Holiday Calendar

While the origins of this rib-tickling holiday are unknown, one can assume that its creators wanted people to spread cheer, laughter, and happiness by telling jokes to everyone they meet.

A joke is a written or spoken narrative that entertains, amuses, or generates laughter among readers or listeners

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The month of July / Haymoon

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While UFOs are usually thought to be sophisticated spaceships of alien visitors to Earth, the term UFO can be used to refer to any type of object or phenomena that has not been previously observed in an area. Most UFO sightings are easily explained by scientific means. Despite this, UFOs are a constant subject of conspiracy theories around the world.

It is believed that the abbreviation - UFO - was first coined in the 1950s by Edward J. Ruppelt, an officer with the United States Air Force, as a way to replace the prevailing terms used for unidentified objects in the skies at that time. These terms were flying saucers and flying discs.

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Happy Fried Chicken Day!

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Happy Macaroni Day!

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Olaf the Lawbreaker (“St. Olaf”) was killed at the battle of Stikklestad on this date in the year 1280 R.E. “Olaf the Fat” acquired a reputation for killing, maiming, and exiling his fellow Norwegians who would not convert to Christianity, and for carrying an army with him in violation of the law to help him accomplish his oppression. Today honor the warriors who brought justice to the Lawbreaker.

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Day of Remembrance for Unn the Deep Minded: Unn was a powerful figure from the Laxdaela Saga who emigrated to Scotland to avoid the hostility of King Harald Fairhair. She established dynasties in the Orkney and Faroe Islands by carefully marrying off her granddaughters. As a settler in Iceland she was considered one of the great chieftains of Iceland as she continued to exhibit all those traits which were her hallmark-strong will, a determination to control, dignity, and a noble character. In the last days of her life, she established a mighty line choosing one of her grandsons as her heir. She died during his wedding celebration, presumable accomplishing her goals and worked out her orlog here in Midgard. She received a typical Nordic ship burial, surrounded by her treasure and her reputation for great deeds.

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Happy Pina Colada Day!

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Born on July 12, 1817, Thoreau was against slavery, a supporter of small government, an environmentalist, and an author. He was also involved in the early transcendentalist movement in the United States. Transcendentalism is a philosophical movement that emerged in the U.S. in the mid-1800s. The main idea of the movement was that humans by nature are inherently good and that knowledge can only be gained through looking inwards as well as outwards.

How to Celebrate?
Take a vow of simplicity. Cut out unimportant things in your life.
Is there an expensive object you have always wanted to buy? Instead of buying it, donate the money to a deserving organization.
Volunteer your time and money to a local organization working on a cause of your choosing.
Learn more about Henry David Thoreau’s life and philosophy. Read books and essays written by him. Some of his more well-known works include Walden, A Plea for Captain John Brown and Paradise (to be) Regained.

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Being a geek is something to be proud of - chances are there are few other people in the world who are as smart as you are in the field of your specific interest, may it be music, video games, comics, movies, renaissance-era jewelry making techniques, or astronomy. So accept your geekiness with open arms and show off your knowledge with pride!

How to Celebrate?
Learn something new and geeky today.
Flaunt your geekiness with pride. Are you a math geek? What about wearing a cool t-shirt with a math problem that only fellow math geeks would understand.
If the field you are interested in has a secret language, what about spending the day speaking the language?

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From Paradise Lost
The word pandemonium, meaning a place of confusion or turmoil, comes from English poet John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost. First published in 1667, the epic was a collection of 10 books. In the poem, Pandæmonium or Pandemonium is the capital of Hell. Pandemonium comes from the Greek word, pan meaning all, and daimonion, meaning inferior gods.

How to Celebrate?
Acknowledge that chaos is part of your life. The first step for sanity to return is to accept that pandemonium will always be part of your life.
Take measures to reduce the chaos and the stress that comes with it. Make a chore chart and stick to it, but don’t feel guilty if you are unable to accomplish a few chores once in a while.
Don’t feel like you have to do everything yourself. If the chaos feels overwhelming, ask for help from your family and friends.

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Happy Tapioca Pudding Day!

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Happy Ice Cream Day!

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The unofficial holiday was created in the early 1960s by Princeton mathematics students, David Kelly and Michael Spivak, while working on the special properties of the number 17.

