What to Celebrate November 16 thru 22, 2020
Celebration Ideas for November 16 – 22, 2020
Autumn’s been playing with us this year! Every time it seems like the chill is here to stay … surprise! This time it was a whole week of warm, spring-like weather.
It made celebrating soups a bit weird. But now that the chill is back we can really celebrate … a cold soup?!
Ah well. Warm or cold, we’ll happily celebrate soup any day of the year. Peanut butter fudge, cranberry relish, and banana pudding too!
Of course there’s more to life (and celebrations) than food. So go ahead. Take a peek and plan your week. And do be sure to …
Enjoy!
Celebrate for the rest of November
This month we’re grateful. For what? Pretty much anything. But you could start with military families, picture books, and banana pudding.
Picture Book Month: If you have young kids (about 3 – 8 years) this month is for you! And them. Get them some new picture books & enjoy them together. If you’re an author or illustrator, take a look at what’s new for inspiration for your next idea brainstorming session.
Banana Pudding Lovers Month: You know what you need after picture book time? A sweet treat! Like, just maybe, a dish of banana pudding? Real banana pudding … with banana slices, vanilla wafers, and whipped cream. Yum.
National Gratitude Month: Find reasons to be grateful each day this month. Some days that may be challenging, but it is possible! And, although it is already half-way through the month, consider joining the 30-day Gratitude Challenge.
Military Family Appreciation Month: Our military members aren’t the only people who deserve our appreciation. Their families who support them & make their own sacrifices so their loved ones can serve deserve just as much appreciation. Let them know they are appreciated all month long.
Weekly Celebrations for Nov. 16 to 22
This week we celebrate education. And then we learn. About fraud, drone safety, and tech.
International Fraud Awareness Week (November 15 – 21, 2020): Fraud can take many forms, but at its most basic it involves getting something from someone else using misleading information or outright lies. The thing fraudsters want is often money, but not always. Learn more about how to spot fraud this week.
American Education Week (November 16 – 20, 2020): Celebrate America’s public schools and the value they bring to their students’ lives. But it’s not just about the teachers. This week recognizes everyone who helps make each school day a success, from the custodians and cafeteria workers to the parents and students themselves.
National Drone Safety Awareness Week (November 16 – 22, 2020): Are you flying your drone safely? During this week of virtual events you can learn about best safety practices, using drones in education, and even how to become a commercial drone pilot (did you even know such a thing exists?!).
TechDay Online (November 17 – 19, 2020): Learn about new tech advances and startups during this three-day virtual event.
Celebration Days coming up for Nov. 16 thru Nov. 22
As we roll into the 2nd half of November we practice tolerance, simplicity, and self control. We also get some exercise, play some games, and enjoy good food.
Sounds like a perfectly fun-tastic week!
November 16:
International Day for Tolerance: Spend the day trying to understand different cultures and ideas. Because understanding other people is the first step to living in harmony with them. And we definitely need some harmony right about now.
National Button Day: Do you love buttons? Did your mother or grandmother collect buttons? Spend some time learning about buttons to celebrate this unique day.
National Fast Food Day: Enjoy your favorite fast food meal for the day.
November 17:
National Take a Hike Day: Most of us have spent way too much time at home this year. And that doesn’t look like it’s going to end any time soon. So let’s take any chance we get to get some fresh air and exercise. Here’s a celebration to help! Go out and take a hike. Or even just a walk. Try to go to a forest preserve or other trail if you can. But if not, walk/hike wherever you can. You’ll feel better when you get back!
National Unfriend Day: This is the day to clean up your Facebook friends list! Take a good look at your “friends” and decide who you really want to stay connected with. Then ditch the rest. Unless you know each other in real life or interact regularly on FB, they probably won’t even notice!
National Homemade Bread Day: Did you try your hand at homemade bread during the spring lockdown? Was it the most amazing bread ever? Whether you kept making bread or stopped as life became somewhat normalish again (or you never did try), this is the day to fill your home with the delightful scent of baking bread. If you’ve never made bread before, try this dead-simple recipe. You’ll want to start it at least a day in advance.
National Baklava Day: After your hike, unfriending, and bread baking you deserve a treat. Like baklava! If you have time, make baklava yourself (after all, you’ve got the oven going for your bread!). But we won’t judge if you buy it, as long as you eat it! If any of the Facebook friends you kept around live nearby, maybe share some baklava with them?
November 18:
GIS Day: A GIS (geographic information system) collects, stores, and displays data spatially (as related to positions on the earth). This can help connect data that might otherwise seem unrelated. It can also help improve decision-making. If you already know GIS, join the celebration by sharing what you know, maybe even by hosting a virtual event. If you don’t already know GIS, learn more for the day.
