NYE and The Blue Moon

Our New Years Eve was a laid back one. We got into bed and started reading around 11:30pm and soon after the fireworks began. Just after midnight I noticed it was quite bright outside (I had heard it was a blue moon). We went out and Jim took some photos.

I didn’t know what a blue moon was (which I’m a bit embarrassed about now that I do know) so I had to look it up. It’s the second full moon in a month. The name does not refer to the moon’s color but reflects the rarity of the event and gives rise to the expression, ‘‘once in a blue moon.’’ The last time there was a blue moon on New Year’s Eve was in 1990 and the next one will be in 2028. Since they are not frequent, the next scheduled times are 2012: August 2, August 31 and 2015: July 2, July 31. Neat huh?!