Happy Consecutive Integer Day!

It’s July 8, 2009. Or, in American parlance, 07/08/09. Consecutive Integer Day!

I believe the celebratory custom is to get up and go to work. Like usual.

The other day I posted about the 5th of July – in the non-American style, 05/07/09. The story I noticed claimed such a thing only happens five times in a century.

See, I’m kind of a sucker for unusual calendar and/or mathematical coincidences, and so I didn’t think it through before I posted, but commenters – starting with Heather Radish – clued me in.

Having spent way too much time thinking about this now, I realize that, in the American style of date-writing, there are actually six dates per century that are either consecutive odd or consecutive even integers. In the English version, there are only 5 of each.

Another reason the American way is superior.

Likewise, we Americans can celebrate a dozen Consecutive Integer Days – 01/02/03 through 12/13/14, whereas the British only get eleven.

Next up after today, June 8, 2010, and then August 9, 2010. We get two per year until 2015, when only November 13 will count. And then December 14, 2016. After that, we have to wait until January 2, 2103.

And I’ll be raking in the hits that day. Believe you me.