What to Celebrate August 23 thru 29, 2021
Celebration Ideas for August 23 – 29, 2021
We hope you & any kids heading back to school these days are all staying safe & healthy.
And we remind you that finding ways to lower stress levels can help protect your immune system. And these days our immune systems need all the help they can get. So do take some time each day to enjoy yourself. Either by celebrating an unofficial holiday or two, or just doing something nice for yourself.
And with that we invite you to take a peek and plan your week. And as always, remember to …
Enjoy!
Celebrate for the rest of August
Every pet deserves a real home. Every child deserves clear vision. And you deserve to be remembered for the wonderful person you are. Help make all these things happen as August draws to a close.
Clear the Shelters Month (8/23 – 9/19/2021): Help all the animals waiting in shelters find their perfect forever homes. And don’t think you can’t help if you’re not in a position to adopt a pet right now. You can help spread the word so people who are looking to adopt know about this event. And check with your favorite shelter for volunteer opportunities, too.
Children’s Vision & Learning Month: Make sure your kids have all the tools they need to succeed in school. This includes the ability to see clearly so they can understand what the teacher is talking about. Children with undiagnosed vision problems may struggle in school. And since they don’t necessarily understand that what they’re seeing isn’t normal vision, they don’t know to tell you something’s wrong. A developmental optometrist can tell you what’s wrong. Or reassure you everything’s fine.
What Will Be Your Legacy Month: what do you want to be remembered for? And What do you think you’re going to be remembered for? Take some time this month to think about these questions. And if the answers don’t line up, make a plan to change your legacy. Then make sure you take action to make it happen. Just remember: a legacy doesn’t have to be something the whole world remembers you for. If you’re more interested in making an impact for your family and/or a small circle of friends, that’s a perfectly valid goal too.
Weekly Celebrations for August’s 4th full week
Keeping pets healthy & fed, commercial vehicles safe on the road, and water available for all makes for a full week of good work.
Feeding Pets of the Homeless Week (Give a Dog a Bone Week) (August 22 – 29, 2021): Help the amazing organization Feeding Pets of the Homeless ensure homeless people can keep their pets healthy & fed. Because the love between people & their pets deserves to be honored, no matter where they live. Follow Feeding Pets of the Homeless on Facebook for updates throughout the week.
Brake Safety Week (August 22 – 28, 2021): This week is about making sure commercial motor vehicles’ brakes are maintained & functioning correctly. Because a big truck or bus without good brakes is a disaster waiting to happen.
World Water Week (August 23 – 27, 2021): Water is one of our most important resources. And this week is about making sure we protect it and developing solutions to our water challenges. To that end, this year’s theme is Building Resilience Faster. The conference is entirely online, and you can register to view all conference sessions for free! If you’d like to participate you’ll need to buy either a day pass or a full week’s pass.
Celebration Days coming up for Aug. 23 thru Aug. 29
Soar through the air under your own power … although you probably won’t reach Pluto. Save money on your wardrobe … except that bow tie! Remember pets no longer with us, and love the dogs still here. Learn to love bats, too!
Enjoy sponge cake, strange music, and whiskey sours. Plus lots of other good food & drink.
All in all, it’s looking like another fun-tastic week.
August 23:
Valentino Day: Celebrate the short, but memorable life of silent film star Rudolph Valentino. Maybe watch one of his movies?
National Ride the Wind Day: This is the day for human-powered flight! The day commemorates the flight of the Gossamer Condor on August 23, 1977. It wasn’t the very first human-powered flight, but it was the first to win the Kremer prize. The very first human-powered flight was in 1961.
National Cuban Sandwich Day: Make dinner simple but fabulous with Cuban sandwiches! Go with the traditional ham, roast pork, and Swiss cheese topped with pickles & mustard or get creative & make substitutions for one or more of the ingredients … after all, restaurants do it all the time!
National Sponge Cake Day: After your Cuban sandwich, enjoy a light, moist sponge cake. Maybe layered with whipped cream & fruit?
August 24:
Pluto Demoted Day: It’s back! The day we get angry again over the shabby treatment astronomers gave to little Pluto back in 2006. Dwarf planet. Humph!
International Strange Music Day: Listen to or create some strange music to celebrate a fun kind of day. Check out these strange instruments as part of your celebration.
Knife Day: If you love knives this is the day to show off your knife knowledge, skills, and collection! And even if you just use knives, maybe learn a bit of knife safety?
National Waffle Day: Celebrate the first US patent on a waffle iron, issued back in 1869, by eating waffles all day. Yes, all day! You can top your waffles with pretty much anything (haven’t you ever heard of chicken & waffles?), so they’re absolutely fair game for lunch and dinner as well as breakfast.
National Peach Pie Day: After all those waffles (with or without chicken) you deserve something sweet. Peach pie it is then!
August 25:
National Whiskey Sour Day: If you’ve calmed down a bit about Pluto’s non-planetary status, offer a toast to the plucky little planet (yes, planet!) with a Whiskey Sour toast.
National Secondhand Wardrobe Day: Head out to your favorite secondhand store to do a little shopping. You can score some amazing pieces at incredible deals and freshen up your wardrobe at the same time. Bring in some of your gently used items to make room for your purchases, too! Of course, if you happen to find any garage sales on your way to (or from!) your shopping spree, those can also be sources of great secondhand wardrobe items.
