Every year divisible by four is called a "leap year" ... such years occur every fourth year. Now why is it called that? ... Now in ordinary years the day of the month which falls on Monday this year, will fall on Tuesday next year, and Wednesday the year after; but the fourth year will leap over Thursday to Friday. This is because a day is added to February, which, of course, affects every subsequent day of the year.

MONTHS

And you know, of course, that the word "lunatics" comes from the latin word "luna" The Romans believed that the mind was affected by the moon, and that "lunatics" were more and more frenzied as the moon increased to its full ... thus they became moon-struck people ... Now I'm writing this during the full moon, which explains :-)

Moon means "measurer" of time, which was originally measured by the five phases of the moon: (1) new; (2) full; (3) crescent or decrescent; (4) half; and (5) gibbous, or more than half ... and these cycles became the basis of our months ... And about the "man in the moon" ... well, I know as much about him as ... as the man in the moon.

A lunar month is about four weeks from new moon to new moon ... therefore, a lunar year is twelve lunar months ... There are 13 lunar months in a year, 13 times 4 = 52 weeks ... was going to place this on my ... Trivia ... page, but it is suitable here too.

January ... so called from "Janus," the Roman deity that kept the gates of heaven.

February ... was so called from "Februa," a name of Juno, and it is from the Sabine word februo (to purify) ... Juno was so called because she it was she who presided over the purification of women, which took place in this month.

March ... was so called from "Mars," the Roman war-god and patron deity.

April ... From the Latin aperio (to open), in allusion to the unfolding of the leaves.

May ... is the old Latin magius, softened into maius ... this is similar to the Sanskrit mah (to grow), that is, the growing-month.

June ... so called from the "juniores" or soldiers of the state ... not from Juno, the queen-goddess.

July ... Mark Antony gave this month the name of Julius, from Julius Caesar, who was born in it ... It had been previously called Quintilis (fifth-month).

August ... So called in honor of Augustus C�sar; not because it was his birth-month (he was born in September), but because it was the month in which he entered upon his first consulship, celebrated three triumphs, he received the oath of allegiance from the legions, reduced Egypt, and put an end to the civil wars.

September, October, November, and December in Latin mean the seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth month respectively ... that was when the year began in March with the vernal equinox ... but since January and February have been inserted before it, the names are quite incorrect ... but the names remain ... old habits die hard, etc.
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CARDS

Careful about that "Virtual Insults" site. I like supporting good good manners, but sometimes...you just gotta resort to some plain talk. That's right, I'm talking about love insults, university insults, yo mamma insults, and friend insults. And--like most everything else ... we have have moved to the digital age. Boss deny you that raise? Did boyfriend break up with you? Send him an insult ... in this case, an e-mail with a message that says, for instance, "Is it your birthday AGAIN?" or "Happy Birthday, how old can you GO?" Oh yeah, one word of advice: You can send insults to multiple recipients ... just make sure you have the proper hospital coverage.">

The heart has its reasons that reason knows nothing of.
Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)

In 1642, this same Pascal, the 18-year-old son of a French tax collector, invented what he called a numerical wheel calculator to help his father with his duties. This brass rectangular box, also called a Pascaline, used eight movable dials to add sums up to eight figures long. Pascal's device used a base of ten to accomplish this. For example, as one dial moved ten notches, or one complete revolution, it moved the next dial - which represented the ten's column - one place. When the ten's dial moved one revolution, the dial representing the hundred's place moved one notch and so on. The drawback to the Pascaline, of course, was its limitation to addition. But this was the first significant improvement in "computers" since the invention of the abacus 12 centuries earlier in Asia Minor; that's right, computering goes back a long time. And y'all thought it started with Bill Gates; shame, shame, shame.

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Zing ... tons of funny, cute, cool and animated cards for you to customize.
Apology Note Generator ... choose the groveling phrase that best suits your state of mind.
The Love Police ... send a citation for any chosen offense, and allow the offender to respond

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CARDS YOU WILL NEVER SEE IN HALLMARK:

As the days go by, I think of how lucky I am,
That you're not here to ruin it for me.

As you grow older, Mom, I think of all the gifts you've given me;
Like the need for therapy.

Congratulations on your new bundle of joy.
Did you ever find out who the father was?

Congratulations on your promotion.
Before you go, I would like to take this knife out of my back.
You'll probably need it again.

Congratulations on your wedding day.
Too bad no one likes your wife.

Happy Birthday, Uncle Dad
(available only in Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama & Tennessee)

Happy Birthday. You look great for your age
Almost lifelike.

How could two people as beautiful you have such an ugly baby?

I knew the day would come when you would leave me for my best friend.
So here's his leash, water bowl and chew toys.

I must admit, you brought religion in my life.
I never believed in hell 'til I met you.

If I get only one thing for Christmas, I hope it's your sister.

I'm so miserable without you, it's almost like you're here.

I've always wanted to have someone to hold, someone to love.
After having met you, I've changed my mind.

Looking back over the years that we've been together, I can't help but wonder:
What the f*** was I thinking?

Someday I hope to get married, but not to you.

Sorry things didn't work out.
But I can't handle guys with boobs that are bigger than mine.

Thanks for being a part of my life; I never knew what evil was before this!

We have been friends for a very long time, what say we call it quits.

When we were together, you always said you'd die for me.
Now that we've broke up, I think it's time you kept your promise.

You are such a good friend that,
If we were on a sinking ship and there was only one life jacket,
I'd miss you heaps and think of you often.

Your friends and I wanted to do something special for your birthday.
So we're having you put to sleep.

Did you know that it is a medically proven fact that people with the most birthdays
live the longest?

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