May Day has its roots in astronomy. Traditionally, it was the halfway point between the spring equinox and the summer solstice! In ancient times, this was one of the Celtic cross-quarter days, which marked the midway points between the (four) solstices and equinoxes of the year.

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"May Day has a long history and tradition in England, some of which eventually came to America. Children would dance around the maypole, holding onto colorful ribbons. People would bring in the May by gathering wildflowers and green branches, weaving floral hoops and hair garlands, and crowning a May king and queen."

In more modern times, May Day (May 1st), is celebrated by workers across the globe as International Labor Day.

"The US has a complicated history with May Day. The United States doesn’t formally recognize 1 May as a national holiday; however, you may find some communities that have festivals dedicated to youth, spring, and flowers. When I was a child, our grade school had May Day activities involving kids dancing around a maypole. However, unlike much of the rest of the world, workers in the US honor and celebrate the struggles and achievements of workers and their unions on the first Monday of September; not on May Day."

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Even so, this year (at Midnight following failing to reach an agreement on May 1st's International Labor Day), Hollywood writers in the USA have gone on strike, bringing production on many television shows to a halt. The distance between the two sides suggest this could be the start of a long strike. The last strike that started in November 2007 stretched 100 days into February of 2008.

"Viewers this time will see an immediate impact with late night shows, daytime soap operas and shows such as “Saturday Night Live."

Being a writer myself, I stand with the Hollywood writers guild. However, I will also truthfully miss the late-night talk show monologs - plus Saturday Night Live - that feature a comic release valve from the insanity these days of politics in America. There is so much bad stuff happening lately, and we all don't get enough opportunities to laugh rather than just cry. Writers have been what have been keeping those shows going. Some of the late-night TV hosts are also writers themselves and members of the guild. Hopefully, the writers on strike will win this battle in the end. Not all are wealthy like the TV hosts. Many work just to make ends meet. And thus, the strike.

Beyond live TV shows, this writers’ strike will shut down production on most television shows and cause a domino effect in the wider realm of the entertainment industry, pushing back the return of many programs set for the fall. A lot of Americans may not care about the welfare of those who work to put together TV programs and movies. But they will notice things when new episodes of their favorite TV programs and new movies are no longer available for their enjoyment.

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Since we currently don't have any new wildflowers in bloom locally (excluding dandelions), my personal celebration of May Day (and the signal in a change of seasons 2023) has been for me to photograph the above Christmas Cactus blooming at the end of the season for the Northern Hemisphere. It will soon be time to start thinking more about Summertime flowers. I have planted seeds. As the ancient Celts believed, May Day is a time between the start of Spring & the Summer Solstice. So, the seasons can overlap.

This week or so will undoubtedly be my various Christmas Cactuses' last blooming until next October or November once Fall 2023 has arrived. It's getting late in the Spring season. I currently have 5 in bloom and/or in bud. Considered a Wintertime plant in the Northern Hemisphere, Christmas cacti usually flower between November and January. However, it seems that outdoors weather can influence the blooming habits of even indoors plants. We've been experienced string of cool days lately with nights close to freezing. I never do anything to get my Christmas Cactuses to rebloom. They just do what Mother Nature tells them.

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The above plant is a very old variety I've had going on 20 years. It also "recently" was in bloom on the day of the 2022 Winter Solstice (December 21st) and stayed in bloom for weeks. Now, it's blooming again for May Day 2023.