I won’t swear to this, but right now, here’s how I am feeling about the twelve months of the year. This is my ranking.
I started thinking about this as we head into the dark fall months, focusing on how much I dislike late fall, and then I decided to focus instead on how much I liked other months and seasons.
Obviously I’m a summer person!
😎July: The most summery of the summer months, as an academic administrator it’s the quietest work month of the year, I can work reasonable days and still get stuff done. It’s also full of bike rides and boat trips and warm enough to swim outside just about anywhere local. Also, I usually take some holidays in July.
🍉August: It’s my birthday month and gearing up for back to school. The campus comes alive again. We usually go canoe tripping in August. August is a month of very good things including local peaches and corn.
🚴June: This is the month of my favourite conference, the Canadian Philosophical Association and it’s also Pride and University Convocation. It’s warm enough for camping and long bike rides too.
✏️September: My WOW month. It’s beautiful and full of warm days but also back to school energy. I wish I could bottle that energy for March. It’s a great time of year for canoe camping and long bike rides.
🌸May: If September bookends the summer months at one end, May does it at the other. I love spring gardens before the heat and dry days ruin things. I love the family dinners outside and the lengthening daylight.
🍂October: The weather is starting to get crisp and cool. The leaves are incredibly beautiful. There are often some good October conferences. And it’s Halloween.
🎄December: It’s the holidays and there’s a break in the school year and I get to see my family. So yes, it might be dark but there are lots of lights on the tree and music in church. Also, the food is good. I love the cozy of Christmas.
⛈️April: I wish I liked spring more. It’s a season of hope. Sadly, in this part of Canada it’s also a season of continual dashed expectations. We tend to go straight from cold rainy days to scorching heat.
💕February: Well, there’s Valentine’s Day, so there’s that. There is also a university break week. Often, there are also some of those bright winter days that I love so much. But wow, winter is starting to drag on by February.
☘️March: I think March is actually the worst month of the academic year, but this is an overall ranking not a ranking of months from an academic perspective. Why the worst? Morale is at an all time low. There’s grading ahead. We’re tired. The students are tired. The weather is usually not good for any outdoor activity. It’s no longer winter and doesn’t yet feel like spring.
❄️January: January feels like the longest month of the year. It’s dark and often here, the weather can be miserable. The two bright sides? Those occasional bright, cold, snowy winter days that are perfect for fat biking and or just walking the dog. Also, the days are getting longer. Sometimes there’s vacation.
🥲November: You can read why November is last all over the blog. For example, See Is there a way to redeem November? and 10 things to make it through November and November is my toughest fitness month: Here’s why. Way back in 2014 I wrote November goals. Here’s my advice for all the November haters out there.
November has but one redeeming feature: Sarah’s birthday!
