Month: October 2016

October 31st Halloween

October Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Well, if you haven’t heard by now, today is Halloween. It is a part of a three day celebration in the Christian world where we remember the dead, saints, and martyrs. The Western Civilization actually prefers to call it All Hallow’s Day, though it also goes by Allhalloween, All Hallow’s Eve, and All Saint’s Eve. It seems to have originated from a pagan Celtic harvest festival called Samhain, which Christians renamed Halloween.

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Of course it has the trick-or-treat tradition along with costumes, turning pumpkins into Jack-o-Lanterns, gathering around bonfires, bobbing for apples, pulling pranks, visiting haunted attractions, telling of scary stories and watching horror movies. The religious world celebrates with the lighting of candles on grave sites to honor the departed.

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Of course over the years we don’t do the bobbing for apples anymore because of the possibility of passing germs. The original association was a type of celebration for the apple harvesting season. And you’d better be careful with the bonfires, make sure you get a permit or it may be your last Halloween as a free man.

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We may have gotten a little carried away with the costumes and decorations and certainly gone way overboard on the haunted houses, but it all should be in good fun. In many ways, the real world is scarier than the world created during Halloween.

Another tradition not widely celebrated is the abstaining from eating meat on Halloween. It is know as Vigil Day where one only eats fruits and vegetables, and probably candy… though a lot of candies have meat byproducts in them.

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How to celebrate – Go out trick-or-treating. Create a fun, and safe, atmosphere for kids to enjoy themselves (and adults as well). Throw a Halloween party observing as many of the holiday traditions as you can.

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October 30th National Candy Corn Day

October Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

The perfect candy for fall and Halloween, candy corn. It has been around since the late 1800’s, created by George Renninger in Wunderle, Germany. It is made from corn syrup, sugar, water, marshmallows, fondant, and originally carnauba wax (which comes from the leaves of palm trees). Where they came up with palm trees in Germany one can venture to guess, but today candy corn is made on machines not requiring the wax.

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Over the years candy makers have learned how to add shapes, colors, and non-traditional flavors to come up with different combinations for the candy corn lover. The original candy corn taste however has not changed since the very beginning, in fact the exact same ingredients are used (except for the palm leaves).

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They have even added little pumpkins to the mix. They obviously go for as much realism as they can in both shape and color. While the shape does not change the taste it does add to the flavor of the season.

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And I’m not exactly sure what these things are but they at least have the right colors! Back to the original yellow, orange and white, and they look a little fluffy too!

How to celebrate – Make some candy corn of your own. Make it whatever shape you like. Buy some candy corn for Halloween, it’s great for trick-or-treaters but make sure you get the prepackaged individuals sizes. Why not try for the world’s largest candy corn kernel!

October 29th National Cat Day

October Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Try to tell a cat owner that a dog is better than a cat. It’s not gonna happen. Yes, a dog can fetch, roll over and play dead. A cat could too but it just doesn’t want to. It knows it’s good and feels no need to prove it to anyone.

Take Diga who can perform 20 tricks in less than a minute!

Or Sophie Smith who is the cat with the longest fur.

And Ludo who is the world’s longest cat.

Well, you get the point. If you want to learn more Click Here!.

Cats are great in their own right, you just have to understand them (they do not have to understand you however). Just learn to play by their rules and you will do fine.

National Cat Day has it’s own website, www.nationalcatday.com and is supported by Petco and Blue Buffalo.

How to celebrate – Take your cat to lunch (it might be a bit messy but your cat will enjoy it). Dress up like a cat and see if they think you are a long lost relative (they still won’t care but you might get a nudge of recognition). Buy your cat a toy and watch them play with the box it came in (just like human kids).

October 28th Frankenstein Day

October Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

It is fitting that the last Friday in October should be Frankenstein Day. It was created by Ron MacCloskey in 1997 when he also created “The Franky” which he proudly gave to the person who best promoted the classic Frankenstein. He picked a Friday because it started with FR just like Frankenstein.

