April 17, 2017

Today we celebrate:


Dyngus Day – This is the Polish term for Easter Monday. Each country has a different way of celebrating. I was surprised to read that traditionally boys wake girls up by pouring water on their heads and hitting them on the legs with long, thin twigs or switches made from willow or birch tree branches. The website I reference here says the water is “sprinkled” and the legs are “tapped” but I think we all know what would really happen if you're talking about brothers and sisters. It says at the website below that ladies would retaliate by throwing dishes and crockery. That seems like a rather violent custom to me but I don’t judge. It also said that traditionally girls would then return the favor on Tuesday. I don’t think I would bother to wait that long.  

Easter Monday - The day after Easter is a holiday in some countries. It can be known as “Bright Monday” or “Renewal Monday”. In Australia, this is a public holiday with lots of people getting the day off from work. Egyptians celebrate it as a national holiday as opposed to a religious one. And in Ireland, it is a day of remembrance of the people who died in the Easter Rising in 1916.

White House Easter Egg Roll – This has been going on for more than 130 years and this year is no exception. But don't plan on dropping by to participate, they have a lottery system in place to pick the people who will get to go.

Malbec World Day - Malbec is a kind of wine. Why does Malbec have its’ own day, you ask? Well, I’ll tell you. In 1853, President Faustino Sarmiento of Argentina wanted to improve Argentina’s wine industry. So he asked a Frenchman, Michel Aime Pouget, who was a soil expert, to bring over new grapevines for them to try. One of them was Malbec. Mr. Pouget experimented with Argentinian soil to see what worked best. Malbec flourished in that environment. This actually ended up saving the Malbec from extinction because a few years later, France experienced a plague that nearly destroyed their vines completely.

Ford Mustang Day – On this day in 1964, Henry Ford II unveiled the first Ford Mustang at the World's Fair in Flushing Meadows, NY. The same day, they were put up for sale at Ford showrooms around the country and 22,000 were sold. 400,000 were sold within a year. This year is the 50th anniversary of the Mustang and you will find celebratory events happening all over the country all month long.

National Kickball Day - Now who here remembers playing kickball during recess or gym classes. I did. I hated the game because there were certain individuals who would get very emotionally invested in finding out who was selected to play on whose team. Then, God forbid you are on the losing team. It messed up their whole day. Not for me. Then, as an adult I was assigned the task of refereeing the game for the 2nd grade recess. Let me tell you that nothing has changed.

World Hemophilia Day - Created by the World Federation of Hemophilia in 1989, this is a day to raise awareness of hemophilia and other bleeding disorders. Their goal is to raise money for research to cure these diseases and to attract people who care about this disorder and want to volunteer their time to help in some way.

National Haiku Poetry Day – Poetry lovers everywhere rejoice! Today is a day to celebrate the Haiku form of poetry that we get from Japan and consists of three lines. The first line is 5 syllables, the second line is 7 syllables, and the third line is again 5 syllables.

National Cheeseball Day – My husband loves a good cheeseball to have with his crackers at a party. I'm sure all of you cheese lovers do, too. I didn’t know it was popular enough to have a day, but then I’m not as big a fan of cheese as most people are.

Blah, Blah, Blah Day – This is a day to do all the things that you have been asked to do but don't remember because you tuned out the asker and didn't really listen when they gave you the list.  Yeah, that would be my kids.

International Bat Appreciation Day – Created by http://smileybat.com/holidays/ and sponsored by Bat Conservation International, this is a day to admire everything about bats, including the fact that they eat insects. Consider putting up a bat house in your backyard to help them have a place to live. This day may be changing to November 1st, I haven’t found out for sure yet.

Ellis Island Family History Day – This day was officially proclaimed by the nation's Governors, “to recognize the achievements and contributions to America by Ellis Island immigrants and their descendants.” This day was first celebrated in 2001 when the American Family Immigration History Center at Ellis Island was opened. See the history of this day here:

Nothing Like A Dame Day – This is a day to honor the “Dames” of the old movies. Today you are encouraged to watch and learn from these ladies and to bring out the “Dame” that lies within all of us.

Boston Marathon Day – This year will be the 121th Boston Marathon. This is an amazing event with an incredible number of runners in one place along with all the volunteers to help keep them hydrated, medical people to help with any problems that come up like cramps, sprains, dehydration and exhaustion to name a few, and of course, plenty of friends and family to cheer on the runners. This event is always held on the third Monday of April.

Patriot's Day – Always celebrated on the third Monday of April, this day commemorates the Battles of Lexington and Concord, which were the first battles of the Revolutionary War. Re-enactments are performed in Lexington and Concord on this day every year. In some states it is an official holiday with schools being closed, other states didn’t make it official, but they still encourage their citizens to celebrate.

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