Pat's Calendar Page

Days and Holidays

Ember Days (Movable)
The four periods formerly observed by the Roman Catholic and Anflican churches for prayer, fasting, and the ordination of clergy. They are the Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays following (1) the first Sunday in Lent; (2) Whitsunday - Pentecost; (3) the Feast of the Holy Cross; and (4) the Feast of St. Lucia, December 13. The word ember is perhaps a corruption of the Latin quatuor tempora, "four times".
Folklore has it that the weather on each of the three days foretells the weather for three successive months; that is, for September's Ember Days, Wednesday forecasts weather for October, Friday for November, and Saturday for December.
Distaff Day (January 7)
This was the first day after Epiphany, when women were expected to get back to their spinning. A distaff is the staff for holding the flax or wool for spinning, and it symbolized the domestic sphere. "The distaff side" indicated the women. One traditional proverb notes that "Yule is come and Yule is gone, and we have feasted well; so Jack must to his flail again and Jenny to her wheel."
Plough Monday (January)
The first Monday after Epiphany was called Plough Monday because it was the day the men returned to their plough, or daily work, after the Christmas holiday. It was customary for farm laborers to draw a plough through the village, soliciting money for a "plough-light", which was kept burning in the parish all year. In some areas, the custom of blessing the plough is maintained.
Three Chilly Saints (May)
Mamertus, Pancras, and Gervais were three early Christain saints. Because their feast days, on May 11, 12, and 13 respectively, are traditionally cold, they have come to be known as the Three Chilly Saints. An old French saying translates to: "St Mamertus, St Pancras, and St Gervais do not pass without a frost."
Midsummer Day (June 24)
Although it occurs near the summer solstice, to the farmer this day is the midpoint of the growing season, halfway between planting and harvest and an occasion for festivity. The English church considered it a "Quarter Day", on of the four major divisions of the liturgical year. It also marks the feast day of St. John the Baptist.
Cornscateous Air (July)
First use by early almanac makers, this term signifies warm, damp air. Though it signals ideal climatic conditions for growning corn, it also poses a danger to those affected by asthma, pneumonia, and other respiratory problems.
Dog Days (July 3 - August 11)
These are the hottest and most unhealthy days of the year. Also known as Canicular Days, the name derives from the Dog Star, Sirius. The traditional timing of Dog Days coincides with the heliacal (at sunrise) rising of Sirius.
Lammas Day (August 1)
From the Old Dnglish "hlaf maesse", meaning "loaf mass", Lammas marked the beginning of the harvest. Traditionally, loaves of bread were baked from the first-ripened grain and brought to the churches to be consecrated. Through the centuries, "loafmass" became "Lammas". In Scotland, Lammastide fairs became famous as the time when trial marriages could be made. These marriages could end after a year with no strings attached.
Cat Nights Begin (August 17)
This term harks back to the days when people believed in witches. An old Irish legend says that a withch could turn into a cat a regain herself eight times, but on the ninth time, August 17, she couldn't change back, hence the saying: "A cat has nine lives." Because August is a "yowly" time for cats, this may have prompted the speculation about witches on the prowl in the first place.
Harvest home (September)
In Europe and Britain, the conclusion of the harvest each autumn was once marked by festivals of fun, feasting, and thanksgiving known as "Harvest Home:. It was also a time to hold elections, pay workers, and collect rents. These festivals usually took place aroung the time of the autumnal equinox. Certain groups in this country, particularly the Pennsylvania Dutch, have kept the tradition alive.
St. Luke's Little Summer (October)
A spell of warm weather that occurs about the time of the saint's feast day, October 18, theis period is sometimes referred to as Indian summer.
Indian Summer (November)
A period of warm weather following a cold spell or a hard frost, Indian summer can occur between St. Martin's Day (November 11) and November 20. Although there are different dates for its occurrence, for more than 200 years the Old Farmers' Almanac had adhered to the saying "If All Saints' brings out winter, St. Martin's brings out Indian summer." As for the origin of the term, some say it comes from the early native Americans, who believed that the condition was caused by a warm wind sent from the court of their southwestern god, Cautantowwit.
Halcyon Days (December)
About 14 days of calm weather follow the blustery winds of autumn's end. The ancient Greeks and Romans believed them to occur around the time of the winter solstice, when the halcyon, or kingfisher, was brooding. In a nest floating on the sea, the bird was said to have charmed the wind and waves so that the waters were especially calm during this period.
Beware the Pogonip (December)
The word pogonip is a meterological term used to describe an uncommon ocurrence - frozen fog. The word was coined by Native Americans to describe frozen fogs of fine ice needles that occur in the mountain valleys of the western United States and Canada. According to Indian tradition, breathing the fog is injurious to the lungs.