Welcome to the new year! 2014 has already come and gone. It seems like just yesterday that we were celebrating the beginning of last year, and yet here we are again. With each new year, for me, it seems like time goes by more quickly than before. Then again, to speak philosophically, time is only an illusion, isn’t it? Anyway, here are some interesting January facts to go with the new year!
Once upon a time, the year probably seemed slower to those who followed the Roman calendar. The original Roman calendar had only March through December, a total of 304 days. It wasn’t until the reign of Julius Caesar that the modern day calendar was invented; January and February were both added to the calendar and the number of days each for each month changed. If you thought it was difficult disregarding Pluto as a planet, or accepting Hawaii as a state of the United States of America, imagine suddenly accepting two brand new months, adding another 61 days! I suppose this provides a little bit of clarity as to why Shakespeare’s play, “Much Ado About Nothing” is the only work of his that references the month of January.
Here are some more interesting facts about January: aside from the leap year’s, January starts on the same day of the week as October, have you noticed that? Don’t believe me? Go check! January is also the only time of the year when the North Pole is actually colder than the South Pole.
Anyway, we all know what the new year brings. It brings an almost immediate joy, surrounded by friends and family as the first few seconds after the ball drops, it brings, perhaps, a bit of fear, new challenges and trials as well as new adventures that we cannot foresee. There’s a lot that comes with each year! Maybe I just have anxiety.
