October 30, 2013

Today we celebrate:

National Candy Corn Day – It's a good thing that you can't get these things any other time of the year but Halloween because otherwise, I would weigh as much as my car.

Checklist Day – This day is all about organization. You absolutely have to make lists and check things off that are completed if you want to have a successful event. On this day in 1935, an airplane crashed during takeoff at Wright Fields in Ohio because of a gust lock that was still engaged. After this tragedy, a few pilots got together to figure out how errors like this could be prevented in the future. They are the ones that came up with the checklist for takeoff, flight, before landing and after landing. These checklists, although I am sure they have been updated as airplanes became more sophisticated, are still used today. You don't need to fly a plane to find checklists useful, all you need to do is forget something important in order to realize that you too can use checklists to stay on top of things.

Create A Great Funeral Day – Ok, this day is taking the Halloween season a little too far, in my opinion. It is a day that was created by Stephanie West Allen for the purpose of reminding people about how important and beneficial it is to create your own funeral or memorial service. The idea is that it is better to do it yourself so you can have it the way you want it, and so that your family doesn't have to do it while they are grieving for you. I say that I'll be dead and won't particularly care what every one does or doesn't do at my funeral and doing this the day before Halloween is sending a vote of no confidence regarding your expectation of surviving the next day.

Devil's Night or Mischief Night – This is not my favorite night. It is associated with committing acts of vandalism which I won't name here because I don't want to give any youngsters any ideas if they don't already have them. The adults in the room know what I'm referring to.

Buy a Donut Day – This is a day for buying donuts. I have no idea why it's a day for buying donuts but apparently donut sales rise sharply on this day so you better go and see what the big deal is.

To celebrate today, buy some donuts and some candy corn, plan your funeral and go throw some toilet paper in your bushes so the mischief makers will think your house has already been hit. Then check all of that off your checklist and go to bed feeling great.