Most traditional calendars are divided into four major seasons. The Japanese almanac however has in addition 72 micro-seasons.
Each lasting about five days, making it 360 days in a calendar year, leaving just five for a well-deserved break.
From the first sighting of returning swallows, the sprouting of bamboo shoots, plums turning golden, rice fields maturing.
This rhythm of the flora and fauna from the waxing and waning of the sun and moon may not be instrumental, but here in our corner of the world, Singapore too has its subdivisions of seasons.
Singapore's micro-seasons
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Come January we have Q-season.
40 minutes before banks open, you should be in line for a number to “change new notes”. For Chinese New Year ang baos.
Invariably a bank assistant will tell you, due to online reservation, there are no more new two-dollar bills, is it all right?
Leading to a mini-season of Raised Voices.
You mean to tell me this bank which is the bank of Singapore, before it even opens, has no more new notes?
What do you mean PayNow, electronic ang bao, you mad ah, people want to see their grandchildren and hand them the ang bao.
You not married right?
Just as the bah kwa lines peter out to make way for queueing for roses and restaurant tables for Valentine’s Day, begins a Primary Reason season.
The keen and the kiasu parents of small children have been known to up sticks, move house, even buy another property closest to the school of choice for their primary one schooler.
Registration is in July, therefore the address change has to be effected a couple of months ahead.
What started out as 11/11 big-time online sales, making it a special annual affair, has since been hijacked by the rest of the months.
So you have 2/2, 3/3, 4/4 and so on sales dates cancelling out November as a special season.
Trust us to celebrate Kill Season season.
Island wide hands down our favourite season bar none is Voucher season.
A hundred cash vouchers for this, another hundred for that, plus a hundred towards other…
In tandem with Cynic season.
Yeah lah, they give you $150 and then take back $200.
If only those vouchers could be used for Concert season.
Periodically marquee names fetch up on our shores, you name them, we have paid good money to catch them.
Thanks to geography really, en route to and from their gigs in Australia, Thailand, wherever.
August is an august month for Singaporeans because it is Solidarity season. We salute our National Day in spectacular style.
Hot on its heels is Envy season as we rev up the smell of burning rubber for the Singapore Grand Prix F1 night race and are the envy of neighbouring countries.
When I was growing up, we had seasons like Kite season, Durian season, Goli (marbles) season, Rounders season.
Only durians continue to be in season, almost year-round now.
The kite, the marbles and the rounders have been elbowed out by Fast Food Toys season.
And who can forget Flood season, familiar only to SilverStreakers. When the Rochor Canal overflowed due to torrential rains and turned students’ Badminton Masters (Bata shoes) into clodhoppers en route to school.
Today we call it Monsoon season.
We wanted to go to Bali (or Vietnam) but Monsoon season so we thought why not add a thousand dollars for tickets to Maroon 5 concert instead.
Our micro-seasons may not be a patch on Japan’s, but our Light-Up season gives us reasons to beam.
For it celebrates Christmas, Hari Raya, Deepavali, Chinese New Year.
Our major four seasons.