It is unclear why the day was called Yellow Pig Day or what a yellow pig has to do with the number 17, though legend has it that it is in reference to David Kelly's collection of yellow pigs. The mascot of the holiday, the yellow pig, has 17 toes, 17 eyelashes, and 17 teeth.

They got the yellow pig 17 idea at a bar.

Mike Spivak has become a famous author of math text books and has hidden a yellow pig in each book (one book is dedicated to a chinese (yellow) policeman (pig))

In addition (pun intended) he has somewhere upwards of 4913 yellow pigs lying around his house

A Number With Special Properties
17 is a prime number that has significance in mathematics. It is the sum of the first four prime numbers - 2, 3, 5, and 7. A prime number is a number that can only be divided by 1 and by itself. Several studies have shown that when people are asked to choose a number between 1 and 20, a majority of people choose the number 17.

17 is not always a special number. In Italy, for example, 17 is considered to an unlucky number.

How to Celebrate?
Gift the mathematicians in your life marzipan Yellow Pig candies or yellow pig plush toys.
Do 17 acts of kindness during the day.
Sing Yellow Pig carols.

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It is unclear whether the anonymous inventor of this made-up holiday intended it to be a day for people to stick out their tongues at everyone they come across or for them to visit their doctors to get a general check-up.

It is also possible that the creator of this unofficial holiday created it to encourage people to defy odds and attempt things that they find difficult to do.

Many cultures consider sticking out the tongue at someone as a childish, rude, and insulting gesture. In these cultures, when children stick out their tongue at adults, it is seen as an act of disobedience. In Tibet, however, sticking out one's tongue is considered to be a polite form of greeting.

Perfectly Fine at the Doctor's Office
There is one place where sticking out one's tongue is not only considered ok, but can be sometimes essential - in a doctor's office. The tongue, which is a muscle that helps humans in eating food and speaking, is also one of the many organs in the human body that doctors check to detect signs of illness.

Today, sticking out one's tongue over the Internet or through text (or SMS) is done through emoticons, and seen as a way to express a point that should not be taken very seriously. The emoticon is written by typing a colon, followed by a dash, and a capital (:-P).

How to Celebrate?
Stick out your tongue at people. Just let them know why you are doing it, lest they think of you as a terribly rude person.
If there are things that are bothering you, take this day to stick your tongue out at them.
If you are overdue for a general check-up, perhaps today is the day to visit the doctor and get a clean bill of health.

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Happy Lollipop Day!

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Junk food is a term used to refer to food that has a lot of calories but very little or no nutritional value. Popularized in the United States in the 1950s, the word is widely used for foods that are heavily processed, and have high amounts of sugars, fats, and salt.

Studies have shown that consuming junk food once-in-a-while does not have a negative effect on health - it is only when one eats junk food for a majority of their meals that their diet can be considered unhealthy. Consuming large amounts of foods considered to be junk, can lead to several health problems, including a high risk of obesity, diabetes, and heart issues.

Different Definitions
Different cultures have their own different definition of what constitutes junk food - what may be junk food in one culture, may be considered nutritional food in another. Many people believe that fast food is usually junk food, though some kinds of fast food are prepared in a healthy way and can be very nutritional.

How to Celebrate?
Have junk food for all your meals!
Start the day with your favorite junk food – may we suggest several slices of bacon and an egg omelet wedged between two slices of a glazed donut washed down with a big glass of orange soda? If someone questions your choice, you can always point out to the fact that eggs, bacon, donuts, and orange juice are all breakfast items.
Have a potato chip sandwich for lunch and a waffle burger – a burger between two waffles – for dinner.

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Happy Vanilla Ice Cream Day!

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Parental figures in the United States receive the recognition for the role they play in their children’s lives on Parents’ Day. The day aims to promote responsible parenting and to recognize positive parental role models. It celebrates the special bonds of love between parental figures and their children.

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Happy Tequila Day!

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Culinarians are experts in the art and science of cooking and serving food. They can be chefs, cooks, home cooks, bakers, and anyone else who is involved in the process of preparing and serving meals. Professional culinarians tend to work in restaurants and commercial kitchens.

While the origins of Culinarians Day are unknown, we can all safely assume that the holiday was invented as a way to thank all the culinarians who make our experience of eating out fun and special.

