January: Holidays & Days of Note

Jan. 1. New Years Day. One very popular one anyway. There are others throughout the year. / Festival of Janus (Roman) / Circumcision of Christ Day (Catholic) Yes there is at least one church that claims to have the item in question. / O-Shogatsu (Japan) Along with O-Bon this is one of Japan's most important ceremonies where bad fortune of the past year is eliminated. / Fortuna's Day (Roman) / Zeus & Hera's Day (Greek) / Jupiter & Juno's Day (Roman) / Independence Day (Haiti) Heck of a lot of holidays to be piled up on a day when so many people have hangovers.

Jan. 2. Carnival de Blancos y Negros Holiday of Blacks and Whites (Columbia) Festival held in Pasto City, Columbia to celebrate more than 300 years of racial harmony, starting out small, over the years it has become a pretty big deal, during, among other things, they have a festival with music, street dances, free food and drink, and usually water & flour fights and the picking of a queen. On the first day everyone wears white face while on the last they don black face with special make-up produced in the city for the purpose, it helps that they don't have that whole toxic `minstrel show thing as part of their heritage like we do, during this almost week long Carnival...what about the Indians? / Ancestors Day. (Haiti) Be sure to call yours up and have them over! / Only 4 shopping days left until Armenian Christmas.

Jan. 3. Festival of Sleep (U.S.) And it's on the Tuesday after my Winter vacation is over, is this suppose to be ironic or something? / It was on this day in 1863, on the cover of Harper´s Weekly in a cartoon by Thomas Nast, that Santa was first shown delivering gifts with a reindeer-drawn sleigh. The title was `Santa Claus in Camp, the recipients of those gifts, Union solders.

Jan. 4. Braille Day, birthday of Louis Braille a day for honoring the blind. / Pharmacist Day (U.S.) / Spaghetti Day (U.S.) / Elizabeth Ann Seton Feast Day (Catholic) First American born saint.

Jan. 5. Fragga's Day. (Norse) A day for the wife or Odin and the Goddess of marriage. / Christianity introduced to England in 597. / Eris, the largest known dwarf planet in the solar system, was discovered on this day in 2005.

Jan. 6. Twelfth Day, now you know when that damn song is over! / Epiphany, This day was also at one time known as Old Christmas (Julian calendar). / Christmas Day (Armenia). / La Bafana (Italy) a festival on which the night before Bafana, a kindly witch flies down chimneys on her broom and bestows gifts on good children and leaving lumps of coal for the bad children. / la Fiesta de los Reyes Magos `Three Kings Day (Latin America) day when, among other things, the kids get presents rather than Christmas. / Festival of Kore. (Ancient Greek)

Jan. 7. Nanakusa (Japan), a festival that dates back to the 7th century and recalls the seven plants served to the emperor that is believed to have great medical value. Shepherd's Purse, chickweed, parsley, cottonweed, radish, hotoke-no-za, and aona.

Nanakusa

 

Jan. 8. Feast of Justicia (Roman) / Mid-Wife's Day, (Greece) / Man Watcher Day (US) / Rock n' Roll Day or the Birthday of Elvis 1935. / Secret Pal Day (internet) I guess if Hallmark can push dubious holidays why not 123greeting?

Jan. 9. Seijin-No-Hi `Coming of Age Day´ (Japan) Holiday for anyone who attains the age of 20 anytime between April 2 of last year April 1 of this year. Always held on a Monday. / Feast of the Black Nazarene (Philippines)

Jan. 10. Peculiar People Day (US) About damn time! So do I get a cookie or something? / Thomas Paine, who has a day coming up this month, publishes Common Sense in 1776. / The film Metropolis by Fritz Lang premiers in 1926. They tell me after all this time they finally have that darn thing restored!

Jan. 11. Juturnalia (Roman) Time when water was taken from her well to be used in state offerings. / Carmentalia (Roman) Day to celebrate prophecy, the chief giver of which was Carmentis, Goddess of prophecy, who also protected women during childbirth.

Jan. 12. Fabulous Wild Men Day (US)

Jan. 13. Midwinterblot (Norse) / Final Witchcraft laws repealed in Austria, 1787. / Wham-O introduces the Frisbee in 1957, American roofs have never been the same since.

Jan. 14. Bald Eagle Appreciation Day (US) / Ati Atihan Festival (Philippines) which goes to the 20th.

Ati Atihan Festival

Jan. 15. Feast of the Lord Esquipulas (Mayan) / Black Christ Festival (Guatemala) / Feast of the Ass (French) Started out in Rome and was dedicated to the Goddess Vesta's sacred animal, later it was Christianized.

Jan. 16. / Martin Luther King Day `observed´ (US)

Jan. 17. Surya, Hindu Feast of the Sun Goddess. / In 1929 Popeye the Sailor Man first appears in the Thimble Theater comic strip, which had been going on for almost 10 years before this without him, at the time it concerned the adventures of Olive Oyl and her family along with Olive's then long time boyfriend Hamm Gravy. Popeye is introduced when her father, Cole Oyl, down at the dock hopping to hire an assassin to take care of someone who has been troubling the family sees Popeye and asks if he's sailor, to which he replies “does I look like a cowboy to ya?” later Popeye does take care of the villains, but without needing to murderize them.

   (Word Cloud of the Lyrics of "I'm Popeye the Sailor Man")

Jan. 18. World Religion Day. (U.N.) Day to appreciate the diversity of different religious expressions. At least the ones that aren't trying to kill each other that is. / Winnie The Pooh Day.

