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A year and a day.
The notion evokes something along the lines of a challenge or a reckoning. Talk about having some time to think about a decision you made a year ago.
We have no more than to recall the story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. In a nutshell, the Green Knight showed up one day in King Arthur's court at Camelot and issued a challenge to anyone brave enough to trade blows with an axe.
In William Allan Neilson's translation of the tale, the Green Knight says the following:
"If there be a man in this house who holds himself so hardy, is so bold in his blood, so rash in his head, that he dares stiffly strike one stroke for another, I shall give him as my gift this rich gisarm, this axe, that is heavy enough, to handle as he likes; and I shall abide the first blow as bare as I sit. If any warrior be wight enough to try what I propose, let him leap lightly to me and take this weapon — I quit-claim it forever, let him keep it as his own — and I shall stand him a stroke firmly on this floor. At another time, by our Lady, thou wilt grant me the boon of dealing him another blow; I will give him respite of a twelvemonth and a day."
There is a movie about The Green Knight. Others have translated the tale. The translation by Jessie Laidlay Weston is of particular note.
This year, 2024, is a Leap Year. February 2024 had 29 days. The year 2024 has 366 days instead of 365 days. Now, since March 1st, every date on the 2024 calendar is one year and one day from its corresponding date on the 2023 calendar. How fun!
Today is March 17th. It's St. Patrick's Day. Green is the special color of this day, and green figured prominently in last year's Google Doodle that featured clover leaves in stained glass. Today's Google Doodle is exciting because it features handcrafted, wood-burned art.
The Wonderstone Gifts workshop is situated in the northeastern corner of California, and spring is on its way. Last year at this time, we were only five days into Daylight Savings Time. This year, today's date finds us seven days into the time change. We are one hour closer to Greenwich Mean Time, even though the shadows at solar noon tell a different story.
Last year, at this time, the sun rose at 7:09 AM PDT at 91° E and set at 7:09 PM PDT at 269° W. Solar noon was at 1:08 PM. The sun was in 26° Pisces. The outside temperature near the time of sunrise was 24°F, and the predicted low temperature was 21°F. The outlook for the day included light and variable winds with little chance of rain.
Now, a year and a day later, the sun rose at 7:07 AM PDT at 91° E and will set at 7:10 PM PDT at 270° W. Solar noon will be at 1:08 PM. The sun is in 27° Pisces. The outside temperature two minutes before sunrise was 33°F, and the predicted low temperature for today is 28°F. Today's winds are expected to be light and variable, and there is little chance of rain. There are three more minutes of daylight today compared to last year when St. Patrick's Day marked an equal length of day and night, a sort of regional equinox, if you will.
Incidentally, yesterday, March 16, 2024, Surprise Valley had its regional equinox, perhaps more properly termed an 'equilux,' when the sun rose at 7:09 AM at 91° E and set at 7:09 PM PDT at 269° W. Solar noon was at 1:09 PM, and the sun was in 26° Pisces.
For more information about the March Equinox, consult the excellent information at Time and Date AS.
There is still time to plant peas—probably not this weekend, though. Meanwhile, the dogs don't really seem to care much if they get fed an hour earlier. Today's weather is so similar to last year that it seems almost identical. What's a few degrees above or below freezing? Plus, calendar-wise, it's still St. Patrick's Day, so corned beef and cabbage are still on the menu for tonight's dinner.
It's probably time to put on some music, maybe some Black Lilies, and stroll back out to the Wonderstone Gifts workshop. Incidentally, a year and three days ago, Cruz Contreras was in town playing at the Cedarville Veteran's Hall.
Just a quick note before heading back out to the shop. March 20, 2024, is the eighth annual Small Business Development Centers Day. This date coincides with California Shop Small's Spring Launch Day 2024.
In addition to learning about new California small businesses on SBDC Day, customers can take advantage of a one-day-only 20% off site-wide deal by using the coupon code "LAUNCH20" at checkout. The coupon code is only good on 3/20, so don't miss out.
For your socially connected connections, use #CAShopSmall, #SpringLaunch2024, and #SBDCDay. Facebook and Instagram users can tag @CAShopSmall.
Also, Wonderstone Gifts wants to help you stay informed about the latest product updates and gift-shopping opportunities. Please take a moment to register, and feel free to share a link to this blog.
Thank you for your support, and thanks for stopping by.
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Sources:
“Jessie Weston (Scholar).” 2023. In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jessie_Weston_(scholar)&oldid=1176624618.
“March Equinox.” n.d. Accessed March 17, 2024. https://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/march-equinox.html.
“President William Allan Neilson « Smithipedia.” n.d. Accessed March 17, 2024. https://blogs.smith.edu/blog/smithipedia/administration/president-william-allan-neilson/.
“#SBDCDay.” n.d. America’s SBDC (blog). Accessed March 17, 2024. https://americassbdc.org/sbdcday/.
“Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.” 2024. In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sir_Gawain_and_the_Green_Knight&oldid=1213562557.
“St. Patrick’s Day 2024 Doodle - Google Doodles.” n.d. Accessed March 17, 2024. https://doodles.google/doodle/st-patricks-day-2024/.
“The Equilux.” n.d. Accessed March 17, 2024. https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/equilux.html.
