A curious story this maggot came across while luxuriating in Alan Hanna’s lovely Rathmines coffee shop reaping the rewards of a new pair of reading glasses from Rathmines Eye Centre!

Why February Has 28 Days in the (Basque Country)

A shepherd in the hills of Euskal Herria on the exposed north coast of the Iberian Peninsula always lost a number of ewes & lambs each lambing season, which comes during the worst weather of the year – February & March. But one year, March weather was so wild the shepherd didn’t lose a single sheep all month & he was very grateful. “March weather,” he said, (a shepherd lives close to the elements and can understand & talk with them), “you didn’t kill any of my sheep this year and I want to thank you.” But March weather was proud of his fierce reputation as a killer & he was angry to think that he might lose it, so he snatched two days of weather from his neighbour, February & he killed all the sheep in the shepherd’s flock. And ever since then, February has only had 28 days.

happily whipped from – A people’s chronicle to prehistory to the 21st century