headshot of Angela Pohlman

by Angela Pohlman, General Merchandise Category Manager

It’s a Leap Year! This February has 29 days this year; the next one is 2024. I was born on the 29th, after 25 hours of labor, sorry Mom… I am one of only 187,000 Leaplings in the U.S., and the only one (as of this writing) working at the Co-op! How many Leaplings do you know? I was often the only one in my classes, but in high school there were a few of us in my graduating class. I forgot how special it was until I moved to Wisconsin.

What the Hank is a leap year?

We say that a year has 365 days, but really it is more like 365.2422 days. So, after some trial and error, Caesar added a leap day to compensate for that extra time, then Pope Gregory XIII replaced it with a calendar that we still use today. I don’t pretend to fully understand how this all works, I just do what the calendar tells me.

I am sometimes the only Leapling folks have met. It can be pretty amusing to see how excited people are when they find out. The biggest question I get is when do I celebrate my birthday? I claim Feb 28th: I like to keep it within February, but legally that doesn’t always work. For example, when I turned 21 earth years, I legally could not make an alcohol purchase until March 1st. This year I get a real birthday and will be 10 years old! That is nearly middle aged for a Leapling.

Here are other questions I get: Do you celebrate every year? Yeah, I still recognize when an Earth year passes. Do I have a big party when my birthday comes around? Not always, but I will surely try this year. My only regret is when I realized I could have had a 9 3/4 themed birthday in 2019! Any issues with your birthday in official paperwork? Sometimes, especially when filling out forms online, I often get the “invalid date” bounceback. Any famous Leaplings? I didn’t know of any before I googled it, but notably Pedro Zamora, Ja Rule, Saul Williams, Dinah Shore, Peter Scanavino, Sugar Sammy, Superman—tons more, these are just folks whose names I recognized.

Even if you cannot celebrate a birthday on the 29th this year, everyone has an extra day! On a Saturday! How will you spend your time?

29 Favorite Things

To celebrate with my favorite Owners, I’ll share a list of my favorite 29 things at the Co-op, in no particular order. This list is not all inclusive and can change at any moment 🙂

  1. Amazing Grass Strawberry Watermelon Effervescent Greens tabs: Yummy, hydrating, and I get a little greens. Wins!
  2. Willow Creek Bacon: Need I say more?
  3. Stasher bags: all sizes! We’re nuts about these at our house.
  4. Evo Hemp Protein Bars: all flavors! Great pick-me-up in the middle of the day!
  5. Nutrigold Triple Strength Fish Oil: No burps, high potency.
  6. Pink Lady Apples: yums.
  7. Artichokes: mostly an excuse to eat a lot of butter.
  8. Kalona Super Natural 4% Cottage Cheese: There’s no comparison, this is the best.
  9. Broccoli: Seriously. #1 veggie.
  10. Kal Magnesium Glycinate:
    No laxative effect!
  11. Four Sigmatic Mushroom
    Coffee with Lion’s Mane:
    Keeps me sharp.
  12. Mushrooms: Any really: button,
    crimini, portobello.
  13. Enzymedica Digest Gold: Eases
    the effects of food I shouldn’t be
    eating…
  14. Functional Remedies CBD
    Capsules: CBD butter in a
    capsule!
  15. Mount Hagen Instant Fair
    Trade Coffee: My lifeline on
    mornings when I am too weak to
    make it properly.
  16. Ripple Creamer: Dairy-free
    and actually creams!
  17. Halo Top Ice Cream: Guilt-
    free indulgence
  18. Reign Energy drinks: Some
    times you need a little more than
    coffee…
  19. Amy’s Frozen Bowls: Easy
    office meal!
  20. Nature’s Path Grain-Free
    Maple Pecan Granola:
    Full of nuts, and nuts are the
    best.
  21. Tamaleria el Poblano
    Tamales: So, so good.
  22. DreamFarm Goat Cheese:
    Super seasonal, but so worth it!
  23. LaClare Family Creamery
    Whole Goat Milk: Yummy,
    creamy, and not goaty!
  24. Hook’s 10-Year Cheddar:
    Cheddar is my favorite cheese—
    period—and this one is pretty
    exceptional.
  25. Acure Volumizing Shampoo
    & Conditioner: Gives life to the
    otherwise dead mass on my
    head.
  26. Siggi’s Triple Cream Lemon
    Yogurt: Love the sugar-to-protein ratio!
  27. NorthStar Bison: Burgers,
    tacos, whatever! So good.
  28. Simple Soyman Herbed Tofu:
    Toast some bread, smear some
    mayo, sliced tomatoes, thick
    slices of this tofu: you’re
    welcome.
  29. Oral Essentials Sensitive
    Toothpaste: Actually reduces
    my sensitive tooth pain!

Are you a Co-op shopper and a Leapling? What are your favorite products?


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