Weird August Holidays

Every month has its collection of strange, weird, and obscure holidays, sometimes more than one per day, many of which are unknown to the general public. And, needless to say, holidays that are not government recognized—days where the schools, banks, government offices, and post office are not closed. But still holidays to be celebrated and enjoyed in their own quirky fashion.

Let's start with month long celebrations.  For August you have:  Admit You're Happy Month, Family Fun Month, National Catfish Month, National Eye Exam Month, National Golf Month [I'd better make sure my brother knows about this one], Peach Month, Romance Awareness Month, Water Quality Month, and National Picnic Month.

And then there are the week long celebrations. The first week of August is National Simplify Your Life Week. The second week of the month is National Smile Week. The third week is Friendship Week. And the fourth week is Be Kind To Humankind Week.

And the daily celebrations:  I found it interesting that 10 of the 31 days in August had holidays connected to food [are we seeing an ongoing theme here?]. Some of the dates had more than one holiday attached to them.

August 1)  National Raspberry Cream Pie Day

August 1)  Friendship Day (the first Sunday in August)

August 1)  International Forgiveness Day (first Sunday in August)

August 1)  Sisters Day (first Sunday in August)

August 2)  National Ice Cream Sandwich Day

August 3)  National Watermelon Day

August 4)  U.S. Coast Guard Day

August 5)  Work Like A Dog Day

August 6)  Wiggle Your Toes Day

August 7)  National Lighthouse Day

August 7)  National Mustard Day (the first Saturday in August)

August 8)  Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbor's Porch Day

            Apparently zucchini is one of the most prolific plants with a single plant producing what seems to be an endless supply of zucchini. By the time August arrives, home gardeners have far more zucchini than they can possibly use. After giving away as much as they can to family and friends, desperate growers seek desperate measures to rid themselves of the overflow. And that gives us the name of the holiday…sneak some zucchini onto your neighbor's porch day.

August 9)  Book Lover's Day

            Book Lover's Day encourages you to find a comfortable place, relax, and enjoy a good book. If you happen to fall asleep in that gently swaying hammock while reading, that's perfectly okay. There is some disagreement about when this holiday is celebrated. August 9^th is the most widely accepted date. Some celebrate it on the first Saturday in November. My suggestion? Celebrate both days.

August 10)  Lazy Day

August 10)  National S'mores Day

August 11)  Presidential Joke Day

August 12)  Middle Child's Day

August 13)  Left Hander's Day

August 14)  National Creamsicle Day

August 14/15)  V-J Day (end of World War II)

August 15)  Relaxation Day

            For people with a hectic lifestyle, this is the day to kick back and do nothing…just relax. Take a break from your busy work and personal schedule. If something stresses you out, this is the day to ignore it.

August 16)  National Tell A Joke Day

August 17)  National Thrift Shop Day

August 18)  Bad Poetry Day

August 19)  Aviation Day

August 20)  National Radio Day

August 21)  Senior Citizen's Day

August 22)  Be An Angel Day

August 22)  National Tooth Fairy Day (and/or February 28)

August 23)  Ride The Wind Day

            This is a carefree day, a time to soar above the earth. Catch a ride on the breeze or float like a cloud. Summer will soon be over. Take advantage of this day to relax and leave your worries behind. Fly a kite. Enjoy the final days of summer.

August 24)  Vesuvius Day

August 25)  Kiss And Make Up Day

August 26)  National Dog Day

August 26)  Women's Equality Day

August 27)  Global Forgiveness Day

August 27)  Just Because Day

August 28)  Race Your Mouse Day [but in today's world are we talking rodent or computer?]

August 29)  More Herbs, Less Salt Day

August 30)  Frankenstein Day

            There are 3 versions of this day. This one is in honor of Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, who was born August 30, 1797. There is also Frankenstein Friday and National Frankenstein Day, both celebrated in October. Confused? Celebrate all 3 days.

August 30)  Toasted Marshmallow Day

August 31)  National Trail Mix Day

Did Butch Cassidy Survive?

We've seen the Paul Newman-Robert Redford movie, Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid, where they supposedly die in 1908 in South America during a shoot out with the Bolivian army.  At the end of the movie, they rush out of the building with guns blazing and are surrounded by soldiers unleashing a barrage of bullets.  The scene freezes with them still on their feet and the closing credits roll across the screen.  We never actually see them being shot down and dying, but it's implied in the same way that the real life story of Butch Cassidy alludes to him having died in that shoot out.