Jan. 19. International Hot & Spicy Food Day / The Apple Lisa, the first commercial personal computer from Apple Inc. to have a graphical user interface and a computer mouse, is announced on this day in 1983.

Jan. 20. Theogamia of Hera (Greek) / the roller coaster is patented in 1885.

Jan. 21 White Dog Feast. (Iroquois) / In 1997 Newt Gingrich becomes the first leader of the United States House of Representatives to be disciplined for ethical misconduct.

Jan. 22 Festival of the Muses (Ancient Greek) / today is the birthday of Robert E. Howard creator of Conan, Kull, Solomon Kane & others.

Jan. 23. Chinese New Year, Year of the Water Dragon. / Tet Nguyen Dan (Vietnamese New Year) / However the celebrations started yesterday / National Pie Day (U.S.)

Jan. 24. Blessing of the Happy Woman's Candle (Hungary) Bless that candle you happy little woman!

Jan. 25. Robert Burn's Night (Scotland).

The Toast

Fill me with the rosy wine,

Call a toast, a toast divine:

Giveth me Poet's darling flame,

Lovely Jessie be her name;

Then thou mayest freely boast,

Thou hast given a peerless toast

Robert Burns

Jan. 26. Australia Day / Republic Day (India) / Clashing Clothes Day (US) Held the 4th Thursday of each January, wouldn't want to get that wrong would we? I mean if they go to the trouble to make one of the few movable silly "holidays" we might as well play along.

Jan. 27. National School Nurse Day (US) / Thomas Crapper Day.

Jan. 28. National Kazoo Day (U.S.) / Lego bricks are 54 years old today.

Jan. 29. Freethinker's Day also Thomas Paine's birthday in 1737.

Jan. 30. Festival of Pax (Greek) Feriae Senentiva `Feast of Spring´ (Roman)

Jan. 31. National Popcorn Day (US) / Hecate's Feast (Greek) / Up-helly-Aa (Scotland) held the last Tuesday in January, it is the largest Fire Festival in the world.

Happy Yule, December 21st

The object between the Sun & Mercury revealed

Seems it may have been a compainion comit that broke off Comet Lovejoy which went diving into the sun.
I mean after all if you did something like that and it didn't vaporize it would no doubt blow off chunks.

Well these chunk are going around in their own orbits.

Comet Lovejoy Goes Sun Diving

"Object" seen between the Sun and Mercury?

That's what some are saying anyway

That would be one hot spaceship!

December: Holidays & Days of Note

Dec. 1 National Pie Day and Eat A Red Apple Day (U.S.) or save time and just have an apple pie / World AID's Day, names such because it was on this day in 1981 that the AIDS virus was officially recognized.

World AID's Day

Dec. 2 National Fritters Day (U.S.)

Dec. 3 International Day of Disabled People / Bona Dea (Ancient Rome) Day for secret women's rites for "The Good Goddess" the exact identity of whom is unknown... at least to me, which is as it should be I guess. / Mindfulness Day (Zen Buddhism) day for mindfully seeing and acting with compassion for the poor and oppressed. 


Dec. 4 Cracker Jack Day (U.S.) / Wear Brown Shoes Day. (U. S.) Just why I will not speculate on.


Dec. 5 H.M. The King's Birthday (Thailand) / Death of Aleister Crowley 1947, age 72, not bad for somebody hooked on smack.


Dec. 6 National Day of Remembrance and Action against Violence against Women (Canada)

              
Dec. 7 National Cotton Candy Day (U.S.) originally called fairy floss, it being made from flossine sugar for... I don't know... elves, pixies and fairies but no doubt stolen by some intrepid lad or lass and given to the rest of the world as detailed in a fairy tale I've never heard of. As for why this would be set in December instead of the summer or spring when most of this confection is eaten is beyond me.

Dec. 8 Hanukkah (Jewish) starts at sunset and goes until the 28th. / Bodhi day or Rohatsu (Zen Buddhist celebration of the Buddha's enlightenment.) / Tara Puja (Tantric Buddhism) for meditation on Goddess Red Tara, protector against evil and harm. / Feast of the Immaculate Conception Day.

Dec. 9. Anna's Day (Sweden and Finland) Day to celebrate all people named Anna also the day to start the preparation process of the lutefisk to be consumed on Christmas Eve. Hey Anne, we were dropping this dried codfish in lye to let it lay their for a few days till it turns into this translucent white goo and it made us think of you.

Dec. 10 Festival For The Souls Of Dead Whales (Inuit people of Alaska) / Human Rights Day. (U.N.)

Dec. 11 National Noodle Ring Day, laugh if you want, but at least its always on the 11th of December and not one of those darn movable feasts!


Dec. 12 Day of Our Lady of Guadeloupe (Mexico) To celebrate the appearance of the Virgin Mary in 1531 at a former Aztec temple. / Bonza Bottler Day(U.S.) An excuse to celebrate, this happens every month when the day and the date are the same numbers, and the last time we will ever be able to write a check with some thing like three twelves on it!

Dec. 13 The first Papal Bull against magic is issued by Pope Alexander IV in 1258... It being okay before than? As a note, rumor has it that the Vatican has in its library, hidden away under the equivalent of a Papal EYES ONLY seal, books of powerful magic that were used in the very early days to defeat the various shamanic, magical, and other religious groups they were competing against, after the other belief systems had been put down the books were hidden away under pain of death for those that might want to take a look, but not destroyed just in case any made came back.

