The Pros and Cons of February

For me the main thing I dislike about the month, is its spelling, I nearly always forget about the first “R”. I don’t pronounce it, so I don’t write it. I tend to say “Feb-u-ary”, like January, but with the Feb part.

For people born in February there is a potential for even more confusion. Most years February has 28 days, but every four years it has 29. Thus if a person happens to be born on February 29th, they will only see their actual birth date every 4 years. Do these people age slower than the rest of us? No, most people will then celebrate their birthday on March 1st.

The reason for the addition of an occasional day is because the actual year is almost 365.25 days, so they throw in the day almost every 4 years to make up for that. As such a con of February is the confusion factor of having to explain leap years to people, and kids.

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This Swedish Almanac from 1712 predicted snow on February 30.

February 14th is one of those days met with either horror or delight. Romance or disappointment. Valentines day in most of the world has come to be a day when people have the chance to show their romantic love for another. This was not how the celebration began, it was once a day to show your love for anyone, not just your romantic interest. However, now single people feel this day is a day to wallow in self pity out of being alone on this day, while couples embrace all the day has to offer.

February 15th used to be a purification holiday, and is where the month got its name. This is neither a pro or a con, just an interesting fact.

The real problems begin for people who have to work for a living. Especially if you are paid by the day or hour. Since February has fewer days, there is a pretty good chance your pay check will be smaller, however most of your bills will remain the same. Rent or mortgage payments are not reduced because of the shorter month. Car lease payments, anything you pay for by the month, those charges will still be full. Less money in, more money out.

On the other hand if you get paid a monthly salary, you are ahead of the game because you probably worked a day or two less than you would on another month, but got paid the same. Congratulations.

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This poor fellows wife somehow managed to die on a day that did not exist.