MDBCs 06 Oct 2023

The unofficial holiday was created in 1986 in Boulder Colorado by a group of computer technicians who were inspired by the Hatter and his antics in the epic fantasy novel.

In the book, the Hatter is an eccentric milliner for whom time is forever stuck at a tea party with his friend the March Hare.

10/6

The date for the holiday was chosen because of how John Tenniel illustrated the Hatter in Alice in Wonderland. The English illustrator who was also a political cartoonist depicted the Hatter wearing a hat with a piece of paper that has 10/6 written on it. The 10/6 refers to the cost of a hat – 10 shillings and 6 pence. The creators of the holiday who are from the United States where the date is written in the month/day (mm/dd) format took this to set the date for the holiday on October 6 (10/6). For those who write the date in the day/ month (dd/mm) format, the holiday would fall on June 10.

How to Celebrate?

Read Alice in Wonderland.
Watch the movies based on the novel.
Wear a hat the whole day.
Host an Alice in Wonderland themed tea party.

Did You Know...

...that even though this holiday is called Mad Hatter Day and that the Hatter is also popularly known as the Mad Hatter, Lewis Carol never refers to the character as the Mad Hatter?

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World Smile Day

The first Friday of October every year is celebrated around the globe as World Smile Day. The unofficial holiday encourages people to do acts of kindness to spread good will and cheer.

First started in 1999 by the creator of the smiley, Harvey Ball, the holiday celebrates the intent behind the now universally recognized icon - to bring a smile of the faces of people around the world. The purpose of the holiday was the move away from the commercialization of the smiley and to use it as a symbol of kindness and affection.

Morale Booster

The smiley made its debut in 1963 as a way to increase the morale of the employees of a life insurance company. Today, it is one of the most popular nonverbal ways to convey joy, happiness and cheer. The smiley face began as a bright yellow circle with two dots to represent eyes and a black line that represents a smiling mouth.

Emoji

Today, there are many different versions of the smiley, representing many other human emotions such a sadness, surprise, worry and laughter. In modern texting smileys are used to express emotions in online conversations on a smartphone or on a computer. The practice has its origin in Japan, and the smileys and other icons are known as emoji.

How to Celebrate?

Make people around you smile.
Do a random act of kindness. Buy a stranger a coffee. Compliment someone. Give your seat up to someone on the bus.
Surprise someone in your family with a visit, cook a meal for them, or do something special for them.
Volunteer your time and/ or money at a local nonprofit organization.

Did You Know...

...that babies are born with the ability to smile?

***

After a number of attempts to get the customer service agent on the phone to understand his name, my Asian American friend Appappa decided to spell it out.

"A for apple," he began. "P for pineapple, p for pineapple, a for apple, p for pineapple, p for—"

The flustered agent interrupted. "I have a better idea," she said. "Just tell me how many apples and how many pineapples."

***

My husband, who uses a wheelchair, showed up at his eye doctor's for an appointment. The receptionist checked the schedule, then said, "The nurse will call you in a moment. Have a seat."

He smiled. "Done."

***

I provide technical support for the computer software published by my company. One day, over the phone, I was helping a customer install a product on a Macintosh. The procedure required him to delete an old file. On the Mac there is an icon of a trash can that is used to collect items to be permanently deleted.

I told the customer to click on the old file and drag it to the trash. Then I had him perform a few other steps. As a reminder, I said, "Don't forget to empty the trash.

Obediently he replied, "Yes, dear."

***

The village blacksmith hired an enthusiastic new apprentice  willing to work long, hard hours.

 He instructed the boy, “When I take the shoe out of the fire, I’ll lay it on the anvil. When I nod my head, you hit it with the hammer.”

The apprentice did exactly as he was told, and now he’s the new village blacksmith.

***