If he were still alive, today would be my grandfather Nathan Silberman's 146th birthday. Unfortunately, he left us just over 50 years ago in December 1970, three months before what would have been his 96th birthday.
All through his life my grandfather said he was born on the first day of Spring. I cannot remember when the vernal equinox somehow stopped occurring on March 21st and started occurring on March 20th, but I read this week that because of time zone differences between North America and the place our days begin (the International Date Line in the middle of the Pacific Ocean), Spring would not begin on March 21st in North America at all during the remainder of this century.
Grandpa would be so disappointed.
In Charlestonese, the type of English spoken in parts of coastal South Carolina, people say that buds wobble in the sprang (translation: birds warble in the Spring). Well, buds ain't the only thang that wobbles.
Did you know that Earth's axis also wobbles like a top? Well, it does. The North Pole won't always point to Polaris. The wobble takes something like 26,000 years to complete one circuit. It's called 'axial precession' and you can read all about it 'rat cheer' (translation: right here).
In other news, the answer nobody on Jeopardy! knew on Friday evening was "What is a hunter?". The category was Biblical Occupations and the clue mentioned the book of Genesis and Nimrod. At least someone knew that the answer to "_________ were abiding in the field keeping watch on the night Jesus was born" was "What are shepherds?" and the clue didn't even include "over their flocks".
Until next time, T.T.F.N.
Change is difficult. Unfortunately the times they are achanging.
ReplyDeleteEmma, that news is downright earth-shattering. Someone should write a song about it.
DeleteObviously I knew that shepherds were watching over their flocks at night. I would have thought that anyone brought up a Christian would know. However that excludes a huge percentage of the World's population.
ReplyDeleteLess obviously, I knew about the earth wobbling.
What, I suspect, all but 0.000001% or fewer of the world's population knew that"Spring would not begin on March 21st in North America at all during the remainder of this century."
Graham, you seem to be implying that everyone is out of step but Johnny. Still, I console myself in the fact that one millionth of 7.9 billion people is 79,000 people. It makes one feel less lonely.
DeleteBob, please believe me that I wasn't trying to be argumentative or anything or to imply that you or anyone else was out of step. It's just that knowing that fact is a pretty arcane piece of knowledge and I suspect that very few people would know it.
DeleteGraham, maybe I’m misunderstanding you, but it seems to me what you’re saying is that all but a few knew that it would be on 20th — I knew that too, I wasn’t saying I expected it to be on the 21st. I was just reminiscing that from 1875 to 1970 (my grandfather’s lifetime) it was apparently often enough on the 21st that the whole family knew that Grandpa was born on the first day of Spring. If what they actually meant (though I doubt it) was that he was born on the first full day of Spring, then I truly am marching to a different drummer.
DeleteMy mum was born on the first day of spring, it's september 1st down here in the antipodes. She tells me she was almost born in the toilet , you probably didn't want to know that but I like the idea of her making her way without giving any attention to the idea that there was a doctor somewhere waiting.....
ReplyDeletekylie, down there in the antipodes the solstice will occur on September 22nd. Scientifically, astronomers seasonal changes these things better than the meteorological community.
ReplyDelete