February 1, 2015. Super Bowl Sunday. Today is the start of my least favorite month. There’s tons of reasons I don’t like February, but one of them is that it brings an end to football season — the Super Bowl is played on the first Sunday of February.
We all know that February is the shortest month and because of the fewer days, some things happen, or don’t, that sets it apart. Some years the entire month of February can pass without a single full moon. The next time that will happen is in 2018. February ends on the same day of the week that October ends on — every year. And it’s the only time a month begins and ends on the same day of the week (on a leap year.)
February gets is name from the Latin februa, that is a means of cleansing. It referred to the pre-spring purification rituals.
Even though February is short, there’s lots of events and festivals during the month, and of course like other months, almost every day has a festival of some sort, even if they’re “made-up.”
Everyone knows that February has been designated Black History Month, but did you know that it is also Canned Food Month? But it doesn’t stop there, how about Great American Pies Month, National Fiber Focus Month, National Fondue Month, Sweet Potato Month, National Hot Breakfast Month and National Heart Healthy Month. I didn’t make these up.
The month is also chock full of daily “festivals” — we know about Valentines Day and Martin Luther King Day and Presidents Day, but you can celebrate all month long. Here’s a list, far from complete. If you’d like to celebrate one of them, you can google it to find the day….
National Baked Alaska Day, Homemade Soup Day, National Chocolate Fondue Day, National Chopsticks Day, Pizza Pie Day, National Gumdrop Day, National Cherry Pie Day, National Pistachio Day, National Strawberry Day, National Chili Day and Surf and Turf Day. No wonder people tend to gain weight during the winter.
So like it or not, February has been kicked off — Super Bowl today, Groundhog Day tomorrow and National Carrot Cake Day on the 3rd. We’re off to a fast start here on this shortest, and my least favorite, month.
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