National Iced Tea Day –
With the official start of summer just a few days away, the timing is perfect for National Iced Tea Day.
Chances are, it is already hot in your area. Today may serve as a good reminder to make and enjoy your first (of many) Iced Tea drink of the season. Have it plain, add a little lemon, or sweeten it with sugar. Iced Tea is certainly a favourite summer cooler of millions of North Americans. And best of all, tea is good for your health!
It takes no imagination to decide how to enjoy this great day: Grab an Iced Tea and head out to the hammock strung under a shady tree.
Medicinal value:
Since ancient times, people have believed that tea has a wide range of medicinal uses. Modern research has given credibility to many of these beliefs and identified more. In some cases research is not conclusive. Regardless of the final determination as to its value over time, drink and enjoy because there is no research to suggest that it can hurt you and it just tastes good.
Here are some of the known or suspected medicinal applications:
Avoidance of heart disease
Cancer and tumors
Stomach ailments
Sore throats and colds(often flavoured with honey)
Soothing, relaxing
The Origin of Iced Tea:
In 1904, English tea plantation owner Richard Blechynden set up a booth to sell hot tea at the St. Louis World Fair. It was a sizzler of a day, and fair visitors didn’t want anything hot. Rather, they needed something to quench their thirst… something cold. He dumped some of his hot tea into ice and served it cold. It was an immediate hit. This was the first known use of iced tea.
Learn About Composting Day
Learn About Composting Day is a great opportunity to “Go Green” and help the environment. Composting is easy. It makes you feel good, knowing you are doing your part to keep our environment a little bit cleaner. You may be surprised at how easy it is to compost. And, everyone can compost.
What to compost- As you learn about composting, you will be surprised at all the things you can compost. It is common knowledge, that you can compost garden and yard vegetation, as well as kitchen (vegetable) scraps. But, you can also recycle many other things, including papers, untreated wood, and cardboard. Cardboard paper towel and toilet paper holders are great items to compost.
You can use compost around your plants, to feed them, keep the weeds down, and to help retain soil moisture. If you don’t have a yard, you can give it away to family and friends that do. Your reward will be flowers, vegetables or herbs from thankful gardeners.
Did you Know? You can make Compost Tea with your compost materials to feed your indoor and outdoor plants! It will save you $$$.
Find more about Compost Materials
As you learn about composting today, you will also see the wide array of ways you can compost. You can start a simple compost pile in your back yard. Or, you can select a range of composters, from compost bins and compost barrels, to compost tumblers. You can even use an indoor compost pail. More on Composters and Compost Tumblers.
Sally Ride Day
Sally Ride Day honours the first American woman to go into space. Dr. Ride accomplished this feat as a mission specialist aboard STS-7, the second flight of the Space Shuttle Challenger. STS-7 was launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on June 18, 1983.
Celebrate Sally Ride Day by learning more about the U.S. space program and NASA. Better yet, we encourage everyone to push for a more active and dedicated U.S. space program and policy.
If any of you young ladies (and young gentlemen) have thought about becoming an astronaut, we encourage you to follow your dream of going into space. Exploration and taming of the frontier made America what it is today. As a famous trekkie one said. “Space is the final frontier”.
Origin of Sally Ride Day:
Sally Ride Day was created in honor of the birth date of Sally Ride, the first American woman in space. Sally Ride was born on May 26, 1951, in Los Angeles, California.
Lucky Penny Day
It’s Lucky Penny Day. Perhaps a Lucky Penny will be lucky for you today. These days you’d be lucky to find a penny at all in Canada.
Taken at face value, a penny doesn’t buy you much, if anything. It used to. During your parents’ and grandparents’ days, a penny bought a lot of things. Most notably, Penny Candy got its name because a piece of candy cost a penny. Inflation year after year after year, eroded the penny’s value. And now it is gone from circulation in Canada for good!
