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In the grip of calendar paralysis again

I go into calendar paralysis this time of year.

I was reminded of that when my phone rang the other day at the office.

We’re still in August here, mind you, but the caller was definitely looking ahead — to next month and beyond.

He is a representative of the Jefferson County Historical Association and was inviting me to attend its annual meeting and banquet on Sept. 26 at St. Florian Hall in Wintersville.

But first he mentioned another date, this one on the 10th day of the 11th month — the 243rd birthday of the Marine Corps.

The celebration is observed locally by the Band of Brothers, which began as a group of Marine veterans whose service spans from World War II and the Korean War to Vietnam and more recent conflicts. Through the years, though, veterans representing other branches of the military attend its weekly breakfast meetings and mark the Marine Corps birthday every November.

Charlie Green, a member of both groups, was the caller on the phone, inviting me to that, too.

I jokingly “yelled” at him and said I didn’t want to think about November, considering my heels are dug into August in an attempt to hold it hostage and keep it from escaping into September.

I thanked him for the heads up and made a mental note of the events, but I am not a fan of flipping calendar pages this time of year.

An avalanche of activity has been awaiting its chance to return — from newspaper work to personal obligations to church events, you name it. Off we go.

I have a co-worker who doesn’t like to look ahead on the calendar either, or at least exercises great caution in not being in a big hurry about ripping away the page of one month to reveal the next one.

Do that too early, honey, and you’re just asking for bad luck, so the reasoning goes.

I find that the seasons to come get harder to weather — literally.

And the Farmers Almanac is never much comfort in this department.

It might as well just predict we’ll have whatever kind of winter we’re supposed to get.

But I put my big girl pants on and try no to whine too much. I forge ahead, fully well understanding that time marches on, ready or not, like it or not.

I get that, considering my kids turned 29 and 30 this year. Great Earth!

I have one church secretary who sends me her church news for the Saturday community page — a gal who prefers cold weather over warm.

We maintain a friendship despite weather differences.

Her e-mail to me this past week brought the reminder that the next time she would communicate with me, “it will be SeptemBER. Yes! The four BER months begin!”

She wrote that in the Philippines, it is the official start of the Christmas season.

“They begin celebrating Christmas on September 1. One-third of the year is Christmas in the Philippines! Makes you feel like going out Christmas shopping, right?” she wrote.

I suppose so, I thought to myself. I could look around for a calendar.

(Kiaski, a resident of Richmond, is a staff columnist and community editor for the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times. She can be contacted at jkiaski@heraldstaronline.com.)

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