Leap

This year, February gives us the gift of time. It’s Leap Year (which occurs only once every 1,460 days). That means every 1,460 days, you get 1,440 extra minutes! Almost one-to-one!

Apparently people celebrate Leap Day. This I did not know until talking to my aunt yesterday. I guess you're supposed to do something you've never done before ??? This had my mind reeling for the last 24 hours. What am I going to do with my extra 24? Something fun? Something exciting? Something scandalous? The Leap Door is wide open.

Leap Days just so happen to present neat opportunities if you are keen enough to catch them. Leap Days are on Presidential Election years, giving the American public an extra day to make up their mind. Leap Days also line-up with Summer Olympics now, giving fans of the Olympiad yet another day of anticipation.

I did a bit of Leap Year research while waiting for a class to start. Here are a few tidbits to memorize for the next time you're on Jeopardy.

• Gioacchino Rossini (Italian Composer) was born on Leap Day (in 1792)
• in 1692 the first accusations began during the Salem witch trials.
  
• The First "Walk/Don't Walk" signs were installed in NYC on February 29, 1952
• The Carpenters recieved a golden record for the hit single Hurting Each Other in 1972
  
• John Byrom, an English poet was born in 1692

Today I heard another famous poet read some of his poems. Billy Collins did a fantastic job speaking this afternoon and I loved listening to his own interpretation of many of the poems that I so love. One short two-liner in particular made me chuckle. It's entitled Refrigerator Light. "The instant she slammed the door/ I stopped thinking about her." Ha.

Other Leap Events?

I saw Polly Bleaker and Juno walking in Kiwanis Park, no lie. There is no way that wasn't Michael Cera and Ellen Page. Another sighting? A tight-rope walker practicing up between a couple of trees. And I got yet another phone call from some elderly woman who insists that her friend "Bardonna's" phone number is identical to mine. I have to tell her every time that, no, I'm not Bardonna, I don't know a Bardonna, and I don't know Bardonna's real phone number. Sorry Bardonna, I hope your friend can reach you soon. She's very persistent.