# A Public Service Announcement Concerning a Well Known Mnemonic **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 20, 2016, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630 "2016-03-20T08:57:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630/21 "2016-03-21T16:12:32Z")
I want to use the knuckle method but it uses both hands and then I don’t have another hand to point at my knuckles with. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630/22 "2016-03-21T17:08:54Z")
> [@74westy](#): > > I want to use the knuckle method but it uses both hands and then I don’t have another hand to point at my knuckles with. Oh My God! It’s proof that our Calendar didn’t originate on Earth! It’s from a planet where people have Three Hands! Okay, that’s ridiculous – the calendar clearly refers to the astronomical situation on Earth. It HAD to originate here. It’s the _mnemonic_ that originated on another planet. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630/23 "2016-03-21T23:34:41Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > Of course, the other problem is that September, October, November and December are not the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th months of the year. It’s just as well that Quintilis and Sextilis were renamed by the Romans after Julius Caesar and Augustus Caesar – otherwise we’d have six months named after Roman numbers, but in the wrong position. This always screws me up with my Dad’s birthday, because he was born October 8[sup]th[/sup], but I tend to skip to October 10[sup]th[/sup] because it’s the eighth month, innit? Sez so, right in the name. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630/24 "2016-03-22T02:24:55Z")
Whose idea was it to change the beginning of the year to January, anyway? ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630/25 "2016-03-22T22:31:40Z")
You don’t need the mnenomic. Just count them on your knuckles. 31 in the months on the knuckles, 30 in the valleys between. When you get to the last knuckle, repeat it (July to August) and go back the other way. ---
**Author:** ![Boozahol\_Squid\_P.I](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d9b06d/32.png) [@Boozahol\_Squid\_P.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boozahol_Squid_P.I)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2016, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630/26 "2016-03-23T14:22:21Z")
> [@SCAdian](#): > > Whose idea was it to change the beginning of the year to January, anyway? Numa Pompilius ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2016, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630/27 "2016-03-23T14:36:14Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > I have never had a problem remembering the thirty days hath September bit. I think the knuckle method is silly. What’s silly about it? It’s quicker and doesn’t require any memorization. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2016, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630/28 "2016-03-23T14:44:02Z")
> [@Morgyn](#): > > This always screws me up with my Dad’s birthday, because he was born October 8[sup]th[/sup], but I tend to skip to October 10[sup]th[/sup] because it’s the eighth month, innit? Sez so, right in the name. Just don’t skip the 10th. That’s my son’s birthday. and also the birthday of the illustrious Ed Wood. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-public-service-announcement-concerning-a-well-known-mnemonic/749630.md?page=1)