Well it's what I heard!

Dec. 14 Consualia (Ancient Rome) Holiday for the god Consus, represented by a corn seed, who was the protector of grains and subterranean storage bins. / On this day in 1910 the Tarot deck that would later be known as the Rider-Waite, and the inspiration for dozens of other decks, was first published.

Dec. 15 Bill of Rights Day, the United States Bill of Rights is Passed in 1791. / Amitabha Day (Tibetan and Mahayana Buddhism) Day to do good deeds and chant the name of Amitabha to gain entry to His Pure Land, and aid in attaining nirvana.

Dec. 16 - 24 Posadas (Mexico) A holiday that commemorates Joseph and Mary looking for a place to stay in Bethlehem. All I know is unless they want to get arrested Joseph and Mary better stay out of Alabama and Arizona, I really doubt they have the right papers.

Dec. 17 1904 - First flight by the Wright Brothers. / - 23 Saturnalia (Ancient Rome) Dedicated to Saturn from which many of the things we call Christmassy come from, which is a little surprising considering what a gloomy cuss he was.

Saturnalia

Dec. 18 Feast of Epona (Ancient Rome) Feast for the goddess of horses, donkeys & mules. However originally she was a Celtic goddess but the Roman soldiers in Celtic lands liked her so much they adopted her. / Slavery is abolished in the United States, with the passing of the 13th Amendment.

Dec. 19 Opalia ( Roman) A part of Saturnalia this day was given over to Ops the Goddess of Plenty. With all the Xmas whoop de do don't forget these!

Dec. 20  Festival of the God of Commerce (Japan)

Dec. 21 Winter Solstice / Yule.

And the end of the world? or we are engulfed by a wave of enlightenment? Or things continue same as it ever was.

Winter Solstice

And the REAL Reason for the Season

They use to sell date nut bread in cans, I haven't seen that in years, but darn it was good.... for cake that came out of a can that is.

Dec. 23 Noche de Rábanos "Night of the Radishes" (Oaxaca, Mexico) While it lasts only a few hours a very popular festival that attracts thousands of people to the plaza. It consists of an exhibition of

sculptures made from a type of large red radish which can weigh up to 3 kilos in weight, (over 6 pounds,) and 50 cm (over a foot and a half) in length, especially grown for this event and left in the ground for months after the normal harvests to let them attain their giant size and unusual shapes. / Larentalia (Roman) Last day of Saturnalia. / Festivus (made famous on an episode of Sinfield, but around before that and actually followed by a few people, more or less) A festivus for the rest of us

Dec. 24 Christmas Eve. But then it's pretty much (fill in the blank) Eve the day before any holiday but you don't see say National Fritters Day making a fuss about it. No doubt about it as holidays go Christmas is a bit to full of itself.

Dec. 25 Christmas. Not much to say as you almost never hear anything about this obscure holiday.... at least not much before the 20th of October when they start banging the sales drum. At one time Xmas was illegal in America and England, and I assume Canada & Australia as well perhaps, till it was brought back in part by the efforts of Charles Dickens. / Feast of Frau Holle (old Germanic) Frau Holle, a winter goddess, was believed to travel throughout the night blessing the good and punishing the wicked. / Day to eat your Christmas cake (Japan)

Dec. 26 Boxing Day (UK, Canada, `and surprisingly enough Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina & West Virginia) my butler Rugglesworth always finds it so amusing when I iron the paper for him on this day. / Wren Day (Ireland & the Isle of Man) also known as Wren´s day, Hunt the Wren Day or The Hunting of the Wrens (Irish: Lá an Dreoilín) consists of "hunting" a fake wren, and putting it on top of a decorated pole. Then mummers or strawboys celebrate the Wren or Wran by dressing up in masks, straw suits and colorful motley clothing and to parade through the towns and villages in remembrance of a festival that was celebrated by the Druids. / First Day of Kwanzaa. A made-up holiday that started in the 60's. But then in the long run aren´t they all?

                          Made up that is.

Dec. 27 Boar's Head Supper (Cambridge, England) / In 537 the Hagia Sophia is completed. / in 1831 Charles Darwin embarks on his journey aboard the HMS Beagle, and / in 1904 James Barrie's play Peter Pan premieres in London. Giving a name to a type of couple where in the Windys needs to stop enabling the Peters and force him to grow the &$%^ up.

Dec. 28 Card Game Day (U.S.) I'm thinking about designing one of those trading card games based on pointless holidays.

Dec. 29 Pepper Pot Day (U.S.) "I chose you Pepper Pot Day!" (see above)

December 30 Bicarbonate of Soda Day (U.S.) When you absolutely, positively can think of nothing else to dedicated a day to. However in the card game this day will be used to neutralize the effect of those who play the card above.

Dec. 31 Namahage (Japan). In the evening groups of Namahage men dressed as devils make door to door visits asking "Any good for nothing fellows here about?" The object is to give sluggards a chance to reform. / Siddhartha Buddha Day (Tibetan Buddhism) Day Tibetan Buddhists meditate on the Buddha's teachings and strive to fulfill the Precepts. / World Peace Meditation. / New Year's Eve.

And then it's start of a year in which every Friday is a Friday the 13th.

Looks Like a Fringe Event to Me.

Close enough for me anyway

It Came from the Hologram!

