Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Happy Leap Year


Exactly 100 years ago today, this special Leap Year greeting card countered social constraints of latter day Victorian England and allowed the process of romance to begin "in reverse" . . .  



The first documentation of this practice dates back to 1288, when Scotland supposedly passed a law  allowing women to propose marriage to the men of their choice in Leap Year. Tradition states they also made it law that any man who declined a proposal in a Leap Year must pay a fine. The fine could range from a kiss, to payment for a silk dress or a pair of gloves.



There's one behind every bush.



 Disbelief: this chick would have been snatched up 10 years earlier.




Is that the future mother-in-law giving advice?



  The Queen Bee at work.  Honey Boy?

 

I didn't understand this one right off, either.

 

 A full century later, we have turned the tradition over to the toads. 




2 comments:

  1. Happy Leap Day, Lori. What a wild notion but so incredibly romantic for a man to have to pay a fine if he said no! Great topic for today.

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  2. Pretty cool!! thanks for sharing :)

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