Once in a blue moon
Source: Eileen Rollin on Unsplash
A: Do you like brandy? B: Once in a blue moon I'll have one.
I don't know why I bought this shirt. It was so expensive and I just wear it once in a blue moon.
What does this idiomatic expression mean?
Answer: rarely, not very often
What is a blue moon?
I discovered the answer just this week. While on holiday around Cádiz, I'd look up into the sky each night and wonder at all the stars (you never really see them when you are stuck in Madrid). I noticed then how rapidly the moon was changing into its full form. Not only that; to me the progress of change didn't seem uniform. So I reached for the ipad to learn something about that white light in the sky.
I didn't find out if or why the pace of change isn't uniform but I read the news about the blue moon.
A blue moon is the second full moon of a calendar month. If you look up at the sky tonight, you will see one. The first full moon was on 1st Aug and today is the second one.
This doesn't happen that often; just every 2 to 3 years.
A full moon occurs every 29.5 days so every month typically has one (though February sometimes doesn't).
Don't expect to see a blue-coloured moon. A blue moon is a full moon like any other.
That's not to say that the moon can't appear to be blue. This phenomenon happens when there is huge volcanic eruption or major forest fire. Certain-sized particles of ash or smoke give the moon its blue colour.
The original definition of a blue moon is "the third full moon in a season (spring, summer, autumn, winter) of four full moons. Using this definition, the next blue moon won't be until 21 August next year.
The expression "once in a blue moon" is much older than the current definition of a "blue moon". So the origins of the idiom likely comes from the much rarer and more literal phenomenon.
Happy moon gazing!
Source: Fabrizio Lencioni (You Tube) Key words: blue moon
Blue Moon
Blue moon
You saw me standing alone
Without a dream in my heart
Without a love on my own
Blue moon
You knew just what I was there for
You heard me saying a prayer for
Someone I really could care for
And then there suddenly appeared before me
The only one my arms will ever hold
I heard somebody whisper, "Please adore me"
And when I looked the moon had turned to gold
Blue Moon
Blue moon
You saw me standing alone
Without a dream in my heart
Without a love on my own
Blue moon
You knew just what I was there for
You heard me saying a prayer for
Someone I really could care for
And then there suddenly appeared before me
The only one my arms will ever hold
I heard somebody whisper, "Please adore me"
And when I looked the moon had turned to gold
Comments
I don´t take your blog surprise because I always find an interesting thing like this post about a blue moon. As you said (or who wrote this article) a blue moon is the second full moon occurred during the same month of Gregorian calendar what we use in the European Union. This happens every two and a half years approximately and when four full moons there are in the same season instead of three. In this case a full moon is the third one. The next full moon will be in October 2020.
It seems this phenomenon comes from an English tradition. The moon is softly blue when it is seen through a group of clouds which had particles of smoke and ashes. It has nothing to do with astronomy. There are a lot of legends and myths about the full moon. It is said that the blue moon is good to fertility and health, if you cultivar plants during the phase of the full moon its will grow better and faster. The full moon concerns to animal behaviour too.
I like so much this article and I agree with it, especially when it is said about the wonder sky at all the stars every night that you never can´t see it in Madrid.
See you.
When there is a clear night, I will look up to the sky and wonder at the stars. However, I won't go out of my way to see an eclipse or a comet that won't occur for another fifty years.
I wrote the first part of the post. As with the Northern Lights, I can't remember seeing a blue moon. I must have observed changes to the moon while on holiday in Cádiz.
I always find an interesting post in your blog like this one about a blue moon. As you said (or whoever wrote this article) a blue moon is the second full moon which occurs during the same month of the Gregorian calendar that we use in the European Union. This happens every two and a half years approximately and when there are four full moons in the same season instead of three. In this case a full moon is the third one. The next blue moon will be in October 2020.
It seems this phenomenon comes from an English tradition. The moon is softly blue when it is seen through a group of clouds which had particles of smoke and ashes. It has nothing to do with astronomy. There are a lot of legends and myths about the full moon. It is said that the blue moon is good for fertility and health, if you put down plants during the phase of the full moonthey will grow better and faster. The full moon affects animal behaviour too.
I really like this article and I agree with it, especially when it talks about the wonder of all the stars in the sky every night that you can never see in Madrid.