Tommorow Will Be The Last Day Of July. Typically July And August In The Midwest Are Known To House "The Dog Days Of Summer". When Ever You Hear Expression Like This It Makes One Wonder Where It Originated. For Example One Night Billie And I Went To Bingo. There Was This Particular Game We Always Enjoyed. Billie And I Always Played Six Cards A Piece. Every Week I Would Approach The Older Gentleman Who Would Be Selling These Cards. Every Week I Always Put My Order In To Him Which Was A Request For A Bakers Dozen. He Would Always Laugh And Ofcourse Give Me Twelve.
One Week This Gentleman Shared With Me Where the Bakers Dozen Originated. He Informed Me That The Bakers In Paris, France Were Cheating Their Customers And Not Giving Them The Entire 12 Of The Dozen They Ordered. The King Warned All The Bakers From Here On Out If They Were Found To Cheat A Customer They Would Behead The Baker. From That point On It Became A Custom To Always Give The Customer An Extra Loaf Becoming 13 Instead Of 12.
So Back To The Topic Of Summer And The Dog Days Of Summer.
Consider This; But Where Does The Term Come From? Why do we call the hot, sultry days of summer “dog days?”
In ancient times, when the night sky was unobscured by artificial lights and smog, different groups of peoples in different parts of the world drew images in the sky by “connecting the dots” of stars. The images drawn were dependent upon the culture: The Chinese saw different images than the Native Americans, who saw different pictures than the Europeans. These star pictures are now called constellations, and the constellations that are now mapped out in the sky come from our European ancestors.
They saw images of bears, (Ursa Major and Ursa Minor), twins, (Gemini), a bull, (Taurus), and others, including dogs, (Canis Major and Canis Minor).
The brightest of the stars in Canis Major (the big dog) is Sirius, which also happens to be the brightest star in the night sky. In fact, it is so bright that the ancient Romans thought that the earth received heat from it. Look for it in the southern sky (viewed from northern latitudes) during January.
In the summer, however, Sirius, the “dog star,” rises and sets with the sun. During late July Sirius is in conjunction with the sun, and the ancients believed that its heat added to the heat of the sun, creating a stretch of hot and sultry weather. They named this period of time, from 20 days before the conjunction to 20 days after, “dog days” after the dog star.
The conjunction of Sirius with the sun varies somewhat with latitude. And the “precession of the equinoxes” (a gradual drifting of the constellations over time) means that the constellations today are not in exactly the same place in the sky as they were in ancient Rome. Today, dog days occur during the period between July 3 and August 11.
In ancient times, when the night sky was unobscured by artificial lights and smog, different groups of peoples in different parts of the world drew images in the sky by “connecting the dots” of stars. The images drawn were dependent upon the culture: The Chinese saw different images than the Native Americans, who saw different pictures than the Europeans. These star pictures are now called constellations, and the constellations that are now mapped out in the sky come from our European ancestors.
They saw images of bears, (Ursa Major and Ursa Minor), twins, (Gemini), a bull, (Taurus), and others, including dogs, (Canis Major and Canis Minor).
The brightest of the stars in Canis Major (the big dog) is Sirius, which also happens to be the brightest star in the night sky. In fact, it is so bright that the ancient Romans thought that the earth received heat from it. Look for it in the southern sky (viewed from northern latitudes) during January.
In the summer, however, Sirius, the “dog star,” rises and sets with the sun. During late July Sirius is in conjunction with the sun, and the ancients believed that its heat added to the heat of the sun, creating a stretch of hot and sultry weather. They named this period of time, from 20 days before the conjunction to 20 days after, “dog days” after the dog star.
The conjunction of Sirius with the sun varies somewhat with latitude. And the “precession of the equinoxes” (a gradual drifting of the constellations over time) means that the constellations today are not in exactly the same place in the sky as they were in ancient Rome. Today, dog days occur during the period between July 3 and August 11.
So, There You Have It Folks. No Longer A Mystery. As We Struggle To Get Through These Dog Days Of Summer Always Keep In Mind To Drink Plenty Of Fluids And Avoid Alcoholic Beverages As Well As Any Beverage That Has Caffeine. Most Importantly Always Check On Your Outside Dog And Provide Them With Plenty Of Water AS Well As Shade.
As For Me, I Will Continue Doing My Every Day Thing During These "Dog Days" And Carry My Sweat Rag And Will Be Business As Usual.
Just Call Me Mac........
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