odditudes-and-weirdities

Today's observations are about bringing action figures in to work, dentists, frozen foods, Oreo cookies, white chocolate cheesecake, and the Alamo: Alamo Day Dentist's Day National Frozen Food Day National Oreo Day National White Chocolate Cheesecake Day Take Your Action Figure To Work Day On this date in 1836 the Mexican army overran the Texas fort called the Alamo, killing virtually everyone there. Though it was a decisive victory, the rallying cry "Remember the Alamo" helped inspire the Texians who ultimately gained their independence from Mexico. I have to admit that I didn't celebrate Take Your Action Figure to Work Day before retiring; it seemed to be a little wasteful to buy an action figure just for one day of the year. Photo by King Lip on Unsplash

Observances today are about celebrating potty training milestones, salespeople, employees, praying, dressing in blue to raise money for colon cancer, cheese doodles, a highly alcoholic beverage, multiple personality disorders, preparing for Cinco de Mayo, and the first casualty of the American Revolution: Cinco de Marcho Crispus Attucks Day Dress in Blue Day Multiple Personality Day National Absinthe Day National Cheese Doodle Day National Employee Appreciation Day National Salesperson Day Potty Dance Day World Day of Prayer Cinco de Marco was created by people who want to celebrate Cinco de Mayo in a couple months but didn't feel they could handle the alcohol. Their plan was to build up their alcohol tolerance over the next couple months. (Presumably absinthe is too potent to be in their plan.) The first casualty of the American Revolution is considered to be Crispus Attucks , a black man who died during the Boston Massacre . By Unknown author or not provided - U.S. National Archi

Today is a day to celebrate the least-sided of the platonic solids , the regular tetrahedron . A regular tetrahedron is formed by putting 4 identical equilateral triangles together into a convex polyhedron . A non-regular tetrahedron would still consist of 4 triangles, but they would be different sizes and shapes. The tetrahedron is also a type of pyramid . A pyramid is a polyhedron with a polygon as a base where each vertex connects to another point on a different plane as the base. Many of the pyramids built by people use a square base, and thus are not tetrahedrons. Every tetrahedron is a pyramid, but not every pyramid is a tetrahedron. We celebrate tetrahedrons on March (3rd month) 4 because it's composed of triangles (3-sided polygons), and 4 of them. By KoenB - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5513755

Holidays today cover topics like recognizing the importance of forests, the national anthem of the US, helping a sad person become happier, imagining a world where cats/dogs have hands more like ours, peach blossom flowers, mulled wine, and cold cuts: I Want You to be Happy Day National Anthem Day National Cold Cuts Day National Mulled Wine Day Peach Blossom Day What if Cats and Dogs Had Opposable Thumbs Day World Wildlife Day If cats and dogs had opposable thumbs, I suspect they'd be getting their own food a lot. My guess is that the first thing it would lead to would be pet obesity. On this date in 1931 the Star Spangled Banner became the national anthem of the US. This year's theme for World Wildlife Day is about forests and the ecosystems they support. Photo by Daniel Seßler on Unsplash

One of the most iconic American cinematic monsters, King Kong , premiered on this date in 1933.  King Kong has appeared in 11 movies already, and (along with costar Godzilla ) has another movie scheduled to come out this month. King Kong and Godzilla first starred together in 1962. It wasn't a buddy flick though; they had an adversarial relationship. Though most of us are familiar with King Kong as an unnaturally large gorilla, just how big is King Kong? Apparently King Kong is as big as a particular movie plot needs him to be; he can be anywhere from 25-150" in height . (A general rule of thumb is that if you're going to fight Godzilla, you want to be as big as possible.) By way of comparison, the extinct Gigantopithecus (which was really more of an orangutan than a gorilla) probably topped out around 12-13". If King Kong actually existed, his various incarnations would be roughly elephant-sized to larger than the largest land animals to have existed. Unknown autho

