MDBCs 18 Jun 2023

Entry posted by sandrewn in Bread Crumbs 686 June 18, 2023

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June 18th 2023 - Holidays and Observances

(click on the day for details)

Autistic Pride Day (International)
Christian feast day:
- Bernard Mizeki (Anglican and Episcopal Church)
- Elisabeth of Schönau
- Gregorio Barbarigo
- Leontius, Hypatius and Theodulus
- Marina the Monk (Maronite Church, Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria)
- Mark and Marcellian
- June 18 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Foundation Day (Benguet)
Human Rights Day (Azerbaijan)
National Day (Seychelles)
Queen Mother's Birthday (Cambodia)
Waterloo Day (United Kingdom)

Observances (click on the day, BD, or week for details

International Day for Countering Hate Speech

National Black America’s Day of Repentance

Blake Shelton’s Birthday

Fun Observances ( 2 )

International Picnic Day

International Picnic Day is a made-up holiday that is celebrated annually on June 18. So, pack your picnic basket, hop into the car, or walk to a park or a picnic area and enjoy an outdoors meal by yourself or with your family and friends to celebrate this unofficial holiday.

International Picnic Day is a day to commune with nature and enjoy a lovely summer day if you are in the Northern Hemisphere. For those of you in the Southern Hemisphere, who says you can’t picnic indoors? Just spread a blanket in the middle of your living room. Maybe even create a pillow fort and enjoy some time with your family!

A similar holiday is celebrated in the Australia’s Northern Territory on the first Monday of August each year. Picnic Day in this region is a public holiday.

How to Celebrate?

Plan a picnic and invite all your friends and family.
If you are working, take your lunch hour off to have a picnic by yourself.

Did You Know...

...that according to the Guinness Book of World Records, the world's largest picnic was held in Lisbon, Portugal on June 20, 2009? Over 22,000 people attended this picnic organized by Realizar Impact Marketing and Modelo.

~~~~~~~

International Panic Day

June 18 is International Panic Day. Use it as an excuse to panic about everything under the Sun, or take the day to evaluate your priorities and eliminate anything that causes you stress and anxiety.

It is a fact of life that as we grow older, life can get complicated. This made-up holiday is an acknowledgment that work, finances, health and relationships can all sometimes get overwhelming and that it is necessary to take a pause once in a while and relax. The holiday encourages people to find ways to reduce and manage their stress.

A similar holiday, called Panic Day is also sometimes observed on March 9.

Harmful to Health

Stress is not always a bad thing. In the short-term, stress is the body's response to threats. Stress hormones released in the body increase heartbeat and the flow of oxygen to the brain, and help an individual appropriately react and respond to the threat. However, in the long-term, anxiety and stress can be harmful to a person's physical, mental and social health. Chronic stress can negatively affect the heart, the immune system, and the digestive system. People with chronic stress are more likely to suffer from aches and pains, and may be at a higher risk for heart diseases, stroke, type II diabetes, and a weak immune system.

Negative Social Impact

Chronic stress can also lead to depression and other mental health issues. Studies have shown that people who are stressed tend to be socially withdrawn, and have trouble forging new and supportive relationships. This can lead to a vicious cycle – people who suffer from chronic stress need social and personal support to deal with their anxieties, but these very anxieties do not let them create strong and supportive social bonds.

Keep Calm

Managing stress is not easy, but with a little bit of determination and support, it can be done. Experts suggest that the first step to stress management is to recognize the sources of your anxieties. Once you have done that, find ways to either eliminate them or work on reducing your interaction with them. For example, if you are stressed because of a person, one way to help yourself is to find a way to reduce your interaction with her or him. If driving to work is stressing you out, ask your boss if you can work from home some days of the week?

How to Observe?

Take the day off and relax. It is for good reason that today is also International Picnic Day. What better way to relax and forget all your stresses than by going on a picnic?
Go to the store and treat yourself to some aromatic candles. It has been shown that soothing music and pleasant smells can help reduce stress.
Go for a long walk in the park and commune with nature.
Read, get a new hobby or get involved in social activities. The more you are busy, the less time you will have to think about your stressors.
Recruit a stress buddy – someone who can calm you and work through the futility of panicking with you. Every time you feel life is overwhelming you, call them and ask them for their help.

Did You Know…

…that the word panic is derived from the Greek word associated with the Greek shepherd god Pan? According to mythology, Pan amused himself by striking fear among travelers in the woods.

***

As we pulled into the parking lot, we saw a couple of people looking under the hood of their car. Concerned, Mom wondered aloud,

"Do you think they have a flat tire?"

***

A candy company’s sales team was promised a trip to sunny Hawaii this past winter if they met their sales quota. They missed their mark and instead got the consolation prize:

a vacation in Fargo, North Dakota, where the temperature was 7 degrees.

***

A month after Donald MacDonald started at Harvard, his mother called from Scotland. "And how are the American students, Donald?" she asked.

"They’re so noisy," he complained. "One neighbor endlessly bangs his head against the wall, while another screams all night."

"How do you put up with it?"

"I just ignore them and play my bagpipes."

***

My 18-year-old daughter and I were watching TV when a character with my maiden name—Lester Highsmith—was introduced. "I’ve never heard my name on TV before," I said.

My daughter was equally surprised. "Your name used to be Lester?"

***

Entada rheedii

Commonly known as African dream herb or snuff box sea bean,^[3] and as the cacoon vine in Jamaica, is a large woody liana or climber of the Mimosa Family (Mimosaceae). The vine can grow as long as 120 meters (393.7 feet).^[4] Their seeds have a thick and durable seed coat which allows them to survive lengthy periods of immersion in seawater.

(I think I'll stick with the string beans my mom used, to make her Hungarian string been soup, I still taste it, a happy memory, sigh 🥲)