The penny still serves a very useful purpose… at least some of them are lucky pennies. Lucky pennies are found on the ground. Not all of the pennies you find will be lucky. But, it will only take one lucky penny used to scratch off the mega winner on a a scratch-off ticket.
Are you superstitious? Superstition has it that you should only pick up a penny that is lying face up.
Here are some other uses for pennies:
- A penny for your thoughts.
- To put your “two cents” in.
- A necessity for penny pinchers
- A handy screwdriver when nothing else is available.
Thought: for Today: “A penny for your thoughts.”
Buy a Musical Instrument Day
Isn’t it obvious how to celebrate Buy a Musical Instrument Day? If you are a musician in need of a new instrument, today could be a very good day indeed! If you have been considering taking up a musical instrument, today can be your starting point. And, the good news is you’re never too old to begin playing a musical instrument. Many senior citizens pick up musical instruments as a hobby. They even form senior bands, often playing in public.
Okay….. Just in case you haven’t figured out how to participate in this day………..
Go out and buy a musical instrument!
National Waiters and Waitresses Day
National Waiters and Waitresses Day recognizes the value and importance of a good waiter or waitress. When you go out to eat, they represent the restaurant, and are all the difference between a good or a bad experience.
You already recognize your waiters and waitresses every time you go to a restaurant. That recognition comes in the form of a tip. The tip should be commensurate with the quality of the service.
You can recognize your waiters and waitresses on National Waiters and Waitresses Day by giving them a little something extra. In addition to a generous tip, a card or simple verbal recognition is sufficient.
Waiters and waitresses should recognize this day by making sure by providing exemplary service (as always).
Boy’s and Girl’s Club Day
Boy’s and Girl’s Club Day celebrates the invaluable Boy’s Clubs and Girl’s Clubs around the country. There are clubs all over North America providing safe recreational activities for our youth. They teach values and citizenship. They help to keep kids out of trouble and off of the streets.
Today is a day to recognize the importance of these groups for our children and to the community. With more and more parents at work, and broken families, these groups take on added importance.
You can celebrate Boy’s Club and Girl’s Club Day in a variety of ways:
- Learn about your local Boy’s and Girl’s clubs
- Encourage your children to join them
- As parents and adults, volunteer your time
- Make a donation
- If there is no club in your area, play a role in starting one.
Limerick Day
Limerick Day celebrates the birthday of Writer Edward Lear (1812-1888). It also, of course, celebrates Limerick poems. Limericks were popularized by Lear in 1846 in his Book of Nonsense”.
This day is a time to enjoy and get your fill of Limerick poems. We are so glad that it came along to brighten up our lives. Celebrate Limerick Day in style by writing a Limerick or two of your own. Or, sit down and read a few humorous Limericks. They are guaranteed to make you smile.
A Limerick is a humorous verse or poem. It is five lines long. It’s name come from the city of Limerick, Ireland. The first two lines rhyme with the fifth line. The third and fourth lines rhyme.
Did you know? Limerick is the third largest city in Ireland.
No Socks Day
No Socks Day is a day to free your toes of the confines of socks and stockings. Give those toes of yours a breath of fresh air. The creators of this day also profess that No Socks Day will reduce your laundry load, and therefore, is healthy for the environment.
It’s easy to participate in No Socks Day. Just leave your socks and stockings off, and let your toes enjoy a moment in the sun!
Note: While washing your feet prior to participating in No Socks Day is a requirement, painting your toe nails is completely optional.
Happy No Socks Day!
Lumpy Rug Day
Lumpy Rug Day is intended to appreciate a good rug. A rug should be smooth, even, and definitely not lumpy. Many of us stretch out on a rug to watch TV, play games, and even catch 40 winks. If the rug is lumpy, you’ll know it.
There are a number of ways to enjoy Lumpy Rug Day:
- If you have a lumpy rug, toss it out and get a nice, lump-less rug.
- If you once had a lumpy rug, take a minute to remember the soft, comfortable feel of the new rug when it arrived.
- If you never had a lumpy rug, count your blessings. You don’t know what you’re missing.