August 14, 2015

Today we celebrate:

National Creamsicle Day – Oh, I love creamsicles. They take me right back to my childhood when we used to get creamsicle popsicles sometimes and they were sooooo good.

National Navajo Code Talkers Day – The Navajo Code Talkers were young Navajo men who helped win World War II by creating the most ingenious and unbreakable code in military history. They started out as sheepherders and farmers but they became warriors that would have made their ancestors proud as they served in every major battle of the Pacific theater from 1942 – 1945. Their code could not be broken and while it is possible that we might have won the war without them, it would have taken a lot longer and cost the lives of thousands more of our soldiers. Prior to Navajo participation, the Japanese broke every code our cryptographers created and sabotaged messages and set up our soldiers for ambushes. Civilian Philip Johnston, who was one of the few non-Navajo who understood their language, realized that it would be perfect for codes since it had no alphabet and was almost impossible to learn well if you didn't grow up with it. He convinced the military and began the program. There is a fascinating history to this day and you can learn about it here.

V-J Day – Victory over Japan Day, on this day in 1945 (United States time), Japan surrendered, ending World War II. The formal surrender ceremony took place on September 2nd 1945 and that is also sometimes called V-J Day.

World Lizard Day – Today is a day to celebrate the lizard. Lizards are fascinating creatures that come in all kinds of varieties. Some of them even sell car insurance.  Some lizards can detach their tails if caught by a predator.  Lizards can move their eyes independently of each other, so they can look in two different directions.  Most lizards are fairly small, but the Komodo dragon can grow up to 10 feet long.

Worldwide Art Day – Celebrated on the second Friday in August, this is a day to celebrate art in all of its forms all around the world. Encourage creativity in others and share your own creativity with the world.

To celebrate today, get a book about the Navajo Code Talkers and read it to your lizard so that he/she ( how can you tell? ) understands some of the events leading up to V-J Day. Then treat yourself to a creamsicle which you can eat while you visit an art museum.