The Year is Over!

[mishalak]

Mercedonius 1 after AUC 2760, Kalends

Well by the Orthodox Atheist calender anyway. Mercedonius is the intercalary month of five or six days that serves to keep the three-hundred and sixty day day year in alignment with the tropical (sun) year. Similar to the World Calendar popular between World War I and World War II and that was going to be adopted by the UN until a veto by the United States, it is a perpetual calender. The days of Mercedonius do not belong to either year they come between, though common practice is for them to be lumped in with the previous year.

Since Orthodox Atheism is not a majority anywhere the proposed five or six day holiday cannot take place on any large scale, but most adherents have some celebration that fits in with the Christian observance of Christmas and/or Boxing Day. Unlike most other Orthadox Atheist holidays Mercedonius is meant to be almost entirely frivolous, rather than a serious observance. Kalends, the first day, is supposed to be a day and night of masked partying similar to misrule carnivals of Europe.

Luckily I have a masquerade party to go to this year (provided I feel better by evening) so I'm able to take part in this tradition in a small way. The rest of my Mercedonius is going to be the usual celebrations on the cover of Christmas. I'm thinking a big ham with wine for Yule. Possibly pudding.

Comments

[dd-b.livejournal.com]

Interesting; Sun Microsystems still shuts down between Christmas and New Years. It's not formally identified as "Mercedonius" though.

[mishalak.livejournal.com]

It's not that uncommon an idea. The French Republican Calendar had something somewhat like it with five or six days before the Autumnal Equinox so that 1 Vendémiaire would alway fall on the Equinox. Obviously the Orthodox Atheist Calendar sprung from the same idea, though with it centered on the Southern Solstice (winter in the northern hemisphere) and making sure the March 25 the day of or day after the Equinox and using Roman AUC numbering.

In the commentaries about the calendar there was some dispute as to if making March 25 as the Equinox or December 30 the Southern Solstice should take precedence until it was pointed out that until some geographical area had a plurality of Orthodox Atheists that it would be much more convenient to use a set of easy rules to convert from the standard Gregorian Calendar.

[jcfiala.livejournal.com]

Coolness.

Due to this and that, I'm actually taking the next eleven days off - so we should get together and do something during Mercedonius.

[mishalak.livejournal.com]

Sounds good to me! When/where? Beer? Sunday? Thursday?

[jcfiala.livejournal.com]

Well, I've got absolutely no plans, really, so any day will do. If you want Tammy around we could do this Sunday or next - if you want to just hang out with me then weds-fri is good. As for where, either home is good, or we could hit a movie, go shopping for whatever, or even hit something touristy.

I'm not very good at making plans with people, because I do it so seldom.