November: Holidays & Days of Note

Nov. 1 All Saints Day. / Dia De Los Muertos (Mexico) The Day of the Dead / Plan Your Epitaph Day (U.S.) / It was on this day that Claudius poisoned Hamlet's dad by pouring poison in his ear. Starting a trend making November a particularly good month for conspiracies.

Nov. 2 Day of the Dead (Haiti) / National Deviled Egg Day (U.S.)

Nov. 3 Housewife's Day (U.S.) / Bunka no hi (Japan) Culture Day for promotion of culture and love for freedom and peace. / Sandwich Day (U.S.)

Nov. 4 National Unity Day. (Italy) / It was on this day 1871 that Alice went through the looking glass. / In 1954 Gojira premiers in Japan, an anti-atom bomb film in which the bomb is metaphorically represented by a 150 tall fire breathing monster. This message, along with over 20 minutes of content were removed and replaced with footage of Raymond Burr when it appeared in America in 1956 as Godzilla: King of the Monsters.

Nov. 5 Guy Fawkes Night (England)

Can't believe this character is making a comeback of sorts. Whatever the case here is the old poem about them that has been around for ages.

Remember, remember, the 5th of November

The Gunpowder Treason and plot;

I know of no reason why Gunpowder Treason

Should ever be forgot.

Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes,

'Twas his intent.

To blow up the King and the Parliament.

Three score barrels of powder below.

Poor old England to overthrow.

By God's providence he was catch'd,

With a dark lantern and burning match

Holloa boys, Holloa boys, let the bells ring

Holloa boys, Holloa boys,

God save the King!

Hip hip Hoorah!

Hip hip Hoorah!

A penny loaf to feed ol' Pope,

A farthing cheese to choke him.

A pint of beer to rinse it down,

A faggot of sticks to burn him.

Burn him in a tub of tar,'

Burn him like a blazing star.

Burn his body from his head,

Then we'll say: ol' Pope is dead

Nov. 6 Saxophone Day (U.S.) And the other musical instruments get their days when?

Nov. 7 Mayan Day of the Dead.

Nov. 8 Fuigo Matsuri (Shinto) Festival in honor of Hettsui no Kami Goddess of the kitchen range.

Nov. 9 Kristallnacht Night (1938) The night of the Nazi attacks on Jewish homes, synagogues, and shops in Germany started, which today has been turned into a night for meditating on the evil of all religion based hatred. / Quatuor Coronati (Freemason) / Chaos Never Dies Day (U.S.) Yet another of those "holidays" about which I can find no information.

Nov. 10 Tree Festival (Tunisia) / Festival for the Goddesses of Reason, Liberty & Philosophy (Revolutionary France 1793) which some say never really happened but was disinformation spread by pro-royalists.

Nov. 11 Remembrance Day (Canada, England and others) The tradition is to observe a minute of silence at 11:00 am on this day to remember the dead of World War I. / Veterans Day (U.S.) / Martinmas (Old Scotland) The feast of St. Martin. A day to "enjoy" a dish of haggis. To quote Mike
Myers character in So I Married An Ax Murderer "I think most Scottish cuisine started out as a dare." But seriously, just where are the haggis frozen dinners in my local grocery? My guess would be right under the liver & onion dinners. / Halloween under the old calendar. / Fast for Balder thru the 17th (Old Anglo-Teutonic) Marking Hod (God of Darkness) unintentionally killing Balder (God of Light), and his true love Nanna (Goddess of Flowers) dying of a broken heart. The dead were honored.

Also don't for get to write a check today so you can date it 11/11/11.

Nov. 12 Tesuque Feast Day (Native American) / - 15th Buffalo Dance (Tewa Tribe) Healing rites./ Lha Bab Duchen (Tibetan Buddhist) Day to celebrate the Buddha's descent from heaven after teaching the Dharma there. / The start of November under the old calendar.

Nov. 13 Festival of Jupiter (Ancient Rome)

Nov. 14 Children's Day (India) / Operating Room Nurse Day (U.S.) Which reminds me, do you know what the 5 levels of cleanliness are? 

5. Guy clean.
4. Girl clean.
3. Mom clean.
2. Operating room clean  &
1. Grandmother clean.

Nov. 15 Shichigosan '7 - 5 - 3' (Japan) Children's festival. / National Teddy Bear Day (U.S.) I've read that more people are killed each year by teddy bears (button eyes stuck in throats, allergic reactions to materials) than by real bears. Of course real bears don't kill a lot of people. / It was on this date in 1966 in Point Pleasant, West Virginia that two young couples reported to Mason County sheriff's department that they have had a curious encounter with a something or other that would come to be called the Moth-Man.

Nov. 16 Icelandic Language Day or Dagur íslenskrar tungu (Iceland) /International Day for Tolerance (International) / I also hear from someone I know that they plan on making the 16^th Ron Paul Registration Bomb Day, ah?!!? Not that kind of bomb, they who are Rob Paul fans... sorry... supporters and are not registered as Republicans will be registering en masse that day, an act that they say will ensure he wins the primaries and gets the nod as candidate.

Sure it will.

Yeah, I remember when I was young and stu... ahhh young and believed stuff too.

Nov. 17 Queen Elizabeth's Day (England)

Nov. 18 Occult Day (U.S.). Look as I might the meaning for this day

remains......

wait for it.......

............................ occult.

Nov. 19 Pencil Day. The modern pencil first appears in 1895 / Pop Tarts are 48 years old as of today, which at first were called "Country Squares", which lets face it makes no sense what so ever.

