THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 4, 1996 TAG: 9602020200
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
SOURCE: Ronald L. Speer
LENGTH: Medium: 71 lines
Finding a reason for the existence of February isn't easy.
It's sort of like trying to figure out why cockroaches are so important to somebody or something that they have survived through the ages, while more interesting critters such as dinosaurs bit the dust long before man came along.
Most of us probably think we'd be a lot happier if February became extinct and there were two Aprils or two Junes or two Octobers on the calendar.
But think about it for a bit. If there wasn't a February, when would we get around to doing the dirty work that makes it possible to have all that fun in good weather?
I believe that although almost all of us dread the dreary days of February, they were put here for a purpose.
They provide the time to do the planning and the preparation that we never get around to doing when the weather's good and there are fun things to do.
If it weren't for February, my little sailboat would never be at its best. I'd have the sails up all the time and the boat in the water, refusing to waste good weather on such dismal chores as making sure the cotter keys are still intact and securing the pins that keep the shrouds and the forestay and the backstay in place.
And if I wasn't faced with a month of despair, I would never have taken the mast down so I could re-rig the Wind Gypsy and install a furling jib to make sailing safer, simpler and more fun.
And as long as I've got the mast down, I plan to put an antennae at the top of it to greatly expand the range of my radio-telephone, which now works off a six-foot antennae that limits the distance I can communicate with marina operators or other boaters.
That's not fun work, and if I could do anything else enjoyable on weekends I'd be doing it. And while I'm at it, perhaps I should move the running lights from the bow to the top of the mast, making it much easier to spot the Wind Gypsy at night.
And on a particularly nasty February day, I'll hole up inside the Gypsy and do a year's worth of housecleaning, a chore that is bypassed if the winds are right and the sun is shining.
Gardeners need February, too, particularly to peruse the seed and plant catalogs that are dropped daily in the mail box to whet the appetite of anyone with even a tinge of green in her thumb.
If the weather were good, I'd probably never look at the colorful magazines. I'd be too busy actually doing something fun to waste a nice weekend day on planning and dreaming.
And that would be a shame, because my winter reading already has paid off with a decision to plant plenty of roses this spring. I usually skip the All-American flower because it doesn't flourish unless you kill disease and bugs with heavy doses of chemical sprays week after week after week. But one of the seed companies promises summer-long blossoms on rose plants that need no extra care. Plant 'em and forget 'em and you'll enjoy beautiful flowers from spring to fall, claims the guarantee. That's my kind of a flower, one that gives back much more than it takes.
I also designed, on a day too dreadful to do anything enjoyable, the wooden fence I want to erect around the pool in the back yard. It took me hours - and I would have never spent that kind of time if it were tolerable outdoors.
And for the first time in months, the garage is clean because bad weather chased me.
Yep, there are reasons for February, especially in an area like coastal Carolina where there are so many things to do in good weather.
But was it really necessary to give February an extra day when it comes time to balance the calendar? by CNB