November 5, 2016

Today we celebrate:

National Love Your Red Hair Day - Stephanie and Adrienne, the co-founders of How To Be A Redhead, began this day in response to the negative to redhead holidays such as Kick a Ginger Day. Perhaps they hadn’t heard of Kiss a Ginger Day yet. But in any case, they wanted to spread a positive message for the redheads out there, of which my son is one. So if you have red hair, this is a day to look at yourself with new eyes and see all the many things there are to love about your hair. One I can name right off is that I am jealous of you because I have always wanted red hair. I love how it looks and was so happy when my son was born with it.

American Football Day - On this day in 1959, Lamar Hunt created the American Football League.  He loved all kinds of sports and had tried for a long time to get a National Football League franchise and bring a football team to Texas. He was unsuccessful at doing that so he decided to create a whole new League instead. I’d say that worked out pretty well for him.

Bank Transfer Day - This is a day that was started by Kristen Christian in 2011 who was frustrated with the “ridiculous fees and poor customer service” of banks. So she began encouraging friends and family to close their bank accounts and move their money to a credit union. She chose this day for this event because of its affiliation with Guy Fawkes whom you will read about in a moment.

National Doughnut Appreciation Day - There are a couple of doughnut (or donut, whichever you prefer, both spellings are acceptable in this country) days to celebrate during the year. This one is not just about eating them, but about enjoying them. You are to savor each bite today and really appreciate the flavors that you are ingesting along with the calories.

Gunpowder Day, also known as Guy Fawkes Day or Bonfire Night or Fireworks Night – Celebrated mostly in Great Britain, this is a day to remember the events that occurred on this day in 1605. Way back then, Guy Fawkes, who was a member of the Gunpowder Plot, was arrested while he was guarding the explosives that members of his group set up under the House of Lords. They were attempting to blow up all of the members of the House of Lords and bring Catholic rule back to the United Kingdom. The whole city of London celebrated the fact that King James I survived the assassination attempt and they lit bonfires all over the city.

Commercial TV Broadcast Day - On this day in 1930 the first commercial was broadcast on television.  It was a commercial for the Eugene Method of permanent hair waving and it was shown during the transmission of Hairdressing Fair of Fashion. I wonder if anyone watched it. Not too many people had televisions back then as they had just been invented a short time before this.

National Wine Tasting Day - This is a day for every wine lover whether you are a professional, a connoisseur or just someone who drinks at home and knows what she likes when she tastes it. Most, if not all, wineries have wine tasting events where you can go and sample 3-5 different wines so you know if you like them before you buy them. Many liquor stores do the same on occasions. The one I frequent does so every Friday evening. This is a day that is celebrated on the first Saturday in November.

Book Lovers Day - Celebrated on the first Saturday in November, this is a day to sit down and enjoy a good book. I don’t recommend walking, biking or driving while you participate in this day, it’s much more relaxing to get comfortable in a chair or couch or hammock if it’s warm enough, and dive right in.  Some people celebrate this day on August 9th, and that’s fine too. As far as I’m concerned, every day should be Book Lovers Day. I work in a library so I feel honor bound to remind you that books you borrow from the library are free…..as long as you return them by the due date. Even if you’re a few days late, it is MUCH cheaper than buying books.

Digital Scrapbooking Day - Also celebrated on the first Saturday of November, this is a day to take your scrapbooking to a new level. My sister loves to do scrapbooking when she has time and it uses a lot of paper, creativity and time. Digital scrapbooking is almost the same minus the paper. You use computer graphics software but you can be just as creative, spend less money on materials, and have beautiful finished work that you can then make a ton of copies of to send to your beloved family and friends.

Learn To Homebrew Day - Another first Saturday in November holiday, today is a day to encourage people to learn how to brew their own beer. This can apparently be a rewarding hobby and even a way to make a little extra money, as long as your homebrew is tasty. Many homebrewers consider it to be an obsession. It takes some experimentation in order to get it just right, so don’t be discouraged if your first attempts do not taste very good.

November 4, 2016

Today we celebrate:

National Skeptics Day - Last month we had International Skeptics Day so this month it’s just a national day, the rest of the world cannot be skeptical about anything today. Here in America, however, feel free to question everything, doubt all that you see and hear...especially if it’s on social media. Hmmm...is this even a real day? I’m skeptical.

National Candy Day – Funny how this comes so soon after Halloween. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that most people still have lots of candy left over.

National Chicken Lady Day – The Chicken Lady is Dr. M. Tina Dupree who works to train and certify professional speakers and authors. I haven't been able to determine why she is called The Chicken Lady, only that it is an endearment, not an insult.

National Waiting for the Barbarians Day - I can’t find much information on this aside from the fact that it is the title of a book by J. M. Coetzee who is a Nobel laureate from South Africa and was published in 1980. In the story the natives to the area the story is set in are considered to be barbarians by the people who have decided to colonize the area. That’s the extent of my knowledge on this subject.

