h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I can remember as a kid being in snow up to my waist by mid-November. Now we hardly had more than a few inches for a few days here (in Ohio) and the temperature got upwards of 60 degrees F in January.
Strange? Yes. Sign of Impending Doom and Gloom? No. The seasons are not "switching" or blending, our calendar needs reworked.
Instead of me going into a huge Astronomy lesson, know this: It takes a few seconds less than 24 hrs for us to make a full rotation (ie day/night). This extra time adds up, which is where we get Leap Years from, four years worth of these extra seconds make a whole day, or so we thought, so every so often we play "catch-up". In actually, four years of these extra seconds make up a day and some change (something like a day and an extra hour and fifteen minutes per year). This time is adding up and that's why it's 60 degree in February and snowing in August. Because we are actually about a year off in time. We think it's Feb of 2005, when it's actually closer to April of 2006.
Check your Roman calendar facts and your Gregorian calendar facts and you'll see.
So, sorry to all of you using The End of The World to put asses in pews and also to you Meteorologists using panic and terror as springboards for your careers. The world is not ending, we're not that lucky, and you still have to go to work tomorrow. Don't let your local religious zealot or Me(a)t(head)eorologist take advantage of the oldest trick in the book and turn your fear into their bulging wallets.
Also, Santa, the Easter Bunny and Parisian Innovation are all myths too. Sorry, but you needed to know.

I would like to point out that your story is completely untue, and even for two reasons.
The first is a purely mathematical one. The change in season you describe (though I have never seen snow in august...) comprises roughly 7 months. Taking a few less for averaging out, lets start with 5. 5 months = 5*30 days = 150 days (give or take) With 1.25 days per 4 years extra this gives: 4 * 50 / 1.25 = 4 * 120 = 480 years. And I am sure you're not that old...

Secondly a more scientific reason: What you describe is true, leap years occure because the year is not an exact number of days, and yes even the day doesn't completely compensate that difference. BUT, this is why centuries are not leap years, even though they are devidable by 4. But this doesn't completely make up the difference, which is why centuries which are devidable by four are leap years. This is why 2000 was a leap year while 1900 wasn't. Check it if you will. And even if this isn't 100% accurate it wouldn't make a huge difference (for dayly use) since there aren't that many centuries...

The difference between Roman and Gregorian dates and times etc. is that the gregorian calander is simply a different callendar. To begin with romans originally had 10 months (or so I've been told) (which is why december comes from the latin Decem which means 10) until some emperors decided they wanted their own months (e.g. August which gives August...).
Another reason is that the Gregorian calendar was introduced after the roman era(don't have an exact date, can look it up if you want)and was quite different. This also shows when looking at old english calendars and dates. They used a different calendar until quite far into the middle ages...

So I'd say. nice (conspiracy) theory but completely untrue. Sorry

Rod