But, to paraphrase Mark Twain, perhaps the story of his death was greatly exaggerated.

For decades rumors have persisted that Butch survived the shoot out, returned to the United States, and lived in quiet anonymity in Washington state under an assumed name for nearly thirty years.

And swirling at the center of the controversy is a 200 page manuscript titled Bandit Invincible: The Story of Butch Cassidy written in 1934 by William T. Phillips, a machinist who died in Spokane, Washington, in 1937.  A Utah book collector and a Montana author believe that the manuscript is not a biography of the famous outlaw, but actually an autobiography and that Phillips was really Butch Cassidy.  They insist the manuscript contains details that only the real Butch Cassidy could have known.

As with all speculative versions of history, there are always detractors to the theory, historians who claim the manuscript is not an accurate portrayal of Cassidy's life…or at least the part of his life that is known.

Everyone pretty much agrees that Butch Cassidy was born Robert LeRoy Parker in 1866 in Beaver, Utah.  He was the oldest of 13 children in a Mormon family and robbed his first bank in 1889 in Telluride, Colorado.  He served a year and a half in the Wyoming Territorial Prison in Laramie followed by most of the next 20 years spent robbing banks and trains with his Wild Bunch gang.

A Cassidy historian disagrees with the speculative conclusions about the nature of the Bandit Invincible manuscript.  He suggests that the reason Phillips knew so many details about Butch that others wouldn't have known was because the two men actually knew each other rather than Phillips having been the real Butch Cassidy.

In 1991 a grave was dug up in San Vicente, Bolivia, reputed to contain the remains of Butch and Sundance.  DNA testing revealed that the bones did not belong to the two outlaws.  However, the Cassidy historian still insists his research confirms that Butch and Sundance died in that 1908 shoot out in Bolivia.

There are stories about the Sundance Kid living long after his time in South America, but they are outnumbered by the many alleged Butch Cassidy sightings.  A brother and sister of Butch's insisted that he stopped in for a visit at the family ranch in Utah in 1925.  Phillips' adopted son believed that his stepfather was the real Butch Cassidy.  Since Phillips was cremated following his death in 1937, there's little possibility of being able to obtain any type of a DNA match.

So the mystery continues… 

9 Thoughts To Ponder

These were sent to me in a email from a friend.  As she said, they are funnier when you're older and have one foot on that banana peel.  :)

9)  Life is sexually transmitted.

8)  Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

7)  Give someone a fish and you feed that person for a day.  Teach someone to use the internet and that person won't bother you for weeks.

6)  Some people are like a Slinky…not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs.

5)  Health nuts are going to feel stupid some day, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.

4)  All of us could take a lesson from the weather.  It pays no attention to criticism.

3)  Why does a slight tax increase cost you $200 and a substantial tax cut saves you $30?

2)  In the 1960s people took acid to make the world weird.  Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.

And the number 1 thought:

Life is like a jar of jalapeno peppers—what you do today might burn your bottom tomorrow.

And as someone recently said: "Don't worry about old age.  It doesn't last long."

What Your Ice Cream Says About You

July is National Ice Cream Month.  And, in addition to that, there are several individual days devoted to ice cream:  July 1 is Creative Ice Cream Flavors Day, July 7 is National Strawberry Sundae Day, July 13 is National Nitrogen Ice Cream Day, July 17 is Peach Ice Cream Day, the third Sunday is July is National Ice Cream Day, July 20 is National Ice Cream Soda Day, and July 23 is Vanilla Ice Cream Day. So, as you can see, the month of July devotes lots of time to ice cream.

For millions and millions of people around the world, ice cream is THE favorite treat.  What used to be the three basics of chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry have become what seems like millions of flavors.

And guess what (surprise surprise)—someone did a study of what your favorite flavor says about you.  And also guess what (again, surprise surprise)—I'm going to share that information with you along with some miscellaneous tidbits about ice cream trivia.

If your favorite is chocolate you're more likely to be dramatic, lively, charming, flirtatious, seductive and gullible.

If your favorite is vanilla you're more likely to be impulsive, easily suggestible and an idealist.

If your favorite is strawberry you're more likely to be tolerant, devoted and introverted.

If your favorite is chocolate chip you're more likely to be generous, competent and a go-getter.

If your favorite is chocolate chip cookie dough you're more likely to be ambitious, competitive and a visionary.

If your favorite is rocky road you're more likely to be aggressive, engaging and a good listener.

If your favorite is mint chocolate chip you're more likely to be argumentative, frugal and cautious.