National Park Service Founders Day: President Wilson signed the Organic Act, creating the National Park Service, on this date in 1916. If there’s a National Park near you, visit! Or plan a trip to visit one or more parks in the near future.
National Kiss and Make Up Day: Whatever you’re mad about, this is the day to let it go. Especially if it’s something small & silly. Or if you no longer even remember why you’re not speaking to someone. On the flip side, if you’re the one who did or said something to make someone else mad, apologize. And hopefully you can move on & rebuild your relationship.
National Banana Split Day: After you kiss & make up you can share a banana split! But even if you haven’t celebrated Kiss and Make Up Day, you can enjoy a banana split … you could even share it if you’re feeling generous! 😉
August 26:
National Dog Day: Every dog does indeed deserve to have its day. Many beloved pooches have more than one. But not every dog is beloved. And this day reminds us not only to love our dogs (not that we need reminding!) but also to do what we can to help those less fortunate dogs in shelters or in abusive homes.
National Toilet Paper Day: Celebrate one of the first things that vanished from store shelves in April 2020 (before food, even!), and be thankful the supply has been plentiful for a year now. Then vow to never take toilet paper for granted again. And marvel at the things people used to clean themselves before toilet paper. Like leaves & furs! And it wasn’t really that long ago. Toilet paper as we know it has only existed since 1857 (although China did have some form of the stuff back in the 6th century).
National Women’s Equality Day: It’s the anniversary of the day women finally got the right to vote! The 19th Amendment to the Constitution made it through Congress on this date in 1920. Of course, this was nearly 40 years after the first attempt to introduce an amendment, which was eventually defeated in Congress. But persistence eventually paid off.
National Cherry Popsicle Day: Stain your lips & tongue red with a childhood favorite: the cherry popsicle! Make your own cherry popsicles if you’d like. Or maybe you’d prefer swirls of yogurt & honey in your cherry pops.
August 27:
Just Because Day: For this celebration you get to do pretty much whatever you want … just because! You don’t need a concrete reason. Just because.
The Duchess Who Wasn’t Day: Celebrate the author who came up with the phrase “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”, Margaret Wolfe Hungerford. So what’s with the name of the day? Well, Margaret liked to be anonymous, so she often used the name “The Duchess”! But of course she wasn’t really.
National Pots De Creme Day: Make your Friday night dessert pots de creme … just because! It’s even easier to make than you might think.
August 28:
Bow Tie Day: Wear bow ties. Yes, you. Because bow ties are cool.
International Bat Night: Bats are also cool. And if you don’t agree you may need this celebration more than most. Learn why bats are cool! See if there are any bat walks, educational talks, or festivals near you for this celebration. And check the dates! Some events may be on a different date.
Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day: We have a few days throughout the year dedicated to remembering the pets we’ve loved & lost. And this is one of them. Each year the day’s creator does a blog hop to share the remembrance.
National Thoughtful Day: Remembering our lost pets can certainly make us thoughtful. But this celebration is more about being thoughtful toward the people in our lives and showing them we value them.
Crackers Over the Keyboard Day: Show your computer keyboard whose boss by eating crackers right over it! Why? Because Tom & Ruth Roy said so … or something like that. 😉
Race Your Mouse Around the Icons Day: Tom & Ruth must have been really bored one Aug. 28, because this is another one of their wacky but fun holidays. For this one they suggest that when your computer is being slow to load something you play with your mouse. Which, of course, most of us do anyway! But for this day don’t just randomly move your cursor around the screen, instead race it between all the icons on your desktop.
National Red Wine Day: If one (or more!) of your loved ones enjoys red wine, be thoughtful & share a glass with them! Or just enjoy your Saturday evening with your favorite red wine. And maybe some crackers to eat over your keyboard? 🙃
National Cherry Turnovers Day: Make yourself a batch of cherry turnovers to enjoy. And share! Because sharing homemade baked goods is always thoughtful. Or, if you prefer, consider making (and sharing) cherry cheesecake turnovers. Either sounds delightful … and we’re thinking both might be on the menu!
August 29:
More Herbs, Less Salt Day: Boy, the Roys must have been having either a boring or a truly creative week one late August, because this is the 3rd holiday from them in just 2 days! It’s also one of their tastier ones! Because when you load up on herbs you need less salt! Just a little pinch of salt will make all those herby flavors pop. So go wild with the herbs for the day. And then, when you absolutely love what herbs can do, go wild with them every day of the year!
National Sarcoidosis Awareness Day: We also have a Sarcoidosis Day in April, but Aug. 29 was made official by Presidential Proclamation in 1991. Although technically the proclamation was only for Aug. 29, 1991, it has become an unofficial annual celebration. Learn more about sarcoidosis, symptoms, and treatment for the day.
National Lemon Juice Day: Lemon juice adds brightness to many meals. And of course it makes a refreshing drink for a hot August day. So spend a quiet Sunday enjoying good food made with lots of herbs & a splash of lemon juice, paired with a tall glass of cold lemonade. Perfect!
National Chop Suey Day: Make sure you leave room for some Chop Suey to round out your flavorful Sunday celebrations.
