Today is a parent's dream and a kid's worst nightmare.

It is February 29 and if it's also your birthday, you may have been shafted for gifts throughout childhood.

However, Nate Dryden, manager of Captain Spiffy's Super Hero Emporium on University Boulevard, says his Feb. 29 birthday is not that bad, for he is among the select few who could legally drink at age seven.

Dryden's parents were not cold-hearted enough to go by the calendar regarding his childhood birthday parties.

"There would usually be a token celebration on Feb. 28," says Dryden. "We usually had a big party."

Richard Knott, supervisor of a UMC mechanical shop, also celebrates a Feb. 29 birthday and proudly says he is only 10 years old.

"I celebrate twice a year, first on the 28th and then on March 1," he says. "Of course I celebrate three times in a leap year."

Knott adds that his father's birthday is on the same day, so they celebrate together every four years.

"I don't know if my mother planned it."

Aside from tormenting small children with the threat of no yearly parties and gifts, why does the calendar call for an extra day in February?

America and most of the western world operate on the Gregorian calendar, which was enacted in 1582 after the Council of Trent authorized Pope Gregory XIII to reform the inaccurate Julian calendar that was in place at the time.

Father Christopher Clavius computed a solar year of 365.25 days for the new calendar.

For long-range accuracy, Vatican librarian Aloysius Giglio advised that each century year divisible by 400 should not be a leap year. This made 1700, 1800 and 1900 leap years, but not 2000.

Despite the accuracy of the Gregorian system, it still loses one second every three years, so the United States periodically declares a leap second.

People with nothing better to do can tune into shortwave radio station WWV, which broadcasts official time signals for the United States.

If you have trouble picking up their station, you might want to purchase an atomic clock.

Feb. 29 also kicks of the Worldwide Leap Year Festival in Anthony, New Mexico. The three-day celebration features events like the "Wet 'n' Wild Chuck Wagon Breakfast," a horseshoe tournament, and many other activities. More information is available on the World Wide Web at "http://astro.nmsu.edu/~lhuber/leapyear.html."

Along with listening to the time on the radio or visiting New Mexico, you can celebrate the day with a special drink.

A "Leap Year Cocktail," made from of one and a quarter ounces of gin, a half ounce of orange gin, a half ounce of sweet vermouth and a quarter teaspoon of lemon juice, is a festive potable. Shake all ingredients with ice, strain into a cocktail glass and serve.

Be it your birthday or not, today is an extra day, so make the most of it.