January 25, 2015

Today we celebrate:

National Irish Coffee Day – Whiskey, coffee, sugar and cream are the necessities of life if you wish to make the perfect cup of Irish coffee.

Robert Burns Day – Born on this day in 1759, Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is well-known beyond Scotland's borders because he also wrote in English. His work has endured through the ages as he was voted the greatest Scot by the Scottish people in a television poll. While you might not recognize much of his work, unless you live in Scotland, you have surely heard of “Auld Lang Syne.”

Opposite Day – Here is yet another day that I can't seem to find agreement on. Some think it's celebrated on January 7th, others say it is on January 24th, and still others name today. I think they are just being contrary. But if you choose to celebrate it today, say exactly what you don't mean to say and do exactly what you don't mean to do.

Macintosh Computer Day – This is the 30th Anniversary of the launch of the Apple Macintosh computer. It had a tiny screen, a keyboard, a mouse and only 128 KB of memory, which at the time was a lot but today is less than you would need to store a single picture.  It was revolutionary at the time because it was so different than anything else on the market.  Of course, most everything that was happening at that time was pretty revolutionary because technology was growing so fast.

World Leprosy Day – Celebrated on the last Sunday in January, this is a day to spread awareness of the fact that leprosy is still a serious disease in places like Vietnam, China and India among others (incidentally, it does not cause body parts to fall off although they do become diseased or numb). It is easily treatable and curable but the social stigma associated with the disease prevents many from reporting it and having the treatment.

To celebrate today, put in a long, hard day working on your non-Macintosh computer. Then take seeds from everyone you meet who happens to be carrying them. Don't give them any of your seeds. Next you can dump your Irish coffee down the sink while you avoid listening to “Auld Lang Syne” and refuse to investigate what you can do to help stop the spread of Leprosy.