MDBCs 21 Nov 2024

The unofficial holiday was created by Brian and Michael McCormack as a response to the Yom Kippur War between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria in 1973.

Say Hello

The purpose of World Hello Day is simple – to encourage communication and dialogue between people of different backgrounds in order to achieve peace and understanding.

Since its beginning in 1973, the day has been celebrated around the world annually with several Nobel Peace Prize winners and peace activists taking part in it.

How to Celebrate?

World Hello Day requires that participants greet at least 10 people. These people can be family and friends, but it is suggested that one finds strangers to greet and talk to.

Did You Know…

…that hello was used as a telephone greeting for the first time by Thomas Edison?

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Use Less Stuff Day

The Thursday before Thanksgiving day is Use Less Stuff Day.

In anticipation of some of the year's biggest and busiest shopping days in the United States - Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the unofficial holiday encourages people to buy and use fewer things in order to reduce environmental waste and lower their energy use.

25% More Trash

The holiday was created as a response to the huge amounts of trash created by people around the U.S. during the holiday season that begins with Thanksgiving day and ends with New Year celebrations. Some estimates show that trash production in the U.S. increases by 25% during the winter holiday season. This means that American families generate about 4 to 5 million ton of extra waste in just a matter of a month!

Friday after U.S. Thanksgiving is Buy Nothing Day.

How to Celebrate?

Celebrating Use Less Stuff Day is easy - just reduce, reuse and recycle. Here are some more ways to make your holiday season a green holiday season:

Make a conscious decision to reduce your consumption during the holidays. Instead of buying physical gifts, give them your time. Volunteer to babysit or help a friend with house improvement projects.
Have a friend who likes movies or the theater? Buy them tickets to go watch a film or a play as a holiday gift.
Give a donation in your friend's or family member's name to their favorite charitable organization.
Hand make gifts and wrap them in re-usable or biodegradable packaging.
Send electronic greeting cards instead of paper holiday cards to your family and friends.
Host a garage or yard sale and get rid of all the things you have not used in the past few months.

Did You Know…

…that about 38,000 miles of ribbon is used and discarded around the holidays every year? This is enough ribbon to tie a bow around the Earth!

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Three guys go to a ski lodge, and there aren't enough rooms, so they have to share a bed. In the middle of the night, the guy on the right wakes up and says, "I had this wild, vivid dream of getting a hand job!"

The guy on the left wakes up, and unbelievably, he's had the same dream, too.

Then the guy in the middle wakes up and says, "That's funny, I dreamed I was skiing!"

***

It's game 7 of the NBA finals and a man makes his way to his seat at center court. He sits down and notices that the seat next to him is empty. He leans over and asks his neighbor if someone is sitting there.

He responds, "No, the seat's empty."

"The first man exclaims, "What?!? Who in their right mind would have a seat like this for the NBA finals and not use it?"

The neighbor responds, "Well the seat is mine, but my wife passed away and this is the first NBA finals we haven't been together."

The first man responds," I'm sorry to hear that. Wasn't there anyone else, a friend or relative, that could've taken that seat?"

The neighbor responds, "No, they're all at the funeral."

***

The huge college freshman decided to try out for the football team. "Can you tackle?" asked the coach.

"Watch this," said the freshman, who proceeded to run smack into a telephone pole, shattering it to splinters.

"Wow," said the coach. "I'm impressed. Can you run?"

"Of course I can run," said the freshman. He was off like a shot, and, in just over nine seconds, he had run a hundred yard dash.

"Great!" enthused the coach. "But can you pass a football?"

The freshman hesitated for a few seconds. "Well, sir," he said, "if I can swallow it, I can probably pass it."

***

My collection of vintage kitchen utensils includes one whose intended purpose was always a mystery. It looks like a cross between a metal slotted spoon and a spatula, so I  use it as both.

When not in use, it  is prominently displayed in a  decorative ceramic utensil caddy  in my kitchen.

The mystery of the spoon/spatula was recently solved when I found one in its original packaging at  a rummage sale.