What to Celebrate May 11 thru 17, 2020
Celebration Ideas for May 11 – 17, 2020
Life is starting to move again! Nowhere near normal, but moving. And that’s something to celebrate.
But that’s not the only thing to celebrate. And that’s a good thing!
Because this “not normal” thing is likely to last a while. Adding a mix of silly, serious, and delicious celebrations to your days can make those days both more fun and more meaningful. Depending on what you choose to celebrate, of course.
So do take a peek and plan your week. And as always remember to …
Enjoy!
Celebrate All May Long
The month of May invites us to consider our pets’ safety and homeless pets’ bellies (keeping them filled, that is). Along with water safety as summer approaches and creating a record of our personal histories for our friends, family, and future generations to better understand us.
Chip Your Pet Month: Is your pet microchipped? If not, you might want to think about getting it done. Your pet is much more likely to be reunited with you if he or she has one. Because collars with tags can come off. And even “indoor only” animals (like many cats) can get out and get lost.
Go Fetch! Food Drive for Homeless Animals Month: Shelters and pet rescue organizations always need food! The animals need to eat every day. And this time of year lots of kittens and puppies need special foods multiple times a day. The youngest of those furry babies need special milk replacement formulations to help them grow into healthy, happy pets. If you can help, see what your local shelters need most & bring or send them some.
National Service Dog Eye Examination Month has sadly been cancelled for this year. In normal years the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists members volunteer to provide free eye exams to working dogs in North America & Puerto Rico. Hopefully this wonderful program will return for May 2021.
Water Safety Month: As pool & beach season arrives it’s important to remember safety in and around water. Because safety isn’t anti-fun, it’s what allows the fun to continue! And while many pools don’t open ’til the end of the month, and states keep closing beaches that get too crowded, we have to believe at some point we will be able to go to both this summer. Even if the experience may be a bit different from before. So use this time to refresh your water-safety knowledge.
Personal History Awareness Month: Have you documented your personal history? If not, why not consider doing that? Because don’t we all want to be remembered in some way? What better way than by preserving your life’s moments for future generations to understand?
Weekly Celebrations for May’s 2nd Full Week
For this eclectic week of celebrations public gardens, police officers, and craft beer all get their due .
Police Week (May 10 – 16, 2020): This week of events honors police officers who have died or been disabled in the line of duty. Although many of the public events have been cancelled or postponed this year, the Wednesday (May 13) Cnadlelight Vigil will go on virtually.
National Public Gardens Week (May 8 – 17, 2020): This week celebrates the nation’s public gardens. Normally we’d suggest you visit one near you. But with many either closed or offering limited access, the American Public Gardens Association offers links to gardens that have virtual resources you can enjoy. And it asks us to consider supporting one or more public gardens, so they can survive to reopen and dazzle us again one day soon.
American Craft Beer Week (May 11 – 17, 2020): Celebrate craft beers by gifting your friends with beer or gift cards from their favorite independent craft breweries. And if you want to gift yourself some craft beer too, well we’re pretty sure that’s allowed! 😉
Celebration Days coming up for May 11 thru May 17
No, we’re not living in the Twilight Zone, but we do get to celebrate it this week! And if you haven’t already been eating whatever you want, you get to do that all day Monday.
There’s also the usual specific food days, like nutty fudge & apple pie. Those’ll be delicious days!
We also honor nurses, 3rd shift workers, and officers who have been killed or disabled in the line of duty.
But there’s alway room for silliness too, like limericks and frog jumping. Yep, we have a mix of celebrations sure to entice almost anyone to create themselves another fun-tastic week.
May 11:
Root Canal Appreciation Day: On this day we learn to appreciate that dental procedure we’d all prefer to avoid at all costs. Except it’s often a better choice than getting that painful tooth pulled!
National Twilight Zone Day: Every day feels like Twilight Zone Day these days. But May 11 is the day we officially celebrate that weird but fun & quite eerie show. Why not find an episode or 2 to watch? Preferably from the original, which aired from 1959 to 1964. But you might also like one of the re-boots. The first 2 aired from 1985 to 1989 and again from 2002 to 2003. There’s even a current reboot that had its first season in 2019. The 2020 season has not started, but this could be a good day to check out the first season & see if you want to keep watching for season 2.
National Foam Rolling Day: Give yourself a massage with a foam roller! This is a great way to keep muscles loose between massages or when you can’t get to your massage therapist (and who can these days?). If you’ve never tried it, learn more about it and if it sounds good, get yourself a foam roller.
Eat What You Want Day: On this day we throw all the diets out the window & indulge in whatever we want to eat. Guilt-free of course! (As long as there’s no medical reason to avoid something you want, that is).
May 12:
Limerick Day: Celebrate the birth of that great limerickist (is that a word?) Edward Lear! Recite or even write some limericks in his honor.
International Nurses Day: Yes, we just celebrated nurses last week (May 6) with National Nurses Day, part of National Nurses Week here in the US. But this day is, as the name says, an international celebration of those critical members of any healthcare team, the nurses. We celebrate them on the birthday of that most famous of nurses, Florence Nightingale.
National Fibromyalgia Awareness Day: Historical evidence suggests Florence Nightingale may have suffered from fibromyalgia, long before anyone had ever heard of it. So we raise awareness of this still misunderstood disease on her birthday. Learn more about fibromyalgia and how it can affect people’s lives.
National Nutty Fudge Day: Indulge in fudge for this day. Homemade if you can manage it. But not just any fudge! This fudge must contain nuts. You can choose the nuts you want in your fudge (especially if you make it yourself!), but walnuts and pecans are 2 common choices.
May 13:
Frog Jumping Day: Have a frog jumping contest! Or see how high your pet frog can jump. Or get a pet frog? Only if you actually want one of course. Sadly the Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee, which would have been this coming weekend, has been cancelled for this year. But why not make plans to go next year?
