MAYDAY!

Ah, May Day. The period fraught with Pagan-based rituals about Mother Earth, fertility, and children dizzying themselves around poles.

This thought got me noodling the actual word "mayday". A quick Google search spit-up the following: Our current "mayday!" (S.O.S.) has its origins in the word "m'aidez', which is French for "help me!"

And, even though you can find all sorts of information about this word being used beginning in the 1940's, I would like to propose that this is actually a word that began post-Babyboomer, around the time that the minivan got its wheels.

That's when May started like this on the calendar:

May 1*:
a.) Testing at school (all three kids). Send snacks for all classmates (60). Must be individually packaged and delivered 10 minutes before school starts.

b.) T-ball practice (son #1), 4:30-5:30.

c.) Soccer practice (son #2), 5:15-6:15.

d.) Karate (son #3), 6:00-7:00.

e.) Dinner with clients (husband), 6:30-whenever the boss stops buying liquor.

f.) Before bed: bake cake for Field Day. Deliver before sunrise to committee chair in field beside school. Suggested: wear bug repellent; mosquitoes wicked bad around field since accident with overflowing septic.

g.) Before bed: create Daniel Boone outfit for son #3 for Colonial Day. Must include coonskin hat (at son's request.)

I won't even go into May 2nd, because I think you get the point.

And my point? I hate to admit that some Frenchy-french might be right, but I think they hit a bulls eye with the definition with this one.


*For illustrative purposes only. Mike's boss doesn't even LIVE in Dallas.