George Read doesn’t have a birthday this year, so he celebrated turning nine and one-quarter yesterday.
He was born on Feb 29, 1972, making him a leap year baby, thus his birthday only comes around once every four years. In the three years in between, he says he can celebrate whenever he wants — this year his family had friends over for dinner on March 1.
“It’s great when you’re old, but it stinks when you’re a kid,” Read, who has actually lived for 37 years, said from Calgary.
Read said he has missed out on plenty of free birthday meals and getting into the zoo for free. It can also be frustrating when companies don’t have Feb. 29 in their system — most recently, Telus almost wouldn’t hook up his cellphone.
Peter Brouwer, founder of the Honour Society of Leap Year Babies, said there are many other Feb. 29 birth date bugs on the Internet. “Many people don’t understand leap year — so why should the Internet?” he said.