Nov. 20 Commerce God Ceremony (Japan) / Shakyamuni or Siddhartha Buddha Day (Tibetan Buddhist) Day to meditate on the Buddha's teachings and strive to fulfill the Precepts.

Nov. 21 World Hello Day (mostly world wide) The objective of World Hello Day is to promote world peace. The theme of this day is "Greet ten people for peace". It is really easy to participate in World Hello Day. Simply, say hello to the people today. And, voice your concern for world peace. / Repentance Day (Germany)

Nov. 22

Remember, remember, the 22 of November,

The Daly Plaza Treason and plot;

I know of no reason why the Daly Plaza Treason Should ever be forgot.

But I'll tell you this right now about that shot

It will be long forgotten before we know the real reason.

/ Noumenia (Ancient Greek) Festival honoring all the Gods and Goddesses.

Nov. 23 Kinro kansha no hi 'Labor Thanksgiving Day' (Japan) A national holiday for honoring labor. / National Cashew Day (U.S.)

Nov. 24 Thanksgiving Day (U.S.) And for breakfast that first Thanksgiving the Pilgrims served boiled eel, explaining the popularity of Thanksgiving D I N E R. / Feast of the Burning Lamps (Egypt)

Nov. 25 Feast of Oya (Yoruba / Santeria) Feast of Oya, Orisha of Wind, Storm, and Sudden Change. / Feast of Aphrodite and Eros (Ancient Greek) Day to honor love and passion. / National Parfait Day (U.S.) "I don't know nobody who don't like a parfait, I think it's the perfect food!" Donkey from Shrek.

Nov. 26 Muharram (Islamic) First day of the Islamic New Year, 1433. / Festival of Lights (Tibetan)

Nov. 27 First Sunday of Advent (Catholic) / Pie in the Face Day (U.S.)

Nov. 28 Day of the New Dance (Tibetan) / Bodhisattva White Tara Day. (Tantric Buddhist) Time for meditation on White Tara, who guides the dead to Buddha Amitabha's Pure Land, where all will find salvation.

Nov. 29 Square Dance Day (U.S.) People still do that?

Nov. 30 Stay at Home Because You're Well Day (.U.S.) Sure, whatever.....

Is this even a crime?

With pumpkins selling for around 29 cents a pound the item below, in which an unknown person or persons left a circle of 30 pumpkins in the back yard of someone, sounds like an unlikely and expensive prank.  

Mystery of the 30 Pumpkins

The thing to do would be to see if any farmers had recently had a large number of pumpkins had been stolen, that would then put things more in the realm prankster territory.

If that’s the case, you have to at least give whoever did it credit for not just busting them up and leaving remains on the road for someone else to clean up, which would be the usual action of say drunken punks on a spree.

The circle I would say shows something of the psychology of those who did it.

As for the doughnuts…. Shrugs.

Keep Watching the Sky!

I wasn't going to post this, but the moment I thought that my Pandora started playing "The Day the Earth Stood Still." Sooooooooo.

Keep Watching the Sky! (now with an app)

October: Holidays & Days of Note

Oct. 1 World Vegetarian Day / Children's Day (Singapore.)

Oct. 2 Gandhi Jayanthi (India) National Holiday celebrated in India to mark the occasion of the birthday of Mohandas Gandhi / Birthday of the Monkey God (Singapore) / Twilight Zone premiers, 1959.

Oct. 3 Gae-Cheon-Jeol `National Foundation Day' (South Korea) / Techies Day (U.S.) So get the guy that fixes your computer at work a new pocket protector.

Oct. 4 National Golf Day (U.S.)

Oct. 5 World Teachers Day.

Oct. 6 German-American Day (United States) / Armed Forces Day (Egypt) / Armed Forces Day (Montenegro)

Oct. 7 Yom Kippur (Jewish) Starts at sundown.

Oct. 8 Okunchi Matsuri. (Nagasaki, Japan) Unusual Japanese festival dating back to when many Chinese and Dutch merchants anchered in the Nagasaki's port, it also has something to do with the time that Christianity was banned in Japan. Anyway... they have a Dragon dance and a Dutch Dance and a number of other events.

Oct. 9 Alphabet Day (South Korea) / Curious Events Day (U.S.) / Leif Erikson Day (For those who care that Leif was first)

Oct. 10 Thanksgiving Day (Canada) / Taiiku no Hi "Health and Sports Day" (Japan)

Oct. 11 Emergency Nurses Day (U.S.) / It was 31 years ago on this day that two fishermen in Pascagoula Mississippi claimed they were levitated onto a UFO by an alien that looked like the unholy love child of Dr. Zoidburg & Bender the Robot.

Oct. 12   Columbus Day (the day they say it happened) Day to celebrate when Indians discovered this Italian fellow on their beach. / Thanksgiving (Canada) / Crowleymas (Thelema) Alister Crowley's Birthday 1875.

Oct. 13 Columbus Tells a Lie Day. It was discovered that Columbus' ships really landed on the 13th of October 1492, he was persuaded by Dutch sailor Piet de Stuini (or DeStynie) to change it to the 12th in the logs because he said that the number 13 might frighten sailors and future investors. The change was detected by an Italian study group called the Colombiani. / Fontinaia (Old Rome) Fontinaia was the Roman festival for the veneration of holy wells, springs & fountains.

Oct. 14 Feast of Pokrov (Russian Orthodox) pokrov means veil and strangely enough commemorates the belief that in the 9th century Constantinople was saved by the protecting veil of Mary, the attackers? Russians.

