Happy May Day, one and all!

I had no idea that May Day was anything other than a distress call for pilots in war movies. But with some time on my hands, I found out that the May Day celebration includes dancing around the Maypole and general merry making in honor of Spring. Another excellent excuse for a party!

Fun facts:

• Its origins go back to the ancient Greeks and Romans

• It is the another tree decorating holiday that former pagan cultures cherish so much

1914, when pole dancing was innocent.
(Original photo credit: Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, [LC-USZ62-54028]

• In 1889, bored with synchronized dancing and aimless carousing, the labor union movement and Socialists of the world decided have their kind of fun on May 1st, proclaiming that day the International Workers' Day. The demonstrations and parades also required synchronized behavior but this was the era of the popular marching songs judging by my great-grandfather's collection of 45s, so it still might have had some element of fun.
  

An early May Day Parade, when tough guys wore bowler hats.
(Credit: Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, [LC-B2- 2010-12[P&P]

• We can thank those socialists for giving us the manageable 8-hour work day in the United States. (But the fight continues, if you are paying any attention to the plight of undocumented workers or labor leaders elsewhere in the world.)

Enjoy the sunshine, revel in Spring, and make sure that your boss isn't committing any H.R. violations.