This is my calendar for this year. If you click on the thumbnail you can see all the months, though still small. You can also see some of those paintings and a few more here. This artist’s website is rather annoying but I love the paintings and this is one of my favorite calendars ever.
Notice the change from February to March. It was wonderful to turn the page yesterday morning and see the new picture. February’s picture was appropriately snowy and cold looking. March is a delightful spring scene with kids flying kites. I never did get into flying kites. I tried once but never even got it high enough in the air to get caught in a tree. Anyway, those two pictures perfectly match our actual weather, except that March weather started in the middle of February right after the snow melted and temperatures on most days have been more like April or May.
And here’s another funny thing about calendars, or maybe it’s more something funny about me but I’m going to blame the calendar makers anyway. The funny thing is, I’m usually disappointed with the May calendar picture. My birthday is in May and that makes me feel that the May picture should be the best on the whole calendar but it’s usually not and, most notably, it is almost always less pretty than April. Take this calendar for example. April’s picture is of a lake and lovely multi-colored hills. May’s picture is of a woman hanging laundry. Come on! That’s not fair! May is a lovely month. It’s past any chance of cold weather but not yet so hot you don’t want to stay outside for more more than a few minutes. Why can’t we have calendar pictures that reflect the true awesomeness of May? Why does April always get all the glory?
March 2nd, 2011 - 11:56 am
May is my birthday month too, and I have the same complaints about May calendar pictures. Come on, people, why the discrimination against May people?
Seriously, I’ve been thinking of getting back into painting because I have this idea for a “calendar” series where I do a seasonal painting for each month. May, to my mind, has a lot of deep greens with white accents, because around here a lot of the white blooming trees seem to be at their height in May.
March 2nd, 2011 - 9:02 pm
Because it’s the April showers that bring the May flowers, maybe?
Or maybe May is simply being punished for having the shortest name. It’s a height discrimination thing.
March 3rd, 2011 - 7:10 am
April is the pretty and popular month. She gets everything, including diamonds. (birth stone)
March 4th, 2011 - 7:34 pm
A thought about why May could get stuck with boring pictures. Bear with me.
Seems to take nine months for a human being to gestate, right? Counting back from May, you get into the August-September area. Lots of people seem to be born in March-April. Counting back from the August-September range, we fall bang in the middle of the holidays, e.g. christmas, thanksgiving, what have you.
Which is a time when the wife and I try to hide out away from everyone, so as to avoid dealing with her family. I know we are not the only ones who are married, but have a problem with one side of the family or other.
Feel free to throw rocks at me now.
March 4th, 2011 - 10:18 pm
May IS a lovely month. You shake off the last of the cold & snow, you start getting those “light jacket” evenings, the lilacs bloom, and the skeeters aren’t out in force yet.
Also, you’re as far from the next round of cold, crappy days as you’re going to be all year.
June’s a close second, but when it’s over, you’re into hot, buggy weather. I always really hate to see June end.
March 8th, 2011 - 7:19 am
Light jackets in May? Not often down here. May is when the shorts and sun-dresses come out. I’m glad I don’t live up north.