September 24, 2016

Today we celebrate:

Gallbladder Good Health Day - This is a really good day to focus on eating healthy foods that your gallbladder likes and avoiding fatty foods that make your gallbladder work hard. So no fried foods today, instead eat fruit and vegetables and lean meats and enjoy your healthy gallbladder.

National Bluebird of Happiness Day - This is a day for going out of your way to spread happiness.  Bluebirds have been linked to happiness for thousands of years. This was reaffirmed in the lyrics of the song Bluebird of Happiness from 1934. You don’t actually need to have a bluebird in order to accomplish the act of spreading happiness, but if you happen to see one today, whistle so it knows you are just as happy as it is.

Festival of Latest Novelties - Today we celebrate the fads and weird things that are made and sold to the gullible public. In other words...the newest “in” thing.  Like pet rocks back in the 70’s. Whoever thought up painting faces on rocks and selling them made a bundle because people thought it was cute and funny and all their friends had them so they needed to buy them too. And never thought about maybe just making their own with a little paint and a nice clean rock. Because that wouldn’t be an “official” pet rock.

National Cherries Jubilee Day – A dessert that consists of cherries over vanilla ice cream. Sometimes brandy or some other kind of liqueur is warmed and poured over the top. I've never tried it because I’m not a big fan of cherries, although I do like cherry flavoring so maybe I can find a compromise.

Punctuation Day – I better proofread my work carefully today because this day is all about proper punctuation. Make sure you use your commas, colons, periods, apostrophes, etc., properly.

World Maritime Day – Celebrated by different countries on different days during the last week in September, this is a day to stress the importance of safety on the waters for people and marine life.

Schwenkfelder Thanksgiving Day – I had never heard of the Schwenkfelders so I found the brief history on this page very interesting. You might want to read it as well. The first Schwenkfelder Thanksgiving took place on this day in 1734, two days after they arrived in Philadephia. The Schwenkfelders are named after their founder, Caspar Schwenkfeld who was born in 1489. He had a different idea about the Lord's Supper and chose to split from Martin Luther and go his own way in 1526. His followers suffered nearly 200 years of persecution but were a stubborn bunch and refused to give in and convert to Catholicism or Lutheranism and finally snuck away from their homes and journeyed for several years until they all finally settled in Philadephia.  Many people choose to celebrate on a Sunday near this day.

Family Health and Fitness Day USA – Celebrated on the last Saturday in September, this is a day to encourage families to engage in physical activity together. Face it, your kids will be far more likely to exercise if they see you doing it. I know when my kids were little, I would exercise here in my house and every time I got down on the floor to do pushups or situps or anything like that, they were right there climbing on me either wanting to do it with me ( in their own fashion ), or wanting to make it harder for me.

National Hunting and Fishing Day – Celebrated on the 4th Saturday in September, this is a day to celebrate the history and tradition of hunting and fishing in America.

Fish Amnesty Day - This day, created by PETA, is always celebrated on the fourth Saturday of September. It is a day to understand that fish are living beings with the same rights any animal should have. PETA wants to protect the fish by convincing vegetarians who eat fish to become full vegetarians.  

International Rabbit Day - This seems to be a day to celebrate rabbits both wild and those who are pets. We celebrate this day on the fourth Saturday in September and are to encourage restaurants to stop selling rabbit on their menus and to encourage stores to stop selling rabbit furs and rabbit feet. You will find other sites that name a different day for the celebration, and I was not able to find out for sure which one was correct.

International Lace Day - Also celebrated on the last Saturday in September, this is a day to make lace. You can’t have too much of the stuff, it doesn’t take up too much room and it is pretty. Make a lace tablecloth for your dining room table. Or a runner for a living room table or nightstand.

Kiwanis Kids’ Day - Another fourth Saturday in September celebration, this one was created by Kiwanis International in 1949, to focus on children and their welfare. On this day Kiwanis clubs all over the world have a wide variety of activities that involve children. From parades to picnics to talent shows and banquets. Contact the Kiwanis International Foundation here to find out more.

National Museum Day – Many (but probably not all) museums will have free admission today so take advantage of that and visit your favorite, or take a chance and visit one you've never been to today. You may have to register for this event ahead of time. It is usually on the last Saturday in September.

