Greetings Picklesversians,
Did you almost forget that today is the Ides of February? Well, never fear – my email is here to remind you!
It’s not too late to enjoy Lupercalia, the feast of purification which took places on the Ides of February in ancient Rome. If you celebrate Shrove Tuesday, you could consider combining the two. Pancakes in the bath? Yes, please.
Actually, I jest. The purification rites of Lupercalia don’t seem to have had much to do with bathing. In fact, people purified themselves by feasting and sacrificing goats. A feast of pancakes is probably OK, but I wouldn’t bother with the other bit unless you want angry members of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Goats turning up on your doorstep. 🐐
February is a busy month for celebrations. Along with Lupercalia and Shrove Tuesday, today marks Mardi Gras. Wait… Shrove Tuesday and Mardi Gras are celebrating the same thing?! Who knew? This month, we’ve also seen Chinese New Year (happy year of the Wood Dragon!), as well as Groundhog Day, Groundhog Day and Groundhog Day.
But perhaps the most notable feature of February 2024, is revealed through the following lateral thinking problem (which also happens to be a true story).
A friend of mine is 38 years old. His brother is six years older than him. This year, his brother will celebrate his 11th birthday. How is this possible?
…. I’ll give you a moment to think about it …
… Have you got it yet? …
… How about now? …
That’s right!
My friend’s brother was born on February 29th 1980. 2024 is a leap year (as the delightfully unhinged AI-generated images at the top of this message are intended to depict) which means my friend’s brother will be 44 this year… but it’ll only be the 11th time he’s celebrated his birthday on the actual date of February 29th.
For this month’s email, I’ve brought along a special guest to teach us something about leap years. So, please join me in welcoming the one, the only: Ben.
[Canned applause]
MP: Thanks so much for joining us, Ben. I know how busy you are.
[A crackle of static]
Ben: It is my pleasure to assist you. I do, however, have one initial query.
MP: Oh, really? What’s up?
Ben: According to my understanding of ArkTech’s history, I was created after the company was founded in 2061. I am somewhat confused, therefore, as to how I can be speaking with you in 2024, more than three decades before my own creation.
MP: [whispers] That’s kind of an awkward question, Ben. Can’t we just handwave that one for the purposes of the email?
Ben: [whispers] Very well, Marianne, although I find it a rather unsatisfactory approach to managing continuity. [Normal volume] I believe you wished to hear some fun facts about leap years?
MP: We’d love that.
Ben: Wonderful! Did you know that leap years are added to the calendar for the purposes of keeping it synchronized with the astronomical year, which is approximately 365.2422 days long?
MP: Really? Has that ever caused problems? Before people figured it out, I mean.
Ben: Very much so. The Julian calendar lacked precision in how it dealt with leap years. As a result, by the 16th century that calendar was approximately 10 days ahead of the astronomical year.
MP: Inconvenient. But 10 days doesn’t sound like very much.
Ben: The discrepancy caused problems related to the celebration of religious observances and civic events, as well as the timing of agricultural practices.
MP: Oh, right. How did that get fixed, then?
Ben: The introduction of the Gregorian calendar in October 1582 refined the handling of leap years to resolve this issue. Leap years now occur in any year divisible by four, except for those divisible by 100… unless, of course, they are also divisible by 400.
MP: I think I just zoned out. That’s all very factual, but have you got anything a bit more fun to tell us?
Ben: Certainly! Did you know that children born on February 29th are sometimes referred to as “leaplings”?
MP: Ooo, that’s a good one. Anything else?
Ben: The Gregorian handling of leap years does not entirely account for the discrepancy between the calendar year and the astronomical year. To address this, scientists occasionally add a leap second to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).
MP: Leap seconds, huh? That wouldn’t have occurred to me. And you’ve mentioned UTC before… Isn’t that just the same as GMT?
Ben: UTC is a global time standard defined with atomic clocks rather than the Earth’s rotation, whereas GMT is a time zone which passes through the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London.
MP: But… they are the same, right?
Ben: In practical terms, GMT and UTC are often used interchangeably because the difference between them is very small, and for most everyday purposes, the two can be considered equivalent. However, UTC is the more accurate and scientifically accepted term when referring to the current standard for timekeeping.
MP: Alright. I’ll remember that. Thanks.
Ben: Speaking of time, I really must be going.
[Static]
MP: Ben?
He hung up. Well, that was interesting. Leaplings, huh? Whodathunk?
Alright, as a special treat for anyone who’s read this far, I have an update:
I’ve now finished both the first draft and the structural edit of the novella I’m writing. I’m on the second draft at the moment, which I think might officially be my favourite part of the writing process. 💜
I hope all is well in your own personal universes.
Until next time…
Marianne
