Happy Diatomaceous Earth Day! No, really. Friday, August 30th, is National Diatomaceous Earth Day. It’s also National Trail Mix Day and National Toasted Marshmallow Day.
Despite this, I bet you still had to go to work today. That may be because none of the holidays I mentioned are federal holidays.
There are eleven federal holidays recognized in the U.S., holidays the states are not required to observe but mostly do. Those federal holidays were either designated by congress or by presidential proclamation.
(Because you never know if there will be a huge prize waiting for people who know this stuff, I’ll list the federal holidays at the end of this post. Go ahead — jot them down right now. See how you do.)
August 30th is also National College Colors Day and National Beach Day.
Bet you didn’t get a card. That’s understandable; today’s holidays aren’t Hallmark holidays, either.
Hallmark holidays are defined as holidays that seem to exist more for commercial than commemorative reasons. Their primary celebration involves sending a card or flowers. Often a special meal is involved. Hallmark holidays include old favorites such as Mother’s Day (first celebrated in 1908, established as a national holiday in 1914) and Father’s Day (first celebrated in 1910, but not a national holiday until 1972), along with fresher upstarts like Grandparents Day (1978) and Nurses’ Day (1982). One national Hallmark holiday was actually proposed by the founder of Hallmark cards back in 1930. Joyce Hall thought that Friendship Day would encourage people to send caring cards to their friends. In 1935, congress agreed with the sentiment and proclaimed the first Sunday in August as National Friendship Day.
Some Hallmark holiday lists include Groundhog’s Day. I have never received a Groundhog’s Day card, but they’re out there. So are celebratory recipes made of exactly what you think. Don’t invite me. (People can be so harsh with that six-more-weeks-of-winter thing.)
Don’t worry. If you believe strongly that something deserves attention, you can register your own national holiday at nationaldayarchives.com. You’ll choose from three levels of listings. Perks for the top-of-the-line premium choice include a permanent listing on the National Day Archives Master Calendar and a permanent web page linked to your day. All you need to do is fill out an application form and pay the fee.
There’s a day for almost everything. According to the website, the most popular national holidays include National Drink Wine Day on Feb. 18th (duh), National Coffee Day on Sept. 29th (double duh), and National Catcher’s Day on Feb. 2 (a little baffling since Feb. 2nd isn’t even baseball season).
Although many of the holidays registered through the National Day Archives seem lighthearted, some commemorate events or histories that are often overlooked (August 30th is also National Black Beauty Founders Day, National Grief Awareness Day, and National Screen Time Awareness Day). But no matter what the apparent tone, each holiday is heartfelt. Even National Drinking with Chickens Day (May 23rd).
The problem seems less proclaiming a national holiday than finding one that hasn’t already been taken. Even National Create a New National Day Day is unavailable (June 21st).
Fortunately, National Blogging Day is still out there, ripe for the picking.
Wishing everyone a safe Labor Day weekend!
The eleven national federal holidays are (in order of yearly appearance) New Year’s Day (est. 1870), Martin Luther King Day (1983), Presidents’ Day (est. in 1879 as George Washington’s Birthday), Memorial Day (est. 1888 as Decoration Day), Juneteenth (2021), Independence Day (1870), Labor Day (1894), Columbus Day (1968), Veterans Day (est. in 1938 as Armistice Day, name changed in 1954), Thanksgiving Day (1870), and Christmas Day (1870).
I’m too embarrassed to least two of the three I didn’t get. Giving myself a break over Juneteenth because it’s new as a federal holiday (not new, of course, in general!) I came up with eight of them!
Kristina, I think you did a good job!
When I was a kid, I remember reading historical novels where people celebrated Armistice Day and wondering what it was. Holidays morph. How are we supposed to keep up?