Observances today are about the victims of nuclear bomb tests, sportsmanship in athletics, a hero of the American Revolution, a US naval fleet that didn't survive WWII, dance teachers, fruit compote, and respecting/honoring horses: Asiatic Fleet Memorial Day Casimir Pulaski Day National Dance Teacher Appreciation Day National Fruit Compote Day National Horse Protection Day National Sportsmanship Day Nuclear Victims Day On this date in 1954 nuclear weapons tested on the Marshall Islands subjected the islands to massive amounts of radiation and caused injury to residents of nearby atolls and fishing vessels. The first Monday in March we honor a Polish nobleman and military commander, Casimir Pulaski , who helped the US win its freedom in the American Revolution . (He was born on March 4 or 6, 1745.) On this date in 1945 ship losses subsequent to Pearl Harbor essentially ended the US Asiatic Fleet . Remaining ships eventually joined the Seventh Fleet , which fought the Japanese for th

Observances today cover subjects like going on vacation alone, being freshly fired up (re-fired) in retirement, addressing the human need for recognition/appreciation, encouraging educators/family members/healthcare professionals recognize the signs of self-harm, combatting discrimination, encouraging smiling, the US Peace Corps, and pigs: Zero Discrimination Day World Compliment Day Share a Smile Day Self-injury Awareness Day Refired, not Retired, Day Plan a Solo Vacation Day Peace Corps Day National Pig Day President John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps on this date in 1961. Primarily known from farming but sometimes filling the role of pets, today we celebrate the pig. Photo by Dorothea OLDANI on Unsplash

Today's observances are about rare diseases, napping in public, repetitive strain injuries, a poem that's culturally important in Finland, the tooth fairy, decorating with flowers, chocolate souffle, and science: Floral De sign Day International Repetitive Strain Injury Awareness Day Kalevala Day Nation al Chocolate Souffle Day National Science Day National Tooth Fairy Day Public Sleeping Day Rare Disease Day International Repetitive Strain Injury Awareness Day and Rare Disease Day are celebrated on the last day of February, so around a quarter of the time they're held on Leap Day. The Kalevala is a poem of Finnish mythology and folklore that's a big deal to the Finnish people. There is a second National Tooth Fairy Day on August 22. National Science Day celebrates C. V. Raman's publication of his photon-scattering discoveries on this date in 1928. Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

Holidays today cover topics like opening a bottle of alcohol, Native American full moon celebrations, making the obvious choice, sword swallowers, strawberries, kahlua, and Polar Bears: Full Snow Moon aka Bald Eagle Moon aka Black Bear Moon aka Raccoon Moon aka Groundhog Moon aka Goose Moon aka Hungry Moon International Sword Swallowers Day National Kahlua Day National Strawberry Day No Brainer Day Open That Bottle Night Polar Bear Day Tonight's full moon had different names among different Native American tribes. I'm tempted to use one of those animals for today's picture, but it's also Polar Bear Day. Photo by Hans-Jurgen Mager on Unsplash

Observances today are about telling fairy tales, bullying prevention, the primary cook in each home, the phrase "for Pete's sake", Levi jeans, carnivals, and pistachios: Carnival Day For Pete's Sake Day International STAND UP to Bullying Day Levi Strauss Day National Pistachio Day Personal Chef Day Tell a Fairy Tale Day Levi Strauss was born on this date in 1829. Very similar to For the Love of Mike Day, For Pete's Sake Day is a minced oath . Perhaps you could use these holidays to move from blatant vulgarity to expressing yourself with a tamer minced oath. Today we celebrate what's probably my favorite drupe , the pistachio . Photo by Joanna Kosinska on Unsplash

Holidays today are about appreciating your thumbs, airbourne cow-milking, drinking wine, crab-stuffed flounder, batteries, and the discovery of dwarf planet Pluto: Cow Milked While Flying in an Airplane Day Crab-Stuffed Flounder Day Drink Wine Day Nation al Battery Day Pluto Discovery Day Thumb Appreciation Day On this date in 1930 a Guernsey cow named Nellie Jay was milked while flying on a plane. (This was probably more interesting when airplanes were new and doing anything in them was considered interesting.) Also on this date, Pluto was discovered by Clyde Tombaugh . NASA / Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory / Southwest Research Institute, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Today's observances are about the patent for the first Colt revolver, chocolate covered peanuts, chili, clam chowder, and eating right: Clam Chowder Day Let's All Eat Right Day National Chili Day National Chocolate Covered Peanuts Day National Pistol Patent Day On this date in 1836  Samuel Colt  received a patent for his " revolving pistol ". Other than that, all the holidays concern food/eating.

