April 29, 2013

Today we celebrate:

International Dance Day– Begun in 1982 by the International Dance Committee of the International Theater Institute, the purpose is to commemorate the birthday of Jean-Georges Noverre. Mr. Noverre is the father of modern ballet and was born in 1727.

National Shrimp Scampi Day – If you like shrimp, garlic and parsley, this is the meal for you.

Greenery Day – This is actually a national holiday in Japan. It originally celebrated Emperor Showa's birthday during the Showa era. In 1989 with a new Emperor, the name was changed from “Birthday of the Emperor” to “Greenery Day”. Now it's a day to commune with nature and be grateful for nature's blessings.

“Peace” Rose Day– The Peace Rose was developed by French horticulturist, Francis Meiland. He wanted to save the rose during World War II when it seemed inevitable that France would fall to Germany so he sent cuttings of his rose to friends in Italy, Germany, Turkey and the U.S. It made it onto the last plane to the U.S. before the German invasion. During the war it was cultivated in the U.S. by the Conrad Pyle Co. In 1945, Monsieur Meiland contacted Field Marshall Alan Brooke, one of the master strategists of the U.S. whose strategies helped win the war, and offered to name the rose after him. But Brooke suggested that he name it “peace” instead. It's name was announced on this day in 1945.

Pinhole Photography Day – This day encourages you to make your own camera, take a picture and share it with the world in the hopes of encouraging creativity. http://www.pinholeday.org/org/

Zipper Day – On this day in 1913, the zipper was patented. Where would we be without it? Would we still have to button our flies?

To celebrate this day, zipper up your windbreaker because it's still April so it will probably be windy and chilly at some point. Then head to the park to commune with nature. See if you can find some peace roses and take pictures of them with your homemade camera. This evening, have some shrimp scampi for dinner and drag your spouse to the theater to see a lovely ballet.