Thursday, February 14, 2013

And Today Is...


St. Valentine's Day. Yes, we all know that, but fear not. I am not doing a post on the well known holiday. Do I seem the sort to be doing hearts-and-roses posts? No, no. I am presenting the following list of disparate observances also held upon this estimable date:

 - Ferris Wheel Day: Today is the 154th birthday of George Ferris, the inventor of the famous fairground ride - which, incidentally, is not news to anyone who has observed today's Google Doodle. Since I had planned on mentioning this before Google stole my thunder, I am going ahead as planned, and those of you who missed the Doodle now have a brand new bit of trivia to share with your family, friends and co-workers. You're welcome.

image
image from gifbites.com
 - Pet Theft Awareness Day: Yes, that really is an official observance.  I do not know who thought Valentine's Day a perfect match for this day. If you are lucky enough to have a One True Love with whom to share the day, I can think of few things that would kill the romantic atmosphere quicker than having someone ask you if you were aware of pet theft and send you to the website provided in the link above. And if you are not lucky enough to have a One True Love, and this lack rankles a bit, there is nothing like learning all about pet theft to complete your feeling of loss.



  - World Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Day: In case Pet Theft Awareness Day was not enough to cause February 14th to be a day of depression, it is also a day on which to contemplate heart defects. I suppose there is an ironic logic to it, but still, it sort of takes the fun out of champagne and chocolate, doesn't it?
image from iconbug.com

 - League of Women Voters Day: Just because. I cannot think of any reason at all for such a thing to be celebrated today. I consider voting to be an arduous duty at the best of times, so I cannot imagine being part of a league of voters of any sort, unless it was reluctant voters. Still, if chocolate, Ferris wheels, stolen pets, and bad hearts aren't your thing, it is good to know there is another way to spend the day:
 

 - Library Lovers' Day: Hurrah! Finally, a celebration for me! If it were not already Lent, I would have chocolate and champagne and read a good book to mark this auspicious occasion. Since the penitential season is on us, however, I shall just make do with a good book, taken from my personal library, and I shall love it.


border-studies:

Amazing cordiform (heart-shaped) book —
The Heart Book is regarded as the oldest Danish ballad manuscript. It is a collection of 83 love ballads compiled in the beginning of the 1550’s in the circle of the Court of King Christian III.
(via The LION & the CARDINAL)
image from danielmatsui.com



7 comments:

Amy said...

Mwahahaha! That was so funny! *Chortle* Thank you for that. :D

Treskie said...

trust you to come up with a post on Valentine's Day, and mention every other thing celebrated. LOL. I did know about Ferris. DA GOOGLE!

I love that last picture thought. It's cool.

Isabella DeLallo said...

That gif on the Ferris wheel was brilliant :) and the pet theft thing? WOW.

WOOT for Librarians!! I thought they should get their own day. You are they only person who would post on Valentines day to tell what OTHER days are celebrated on this lovely 14th. *Giggle* That was so much fun thank you!!

Mahri said...

I'm always glad to provide my readers with a good laught ;-)

Treski ~ I know, right? Books used to be so much cooler looking than they are now. I wants one, yess, preciousss.

Bella Rose ~ Well, you know me, I still cringe a bit at kissing scenes, and I think Cinderella Man is really a love story, so what do you expect ;-)

Jack said...

Pity, I did catch on on time. I could have wished everyone a Happy Ferris Wheel day instead of Valentine's day. Oh well, next year.

You quoted Captain Haddock. That is just cool. No one has quoted Haddock and his wall quote at me. That made my day 8-D

Jack said...

I have found the same problem with genre you have. Everything is being forced into something, when many books could easily fit many different genres. I think they should stop worrying so much about genres and instead think more on the actual story. Not everything has to fit into a certain mold.

Jack said...

OH! Coulson!!! Speaking of being vocial about a characters death, I am right there with you on this one. I've spent the last...almost year going about insisting he didn't die. I have a whole theory behind it and will never believe they killed him. (I keep hoping he shows up in the other movies.)
He was soooo cool!! ALways my favourite character, then they went and killed him 8-P

But true. When one writes a book about real things, especially wars, everyone knows someone will end up dying. Because it has to have a bit of reality to it.