MDBCs 28 Feb 2024

Definitely one of the more quirky made-up holidays we have seen, Public Sleeping Day or National Public Sleeping Day as it is also known, encourages people to commune with nature by sleeping outdoors in public.

Cold in the North

Cold temperatures in many parts of the Northern Hemisphere may make observing this holiday a foolhardy venture so make sure you have a sleeping bag. And if you are looking for a restful adventure, this may be the perfect holiday for you to participate in.

How to Celebrate?

Get your favorite pillow and blanket and find a safe and clean place in public to take a nap. Make sure you layer up if it is still winter in your part of the world.
You don't even need to find a special place to take a nap. If you have long commute why not take that time to catch a few winks?
Get together with friends and organize a large pajama party at a park. Have everyone bring their sleeping bags, set up an outdoor movie screen, have a picnic and then take a nap.

Did You Know…

…that humans are the only mammals that can willingly delay sleep?

***

In good weather, my friend Mark always let his yellow-naped Amazon parrot, Nicky, sit on the balcony of his tenth-floor apartment. One morning, Nicky flew away, much to Mark’s dismay. He searched and called for the bird, with no luck.

The next day when Mark returned from work, the phone rang. “Is this Mark?” The caller asked. “You’re going to think this is crazy, but there’s a bird outside on my balcony saying, ‘Hello, this is Mark.’ Then it recites this phone number and says, ‘I can’t come to the phone right now, but if you will leave a message at the tone, I will call you back.’”

Nicky’s cage had been kept in the same room as Mark’s answering machine.

***

We brought our newborn son, Adam, to the pediatrician for his first checkup. As he finished, the doctor told us, "You have a cute baby."

Smiling, I said, "I bet you say that to all new parents."

"No," he replied, "just to those whose babies really are good-looking."

"So what do you say to the others?" I asked.

"He looks just like you."

***

Neighbors of ours had a terrible disagreement over a patio they wanted for their backyard. The wife had rather grand ideas, while the husband wanted costs kept to a minimum. The wife won out, and the construction bill climbed higher and higher.

I dropped by one day, when the patio was near completion, and was surprised to find the husband smiling from ear to ear as the workmen smoothed over the surface. I remarked how nice it was to see a grin replace the frown he had been wearing lately.

“You see where they’re smoothing that cement?” he replied. “I just threw my wife’s credit cards in there.”

***

I grew up hearing my dad tell a joke about a Mrs. Dunn, whose son, Timmy Dunn, had left Ireland for America, never to be heard from again. She discovered that Mike O’Malley was leaving for America and asked Mike to look for Timmy and tell him to write to her.

Well, Mike looked for Tim everywhere he went, asking many a man whether he was Timmy Dunn, but to no avail. Then one day in a men’s room, a man walked out of a stall. Mike asked him, “Are you Dunn?”

The gentleman said, “Yes.”

Mike replied, “Well, why don’t you write to your mother?!”

When my 12-year-old brother heard Dad tell the joke for the hundredth time, all of sudden, he started laughing.

“I finally got it!”

***