14-15 March 26

Wearing my cherry-pie tie to continue celebrating Pi Day on 14 March (3-14). I'm sure I learned about π as the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter by fourth grade but I did not grasp its significance as a fundamental universal constant until studying trigonometry and calculus in high school, and then later in complex variables and quantum mechanics in college. You can find links to the first billion, and hundred billion, digits of π at MIT's Web site. I'm happy to remember seven, 3.14159.

14 March 25

 It's π Day! The irrational number π has a decimal value that starts 3.14159.... and so the 14th day of the 3rd month is a time for special celebrations. Pi equals the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. My tie celebrates cherry pie. 

Two birthdays noted on my genealogical calendar: my great-great-grandfather (on my father's side) David Dreibelbis (1792-1886) was born on March 14 in Richmond, PA, and my great-grandfather (on my mother's side) Royal George Kinner (1843-1900) was born on March 13 in Cato, NY. March 14 is also the birthday of Albert Einstein (1879-1955), and marks the date in 1912 when the name Oreo was trademarked for that cookie.

20 February 23

Presidents' Day is always the third Monday in February. Today (20 February) is also National Cherry Pie Day, and my tie shows the top view of a lattice cherry pie. Cherry pie has long been associated with George Washington, from the myth about his childhood action to chop down a cherry tree and then confessing to his father that he could not tell a lie. The myth seems to have been invented by one of Washington's biographers several years after his presidency. Presidents' Day originated from celebrations of Washington's birthday (22 February) and evolved with association with Abraham Lincoln's birthday (12 February). The official proclamation (in 1968, effective in 1971) calls it Washington's Birthday, but the popular name Presidents' Day (with the apostrophe) is now conventional.

12 March 21

 Beth took one look at my tie today and said "It must be the fourteenth!" She was mistaken about the date but right about the tie's calendar correlation. 14 March, or 3.14, is always Pi Day (∏), which is on Sunday, and so I'm taking the chance to wear my cherry pie tie today (for work/class). Today's other noteworthy events include the moment when Coca-Cola was first sold in bottles in Vicksburg, MS in 1894, and the publication of The Cat in the Hat in 1957.

20 February 20

My tie is definitely suitable for National Cherry Pie Day. The managers of National Day Calendar identify a tasty food, most frequently a dessert, for every day of the year. Look out for 6 March, when we are to celebrate with frozen food, Oreo® cookies AND white chocolate cheesecake. Later today I'm going to check whether McDonald's has some cherry-and-creme pies!

10 March 19

Wearing my cherry pie tie to pre-celebrate Pi Day this coming Thursday. (This week is Spring Break at EKU, so I'm taking a break from ties for a while!) Remember that π is the special (peculiar, unique) number that is the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter (which is twice the radius), and its first digits are 3.14159. So March 14 (3-14) is always ∏ Day!

22 July 18

It's exactly Pi Approximation Day! The fraction 22/7 has been used as a handy value for π since Archimedes' time, 300 BCE. And so, 22 July (22/7) is honored as ∏ Approximation Day. As explained in the accompanying video, the fraction's value is off by only 0.04%. My cherry pie tie is approximately 100% appropriate for this occasion.

Watch Pi Approximation Day and an Approximate History of Pi.

22 February 18

I grew up before the invention of "Presidents' Day." We celebrated Lincoln's birthday (12 February) and Washington's birthday (22 February) separately. Around this time of the month, many stores and restaurants featured specials on cherry pies and cherry furniture, recalling the totally fake-news legend about George Washington, a cherry tree, and the virtue of honesty. I needed an occasion to wear my own cherry-pie tie, so this is it! George Washington lived from 1732 to 1799.

8 September 16

Happy Birthday, Aunt Grace York! She turns 103 today. She loves cherry pie, and so she selected this tie for me to wear in her honor today. The extra photo is from her great 100th birthday celebration (three years ago, of course!)!

7 July 16

Happy Cherry Day! From 1793 to 1805, France used the "French Republican Calendar," designed to celebrate agrarian life and to sweep away the traditions of the old feudal monarchy. Each day was identified with a crop, a farm tool or a farm animal. What we call 7 July was counted as 19 Messidor and celebrated "Cerise," the cherry. My tie shows lattice pastry on a cherry pie!

14-15 March 15

I don't normally wear a tie on Saturdays, so I had to wait until today to celebrate Pi Day (3.14 -- and this year is very special because it's "15," the next two digits!) Beth and I shared a waffle covered with raspberry pie filling, at 9:26 in the morning (for 3.141592653 . . . ). My tie's design features cherry pie with a lattice top crust!

7 July 13

Cherry Day on the French Republican Calendar -- so I'm wearing my cherry-pie tie!

25 February 13

February is National Cherry Month, so it's a good time to wear a cherry-pie tie. Of course now I have to find something else to wear for Pi Day on March 14.

14 March 12 (3.14)

Happy Pi Day! Every year on 3.14 we get to celebrate the fantastic number π. And so I get to wear my cherry-pie tie, with "crosshatch" pastry. Circle your family and stop worrying about your own circumference.

8 September 11

Today marks the 98th birthday anniversary for my Aunt Grace York! She lives in Hamden, CT. My tie today is her choice, saying that the cherry pie design reminds her of the excellent pies my mother used to make. I have many childhood memories of visiting with her and Uncle Lauren (my mother's brother) and their family, at homes in New York (on Long Island), New Hampshire and Connecticut. She is an active member of the board for her condominium community, and I also know she likes to send funny stories by email.

14 March 11

It's Pi Day! π = about 3.14, and so March 14 always circles around to being about pi/pie. (It's also Albert Einstein's birthday, but I will celebrate that relatively soon.) Some people might think that a cherry pie tie is both fruity and flaky, but I like it.

07 July 10

Cherry Day, on the French Republican Calendar.

14 March 10

It's Pi Day (3.14) and I have a new pie tie!