 If your favorite is pralines 'n cream you're more likely to be loving, supportive and prefer to avoid the spotlight.

 If your favorite is jamoca you're more likely to be scrupulous, conscientious and a moral perfectionist.

 If your favorite is rainbow sherbet you're more likely to be analytic, decisive and pessimistic.

Where did ice cream come from?

The true origins of ice cream are unknown, but early versions of iced treats date back to the second century B.C. to Alexander The Great who liked to top snow and ice with honey and nectar.

Ice cream used to be for the rich only.

In the early 1800s, before refrigeration became widely available, ice cream was very expensive.  Only the elite could afford such a luxury.  Today, the average American consumes 48 pints of ice cream a year. [hmmm…a pint is only 16 oz. and there's 52 weeks in a year, so that averages out at a little over 14 oz. a week which is only 2 oz. more than one can of your favorite soft drink per week.  Doesn't seem like so much when you break it down that way. :) ]

Which city and state eats the most ice cream?

According to a survey, Washington D.C. is the most ice cream crazy place in America with its residents eating 85% more than the national average per person.  Rhode Island was in second place and Wisconsin was third.

What is the most popular ice cream flavor?

According to the International Ice Cream Association, vanilla is the most popular flavor at 29% with chocolate second with 9%.

Needless to say, there are lots of flavors not represented on this list of favorites.  I'm a long time chocolate fan, but I came across an ice cream a while back that just blew my mind…Godiva white chocolate raspberry swirl which is something like a million calories per pint  :).

So, there you have it.  My tribute to National Ice Cream Month.

This Day In History—week of Saturday, July 3 through Friday, July 9

On this date in history, these events happened.

July 3, 1608 - Samuel de Champlain founds the city of Quebec.

July 3, 1775 - George Washington takes command of the Continental Army.

July 3, 1806 - The first cultivated strawberry is displayed

 

July 4, 1776 – U.S. Independence Day. The American colonies declare independence from Britain, issuing the Declaration of Independence.

July 4, 1796 -The first Independence Day celebration is held.

July 4, 1803 - President Thomas Jefferson announces the Louisiana Purchase. The price tag: $15Million, about 4 cents per acre.

July 4, 1884 - The Statue of Liberty is presented to the United States in Paris, France.

July 4, 1994 - Hotmail internet email provider begins service.

 

July 5, 1865 – With the emergence of steam-powered road locomotives, Great Britain creates the world's first automobile speed limit law.

July 5, 1937 - Baseball great Joe DiMaggio hits his first grand slam.

July 5, 1942 - Ian Fleming graduates from a training school for spies in Canada.

July 5, 1946 - The bikini makes its debut at a Paris fashion show.

July 5, 1994 - Jeff Bezos founds Amazon.com.

July 5, 2017 - Volvo is the first car company to announce that by 2019 their automobiles will all be hybrid or battery powered.

 

July 6, 1189 - Richard the Lionheart is crowned the King of England upon the death of King Henry II.

July 6, 1885 - Louis Pasteur creates the anti-rabies shot.

July 6, 1898 - The U.S. Senate votes to annex Hawaii.

July 6, 1933 - In the very first All Star Baseball game, the American League wins 5-2.

July 6, 2016 - Pokémon Go is released.

 

July 7, 1456 - In a retrial, Joan of Arc is acquitted of heresy 25 years after her death.

July 7, 1928 - The Chillicothe Baking Company creates and markets sliced bread. It is heralded as the greatest invention since.... well, since sliced bread!

July 7, 1981 - Sandra Day O'Connor is the first female nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court.

 

July 8, 1776 - Colonel John Nixon gives the first reading of the Declaration of Independence to the citizens of Philadelphia, PA.

July 8, 1796 - The U.S. State Department issues the first passport.

July 8, 1889 - The Wall Street Journal is published for the first time.

July 8, 2011 - The space shuttle Atlantis is launched. It is the last launch of the space shuttle program.

 

July 9, 1795 - The U.S. debt is paid off. The total: $2,024,899.

July 9, 1815 - The first natural gas well in the U.S. is discovered while drilling for salt in Charleston, SC.

July 9, 1947 - Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II) and Lt. Philip Mountbatten (later Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh) are engaged.

July 9, 1956 - Dick Clark hosts American Bandstand for the very first time.

July 9, 2018 - Starbucks announces it will stop using plastic straws by 2020, saving over 1 billion straws per year.

 

There you have it, This Day In History for the week of Saturday, July 3 through Friday, July 9.