Observances today cover things/people like putting other people first, bartenders, tortilla chips, trading cards, and the Twin Peaks TV/movie/book franchise: Inconvenience Yourself Day National Tortilla Chip Day National Trading Card Day Twin Peaks Day World Bartender Day Twin Peaks Day is celebrated on the day Agent Cooper arrived in Twin Peaks in 1989. "Twin Peaks Great Northern"   by  knitgrrldotcom  is licensed under  CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Holidays today are about the beginning of the Rotary Club, rationalization, playing tennis, the diesel engine, banana bread, dog biscuits, spaying/neutering pets, online learning, and the sport of curling: Curling is Cool Day Diesel Engine Day Digital Learning Day Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day National Banana Bread Day National Rationalization Day Play Tennis Day Spay Day World Peace and Understanding Day The diesel engine was patented on this date in 1893. World Peace and Understanding Day celebrates the first meeting of the Rotary Club in 1905. If you spay/neuter your dog, giving a compensatory dog biscuit treat is the least you can do. I've decided that rationalizing isn't so bad and can be a convenient and desirable way to think about things. Image by  charlottedraws  from  Pixabay

Today we have observances covering subjects like Girl Scouts/Guides thinking about other countries/cultures, humility, European crime victims, people named Mike, margarita cocktails, cooking sweet potatoes, cats, and taking the dog for a walk: Be Humble Day Cat Day European Day for Victims of Crime For the Love of Mike Day National Cook a Sweet Potato Day National Margarita Day Walking the Dog Day World Thinking Day There's a minced oath "for the love of mike", and a holiday around it. Make of that what you will. Today's date of 2/22 has three 2s in it, pronounced like ni-ni-ni in Japanese. And the Japanese interpretation of a cat's noise ( different places interpret it differently ) sounds similar: nyan-nyan-nyan. All this inspires Cat Day in Japan. Let's end with walking the dog. Photo by Gillian Vann on Unsplash

Observances today cover civil rights activist Daisy Gatson Bates, suffragette Susan B. Anthony, the scientist/philosopher Galileo Galilei, an ancient Roman festival, being single, gumdrops, butterscotch, the Canadian flag, presidents of the US, the ENIAC computer, and hippopotamuses: World Hippopotamus Day AKA Hippo Day Susan B. Anthony Day St. Skeletor's Day Singles Awareness Day AKA Singles Appreciation Day Remember the Maine Day Presidents' Day National I Want Butterscotch Day National Gumdrop Day National Flag of Canada Day Lupercalia Galileo Day ENIAC Birthday Daisy Gatson Bates Day Lupercalia was a Roman festival intended to deter evil spirits, purify cities/towns, and foster health and fertility. Galileo Galilei was born on this date in 1564. The USS Maine exploded and sank on this date in 1898, instigating the Spanish-American War . Singles Awareness Day is, following Valentine's Day, a serious holiday for single people. St Skeletor's Day on the other hand is

It's ENIAC Day! The computer era took a giant step forward on this date in 1945 when the first electronic, programmable, general-purpose computer ( ENIAC ) was dedicated at the University of Pennsylvania. Dubbed the "Giant Brain", ENIAC was certainly a giant. This distant ancestor of your desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones, calculators, etc. weighed 27 tons and took up 1800 square feet of space. (We've come a long way baby.) What did we use computers for back in 1945? ENIAC's computing power was used to calculate artillery firing tables and aid in the development of the hydrogen bomb. (It's worth remembering WWII was still going on.) By Unknown author - U.S. Army Photo, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=55124

Holidays today are about promoting awareness of linguistic/cultural diversity, avoiding multitasking, avoiding eating grains, card reading, and sticky buns: Card Reading Day International Mother Language Day National Grain-Free Day National Sticky Bun Day Single Tasking Day Though we frequently feel like we're getting a lot done when multitasking, my impression is that studies indicate the opposite, that going rapidly from one task to another to another usually makes you less efficient. Single Tasking Day is about focusing on a task, doing it well, and only then moving on to the next one. It's not entirely clear what Card Reading Day is for. It could be a day for reading old postcards or greeting cards, or it could be about trying to ascertain the future using tarot cards. It's also a day for that sweet pastry, the sticky bun . Photo by Chris Hardy on Unsplash