King Tut Day – On this day in 1922, Howard Carter and his team of archaeologists found the entrance to King Tutankhamen's tomb in Egypt. It took many years to excavate the whole thing and find all of the gold treasure that had been buried with the King who was only 19 years old when he died.

National Medical Science Liaison Awareness & Appreciation Day – Celebrated on the first Friday in November, this is a day that was created for the purpose of educating the public about just what a medical science liaison is and what they do for the pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device industries. I, for one, need a day like this because I had no idea what they do. If you are in the same boat, allow me to enlighten you because I do my research. A medical science liaison is a communication bridge between clinical medicine and various other areas of healthcare such as the pharmaceutical industry or the manufacturers that make medical equipment.

Use Your Common Sense Day – Created by Bud Bilanich, this is a day that encourages us to use applied common sense. Mr. Bilanich says that most people have common sense and know what to do in most situations, they just don't actually listen to their common sense. This is a day to listen and apply what our senses tell us in business and in life. Mr. Bilanich chose this day because it is Will Rogers' birthday. You may remember that Mr. Rogers once said, “common sense ain't all that common.”

November 3, 2016

Today we celebrate:

Cliche Day - Today is a day for spouting off as many cliches as you can. I’m sure you can think of at least a few such as some of these oldies but goodies: Time will tell; I lost track of time; Weak as a kitten; Scared to death; Cat got your tongue; and my personal favorite - All that glitters is not gold.

National Sandwich Day – Born on this day 295 years ago, the Earl of Sandwich, John Montagu, is believed to be the first inventor of the sandwich. There are so many things that you can do with a sandwich and I, for one, am grateful to him for inventing this convenient way of eating.

Give Someone a Dollar Today Day - I couldn’t find much information about this day so I don’t know when it started or whose idea it was. I can tell you that it is a day to share some of your fortune with someone less fortunate by giving them a dollar. A dollar isn’t much, you might be saying right now. To that I say that it is better than nothing and could be just the thing they need to turn their lives around because it’s not how much you give, it’s the good feelings behind it that will make the difference.

SOS Anniversary - On this day in 1906 the SOS as a distress signal became universal worldwide at the second International Radiotelegraphic Convention. We all know what SOS means no matter where you are in the world so its effectiveness continues to this day.

National Housewife Day – This is a day to honor the over-worked and under-appreciated housewife. Not everyone is able to be a housewife, either because they don't want to be or because they have no choice but to work outside the home to support their families. Nothing wrong with either way, just make sure what whatever choices you make in your life, do not devalue the women who make different choices. Housewives work very hard, so take a well-deserved break today, put up your feet and do whatever you need to do to relax.

National Men Make Dinner Day – This is a day for the men in the family to make dinner. There are 12 very serious rules associated with this event. The first rule is that this day is to be celebrated on the first Thursday of November. The rest of the rules can be found here.

November 2, 2016

Today we celebrate:

Practice Being Psychic Day - I couldn’t find much information on this day so I don’t know who created it or why. But it seems to be a day for working on improving the psychic abilities that some people believe everyone has although most don’t know about it.

National Deviled Egg Day – My family loves deviled eggs. They are not even that bad for you, as snacks go. They are packed with protein, after all. How bad could they be?

All Souls Day – Follows up All Saints Day by celebrating all of the faithful who have become deceased but have not yet been purified and brought to Heaven.

Plan Your Epitaph Day – This is a day for you to decide what you want to have engraved on your headstone when you die. We celebrate this in April as well, I’m not sure why it is on two days a year. My husband did this many years ago when he was sick with the flu and sure he was going to die. He dictated enough stuff for his headstone that I would have had to have put up a pyramid in order to hold it all. He's still mad at me for not writing it down. “That's right, Honey, you're not going to die so I'm not writing this down. If it's that important, you can write it down yourself later.” Of course, once he got better he forgot everything he said. I think I will not be telling him about this day, he'll just get mad all over again.

Look for Circles Day – This is an interesting day. It is all about looking for circles everywhere you go. What a way to keep small children occupied today. I searched far and wide for a deeper meaning to the day but was unable to find one so I have to assume that this is as simple as the name suggests.

Cookie Monster Day - The Cookie Monster, a beloved monster from Sesame Street first appeared on Sesame Street in the very first episode on November 6, 1969. He wasn’t named until a short while later. His signature song is, “C is for Cookie,” which is probably a song that many of you could sing at least some of without even thinking about it. His birthday is today. We know that because of the book, Happy Birthday, Cookie Monster!  In the story, the Cookie Monster eats the birthday cake before his guests arrive and is left trying to figure out what to feed them.

National Eating Healthy Day - This day was begun by the American Heart Association to encourage everyone to eat healthy, and is celebrated on the first Wednesday of November. Our hearts work better if they are fed lots of fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and water. So start good habits today and consistently eat healthy foods. That doesn’t mean you can never eat junk, it just means you need to make the junk a rare event and not a daily diet.