Oct. 16 Dictionary Day / World Food Day

Oct. 17 Boss' Day / Wear Something Gaudy Day (U.S.) However, perhaps not in front of the boss.

Oct. 18   Alaska Day Oddly enough celebrated in Ohio... oh wait... this just in...

                celebrated in Alaska.....  

                                                                ...... oh

Oct. 19 Person's Day (Canada) / Evaluate Your Life Day (U.S.)

Oct. 20 Birth of the Báb (Bahá'í Faith) / Spirit Day (LGBT) people wear purple as a sign of support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth and to speak out against bullying.

Oct. 21 Feast of the Black Christ

Oct. 22 Kuan Yin or Goddess of Mercy Day (Chinese) / Dussera (India) Festival celebrates Rama's victory over Ravana.

Oct. 23 Day of Meditation. 24 hours of living meditatively. The School of Metaphysics invites people around the world to meditate, pray, and contemplate silence as often as possible from midnight to midnight to bring people together and promote world peace. / Chulalongkorn Day (Thailand). Annual commemoration of King Chulalongkorn who abolished slavery in Thailand in 1910.

Oct. 24 School Librarian Day (U. S.) held the forth Monday in October each year. / United Nations Day (International) / National Bologna Day (U.S.) / Cooger & Dark's Pandemonium Shadow Show arrives in Green Town, Illinois. Something Wicked This Way Comes. Ray Bradbury.

Oct. 25 St. Crispin's Day

Oct. 27 Cranky Co-Workers Day

Oct. 28 Ochi (Greek) Greek for "No" which is what they told Hitler when he tryed to occupire Greece / Separation of Church & State Day (U.S.) Yeah... Nice while it lasted / Chocolate Day (U.S.) / Isia (Ancient Egypt) First day of a 6 day ceremony that commemorates Isis' search for the dismembered parts of Osiris.

Oct. 29 Feast of the Dead. (Iroquois)

Oct. 30 Haunted Refrigerator Day / National Candy Corn Day

Oct. 31 Halloween (U.S. Canada and some other places) / Samhain (Pagan) Australia, South America & Africa, you're on your own as to what you call it. / Reformation Day (Lutheran) and on Halloween this year!

Alan Moore on Austin Osman Spare

Summer almost over... Will "Flap" of 2011 go with it?

Whatever the case there does seem quite a bit going on.

But will it go leave with the end of summer?

Keep your eye on the glowing orb.

Like this one in Alabama

Or these three that gave some teens a scare

Or perhaps like this white boat watching sphere in Sweden

Even if you're in space

But don't count on them staying the same shape

However if "real" then what?

John Podesta says time to talk

The Flap of 2011 Continues

Foo Fighters

Square UFO you say?

meanwhile in Chile

So many sighting they are becoming common

Trails


Another Triange

Russian UFO recorded via phone camera September 7th

Good... perhaps too good?

Whatever the case it's an interesting shot.

Russian Glowing Triangle

September: Holidays & Day of Note

Sept. 1 Knowledge Day (Russia) / Teacher's Day (Singapore) / Start of the season when oysters are fit to eat (when months names contain an "R") / First day of Spring in Australia and New Zealand. / Happy birthday World! Created 75180 years ago today! At least according to the Byzantine Empire. / All Aboard! Day Hogwart's Express departs from Platform 9 3/4, conveniently enough in the books this day is always a Sunday, every year! / and happy birthday Chickenboy! Also known as the Statue of Liberty of L.A.

Behold Chicken Boy!

Sept. 2 Working Mothers Day (U.S.) / The song "Mary Had a Little Lamb" (go on try not to think of the tune now) was published on this date in 1830.

Sept. 3 Akwambo (Ghana) Path clearing festival where people symbolically clear a path to the village well where a priestess offers libations to the god of the well. / End Gender Discrimination Day (U.N.) A day to morn sexism. Morn sexism? As apposed to doing something about it? From the sounds coming from some "pundits" on radio and basic cable are making I get the impression a lot of them are working for it's return. / Uncle Sam's image was first used on this day in 1813, before that the main symbol for America was a hayseed called Brother Jonathon.

Sept 4 Father's Day (Australia) Celebrated on the first Sunday in September. Ludi Magni festivals (Ancient Rome) which was made up a lot of greater and smaller festivals going from the 4th to the 19th! No doubt about the Romans were festival throwing maniacs! / Apache coming of age ceremony for girls. / Newspaper Carriers Day (U.S.) With the shrinking newspaper readership I wonder how long before this job goes the way of the milkman and night club cigarette girl?

Sept. 5 Labor Day / Teachers Day (India)

Sept. 6 Stillborn Remembrance Day (in 39 of the United States, as well as New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario & Nova Scotia in Canada ) / Situa (Incan) Festival to ward off illness at the start of the rainy season. After a day of fasting small amounts of their children's blood was taken and mixed with cornmeal. Despite the historically of this there is still no word on Taco Bell coming out with an El Nino Grandie in honor of this day.

Sept. 7 Neither Rain Nor Snow Day (U.S.) Which is not the motto of the United States Post Office, which doesn't even really have a motto, however most people think of it as starting with the line above and hence the day./ Raggedy Ann is 95 years old today, while Google is 12 years old today! While not nearly as old, no one ever talks about Raggedy Anning someone.

