February Has A Little Something For Everyone

Ah, February - one of my favorite months for many reasons. It's my birthday month. It's my mom's, my former dog's (may she RIP), two cousins, and my paternal grandmother's as well. It's Super Bowl time, and Groundhog Day, and Mardi Gras. And of course Valentine's Day which happens to be my wedding anniversary (yeah, my husband's wallet gets slammed in February). It signals the end of winter (I live in the South) which in and of itself is a reason to celebrate. History nerds rejoice - February is Black History Month which I have blogged about previously, and also features a three day weekend thanks to the fairly recent national holiday known most places as Presidents' Day.

I say most places, as according to the federal government, it is still known as Washington's Birthday, even though his actual birthday is on February 22 and 'his' holiday has been celebrated a week early for more than 40 years. Why the change? Back in the 1960s, legislators (likely with help from labor union lobbyists) decided to shift certain holidays away from specific dates, in favor of moving them to a specific Monday. This created a nice three day weekend that would fall on the same day (not date) each year to make it easier to plan vacations. Retailers loved the idea - an extra day off to shop! And once the holiday was no longer tied to February 22, it could be expanded to include other notable leaders whose birthdays fell in February - like Abraham Lincoln (Feb 12). Indeed, the holiday is now meant to honor all presidents, not just the February babies.

True history nerds may want to take issue with my statement that Washington's 'actual' birthday is on Feb. 22. You got me! Washington was 'actually' born on February 11, 1731. But when the British empire converted from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar in September of 1752, his birth date got bumped to Feb 22 due to the 11 day adjustment. If you are a little math-challenged like me, you may be wondering why he didn't just keep his birthday on Feb 11. But if he did that, he would always be 11 days off from his true solar age. That would bug me almost as much as having to switch birth dates. Washington was not exactly an early adopter, but had switched to celebrating on Feb. 22 before he died in 1799. I envision an elderly Washington doddering around Mt. Vernon every February, asking Martha, 'is it today?'.

There was some initial resistance to using Washington's birthday as an excuse to take the day off and tie one on. Thomas Jefferson, of all people, thought celebrating an individual's birthday was uncomfortably close to the British custom of feting King George on his special day. Jefferson's suggestion to substitute the birth of our nation on July 4 was warmly received. But it wasn't long before Washington's birthday was back on the holiday calendar. Parades, elegant 'Birthnight' (not birthday) balls, and cannon fire marked the February occasion throughout the new country.

This weekend the tradition continues. Folks somewhere are standing on a downtown sidewalk six deep in the bitter cold, waving cheap but cheerful flags at the passing high school marching band. However, I'm guessing even more folks will be waving debit cards at newly lowered prices on holiday clearance items in the comfort of their centrally heated local mall. Whether you prefer celebrating your day off with patriotism or conspicuous consumption, you have that guy on our money to thank.

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