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Frankenstein was created by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley in 1818 completed by the time she turned 21. I’ll bet she was a real fun date! It is set in the fictional Transylvania, though Shelley herself was English. Most of us know the story well enough by now. The monster created in a castle on a mountain during a lightning storm.

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Of course Frankenstein wasn’t really the monsters name. He was named for Victor Frankenstein, the doctor who created him from spare parts he found laying around. An arm from Bill, leg from Rudy, brain from Abbey Normal (sorry, couldn’t resist). Since all his body parts came from so many people he probably would have a name like Billy Joe Hamilton Marcus III.

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So many people have made money from the original book. The movie industry, costumers, audio recording artists, and so on have all made a pretty penny off something so ugly. But then, we all like to be scared, at least a little bit, and in the day Shelley had created one of the most frightening creatures ever to exist. It is remarkable that even after all these years the imagination of one woman could still stir the the hearts of so many over 150 years later.

How to celebrate – Do your best to promote the Frankenstein monster, “The Franky” is still being awarded! Read Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”. Watch one of the many “Frankenstein movies.

October 27th National American Beer Day

October Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Like so many other American products these days, the largest breweries sold out to other countries. The three largest, which I shall not name, are now owned by a Belgium company, a South American company and a Russian company. All that said, America still ranks only second to China in beer consumed every year.

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Today, most American made beers fall into the “craft brewery” category. They are normally made with limited distribution leaving the largest non-American companies to fill the shelves of the local grocery chains. At one time, there were over 2,100 breweries in the United States. There may still be about that same number but they are small, perhas putting out an even better product.

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in 2009 roughly 196 million barrels of beer were produced in the US. They still produce just as much but the profits go over seas instead of into America. I have to assume the American beer entrepreneurs either just got too tired, or too rich to care anymore. I frankly was shocked today to find out that Oreo cookies are made in Mexico! So, I guess the beers ought to be made there as well.

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American beers break down into categories. The American pale ale, Pennsylvania porter, American IPA, Steam Beer, Amber ale, cream ale and Cascadian dark ale. The only larger hold out is the Boston Beer Company better known as…

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Wasn’t the original Samuel Adams one who fought for lower taxes in America? Let’s hope they keep fighting before they are taxed out of America as well.

How to celebrate – Enjoy a good American beer while you still can. If you don’t care, which I guess you won’t if you drink enough beer, have one of the more popular brands and support foreign companies. Compare beers and see which you think is best, there is a flavor for everyone.

October 26th National Mincemeat Pie Day

October Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Mincemeat pie. Ever heard of it? It seems to have been lost to history in the mid 1900’s either because it was too difficult to make or because the American diet did not lend itself to the dish. Prior to that, the dish was a favorite of many, particularly in Europe. In fact, it comes to us all the way from medieval times (The era, not the attraction).

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In fact is was one of the best dishes one could be served as a Knight. It was rich with meat and sweet like a dessert. It allowed the participant to eat both the main course and the last course at the same time. Since it was made of meat (Usually a ground beef though pork, mutton or any chopped up meat could be used). Suet, a substance made from the fat near the loins and kidneys of animals. (It is a powder today) And finally whatever fruit was in season at the time.  Generally raisins, apples or pears were used (And still are) though cherries, grapes or anything else you might have handy could also be used.

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Mincemeat Pie was a real feast back in its day. The crust was like a bread and the mix of meat and fruit was a tasty treat. Just like the popularity of Egg Nog has been reserved for the holiday season when you do see a mincemeat pie being served it is generally a holiday dish. Oh, and normally a healthy portion of brandy, or rum, is added to the dish just for flavoring… and maybe to tempt the consumer a little more.

How to celebrate – See if you can find any place near you that serves mincemeat pie and go try some. (Medieval Times does not serve Mincemeat Pie) Fix a mincemeat pie for your family from the recipe provided. Go to a Middle Ages Society reenactment and see they serve mincemeat pie.

October 25th Chucky, the Notorious Killer Doll Day

October Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

With Halloween coming up soon you would sort of expect a day like this to come along. There is really very little less creepy than a doll that doesn’t look just right. The older they are, the more demented they look. Whether it’s because of age or just the way they made them back then is hard to say.