National Wildlife Ecology Day - This is a day for working together to help the Committee to Abolish Sport Hunting. As far as I can tell, they don’t wish to stop hunting completely, just the hunting that involves killing for the sake of killing, and killing animals that we do not use for food. Also celebrated on the 4th Saturday in September.

National Public Lands Day – Celebrated by the National Environmental Education Foundation, this is a day to enjoy, and learn how to conserve, public lands. They gather together thousands of volunteers on the last Saturday of September to work on maintaining the land for everyone to enjoy. They make sure trails are clear and safe, plant trees and other plants, remove invasive plant species, and collect trash.

R.E.A.D. in America Day - Sponsored by the Library of Congress, this is a day to celebrate reading. The acronym means “Reading helps Everyone Accomplish Dreams.” Celebrate by reading to yourself or to someone else. If you don’t have easy access to books in your home, feel free to utilize your local libraries. I’m sure they have a great selection to choose from.

September 23, 2016

Today we celebrate:

Great American Pot Pie Day - Created by Marie Callender’s, a brand of ConAgra Foods, in 2002, this is a day to celebrate the meat and vegetable filled pies that American’s love so much. Chicken pot pie is probably the most well known, but there are others as well.

National Dogs In Politics Day – This is a day to celebrate the dogs that have been part of presidential families. On this day in 1952, President Richard Nixon gave a speech about not receiving illegal campaign contributions for personal use. He did receive a gift that he intended to keep for his daughters and that was a dog named Checkers. This day is sometimes known as Checkers Day.

Celebrate Bi-sexuality Day – This is a day for bisexual people, friends and supporters to celebrate the bisexual community and culture. It was first celebrated in 1999 and was created by Wendy Curry, Michael Page and Gigi Raven Wilbur.

See You At The Pole Day - At first glance this can be interpreted in different ways so be careful. It is meant to be a Christian gathering for prayer. It began in 1990 in response to the abolition of prayer in public schools. Many people believe that public schools have created a hostile environment toward Christian students. So on this day every year, Christian students gather at the flagpole in front of their schools for prayer, scripture reading and worship early in the morning before school starts. It began small, but has grown to become an event that is celebrated by millions around the world.

Restless Legs Syndrome Awareness Day – Celebrated today on Swedish neurologist, Dr. Karl Axel Ekbom's, birthday, this is a day to spread awareness of RLS, also known as Willis-Ekbom disease. The most common symptom is an irresistible urge to move in order to stop odd and sometimes painful sensations. Most of the time it affects the legs, but it can affect other parts of the body as well. Moving the body part that is uncomfortable stops the symptoms for a moment, but they keep coming back making it almost impossible for many people to sleep. I have begun experiencing some of these symptoms myself on occasion and I have discovered that for me, and possibly for others, if I drink plenty of water during the day, and stretch my legs and hips in the evening before I go to bed, I don’t have as much of a problem. But I am still in the early stages and I don’t know if that will help later on.

Native American Day - Celebrated on the fourth Friday in September, this is a state holiday in California which was created in 1968 for the purpose of honoring all the different Native American cultures and their very important contributions to our country.

September 22, 2016

Today we celebrate:

Proposal Day - Created by John Michael O’Loughlin, today is a day to send a card to someone you are interested in. The idea is for you, an unattached single person, let other unattached single people know that you are interested in them. You do not have to propose marriage, so don’t panic. This is celebrated at every equinox, both spring and fall for those who don’t know when the equinoxes might be. And just so you know, Leonardo Di Caprio was named the most eligible man in the world for this equinox. Not that you need to send him a card, that is just for your information.

World Rhino Day - Did you know that there are five species of Rhinos? I learned something new today, allow me to share. The five species are: Black, White, Greater One-Horned, Sumatran and Javan. Do not ask me to tell you what the differences between them are. Some seem obvious, but others…? This day hasn’t been around very long, it began in 2010 by the WWF-South Africa and grew from there because of the efforts of dedicated Rhino enthusiasts.

National White Chocolate Day – White chocolate isn't my favorite, but it is still pretty darn good so it won't be a sacrifice to eat it today. You gotta do what you gotta do.

