1,300

 This marks post number 1,300 for me.

Every day for 1,300 days, i have posted something on this blog.

It's not always easy, but i've enjoyed it enough to keep going.

Finding all the fun things people do and celebrate around the world, keeping up with the birthdays of famous people (especially those i happen to like or find interesting), posting about what has happened in the past, it's been fun.

While i might tinker with some things, eventually, it's not something i'm of a mind to stop any time soon.


Today is:

2013 Healthy Weight Week -- sponsored by Healthy Weight Network, including the Slim Chance Awards (highlighting the unhealthiest fad diets of the previous year), the Women's Healthy Body Image Awards, and, on Tuesday, Rid the World of Fad Diets and Gimmicks Day

Armed Forces Day -- Mali

Ati-Atihan Festival -- Aklan, Kalibo, Panay Island, Philippines (main feast and final day of the vivid religious carnival/feast dating back to the 13th century to honor Santo Nino [Baby Jesus])

Augusta Futurity -- Augusta, GA, US (the top cutting horses and riders in the world to compete for purse and awards; through Saturday)

Camcorder Day -- five companies agreed, this day in 1982, to cooperate and construct a camera with a built in VCR, thus making it even easier for your dull neighbors to bore you with home movies

Celtic Tree Month Beth (Birch) ends

Coffee Break Day

Day of National Mourning -- Azerbaijan (a/k/a Martyrs' Day)

Festival of Jubilation for Osiris -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate, in Busiris)

Heroes Day -- Cape Verde; Guinea-Bissau (death anniversary of Amilcar Cabral)

Hunt For Happiness Week begins -- sponsored by the Secret Society of Happy People, who want you to join this week; through Saturday

La Tamborrada de San Sebastian -- San Sebastian, Spain (24 hours of drumming, begun last evening)

National Buttercrunch Day

National Cheese Lover's Day

National Granola Bar Day

National Disc Jockey Day -- listed lots of places, but no particular reason given for the choice of date

Penguin Awareness Day -- lots of celebrating, but no history of who started it

Sacrifices to Athena -- Ancient Greek Calendar (date approximate)

Santos Tour Down Under -- Adelaide, Australia (a world class cycling event; through next Sunday)

Sight-Saving Sabbath -- to alert church members to the importance of regular eye exams

Sinulog -- Cebu City, Philippines (a very colorful festival about the pagan origin of the people, and their acceptance of Roman Catholicism)

Stay Young Forever Day -- celebrate the child in all of us, do something fun

St. Sebastian's Day (Patron of archers, armorers, arrowsmiths/fletchers, athletes, bookbinders, diseased cattle, dying people, gardeners, gunsmiths, hardware stores, ironmongers, lace makers/lace workers, lead workers, masons, plague victims, police officers, Pontifical Swiss Guards, raquet makers, soldiers, stone masons/stone cutters; several cities, but especially of Rio de Janiero, Brazil and San Sebastian, Puerto Rico, where today is marked with celebrations; against cattle disease, enemies of religion, plague)

Take a Walk Outdoors Day -- unless it's storming, a good way to get some exercise

Tenmangu Kowakamai -- Setaka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan (festival of old style Japanese dances)

World Religion Day -- Baha'i


Birthdays Today:

Rainn Wilson, 1966
Bill Maher, 1956
David Lynch, 1946
Dorothy Provine, 1937
Arte Johnson, 1934
Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, 1930
Patricia Neal, 1926
Federico Fellini, 1920
DeForest Kelley, 1920
George Burns, 1896
Huddie "Lead Belly" Ledbetter, 1889
Carolus Linnaeus, 1778
André-Marie Ampère, 1775



Today in History:

The first elected English Parliament called into session by the 6th Earl of Leicester, and meets in the Palace of Westminster (a/k/a Houses of Parliament), 1265
The present-day location of Rio de Janeiro is first explored, 1502
The Casa Contratacion (Board of Trade) is founded in Spain to deal with American affairs, 1503
The cornerstone of Amsterdam town hall laid, 1648
The third and main part of First Fleet arrives at Botany Bay. Arthur Phillip decides that Botany Bay is unsuitable for the location of a penal colony, and decides to move to Port Jackson, 1788
China cedes Hong Kong to British, 1841
L.A. Thompson patents the roller coaster, 1885
The first full length talking motion picture filmed outdoors is released, "In Old Arizona", 1929
Nazi officials hold notorious Wannsee conference in Berlin deciding on "final solution" calling for extermination of Europe's Jews, 1942
The first atomic submarine, USS Nautilus, is launched at Groton, Connecticut, 1955
Witnesses report sightings of a Bottlenose whale swimming in the River Thames, the first time the species had been seen in the River Thames since records began in 1913, 2006
A three-man team, using only skis and kites, completes a 1,093-mile (1,759 km) trek to reach the southern pole of inaccessibility for the first time since 1958 and for the first time ever without mechanical assistance, 2007