Birthday Season
Broadly defined period of time before and/or after one's birthday in which friends and family can legitimately give you a card, gift, party, dinner out etc in celebration of your birthday. This allows multiple friends and family the opportunity to have their own time with you without competing or feeling bad because they couldn't do anything the "real" day.
The term Birthday Season is usually said somewhat "tongue in cheek" and is not universally observed. Where it is recognized, it varies from person to person , or group to group as to what is an acceptable period of time. In some circles, the birthday season lasts only ~2 weeks. Certainly among family, SOME sort of celebration should take place within a week or so of the actual birthday, so as not to make the birthday person feel neglected.
But among friends, if the birthday person or their friends are very busy, or if the birthday person has many separate circles of friends wishing to celebrate with him/her, it may be necessary to extend the season up to a month after the actual birthday. A birthday season is seldom extended more than a week BEFORE the actual birthday, however, as this might make the birthday itself seem anticlimactic if further celebrations do not occur.
If celebrating a person's birthday, in whatever form, will happen after the fact, it is customary to at least give them a call or an email within a day or two (whenever possible) to wish them Happy Birthday and let them know of your intentions.
The term Birthday Season is usually said somewhat "tongue in cheek" and is not universally observed. Where it is recognized, it varies from person to person , or group to group as to what is an acceptable period of time. In some circles, the birthday season lasts only ~2 weeks. Certainly among family, SOME sort of celebration should take place within a week or so of the actual birthday, so as not to make the birthday person feel neglected.
But among friends, if the birthday person or their friends are very busy, or if the birthday person has many separate circles of friends wishing to celebrate with him/her, it may be necessary to extend the season up to a month after the actual birthday. A birthday season is seldom extended more than a week BEFORE the actual birthday, however, as this might make the birthday itself seem anticlimactic if further celebrations do not occur.
If celebrating a person's birthday, in whatever form, will happen after the fact, it is customary to at least give them a call or an email within a day or two (whenever possible) to wish them Happy Birthday and let them know of your intentions.
Ex 1: I was feeling bad that I hadn't been able to take Jan out to dinner yet to celebrate her birthday, and hadn't even gotten her gift to her yet. "No worries," she laughed." I firmly believe in the idea of a "Birthday Season." When things settle down at work for you we can get together. Heck, I figure anything in July is still "on time". And if my Birthday Season stretches into August, even better!!! I love being celebrated over and over!!!"
Ex 2: I called Lissa to wish her a Happy Birthday....and told her we'd have to get together later in her "Birthday Season" since I'll be out of town for a couple weeks. She said that was fine....her Birthday Season was looking pretty scheduled up before that anyway...and she hated it when it came to an end, so she was glad she had something to look forward to later!!
Ex 2: I called Lissa to wish her a Happy Birthday....and told her we'd have to get together later in her "Birthday Season" since I'll be out of town for a couple weeks. She said that was fine....her Birthday Season was looking pretty scheduled up before that anyway...and she hated it when it came to an end, so she was glad she had something to look forward to later!!
Birthday Season by SeaKat July 22, 2013
Get the Birthday Season mug.