September 2018 – Unboxing the Bizarre™

September 30th National Mud Pack Day

September Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

I’m glad it’s the last day of September because when we have to resort to celebrate mud pack day. Not that there is anything wrong with mud packs but can you really celebrate them?

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I guess mudpacks have been around for a really, really long time. Originally I am not sure they were thought of as a good thing. But mud does have it’s redeeming characteristics. I find it very odd that it can help clean even though it is dirt itself!

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Naturally, animals love mud. It cooling and relaxing to wallow around in. It is when it dried that it becomes a problem and then either needs cleaning or more mud to be applied. Either way, it’s a dirty job but someone has to do it.

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And then I guess there is clean mud, but is it really mud then? Hard to say. People spend a lot of money to get mud applied to them, I can generally do that for free! However, I have to admit I do not know how to find clean mud.

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But if you like to be covered in mud I have no problem with that. It seems natural enough.And generally speaking, if it’s good for one animal, it must be good for another too. So… enjoy.

How to celebrate – Have a mud pack applied today. Do not swim in your pool after applying the mud. Go skinny dipping in a bog.

September 29th Confucius Day

September Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Confucius is one of the best known philosophers of all time. He was also a teacher, editor and politician during his time in China. Born October 18th, 551 BC, lu he was China’s Ben Franklin before Ben Franklin was born! His real name was Kong Qiu and lived during the Summer and Autumn periods in China. He dies in 479 BC, lu but not before leaving behind numerous words of wisdom.

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Among his famous quotes are: “Your life is what your thoughts make it” and “The man who asks a question is a fool for a minute, the man who does not ask is a fool for life.” Definitely words to live by. There are literally hundreds of quotes to live your life by. Most are common sense, but it surprising how litte common sense there was back then which seems to have carried over to today.

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Since his time he has also been credited with some he probably never actually spoke, like… “Man who eat many prunes get good run for money.” There are more but they should not be repeated in mixed company!

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There are few subjects Confucius didn’t touch. Obviously they were intended for people who lived in his day but most carry over to today as well. I’ll bet Confucius and Ben would have been best of friends, or the worst of enemies. Either way, we can learn a lot from both of them.

How to celebrate – Study Confucius’ writings. Visit China. Create your own words to live by.

September 28th National Native American Day

September Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Today we celebrate some of the most mistreated people on the face of the earth, the Native American. When I was young I always thought the cowboys and cavalry were the greatest thing on earth, but then I learned what they did to the Native Americans and I felt ashamed.

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The Europeans, and people from other settling groups, push the Native American across the United States, Mexico and Canada until they had no place left to go. The answer was to put them on reservation. Not a good answer, but an answer. It’s sort of like taking a wild animal and putting them in a cage and see how they like it.

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Not that the Native American was a wild animal, they were actually more peaceful that the people who claimed them to be savages. But when pushed hard enough, they did fight back and who could blame them?

There are more than 562 tribes that lived free in America before it was “settled”. Most were very peaceful people. Many helped the settlers, some saved the settlers from starvation. In return, we pushed them off their lands and gave them deceases they had no cure for.

There are some 3 million left today living in the United States. The only thing they did wrong was being here before the rest of the world got here. They honor life, the land and the beasts given man. It is time we all honor them for the suffering at our hands.

How to celebrate – Honor the Native American for who they are. Study what daily life was like for any of the native tribes. Visit a tribe and see the wonder of colors, food and life styles.

September 27th World Tourism Day

September Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

September 27^th World Tourism Day

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There is hardly a country in the world that does not benefit from tourism. Some do it better than others but it does seem to be an international piece of bread and butter.

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The day was created by the United Nations who select a theme for every year, this year’s theme being: “Protecting Culture and Heritage.” The best way to learn about a country is to understand where they came from and what formed them to who they are today.

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How to celebrate – Visit a country and study their culture and heritage. Research countries you want to learn more about. Plan a trip to visit several countries.

September 26th Johnny Appleseed Day

September Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Well, we all know about apples. All the varieties, sizes and uses of them. I guess Adam and Eve got us kicked off but no one is better known for their apple adventures than Johnny Appleseed!

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Now Johnny Appleseed was a real character, not a made up comic book one. His real name was John Chapman and he was born on September 26th, 1774. His legend was not as big as the Lone Ranger or the Incredible Hulk but at least he was real. In his lifetime he spread the planting of apple tress across America starting an industry that continues to grow today.

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Now a little of what he did may be somewhat shady. Apparently he planted the trees for free but later came back to claim them after they had grown. Since the owners could not possibly return his trees, he ended up acquiring their land. I am not sure any of that is true, there are always haters out there, but it does sort of make you wonder.

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And there are those who celebrate Johnny Appleseed Day on March 11th, the day it is believed he died in 1845. I guess it sort of depends on whether you see John Chapman as a good guy or a bad guy, If you like him, you probably celebrate his birthday today, September 26th. If you are not too fond of what he did, then maybe you celebrate March 11th.

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Either way, Johnny Appleseed will long be remembered. He did start something, good or bad, letting us enjoy apples every day if we want.

How to celebrate – Have an apple today. Read more about John Chapman. Plant your own apple tree.

September 25th National Comic Book Day

September Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

Comic Books have been around for as long as I can remember, and even longer! They have been both entertaining and educational for children (And sometimes adults). Over the last few years they have become so popular that they are being turned into movies. Though many, like Superman, have been on tv for decades.

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The first official comic book was Obadiah Oldbuck which came out in 1837. It was actually the Adventures of Mr. Obadiah Oldbuck, which wasn’t an instant hit but started catching on in America around 1847.

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In my day, as a child, Classics Illustrated were the hot ticket on the market. 66 were made in all and they were illustrated version of classic books, made so children could be exposed to what the adults were reading. To me, these comics were the absolute best. The artwork was superior and the stories, of course, classics.

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Of course today, Marvel is on the top of the list. There is nothing real, or even really human, in their comics… but I suppose for kids that’s good. The thing I liked about Classics Illustrated was that you stood a chance to actually become one of the heroes, in Marvel’s you don’t. Oh well.

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Still, comic books help to pass the time and they do get kids reading. And who knows, with the way things are going, maybe they really can become a Mutant Ninja Turtle!

How to celebrate – Read a comic book. See if you saved any of your comic books, they could be worth a small fortune! See how many Marvel heroes you can name.