The calendar type, that is. I haven’t had a date of the other type with anyone except my husband in, oh, four years (we’ve been married almost three).
I was looking for an email last night, just as a reference point for something that I had seen (on someone else’s kid) that concerned me. So, I looked for April 8, 2011. I found 8/4/2011. But I couldn’t find what I was looking for. There was only one email from that date, and it wasn’t related. There were other emails, dated 8/2/2011, 8/7/2011, 8/9/2011, and so on, but none was what I was looking for.
Then I understood: 8/4/2011 means August 4, 2011. Obviously, I wasn’t finding anything! So I started looking for 4/8/2011. It was kind of tough, because I kept misreading the dates, but eventually, I found what I was looking for (and yes, it was as I thought it was). Argg.
The funny thing is, this happens all the time. Since I came to Israel, I have switched to using a 24-hour clock, and putting the day before the month. In Hebrew, 8.4.2011 is “shmini l’rivi’i alpayim vshteim-esreh”, or, “the eighth day of the fourth month 2011″. So when I see 8/4/2011, I don’t read, “August 4, 2011,” I read, “The eighth day of the fourth month (April), 2011.” It makes more sense to say it this way, honestly. Don’t we all say, “Your appointment is on the eighth of April?” So, why not write it that way? Apparently, because America likes to be contrary, and G-d forbid, we should use what the British (and Eurpeans in general) use.
Sigh. Will I ever get un-mixed? Or, alternately, is there any way for me to change the settings on my emails (and everything else) to say what I expect it to say?
Maybe cause of the way I was brought up, but I don’t find it confusing.
Don’t try and get unmixed – boycott the American way! As an Australian it does my head in. It makes more sense to me to have it day/month/year. It seems logical – day is smallest, then month, then year.
There should be a way to change your email settings but it depends on what program you’re using or if web based. There are ways around it!
memyselfandkids – I’m jealous. You’re lucky.
Rach – It does make sense to do it the European way. I have Gmail and Hotmail, but I’m not sure how to switch either of them. Maybe the way around it is not to look through old emails?