Observances today cover stuff like social justice, handcuffs, getting rid of unwanted books, loving your pet, scaring away cold weather by shouting "Hoodie Hoo!", cherry pie, pangolins, and whales: Cherry Pie Day Clean Out Your Bookcase Day Love Your Pet Day National Handcuff Day Northern Hemisphere Hoodie Hoo Day World Day of Social Justice World Pangolin Day World Whale Day On this date in 1912 a patent was issued for the adjustable handcuff, giving law enforcement a better way to restrain people they arrest. In truth, I'm skeptical that shouting "Hoodie Hoo!" will drive away cold/snowy weather, though if things continue I may give it a try. There are a few different dates for World Whale Day, so don't be surprised if you see it showing up on other days around now. Pangolins (aka Scaly Anteaters) are endangered, at least partly because they're used as folk remedies in Asian medicines. Pangolins would appreciate it if you raised awareness of their plig

Today's observances are about the temporary insanity defense, preventing heart disease among women, preventing plagiarism, tug of war contests, chocolate mints, and an early proponent of a heliocentric planetary system: Chocolate Mint Day Copernicus Day International Tug of War Day National Woman's Heart Day Prevent Plagiarism Day Temporary Insanity Day On this date in 1859 the temporary insanity defense was first successfully employed in a murder trial. Nicolaus Copernicus , an astronomer/mathematician who advocated for heliocentrism before it was cool, was born on this date in 1473. By Andreas Cellarius - first upload to de:wikipedia 22:42, 5. Apr 2004 by de:UserRivi . . 570 x 480 (63.606 Byte) (Heliozentrisches Weltbild), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=65270

Today is Thumb Appreciation Day! Why should we appreciate our thumbs? Well, a lot of everyday activities most of us take for granted would be difficult to nearly impossible without thumbs. They provide us with gripping advantages that almost all other animals lack. So today is a day to learn more about your thumbs , and appreciate this surprisingly important digit. Photo by Anton on Unsplash

Today's holidays are about figuring out who you are, living a creative/peaceful/loving life, random acts of kindness, doing things the way you want, the PTA, Indian pudding, cabbage, racing Hermit Crabs, and a hot milk/coffee beverage: My Way Day National Cabbage Day National Café au Lait Day National Champion Crab Racing Day National Indian Pudding Day National PTA Founders' Day Random Acts of Kindness Day Who Shall I Be Day World Human Spirit Day The National Parent-Teacher Association was founded on this date in 1897. This is the first National Indian Pudding Day of the year; another one is on November 13. Traditionally (though maybe not during a pandemic) today is a day for racing Hermit Crabs . (I don't know if these two were racing; they could just be talking.) Photo by Thomas Lipke on Unsplash

Encouraging children to be creative/innovative, addressing climate change, cheering up a grouchy person by doing them a favor, and almonds are the observances going on today: Do a Grouch a Favor Day Kyoto Protocol Day National Almond Day National Innovation Day On this date in 2005 the Kyoto Protocol, an attempt to combat climate change, went into effect. It's a day to celebrate with almonds as a treat/snack. Photo by Avinash Kumar on Unsplash

Today's observances cover people/subjects like HIV/AIDS in the black community, sending cards to people you value, fostering friendship by waving to neighbors, prolific English novelist Charles Dickens, ballet, roses, fettuccine alfredo, the periodic table of the elements, American football's Super Bowl, and superb owls: Wave All Your Fingers at Your Neighbor Day Superb Owl Sunday Super Bowl Sunday Send a Card to a Friend Day Rose Day Periodic Table Day National Fettuccine Alfredo Day National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day e Day Charles Dickens Day Ballet Day Charles Dickens, the English novelist, was born on this date in 1812. A holiday about roses is part of a series of holidays preceding Valentine's Day. You might think that the birthday of  Dmitri Mendeleev  on February 8 in 1834 would be the day to celebrate the periodic table, but it's celebrated on February 7 because of the publication of an earlier attempt on a periodic table by  John Newland published in 1863 .