American Business Women's Day – On this day in 1949, the American Business Women's Association was founded. The goal of this organization is “to bring together businesswomen of diverse occupations and to provide opportunities for them to help themselves and others grow personally and professionally through leadership, education, networking support and national recognition.”

Elephant Appreciation Day – This is a day dedicated to elephants. Elephants are still hunted for their tusks by poachers because the price of ivory is so high. This, plus the fact that their habitat is being deforested at an alarming rate by farmers who are trying to survive as well, means that the number of elephants in the world is dropping pretty quickly. They will soon be considered an endangered species.

World Car Free Day – This is a day for people all over the world to give up their cars for the day and use alternative methods of transportation such as mass transit (buses and trains), bicycles, and feet.  We have to do something to reduce the pollution we send into our atmosphere and it starts with today.

Dear Diary Day – This is a day to write in your diary, or if you don't have one then you can start one today. Writing down what happens to you and how you feel about it can be very therapeutic. It is something that was very commonplace once upon a time. These days it's a little harder to find someone who keeps a diary.

Hobbit Day – Begun in 1978 by the American Tolkien Society, this is the birthday of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins. If you don't know who they are, you need to read more. Specifically, you need to read the books written by J.R.R. Tolkien.

National Ice Cream Cone Day – Ice cream cones are commonly believed to have been invented on this day in 1903. I have seen others who have the opinion that cones are older than that, but it doesn't really matter. All that really matters is that everyone loves an ice cream cone. I do too and now that I have found gluten free cones, I plan to have it again at my first opportunity.....just as soon as I find a soft ice cream that is dairy free.

International Day of Radiant Peace – There are lots of ideas at http://www.radiantpeace.org/idrp.html to help you decide how best to celebrate this day. The idea is basically to spread your peace around the world.

National Centenarian's Day – This is a day to recognize and celebrate people who have lived for a hundred or more years. It would be a great opportunity to listen to their stories of what life was like back in the day. Maybe you could encourage them to write down their memories.

Autumnal Equinox (Autumn) – In the northern hemisphere, the autumnal equinox occurs at 10:21 AM EDT. In the southern hemisphere, this would be the vernal equinox.

September 21, 2016

Today we celebrate:

Pause the World Day - This is a day to pause everything that is going on around you making noise and distraction. Do whatever it takes to create as much silence as possible for you to recharge your batteries, reduce your stress and heart rate, and acquire a calmness that you can’t have if you are dealing with a constant assault on your senses.

International Banana Festival - I love bananas because they have potassium which keeps me from having leg cramps. They are also a good source of Vitamin B6, Manganese, Fiber and Vitamin C. So there is absolutely no reason why you shouldn’t have one today.

National Pecan Cookie Day – If you like pecans, you'll like these cookies. This recipe looks divine.

International Day of Peace – Created by the United Nations General Assembly in 1981, this is a day that is celebrated all over the world with festivals, concerts and a moment of silence at noon in every time zone creating “a global Peace Wave”.

World Alzheimer's Day – This is a day to raise awareness of Alzheimer's disease and dementia all around the world. Alzheimer's disease is a form of dementia and someone develops the disease every 68 seconds. It is extremely devastating in so many ways for the family of the patient to watch the slow decline of their loved one.

World Gratitude Day – This day was created by the United Nations for the purpose of encouraging people to show their gratitude for everything that we have in our lives. We all have something to be grateful for and most of us have a multitude of things if we only stop to think about it. This is a day to be creative about how you express your gratitude today. Write someone a note, post a video, give someone a hug, pay for someone's coffee, wash the dishes for your mother...that last one just kind of slipped out, but it's a really good idea.

Miniature Golf Day - This is a day to play some miniature golf, which is the only kind of golf I can really do with any kind of timeliness. Regular golf is a full day of just watching me chase my ball all over the course. That is when I am actually able to hit it. At least with miniature golf there is a much smaller area to run around in.

National School Backpack Awareness Day - Have you lifted or weighed your child’s backpack lately? Sometimes they carry a lot more in those things than they should be carrying for their size, and many times they hang it over one shoulder. Too much of this can create back pain that haunts these kids for the rest of their lives. Make sure your child knows the right way to carry their backpacks and only has in it the things that they really need. We celebrate this on the third Wednesday of September.