Calendar

The calendar is a chart displaying the number of days, weeks, and months of a year, showcasing any event that may occur during a particular day. There are four months of each year; each month corresponds to a season - spring, summer, autumn, and winter - and contains 28 days each. Four weeks make up a month, and seven days make up a week; the seven days are as follows: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. After four months, the calendar cycles to the next year, starting back to the first month of the year.

The format for labeling the game time can be written in two different ways: a simplistic version and a formal version. The simplistic version is written as, for example, "2.6 Saturday" for month 2, day 6, Saturday. The formal version is written as, for example" Day 6, Month 2, Year 1.

Understanding the Calendar
See also: Weather and Time.

Seasons
There are four distinct seasons in Portia: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. The game begins at the start of Spring.

When the season changes, the environment and background music changes, but the difference is mostly aesthetic. The primary non-aesthetic difference between the seasons is crops. Some crops are seasonal, while some can be grown year-round (including Winter). Tree seeds generally are fruitful year-round.

Event reminders
Reminders for certain events will automatically be added to the calendar. These events include what day an Abandoned Ruins entry pass expires, what day a rental horse lease expires, and what date and time that a playdate or date is scheduled for.

Not every event will display on the calendar. For example, fireside meetings (unless they are advancing the story) and the deadlines for commissions and missions will not appear on the calendar.

Birthdays

 * See also: Gift preferences page for a list of characters and their birthdays

Birthdays are the anniversary of a day in which a character was born, occurring once a year. During one's birthday, gifting an item to that character usually will yield a higher or lower relationship value, as they will react greatly to it.

No birthdays are initially shown on the calendar, other than the player's. After the player becomes Buddies with someone, that character's birthday will be displayed on the calendar, indicated by the character's facial portrait on the calendar. If the player character gives a gift to a character on their birthday without first becoming Buddies, that character will acknowledge that it is their birthday, but the event will not show up on the calendar (unless the gift causes the relationship to reach Buddy level).

A character may be given two gifts on their birthday by giving the first on the previous "day", after midnight; after the player sleeps, the ability to give that character a gift resets, and a second gift will likewise yield triple relationship points.

Player's birthday
The player's birthday is chosen at the start of the game and can be any day of any season, and is displayed on the calendar and their Builder License. Birthdays cannot be changed after character creation.

If choosing a day that coincides with an event, a message warns the player of the possibility of the event affecting any player-involved event, such as parties. If the player selects a day that is concurrent with an event, such as a festival or wedding anniversary, a disclaimer appears warning the player of the possibility of the event affecting the player's parties or any other player-involved event. If the player's birthday is concurrent with their spouse's birthday and/or their anniversary, certain dialogue and spouse missions will acknowledge this.

If playing on a save file that was started before player birthdays were implemented, the player will be prompted to choose a birthday once their character wakes up. If the player has backup save files that were also made before being able to choose a birthday, those backups do not get updated with the birthday chosen in newer days, and every time the player accesses these backup days, they will have to choose a birthday again.

On the player's birthday, the townspeople will come to the workshop in the morning to wish the player happy birthday and leave gifts in front of their yard, up to a maximum of 25 gifts total. Any character that is a Buddy or higher can leave a present, though all presents are unsigned and it is not possible to tell who left which gift. If the player is married, their spouse will also give them a gift. The gifts the spouse can give depends on if the player's character is male or female. Of the presents, the Pink Cat's Ears accessory is the only item that currently cannot be obtained in other ways.

Festivals
Each season has two festivals. These range from seasonal activities such as fishing, ghost hunting, a horse racing competition to community events like gift giving or a communal hot pot.