National Educational Support Professionals Day: This day is part of American Education Week. It celebrates the school support staff who tend to be forgotten when we celebrate educators. Because as amazing as teachers are (and they are), the support staff helps ensure the teachers can focus on teaching.
Micky Mouse Birthday: Celebrate the 1928 debut (sort of) of the mouse originally named Mortimer. He technically had been in 2 shorts before capturing hearts in Steamboat Willie on Nov. 18, 1928. But those are best forgotten.
National Vichyssoise Day: Why do we celebrate a cold soup just as hot soup season is ramping up? No clue! But this soup is creamy & flavorful and delightful no matter what time of year it is. Make yourself some vichyssoise to enjoy, but plan ahead so you have enough chilling time!
November 19:
Use Less Stuff Day: On the Thursday before Thanksgiving we celebrate stuff. But not just any stuff. Useless stuff. And then we get rid of all that useless stuff so we can use less stuff. And we vow not to let the holiday season result in adding useless stuff back to our lives again.
Rocky and Bullwinkle Day: Celebrate the date in 1959 when this goofy, lovable pair first saved the day. Maybe by watching some episodes?
Great American Smokeout: If you still smoke, this is the day to start (or re-start!) your journey toward becoming smoke-free. The day asks you to avoid smoking for 24 hours. Since those are often the hardest, if (when!) you make it keep going. Just take it one day at a time.
International Men’s Day: Men get a lot of flak and blame for the ills of the world. And while some criticism is fair (they still hold most positions of power after all), it shouldn’t overshadow the positive contributions men make to their communities, their families, and yes, the world. Use this day to make sure the men in your lives know they are valued.
World Toilet Day: Celebrate sanitation, specifically toilets, and how it helps keep us all healthy. If you think it’s weird to celebrate a toilet be thankful. Billions of people in the world don’t have easy access to safe sanitation.
National Play Monopoly Day: When was the last time you played Monopoly? Or any board game, for that matter? For many of us it’s been years! Well this is the day to change that. Pull out that Monopoly board & have some old-fashioned fun. And if you play regularly? Then you’ll welcome this excuse to play again! Don’t have a Monopoly game? Get one! Get the classic game or one of the many special editions.
National Carbonated Beverage with Caffeine Day: If you prefer your caffeine bubbly then this day is for you. It doesn’t matter if your favorite caffeinated pop/soda/soft drink is a cola, root beer (Barq’s), lemon-lime, or something else. Just enjoy some to celebrate this eye-opening day.
November 20:
National Absurdity Day: Celebrate the absurd wherever you find it. In history. During your day. Within yourself. It doesn’t matter. If it’s ridiculous, cockamamy, or just plain unbelievable, it’s fair game for this celebration. So what absurd things will you celebrate?
Name Your PC Day: Speaking of absurdity, have you named your PC? If not, get on that! Your PC does so much for you, connecting you to people & information & games & so much more. Doesn’t it deserve a proper name? Tom & Ruth Roy think so. They also advise you that “Binky” is not available. 😄
National Peanut Butter Fudge Day: Mmmmm … peanut butter. Double mmmmmm … fudge. Now put ’em together and get peanut butter fudge. How can you possibly go wrong? You can’t! Buy or make peanut butter fudge (it’s the simplest fudge you’ll ever make!) and indulge in this delectable day.
November 21:
World Hello Day: Hello! This day is super-simple to celebrate. Just say hello to 10 people. Seriously. That’s it! Surely we can all accomplish this. And we’re pretty sure there’s no rule that says you can’t greet more than 10 people.
World Television Day: The first World Television Forum (yes, really!) took place on November 21 & 22, 1996. Participants discussed how television impacts our world. Now we celebrate the continuing impact TV has in keeping the world informed on the anniversary of that event.
National Adoption Day: This day raises awareness of all the children in foster care waiting to find their permanent homes. It’s also often a day when many courts finalize adoptions for children in foster care who have found their families. If you are a foster family or are considering adoption, help spread the word. And if you know any foster kids or adoptees, celebrate with them.
National Stuffing Day: Make sure your Thanksgiving stuffing is perfect. Test your recipe for this day. Or make a few small batches of new recipes to decide which one you’ll make for this year’s celebration. And even if your gathering will be virtual this year, you’ll want to enjoy your meal just the same.
National Gingerbread Cookie Day: Once you’ve tested your Thanksgiving stuffing you can move on to Christmas. Make & taste test the gingerbread cookies to make sure they’ll be perfect. You might need to make & taste a few batches, but that’s no hardship, right? 😁
November 22:
National Cranberry Relish Day: On the 21st we test our stuffing & gingerbread cookie recipes. Now we test our cranberry relish. Don’t leave this holiday side to chance! Make sure it will be perfect by making a batch to celebrate this day. This is especially important if you’re trying a new recipe. Maybe one of these? (ok, they’re not all technically relish, but they do all look delicious).
