Every day is a holiday in the U.S.
Written by: Rough Writer Staff | 6 Feb 2009
January 20 was National Disc Jockey Day and Jan. 29 was World Leprosy Day, according to brownielocks.com.
These are just a few of the stranger holidays celebrated by some in the United States, according to Erin Kathleen McCoy, Executive Director of statesymbolusa.org, a website that has an extensive list of national food holidays.
McCoy’s website includes, Chocolate-Covered Peanuts Day and National Clam Chowder Day, celebrated on Feb. 25 and 26 respectively, just to name a few.
The odd ones
“The odd holidays are interesting and not many people are aware of them. State Symbols USA lists only food holidays and two incomplete lists for environmental and health days. There are other categories of observances, but I have not yet found time to research them,” says McCoy.
McCoy says that she gets many hits to the holiday section of her website, “Much more than any other page in the National Symbols section. In October of 2008 it was viewed 2,850 times,” says McCoy.
How did it get to be a holiday?
So how do special holidays like Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day, celebrated on Feb. 23, become real holidays?
According to thenibble.com, “The President of the United States has the authority to declare a commemorative event or day by proclamation. Fewer than 150 are granted in an average year across all categories.”
It goes on to say, “While you may think the president has more important things to do, you may have noticed that while President Bartlet was solving world crises on The West Wing, he was also being asked to sign proclamations to authorize National Pomegranate Month and such.”
However, according to America.gov, “In the strict sense, there are no national holidays in the United States. Each of the 50 states has jurisdiction over its holidays. In practice, however, most states observe the federal, legal or public holidays, even though the president and Congress legally can designate holidays only for federal government employees.”
“…you may think the president has more important things to do…”
This is what allows for the hundreds of holidays that celebrate everything from foods to disease awareness.
There are many websites dedicated to strange, weird and silly holidays. Some, like McCoy’s, are dedicated to food holidays, while others, like brownielocks.com, cover every category imaginable.
This includes monthly, weekly and daily observances. brownielocks.com lists National Condom Week, celebrated Feb. 14 through 21, a seemingly appropriate week for this holiday.
National Condom Week
According to the National Condom Week website, “In the U.S., February is National Condom Month. In 2006, National Condom Week was celebrated from Feb. 14 to Feb. 21. Various institutions also celebrate National Condom Day on Feb.14. Originally started on the campus of the University of California Berkeley,it has grown into an educational event for high schools, colleges, family planning organizations, AIDS groups, sexually transmitted disease awareness groups, pharmacies and condom manufacturers.”
McCoy says, “I’d also like a section for world holidays such as World Ocean Day, June 8. I could spend years on the holiday section of the website alone; I could write a whole section on World Ocean Day alone. Certainly a page is needed for each of the major holidays, but the ‘odd’ holidays also deserve explanation, facts and history.”
Rescued rabbits, marijuana and dental health
February has many reasons to celebrate. In addition to having many national holidays within it, it also boasts many monthly observances. February is Adopt a Rescued Rabbit Month, Marijuana Awareness Month and National Pet Dental Health Month, according to brownielocks.com.
Many of these websites are looking for volunteers to help them gather this information. They need people to find out when National Tell a Fairy Tale Day is. “On this day we are encouraged to have fun reading fairy tales and discussing fairy tale stories,” according to gone-ta-pot.com. The holiday is celebrated on Feb. 26.
McCoy says, “State Symbols USA welcomes volunteers for research and submission of photos or videos.” Volunteers help to make these websites successful.
In the upcoming month of March, let’s hope everyone has a wonderful Adopt a Rescued Guinea Pig Month, National Social Work Month and Supply Management Month.
Happy Celebrating!
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