Tag: museum

May 18th International Museum Day

May Holidays

You may wonder why museums are often houses of artwork. History is more than artwork though the art does depict the era it comes from well. The fact is that most piece of history are often though useless or of little importance so it is discarded along the way. Those paintings, sculptures and other works of art are perceived as having some value so they are kept around because of value, not usefulness. So when you go to a museum and see nothing but art, look at the items in the paintings and such and see the true history of an era since so many of the real items have just been thrown away.

How to celebrate – Save things you know to be historic. Support a museum. Visit the Louvre in Paris built in 1792.

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May 18th International Museum Day

May Holidays

The largest museum in the world is the Louvre in Paris. Built in 1792 it is 782,910 square feet and the home to the Mona Lisa. Most of us think of museums as places to visit fine art but frankly, there are more that don’t contain any art than those that do. There are museums for practically every interest including, trains, toys, war, furniture, fashion, buttons, aprons… well, the list goes on and on. Today was created back in 1977 by the International Council of Museums. I wonder if they included the lint museum in their collection?

How to celebrate – Visit a museum. Create your own museum. Make a list of museums where you live.

January 15th Museum Selfie Day

January holidays

January 15th Museum Selfie Day

Some calendars show today as the museum selfie day, others show the 21st as museum selfie day so it is your pick. The general idea for either day you choose, or both if you like, is to show your support for a museum, or museums, of your choice. It’s pretty simple. Take a selfie of yourself in front of a museum. It shows you have class, even if you didn’t go inside. The day was created in London by blogger Mar Dixson, who I assume went into the museum as well as took the selfie out front of it. No one will know either way and it does give free advertisement to the museum which is a good thing. Make sure you take your selfie outside as most museums do not allow photos inside, which could create Jail Selfie Day.

How to celebrate – Locate the museums in your area. Go to said museum(s) and take a selfie. Be sure to post it to social media so you get credit.

May 18th International Museum Day

March Holidays

May 18th International Museum Day

Museums remind of us of where we have been, and possibly show us where we are going as well. Things we just can’t live without today had to come from somewhere and generally those proto-types can be found in museums all over the world.  Of course, museums also teach us about animals and nature as well. This day was created in 1977 by the International Council of Museums.

How to celebrate – Visit a museum. Look for all the antiques in your house.  Donate historical items you no longer want to a museum so that others can enjoy them.

May 17th Pack Rat Day

May Holidays, Unboxing the Bizarre

First, I know I have something of value in all my stuff. I am not sure what it is and I’m not sure what it’s worth but I know it’s there and I know it’s valuable.  Someday someone will come into my place and offer me a small fortune for something I have.

Second, I know I will need something I have someday to complete some project I have. I need to keep all these small pieces and parts because just as soon as I throw it out, I will need it.

Third, all these things are memories for me. They take me back in time to when there was a special moment or remind me of some special person. I started my collection when I was ten and now I am seventy, that’s a whole lot of memories.

These are the three main reasons someone becomes a pack rat… and I ought to know because I admit it, I am one!  What’s worse, I use all three excuses for my “collection”.

confessions_of_a_pack_rat_by_zipple-d2yv6dr

What doesn’t have some sort of history to it? Letters and notes from old acquaintances and more. If you are a collector you have to have everything you can find that goes with your collection. When you no longer have a use for something but it may still have a value in your mind you save it for a garage sale. You find out quickly when you hold that garage sale that apparently, though what you thought had value, really didn’t. Seems no one else wants it either.

I think there’s a little pack rat in all of us. We may not want to admit it but do you really need to keep all that stuff you have?  Try just listing everything you have in one room of your house without going there to look at it. Chances are, if you can’t remember it on your list, you really didn’t need it in the first place. I know I have items that I’ve had for twenty years or more and I haven’t touched them in nineteen years.

packrat

No one knows who started Pack Rat Day. That’s probably a good thing because we’d be saving stuff to commemorate that!  All I know is that when I go to my refrigerator and see that picture my two year old son drew I’m just as proud of it now, seventeen years later, as I was the day he did it.

How to celebrate: Revisit those items you have kept over the years they will take you down a trip on memory lane but look for those items you can live without and donate to a museum or collector. Make a note in the calendar to go through one space every 6 months, whether that is a closet, room, garage, etc. and think about truly getting rid of the items you have not used in those 6 months. Just get rid of some of the junk. Everytime you buy or get something new, donate something you already had. Go through mail when you get it and throw away immediately what you do not need. Before buying something to add to your collection, make notes of the pros and cons of owning it, you may be better off just not bringing it home in the first place and your wallet might thank you too. Eliminate storage space. Don’t buy a bunch of extra dressers, drawers, cubbies, foot lockers, etc. If you put it in storage, you are most likely never going to use it again!