National Third Shift Workers Day / Night Shift Workers Day: This day celebrates those people who are hard at work while the rest of us sleep. Many job types include third shifts, from nurses, firefighters, & police to manufacturers & convenience stores. The people who work those shifts help keep us safe & fed, no matter the hour.
National Crouton Day: Make it a point to have a salad topped with croutons! Rothbury Farms created this day in 2015, so consider using some of their croutons to celebrate. Or make your own! Homemade croutons are incredibly simple to make, but oh so yummy.
International Hummus Day: Make hummus & enjoy it with your favorite pita chips/toast/veggies/etc. Or buy & enjoy hummus. But why buy when it’s so incredibly simple to make?
National Apple Pie Day: After your healthy salad & hummus, indulge in a sweet, spicy, fruity slice of apple pie. As you no doubt know by now, we recommend making it yourself if you can! Mmmm …
May 14:
National Dance Like a Chicken Day: Chicken Dance! It’s time to do the ridiculous but fun dance popular at weddings & any celebrations that include dancing. Start flapping those wings!
The Stars and Stripes Forever Day: Celebrate the anniversary of the first public performance of this patriotic march from John Philip Sousa. If you’re musical, why not play it? At least listen to one of the many versions you can find online.
National Underground America Day: Did you know some people’s homes are underground? No, not caves! But homes built to be partially or completely underground. Whether or not you think you could live in such a home, take a look at the different kinds of underground homes there are to build.
National Decency Day: For this day let’s all remember basic decency towards everyone—in our words and in our actions—can help create a better world. It doesn’t matter if we agree with someone or not, simple decency should not be negotiable.
Apraxia Awareness Day: Unless you’ve known someone with apraxia, you may not even know this speech disorder exists. Take the time to learn what childhood apraxia of speech is and potential treatments.
National Buttermilk Biscuit Day: Buttermilk biscuits make a tasty addition to almost any meal. So why not enjoy them for every meal on this day? If you’re a biscuits & gravy fan, you have breakfast sorted. Try biscuits in place of bread for your lunch sandwich. And make them as a side for dinner. A perfect day! Now, you can use those refrigerated rolls of biscuits if you must, but biscuits are one of the easiest baked treats to make yourself. And truly drop-dead simple if you make them as drop biscuits! (Replace the milk in this recipe with buttermilk to make ’em buttermilk biscuits 😋).
May 15:
Endangered Species Day: Learn about what species are endangered in the US or in your state and how we can all help. And if you think it seems like a hopeless effort, remember we saved the Bald Eagle. We can do it for other species too!
National Slider Day: When was the last time you had a White Castle slider? Whether it’s been years or just a day, make it a point to have some for this day. As usual, White Castle has a special for the day. This year you get one free slider, with a coupon (available on their Value Offers page). But it’s only valid at the drive-thru.
Peace Officers Memorial Day: This day honors police officers who have been disabled or killed in the line of duty. Since its start in 1982 it has grown into a week-long series of events now known as Police Week.
National Nylon Stocking Day: Do you wear nylon stockings? No, not pantyhose. Stockings that require garters to hold up. Once upon a time those were the only sheer stockings available. And stockings were required if you were showing any leg! These days we have a lot more choices, including no leg coverings at all. But if you own nylon stockings, wear them for the day.
National Chocolate Chip Day: Bake something using chocolate chips! Or just snack on a handful of these little chocolate morsels.
National Pizza Party Day: Have a pizza party! Depending on how much stay-at-home restrictions have been loosened in your area it may have to be a small party. Or invite your friends to all order pizzas for themselves/their families & “get together” via Zoom or your favorite video chat app.
May 16:
National Sea Monkey Day: We’ve never really seen the resemblance between monkeys and brine shrimp. But if you’re someone who does and likes (or wants!) these “pets” this day is for you!
International Learn to Swim Day: If you or your kids don’t know how to swim, this is the day to change that. Or at least make plans to learn this summer. The day is technically about keeping kids safe in the water, and knowing how to swim is one of the best ways to stay safe. But we’re pretty sure everyone who goes in the water should learn this important skill.
National Love a Tree Day: Trees offer shade, absorb carbon dioxide, protect soil from erosion and so much more. Why wouldn’t we love them? Go out and enjoy a forest preserve or the trees in your own backyard if you have any. And if you don’t have any, plant one if you can!
National Do Something Good for your Neighbor Day: Do like the name of the day says. If you don’t know your neighbor well you might just find yourself a new friend! And if not, at least you’ll know them a little better.
National Barbecue Day: If you haven’t been celebrating BBQ month, this is the day to change that! Because while the month allows for some flexibility in when you celebrate, this day doesn’t. You must barbecue on this day! So fire up that grill & throw on your favorite meats and/or veggies to create a scrumptious meal. The official celebration is actually a cook-off in Texas, but just because you’re not there doesn’t mean you can’t bbq. And we’re not sure if it’s happening this year anyway …
National Mimosa Day: Relax with a mimosa or two for the day! It’s a fun, refreshing drink anyone can make. Just mix equal parts orange juice and champagne (or any sparkling wine). Done!
May 17:
Pack Rat Day: Well normally we’d suggest pack rats use this day to evaluate their treasures & be honest about whether or not they’ll ever truly use each item. But since lots of people have now had weeks at home to do just that, it’s either already happened or it’s not gonna happen any time soon! But if you’ve already purged, maybe consider actually using some of what you kept?
National Walnut Day: Bake and cook with walnuts all day. Have a handful as a snack, too.
National Cherry Cobbler Day: While you’re busy baking with walnuts, add a cherry cobbler to your lineup. You could even add walnuts to the cobbler for a double celebration!