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Dolls are kind of like clowns, you either love them or hate them but if you hate them, they will seem evil. They have become a popular target for movies and books helping them to seem even more evil than they might have been before.

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Still, if you have ever visited a museum that has dolls, take a closer look at them. They seem to have a life of their own. The dolls of today are cute and normally made of plastic, but the dolls of yester-year, made out of porcelain, always make you look at them twice. It seems to have something to do with the eyes. They look real, like maybe there is truly someone trapped inside the doll.

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And when the paint, and porcelain itself, cracks, the most lovable dolls begin to look haunted. It may also have something to do with the smile on their faces. It looks like they are up to something that maybe you don’t want to know about. If they have been repaired they may be even worse.

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And then there are those that actually believe these dolls are evil. I have to ask the obvious question, if a doll bothers you that much why do you keep it? Of course then you’d have to figure out why the bad guys always have to explain what they are doing before they do it giving the good guys time to figure out how to counter it. Or why when you hear a really strange sound do you feel motivated to go see what made it? Or if you are running from something, why go upstairs where you truly have no escape?

How to celebrate – Enjoy Halloween and eats lots of candy forgetting about evil dolls. If you prefer, watch Chucky (but don’t take it too seriously). Go check out a doll collection and see if you find any that could be “haunted”.

October 25 206 International Artist’s Day

October Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Today is International Artist’s Day!

We celebrated here at Unboxing HQ last weekend by picking up 2 new paintings for the office from a local artist. I would hang them up today in honor of the day, but I am headed out to the airport, so they will have to wait.

If you subscribed to our October Holiday Box, it’s time to pull out the sketch kit and get to work celebrating!

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Read more about the day…. Whether it is a painting, sculpture, drawing, photo, mixed media, or audio recording, on this day we applaud all the creative people who partake in these activities. International Artist’s Day was created by Canadian Artist, Chris MacClure, known for his intriguing paintings. He wanted to bring recognition to and honor the individuals who participate in these creative outlets.

Suggested ways to celebrate: Use your sketch kit to create a beautiful masterpiece. Go visit an art gallery. Listen to a different genre of music that you wouldn’t normally listen to. Support your local artists.

October 24th National Food Day

October Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Today is National Food Day, the day we are supposed to recognize real food as opposed to the junk we often eat. It is defined by two words, “Eat Real”.

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So much of what we eat contains high levels of sugar, salt, and fat. It tastes great but it is really bad for us. In truth, the real foods, those not processed in a factory, really do taste better. Fresh fruits and vegetables have an abundance of flavor without adding anything to them. The meat we eat is often processed in such a way that much of the protein is replaced by fat leaving us the factory farm version of what we think we are eating.

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Sadly we get use to the flavoring added by the factories and when we taste the real thing, we think something is wrong with it. All the nutrients have been cooked out of the food leaving us with an artificially flavored substance. Sugar is added to mask the disappearing taste and gives us a watered down version of the real thing and something far less healthy for us. If you look at the contents of a can of soda you will see it contains nothing that we need to be adding to our diet.

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And while it’s bad enough what we are doing to ourselves think of what we are doing to our children. We are practically guaranteeing them a life of health issues, weight issues, and the same lack of energy we are suffering from ourselves.

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The Center For Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) started this day back in 2011 with the target date of October 24th 2012 to accumulate all the work done for the year. The day is celebrated with over 3,200 festivals across the US and a national conference in Washington, D.C. There are also thousands of schools that participate throughout the year.

How to celebrate – See if there is a program in your community celebrating “Eat Real”. If there isn’t, see what you need to do to start one. Check with your local schools and see if they are teaching the children to “Eat Real”. Go pick some fresh fruit from a u-pick farm and enjoy!

October 2016 Original Standard Holiday Box This Box Rocks Video Review

Reviews and Sneak Peaks, Unboxing the Bizarre

A huge thank you to This Box Rocks for the review!

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