Tic Tac Toe Day    

What a glorious winter surprise!!

Tic Tac Toe Day is coming Saturday, 12/13/14. This is the final time this century when the date is comprised of three consecutive numbers. (On the other side of the pond, they call it Noughts and Crosses Day, but they write their dates a bit differently and enjoyed their final one last year.)

We’ve established a contest, and are offering the date in dollars ($1,213.14) to be shared by our 12+13+14 winners. Prizes will be distributed among those who create the most consequential sequential celebration. Suggestions include a poem, a story, a glorious winter gathering, a grand tic tac toe tournament, or a commemorative costume. Heck, you can even sponsor a debate to determine if 12/12/12 earned the designation, and perhaps this is truly nought “tic tac toe” but a calendar impostor.

Debatability, and a word to the purists----see the paragraph below the poem.

When’s the next Tic Tac Toe Day?? Some say it properly arrives on 1/1/1, on the shoulders of the next century (three identical in a row). That day, however, seems to be booked ahead by New Year’s. If it’s three in a row as this, we won’t see the like again until 1/2/3. Sadly enough, that’s an 88-year wait. So if we’re judged technically wrong in our designation, we can still all enjoy our last hurrah---there won’t be another Tic Tac Toe Day this century!

Our favorite creative artist, who breathes joy into stick figures, has a Facebook page for a virtual event---all are invited---bring your friends!!

These days are like calendar comets---you wait and wait and wait for them, then they brighten up your day---and poof---they're gone!

The simplest way to celebrate Tic Tac Toe Day?---just share it with a friend. Greet them with the news of the day (you have nought to lose, and they have much to gain)---and they, in turn, can tell another. It's kind of like a secret that you can't help sharing. A little math, a little smile, a little fun---that's Tic Tac Toe!!

             A tribute to Tic Tac Toe
three consecutive numbers will tell the date
Tic Tac Toe? we just can’t wait
wow, what a sequence, it’s three in a row
hurry, hurry, tell the news to all you know!

Debatability?? Whether it’s “tic tac toe, three in a row” or “noughts and crosses, three in a row”, the mandate isn’t 3 identical in a row. These, indeed, are 3 in a row. And, undeniably, it’s a winning date!! Take a close look---no numbers on the calendar can be more consecutive than these three who stand so close, one next to the other. Such a sequence will not happen again this century. Clearly, it’s not a day to quarrel---let’s celebrate!! By the way, it’s rumored that the cavemen invented tic tac toe, and called it “rocks and sticks—and ouch, my toe!!”. There’s growing evidence that their implements were similar, though not identical, and perhaps their rows showed specks of dirt.