “Hiccapuff, you saved Christmas and us!” Santa exclaimed.

“I’m sorry I doubted you, buddy,” said Jingle.

The sleepy dragon sighed a happy HICC-A-PUFF… and almost singed off Santa’s beard!

“No worries, Santa. I found my aim tonight!”

Image- Mozartschildren.wordpress.com

If you’re in a gift-giving mood, would you please copy this link and put it on your calendars to vote (just once) for HICCAPUFF HEATS UP CHRISTMAS? Visit Susanna’s blog any time between Monday 12/16 and Wednesday 12/18 by 5 pm EST. You would help this girl have one very happy holiday!

Here’s wishing you and yours a healthy and happy holiday season!

Image- fotosearch