Sunday evening with Gennie and Andrew

[gfrancie]

Andrew and I have the kind of arguments my Grandparents used to have. Their arguments went like this:

Grandma: Ketchikan is on the mainland.
Grandpa:No...If I remember correctly Ketchikan is an island.
Grandma: What do you mean? Trust me my friend Mercedes went with a sailor who was from Ketchikan and I distinctly remember it being on the mainland.
Grandpa: well...I thought-
Grandma:nope...you are wrong.

Only in this case. I am right about something.
Andrew says the week begins with Monday I told him he was wrong. We have been arguing about this most of the evening and we have said something rather..."cruel" things to eachother. He said something about "where I am from the week begins with Monday" and I said something along the lines of "yeah well where you are from people eat parts of the cow that you really shouldn't eat."
Yeah even I admit it was below the belt.
He said that I was crazy for thinking the week began with Sunday.

The thing is we do follow the Gregorian Calendar set down in the middle ages and I did a little research to prove I was right.

The Bible clearly makes Saturday (the Sabbath) the last day of the week. Therefore it is common Jewish and Christian practice to regard Sunday as the first day of the week (as is also evident from the Portuguese names for the week days mentioned in section 6.2). However, the fact that, for example, Russian uses the name ``second'' for Tuesday, indicates that some nations regard Monday as the first day.

Frequently Asked Questions about Calendars
Version 2.6
Claus Tøndering
24 June 2003

Okay so Mr. Jenner is slightly right too because I looked a bit further

In international standard ISO-8601 the International Organization for Standardization has decreed that Monday shall be the first day of the week.

same source as above

I said something to Andrew about Godless heathens think the beginning of the week is Monday.

So I think our problem is slightly solved, but still I would like to hear other people's opinion.


[Poll #220505]

Comments

[cusackam.livejournal.com]

Ok after reading your first few lines I completely lost what your post was supposed to be about because of the fact that you used Ketchikan in your example, AND IT IS ON A DAMN ISLAND! hehehheheh

GRANDPA WAS RIGHT!!!!!!!

but

Andrew is wrong :o)

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

Oh my Grandpa was definitely right in that case, but my grandmother would argue for hours.

[ratphooey.livejournal.com]

yeah well where you are from people eat parts of the cow that you really shouldn't eat

Bwahahah! So true.

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

It was a bit low, but it was also a funny argument.

[ratphooey.livejournal.com]

Yes.

[cogshiftingman.livejournal.com]

Of course Mr. Jenner is absolutely correct. Monday is the first day of the week, and Sunday is the seventh. After all, old Farty rested on the seventh day and that's Sunday.

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

Hrm...another wrong person. Who comes from a country where they eat weird parts of farm animals.

I looked it all up and because most western cultures follow a certain calendar (which has a church influence) it starts on Sunday.

Sure the ISO says it is Monday but would you trust the Swiss?

[closh2.livejournal.com]

Ah, I could get in trouble for this with a certain friend, but ah, you're right Gen!

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

Of course I am.

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

Right. I can agree with that notion of thinking. As long as you agree that the official beginning of the week is Sunday.

[(Anonymous)]

you know i adore andrew, but i'm sorry, sunday is the first day of the week. my REAL question, tho, is this: how did you remember that my mother had a friend named mercedes?

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

Yep.
You should know by now that my Obsessive compulsive-like behavior causes me to remember every damn useless thing that is thrown my way. That is why I can remember shoe sizes, birthdays, small obscure details of history.

If I correctly remember Mercedes had a sister...Isabelle? and they didn't marry and they lived in a house in Montlake? And you could go over there during the Holidays when you were a child.

[(Anonymous)]

that's right--izzy and mer, they were called. very sweet. one christmas they gave me the soundtrack from "it's a mad mad etc. world"--ok, how's THAT for obscure memory?!

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it is a really weird thing to remember obscure things but I can't find my keys half of the time.
What gives?

[robiewankenobie.livejournal.com]

the more important question is: when does this week end?

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

Now you are getting all esoteric on us. heh

[punch-drunk.livejournal.com]

I'd normally say that the week starts with Sunday, like all of the calendars seem to want us to believe. But Saturday and Sunday are part of the "weekEND", so the Europeans may be onto something.

I do know how to say the days of the week in Persian, Sunday being literally "one-(day)" but their Holy day is Friday and Saturday is just "(day)". So I don't know how that fits into things.

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

Oh...those europeans are a silly bunch. They like to give the impression of being civilized...

[thiscantbesoy.livejournal.com]

For taking birth control, the week begins on Sunday.

On calendars, the week begins on Sunday.

I consider the week to really begin Monday.

Because I consider Sunday the weekend. (Obviously.) You know, the Week END. :)

But still, I know that here in The Americas, the week technically begins with Sunday. (So Gennie's right.) But it doesn't in my mind. (So Andrew's right.)

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

I think we are both right to some degree. We just like to take things too far.

[thiscantbesoy.livejournal.com]

That's okay, Red's and my first full-blown argument (actually, our only one) was about UNIONS. It got heated.

Unions.

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

are you pro or anti?

[thiscantbesoy.livejournal.com]

Pro, I suppose.

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

So you support unions and he has some confusion about the situation.

[thiscantbesoy.livejournal.com]

He is very anti-union. I kind of won the argument after a couple hours, but there's no way I can change his mind.

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

beat him over the head with a heavy stick.

[thiscantbesoy.livejournal.com]

Considering it. Today we scuffled about the Saddam situash. I just can't talk politics with him. Nor do I want to.

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

Well then it may be one of those things where you politely decide early on to remain quiet on that subject for the sake of ones sanity.

[thiscantbesoy.livejournal.com]

Yep. Fo sheezy.

[ekdogg.livejournal.com]

tell them look at most calendars... the week starts on Sunday.

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

exactly! heh