Sept. 8 Theosophical Society founded 1875, They're not still around are they? / Feast of the First Stardate, it was on this day in 1966 that Star Trek first aired on NBC in America. / Feast of Izzat "Might" (Bahai) / International Literacy Day / International Goose Day / Birth of Mary (Early Christian tradition) / Wait a minute! They almost got that one past me, Geese get their own day? World wide! Dogs and cats and horses don't get a day but geese do? Heck chickens do more for us, so where is Chicken day? Okay, there's Chickenboy's birthday on the first, but you know what I mean.

Sept. 9 Kiku no Sekku "Chrysanthemum Day" Japan / Wonderful Weirdoes Day (U.S) Everyone knows at least one weirdo,  oday you're suppose to thank them for thinking outside the box. / Teddy Bear Day (U.S.)

Sept.10 Festival of the Poets (Japan) / World Suicide Prevention Day / Teacher's Day (China) / Hartalika Teej Vrat (Hindu) ritual performed by Hindu women dedicated to Goddess Parvati, by observing the ritual, unmarried women believe that they will get a husband like Lord Shiva while married women believe they will be blessed with a good family life. / Day of the Child (Honduras) / Swap Ideas Day (U.S.) / On this day in 1954 Swanson sells it's first TV. Dinner, it's time to either thaw it out and eat it, or throw it away.

Sept. 11 Ganesha Chaturthi (Hindu) Day to honor Ganesh the remover of obstacles. / Patriots Day / No News is Good News Day /Jinnah Day (Pakistan) / Birthday of the founder of Nichiren Buddhism (Japan) / Enkutatash (Ethiopia) or Coptic New Year / Beheading of John the Baptist (Eastern Orthodox) / Latin American Teacher's Day (U.S.) / Grandparent's Day (U.S.) Held the first Sunday after Labor Day in American, the first Sunday in October in Great Britain.

Sept. 12   National Pet Memorial Day / Video Games Day, all in the U.S. / It was on this day in 1823 that John Smith claims that he was contacted by the angel Moroni and given the book of Mormon. / National Chocolate Milk Day (U.S.) but not in L.A. Where they have banned chocolate milk in the schools.

The Horror! The Horror!

Sept. 13 Mid Autumn Festival (China) Also known as the Moon Festival, said to be the birthday of the Moon / All-Soul's Day (Ancient Egypt) day when the Goddess Nepthys was honored. / Scooby Doo Where Are You? Premiered this day in 1969, which in dogs years would make Scooby......... Dead.

Sept. 14 The Exaltation of the Holy and Life-giving Cross (Eastern Orthodox Church) / The Feast of Lights (Ancient Egypt) Fires were left burning all night before images of the Gods and the tombs of the dead. / Secret rites of Goddess Demeter start (Ancient Greece) / National Cream-filled Donut Day. (U.S.) Dunkin Donut has made their main product trans fat free, so eating them will still be like punching your general health in the jaw, but at least you won't be wearing brass knuckles anymore when you do it. / In 1306 King Phillip IV of France draws up the orders to arrest the Templers, resulting in a lot of history, some of which actually happened.

Sept. 15 Second day of the Eleusinian Mysteries (Ancient Greece) Day the priests of Demeter declared the public start of the rites after the secret ones started yesterday, I didn't tell you about those? Sorry, they were secret. / Someday (U.S.) You know how you say "someday I'll start that novel," "someday I'll loose that weight," "someday I'll get that divorce" well today is "someday," deal with it. / Engineer's Day (India)

Sept. 16 Independencia de Mexico (Mexico) "Independence Day" / National Kids Day (U.S.) So despite what your mother said about "every day is kids day" there actually IS one! / Women's Friendship Day / Stepfamily Day / Trail of Tears Commemoration Day (U.S.)

Sept. 17 Citizenship Day (U.S.) / Constitution Day, The US Constitution completed, and approved, 1787.

Sept. 18 Feast of Genius (French Revolution) / National Play-Doh Day (U.S.) Play-Doh, composed of flour, water, salt, boric acid, and silicone oil, was first manufactured as a wallpaper cleaner in the

1930s, it started to be sold for the purpose it is use for today starting in 1955, since then more than two billion cans of it have been sold.

Sept. 19 Respect For the Aged Day (Japan) Held the 3rd Monday in September. / Thoth's Day (Ancient Egypt) according to the Alexdrian calendar this was an all day fast in honor of Thoth God of wisdom. / National Butterscotch Pudding Day. (U.S.) which is a bit of a misnomer as butterscotch means a butter candy that has been scotched or "scored, cut, or marked"

Sept. 20 World Wide Wife Appreciation Day / National Fruit Punch Day. (U.S.) I do note that of those little squirt bottles of water flavoring, the fruit punch ones a almost always gone while the other flavors hang around a lot longer.

Sept. 21 International Banana Festival / Christ's Hospital Founder's Day (England) Give it to the Brits to come up with a reason to party!

Sept. 22 Higan (Japan) Meaning, the Other Shore or Heaven. Day to honor the dead. / Chusok (Korea) / Elephant Appreciation Day / Hobbit Day, being the birthdays of both Frodo and Bilbo Baggins

Sept. 23 Autumn Equinox First Day of Fall, in America it starts at 5:04 Eastern Time, in Australia it isn't the first day of Fall / Autumn. /Ostara / Mabon. (Wiccan) Festival in honor of the Welsh god Mabon son of the Goddess Modron, though it has also been attributed to Queen Mab of the Fay  / Alban Elfred (Druid) / Shibun no hi (Japan) Japanese Autumnal Equinox day / Native American Day (U.S) Held the forth Friday in September / Mikeli (Ancient Latvia) / Celebrate Bisexuality Day (here and there in America, Canada, Australia etc) As Woody Allen said the main good point about bisexuality is that it doubles your chances of finding a date for Saturday night. / The Planet Neptune was discovered this day in 1846.

