原题：how leap year babies celebrate their birthdays
作者：Rachel Wise
“今天是我的第七个生日！”这句话从一个成年女性口中说出，你或许会充满疑惑。但无论如何，我就要28岁啦！
This year will mark my seventh birthday.You may find that statement confusing, given that I’m an adult woman. But nevertheless I’ll be turning 28 years old on Feb. 29—a leap day.
能有此“殊荣”的概率大约是1/1461.那就是一百万人里的684个，在美国有20万人的生日是2月29日，全世界也才不到500万人。
the odds of bearing this distinctive honor is around one in 1,461.
“It’s about 684 in a million,” . “There are about 200,000 in the United States and just under 5 million worldwide.”
这就意味着我们这些闰年宝宝有一种因稀缺而油然而生对的特殊感，并且每隔四年我们都会举行一场盛大的party。
This means that while my fellow leap babies and I are a small enough group to maintain a feeling of exclusivity, we’re also large enough to spark a healthy community dialogue.
聚会中一旦我们打开了话匣子，我们就会发现每个人原以为十分个人化的窘境就变得十分普遍。其中常常被涉及的话题就是平年（非闰年）时我们选择在哪一天过生日。
And once we get to talking, it’s evident that many of our individual struggles are really quite universal. One of the topics frequently discussed is which day leap babies should use to celebrate their birthday on off-years.
一些人认为2月份的最后一天最为接近2月29日，所以他们选择在2月28日庆生。另一些人则认为，他们应该在3月1日过生日，因为他们真正的生日是在2月28日的后一天。
Some opt for Feb. 28, saying the last day of February is most accurate, while others insist March 1 is more correct because they were born the day
following Feb. 28.
之后出现了一种新的观点，即决定因素在于出生当天的时间。如果你是早上生的，那么你就在平年的2月28日过小生日，反之如果在下午生的，那就在平年的3月1日过小生日。
Then there’s the camp that believes time of day is the determining factor—if you were born in the morning, the 28th is yours, but if you were delivered past noon, it’s the 1st.
但我们聚在一起讨论最激烈的话题还是每个人都不可避免的“系统填表问题”。
官僚主义的繁文缛节是我们每个闰年宝宝心中的梦魇。
But by far the most popular topic of conversation among leaplings is the bureaucratic problems we all inevitably face. This red-tape nightmare can take many forms.
有时会遇到一些小问题：我们有时不能在下拉列表里勾选自己的生日，多年来脸书（facebook）也一直没有给我们发过生日祝福。
Sometimes it’s as small as not being able to select our birth date from a drop-down menu online—or those several years when Facebook didn’t acknowledge we had a birthday.
但有时问题则没那么轻松：例如处理一些不准确的官方文件。所有的闰年宝宝都会度过人生的两大里程碑，但遗憾的是18岁生日和21岁生日（在美国，青少年直到21岁时才被准许抽烟喝酒）都是在平年。美国政府一直以来都想不出合理的办法解决这个问题，我年轻那会儿，我在弗罗里达的驾照写着我真正的生日，但它的过期日期却标注着“有效期至2009年2月29日”，很明显这个日子其实是不存在的。
Often it’s more substantial, like dealing with inaccurate legal documents.
And all modern leap babies have to navigate these snafus for two milestones. Both our 18th and 21st birthdays fall on off-years, and US states have historically struggled to figure out a workable solution. When I was younger, my driver’s license in Florida listed my real birthday, but it also read “under 21 until 2/29/2009,” a date that didn’t actually exist.
“我认识的一个闰年宝宝，他身份证上写着的生日是2月28日，但他的驾照上却写着3月1日”，多恩说道，“在文件上根本没有2月29日这个日期。”
“There’s one leapling I talked to whose birthday certificate says February 28 and her license says March 1,” Dawn said. “February 29 isn’t listed on either document.”
但是除了这些偶尔的麻烦事，我认为所有的闰年宝宝都应有着出生独特带来的自豪感。许多人说这使他们感到特殊，更别提每四年一次的超级生日party了。闰年宝宝们钟情于声称我们内在永远年轻~
But despite the occasional headache, I think all leap babies derive a certain pride from their semi-unique status. Many people say it makes them feel special, not to mention enabling them to go all out celebrating those rare “real” birthdays. Leap babies are also fond of claiming that we’re inherently young at heart.
我的妈妈也经常给我这样的慰藉，有那么一天我会想到感谢我的母亲，在40岁生日那天早晨，我可以发自内心对这个世界说道，我今天才十岁噢！
My mom always offered me the same consolation, telling me that I’d thank her one day–on the morning when I can truthfully tell the world I’m only 10 instead of 40.