How to Celebrate?
If you personally know a chef or a cook, send them a thank you note and a thoughtful gift.
Make a special dinner for the person who cooks for you every day.
Go out to eat and thank the chef and the cooks for laying out a good meal for you.

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Mark your calendar and celebrate in your own way.

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July 27 is Take Your Pants For A Walk Day. Because the purpose or the origins of the day are unknown, we can only surmise that the unofficial holiday encourages people (in pants) to go out for a walk and enjoy the many benefits that walking provides.

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Go for a walk with your pants on.
©iStockphoto.com/monkeybusinessimages
Studies have shown that walking at a medium to fast pace regularly can have tremendous mental and physical health benefits. Walking not only helps burn calories, but can also boost a person's mood and can help treat depression. It also reduces the risk of a variety of health problems including obesity, diabetes, and heart diseases.

How to Celebrate?
Get up early in the morning, wear your pants, and go for a walk!
Walking with weights is known to increase the effectiveness of the exercise. So why not fill a bag with all your pants and literally take them for a walk?

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Native to The Americas
Chocolate is an edible treat made from the extracts of the cocoa (cacao) bean found in the cocoa pod. Native to the Americas, each pod on a cacao tree has up to 30 to 50 seeds that are fermented, dried, and roasted to make cocoa solids. Chocolatiers then mix the cocoa paste, also known as chocolate liquor, and the cocoa butter with milk and sugar to make milk chocolate.

Types of Chocolate
Dark chocolate is usually made with little or no milk and has less sugar than milk chocolate. White chocolate on the other hand only has sugar, milk and cocoa butter.

It is believed that milk chocolate was first created as a drink in the mid-19th century in Germany. The first milk chocolate in the form of a bar that we all recognize today was created by Swiss chocolatier Daniel Peter in collaboration with Henri Nestlé, the founder of the chocolate company Nestlé.

How to Celebrate?
Here are some ways you can celebrate this sweet holiday:

Treat yourself to a bar (or two) of milk chocolate.
What about baking a batch of milk chocolate cookies or a vanilla cake with milk chocolate ganache icing at home? Share with family and friends.
Add milk chocolate to all your meals. Have milk chocolate chip pancakes with milk chocolate syrup for breakfast. Have a milk chocolate shake for a snack and milk chocolate bars for dessert after lunch and dinner.

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July 30 is National Cheesecake Day, a day to treat yourself with a slice (or two) of this decadent dessert made of cream cheese, eggs, sugar, and a graham cracker crust.

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We won't judge you! Celebrate National Cheesecake Day with a slice or two or three of your favorite cheesecake.
©iStockphoto.com/william87
Believed to have originated in ancient Greece, cheesecakes, whether baked or chilled, have become a restaurant and bakery staple around the world. There are many different regional variations of the cake. For example, the Germans use Quark and a freshly made pastry as the base for their version of the cake. In Brazil, on the other hand, cheesecake is served with a thin layer of guava jelly or marmalade.

How to Celebrate?
With a big slice of cheesecake of course! Add some fruits to it, and you can claim that it is healthy!
Bake a cheesecake at home and add new twists to the traditional recipe. Here are some ideas: replace the graham cracker crust by chocolate cookie crust, add bacon to the crust for a salty and smoky flavor, or replace the cream cheese with ricotta or goat cheese.
Make a savory version of the cake for dinner and a sweet version for dessert.
In honor of National Cheesecake Day, many restaurants and bakeries have cheesecake specials on their menus. Take your family and friends out to try out one of these specials.

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Happy Mutt Day!

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July 31 is Uncommon Musical Instrument Awareness Day, a day to celebrate odd, rare, experimental, and well, uncommon musical instruments.

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Learn to play the didgeridoo today.
©iStockphoto.com/lsarao
Throughout human history, musicians have tried to push the boundary of sounds and music by inventing newer and innovative ways of creating music.

This day aims to encourage people to not only learn to play some of these uncommon instruments but also to make their own contributions to the world of music by making their own musical instruments.

How to Celebrate?
Learn about uncommon instruments. Some examples include the Xaphoon, Daxophone, and Bowfrideaphone.
Start learning how to play an uncommon musical instrument.

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Mark your calendar and celebrate in your own way.

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