Sept. 24   Our Lady of Walsingham (England) Yow, and I still haven't recovered from Christ's Hospital Founder's day on the 21st! / Feast of Osiris (Ancient Egypt) The approaching planting season was marked by a feast in honor of  the death and rebirth of Osiris. / Feast of Obatala, Orisha of Peace and Justice. (Yoruba, Santeria) Celebrated with drumming, ecstatic dancing, & possession trances. / "Bullwinkle and Rocky" premiers, 1961. Am I the last person, after those two horrid live action films, who cares about this anymore?

Sept. 25 National Comic Book Day (U.S.) Not to be confused with Free Comic Book Day which is in May. / Festival of Neter Amen-Ra-Atem, the Great God, and Neteret Amenet-Rait-Mut, the Great Goddess. (Ancient Egypt) / "Rocky Horror Picture Show" premiers, 1975, wow, 36 years ago, can you do the Time Warp using a walker?

Sept. 26 European Day of Languages (European Union) Day to celebrate those silly languages those other people use.

Sept. 27 Birthday of Confucius in 551 BCE. / Uronica (Ancient Scotland) Day to honor Uronica Breton Goddess of heather and heather wine. You can make wine from heather? Hmmmm... what do you serve it with, haggis?

Sept. 28 Rosh Hashanah (Judaism) Starts a Sundown. Happy 5772! / Ask a Stupid Question Day (U.S.) Remember there are no stupid questions, only stupid people.

Sept 29 Feast of Orisha Eleggua (Yoruba, Santeria) Intercessor and Ruler of Destinies. / Michael and All Angels. (Catholic) or as it is also known as Michaelmas / Poisoned Blackberries Day. (U.S.) The idea for this started in Scotland in the 1700s, apparently there was a folk belief that it was on this day that the devil went out either spitting or urinating on some blackberry bushes turning them poisonous, so it was best to pick blackberries before the 29th of September, or, if you wanted to kill a rival, after the 29th and then give them to that person.

Sept. 30 Feast of Shango (Yoruba, Santeria) Orisha of Passion and Virility. / National Mud Pack Day (U.S.)

Kung Fu Sherlock Holmes meets Dr. Strange master of the mystic arts...

..... What's not to love?

The film is called

Detective Dee And The Mystery Of The Phantom Flame and came out in Chinese in 2010 and has been translated into English.

I want to see this one!

They use to call them Flaps.

Back long in the long ago we use to call them flaps, UFO Flaps, times where sighting spiked like crazy, seems we're having one now.

Dozens of odd sightings all over the world, such as just these three, starting with a “Scorpion-shaped” UFO seen in the skies over Los Cristianos, Spain.

That's no Scorpion!

Clear UFOs?

And of course a HUGE one.

Those are just 3 of many many more in the last few months, and yet no one calls them flaps anymore.

Ah well.

Weird Cool Stuff in Space and Near Space

Someone call the Justice League its...........

STARRO!

However, do note that while 11,000 miles an hour is fast, they are working on a missile that will best that by going 14,340 miles an hour and will, as soon as they can get it to work, be able to reach any where on Earth in under an hour.

Plus

This is the sound a shooting star makes

WHOOOSH zuzuzuzuzuz

Then there is the following bit of way out there weirdness.

That's no Moon!
Anyway, lot of cool stuff in space this week.

Mad Cow disease, Ebola, Bird Flu, Now Brain Eating Ameba?

Three Die From Brain Eating Amoebas

Mad Cow disease, Ebola, bird flu, now brain eating ameba?

That’s really scary, or course it would be just as scary if they were kidney eating amoebas, or lung eating amoebas, but no one has ever felt the need to make a movie about big boo-gums that  want to eat our kidneys,  or lungs have they? That would be silly.

And so we have all the various popular films where there are all sorts of large nasty critters and / or things and / or former people that want to eat our brains, even if by themselves all they are is mainly fat and water.  (I mean our brains, not the things that want to eat them)

This is why things like these amoebas are extra creepy. They sort of do what make believe things do.

As a totally irrelevant, completely off the topic side note to this, why are there no diseases that cause pleasure while they devourer you?

Seems to me that evolutionarily speaking it would be a natural.

Virus or bacteria or ameba X-Unknown wants to get into a host body, let’s say you, and start multiplying and eating. The immune system of your body reacts and you get chills and fever and what not to fight it, at the same time when we notice it we do what we can to help our immune system.

But what if a disease instead of making a person fill like the dog’s breakfast, made the host feel great, or even more energetic, while it went about its business of eating your brain, or pancreas or liver?

Sure the old stogy immune system would still make with the white blood cells and such, but we would more than likely turn quisling on our own bodies and try and help the invader survive!

Perhaps evolution isn’t as bright as we thought it was, or might some of the things we know are bad for us, but we still do anyway, not really bad habits, or just bad habits, but indeed a subtle and highly evolved virus or bacteria or ameba X-Unknown at work?

That is of course ridiculous because.

I’m sorry, I have to stop, the dinger telling me the triple chocolate chip cookies I was making for diner are ready.