Feline Friday: Oooh, Toes!

The danger of walking barefoot when you have kittens:

They love toes!



Today is

Art Fair and Winefest -- Washington, MO, US (the largest tasting if state wines, juried art show, and more; through Sunday)

Asakusa Sanja Matsuri -- Tokyo, Japan (sake and processions of elaborate mini shrines celebrate the goddess of mercy and the three fishermen; through Sunday)

Bike to Work Day 2013 -- the League of American Bicyclists have urged you to celebrate this day the third Friday of May ever since 1956

Birthday of the Raja -- Perlis, Malaysia

Buddha's Birthday -- Buddhist

Celebrate Your Elected Officials Day 2013 -- unless you don't like them, then get to work electing better ones; if you know of a good one, take time today to thank her/him

Constitution Day -- Nauru; Norway; Svalbard and Jan Mayen

Day of Remembrance -- Cambodia (anniversary of Khmer Rouge regime takeover in 1975, a day to remember all who died at their hands and work for peace)

Dea Dia Festival -- Ancient Roman Calendar (goddess of growth)

Endangered Species Day -- because premature extinction due to human activity is not a happy thing

Falling Off a Log Night -- Fairy Calendar

Feast of Azamat(Grandeur) -- Baha'i

Fishing Has No Boundaries, Hayward Event -- Hayward, WI, US (sponsored by Fishing Has No Boundaries, Inc., a non-profit with the goal of opening the great outdoors through the sport of fishing to the disabled; the Hayward event is their biggest each year, and runs through tomorrow)

Galician Literature Day -- Galicia (an autonomous region of Spain)

Grand Spring Festival -- Toshogu Shrine, Nikko, Japan (through tomorrow; includes horseback archery, processions in costume, and more)

International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia

International Virtual Assistants Day -- acknowledging the dedication, experience, expertise, and determination of virtual professionals, sponsored by the Alliance for Virtual Businesses

Liberation Day -- Democratic Republic of the Congo

Magnolia Blossom Festival and World Championship Steak Cook-Off -- Magnolia, AR, US (all the usual fun, with a steak eating contest, live entertainment, and an art show;through tomorrow)

Maifest -- Mainstrasse Village, Covington, KY, US (celebrating German tradition and welcoming the first spring wines; through Sunday)

Merry-Go-Round Day -- the first merry-go-round, powered by horses, opened this day in 1620

NASCAR Day -- drivers, celebrities, corporate partners, media, and millions of fans come together to raise funds for charitable causeshttps://foundation.nascar.com/netcommunity/sslpage.aspx?pid=1578

National Cherry Cobbler Day

National Defense Transportation Day -- US (remembering the contributions of people working in the transportation industries)

National Pizza Party Day -- as declared by Garlic Jim's Famous Gourmet Pizza, on the 3rd Friday of May

National Walnut Day -- declared in 1949 by the Walnut Marketing Board

Navy Day -- Argentina (anniversary of the victory at the Battle of Montevideo in 1814)

Pack Rat Day -- come on out and admit it, you are a pack rat, too!

Rhododendron Festival -- Florence, Oregon, US (parades, flower show, car show, carnival and more; through Sunday)

Rhubarb Festival -- Intercourse, Pennsylvania (come on out and enjoy the music, games, rhubarb-inspired foods, and lots of family fun, including the Rhubarb Race Car Derby and best pie contest; through tomorrow)

Rubber Band Day -- patented this day in 1845, and aren't we pack rats glad.

Syttende Mai -- Stoughton, WI, US (come celebrate the Norwegian heritage of this town with a three day colorful gala; through Sunday)

Shunki Reitaisai -- Toshogu Shrine, Nikko, Japan (Grand Festival of Spring, through the 18th)

St. Madron of Cornwall's Day (Patron against pain)

Tell An Umpire "I Love Your Outfit" Day -- only if he has a sense of humor or you can duck quickly

Watch a Baby Fall Asleep Day -- because few things in the world are as funny and precious

World Hypertension Day -- because high blood pressure is dangerous

World Neurofibromatosis Day -- for information on the disease that makes people grow tumors, see hereWorld Telecommunication and Information Society Day -- UN


Birthdays Today:

Tahj Mowry, 1987
Drew Roy, 1986
Andrea Corr, 1974
Jordan Knight, 1970
Enya, 1961
Sugar Ray Leonard, 1956
Bob Saget, 1956
Bill Paxton, 1955
Dennis Hopper, 1936
Maureen O'Sullivan, 1911
Edward Jenner, 1749


Today in History:

Italian Jesuit Niccolo Zucchi becomes the first to see 2 belts on Jupiter's surface, 1630
Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve founds the Ville Marie de Montréal, 1642
Frontenac becomes governor of New France (Canada), 1672
Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette begin exploring the Mississippi River, 1673
England passes the Molasses Act, putting high tariffs on rum & molasses imported to the colonies from a country other than British possessions, 1733
The US Continental Congress bans trade with Canada, 1775
The New York Stock Exchange is founded, 1792
John Hawkins & Richard French patent the Reaping Machine, 1803
Napoleon I of France  orders the annexation of the Papal States to the French Empire, 1809
Occupation of Monaco changes from French to Austrian, 1814
Antoine Joseph Sax patents the saxophone, 1846
Rosalía de Castro publishes Cantares Gallegos, the first book in the Galician language, 1863
Aristides wins the first Kentucky Derby, 1875
Greek archaeologist Valerios Stais discovers the Antikythera mechanism, an ancient mechanical analog computer, 1902
The Columbia Lions and the Princeton Tigers play in the first-ever televised sporting event, a collegiate baseball game in New York City, 1939
The United States Supreme Court hands down a unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, 1954
Soviet Venera 6 begins its descent into the atmosphere  of Venus, sending back atmospheric data before being crushed by pressure, 1969
Thor Heyerdahl sets sail from Morocco on the papyrus boat Ra II to sail the Atlantic Ocean, 1970
Maoist guerrilla group Shining Path attacks a polling location in the town of Chuschi, Ayacucho, starting the Internal conflict in Peru, 1980
Lebanon, Israel, and the United States sign an agreement on Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, 1983
After 18 years as the mayor of Paris, Jacques Chirac takes office as President of France, 1995
Three days of popular protests against the government of Prime Minister of Thailand Suchinda Kraprayoon begin in Bangkok, leading to a military crackdown, 1992
Zaire is officially renamed Democratic Republic of the Congo, 1997
Massachussetts becomes the first US State to legalize same-sex marriage, 2004
The aircraft carrier USS Oriskany is sunk in the Gulf of Mexico as an artificial reef, 2008
Dalia Grybauskaite is elected the first female President of Lithuania, 2009