♪♪Dance, Dance, Dance♪♪

May 25, 2016 at 12:01 am | Posted in Today's Reasons To Celebrate | Leave a comment

Good morning ‘hoofers’. Today is Wednesday, May 25th. Today’s holidays are:

National Tap Dance Day 

I’m not going to ‘tap dance’ around the subject. National Tap Dance Day could be interpreted to mean that this is a day to avoid, or “tap dance” around, problems or issues at home or with colleagues at work. However, if you chose that interpretation, you would be wrong. National Tap Dance Day celebrates the birth date of Luther Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, one of the premier tap dancers of all time…born on this date in 1878. It was created as the result of a Joint Resolution of Congress declaring May 25th National Tap Dance Day. President George H. W. Bush signed it into law as a national day on November 7, 1989.
If you already know how to tap dance, retrieve your old tap shoes from that dusty box on the top shelf in your garage and brush up on your skills. If you have ever considered learning how to tap dance, today is the day to do so. If you don’t feel like taking up tap dancing today, you can still celebrate today by learning more about Mr. Robinson, learning more about tap dancing, and/or watching old films which include tap dancing (particularly ones featuring Mr. Robinson).

Senior Health & Fitness Day 

Senior Health & Fitness Day is a time to explore the many senior-friendly physical activity options, and to understand the importance of exercise and nutrition for ongoing health and illness prevention. A healthy diet can boost energy and immunity, and regular exercise is necessary to retain bone mass and lower the risk of fractures and to build muscle strength and reduce the risk of falls.
Senior Health & Fitness Day encourages seniors to schedule a health screening, consult with their physician about diet and exercise information, and to set up an exercise regimen. Low-impact, non-competitive exercise programs include stretching, walking and swimming. They are designed to increase strength and flexibility without over-stressing the body.

Geek Pride Day

Geek Pride Day was created in Spain in 2006, and soon spread worldwide via the internet. It is intended to promote geek culture and is celebrated annually on May 25th. In 2008, Geek Pride Day was officially celebrated in the United States for the first time, It was heralded by numerous bloggers, coalescing around the launch of the Geek Pride Day website.
In 2009, Geek Pride Day received a further boost when it was acknowledged by the Science Channel, which aired special programming to celebrate Geek Pride Day events. In 2010, Geek Pride Day spread further, with in cities as diverse as Halifax, Nova Scotia; Budapest, Hungary; Tel Aviv, Israel; Timişoara, Romania and San Diego, California.
In 2013, Gothenburg, Sweden was added to the list when the city held a Geek Pride parade and it was decided that it would be an annual event. Also, in 2013, and annually since, a Meetup group in the New York City suburbs calling themselves the Westchester Geeks, has held a Geek Pride Day celebration.

Cookie Monster’s Birthday 

Actually, Cookie Monster’s Birthday celebrates the birthday of Frank Oz, the voice of the Cookie Monster from 1969 to 2002 (and occasionally since then). He (Frank Oz) was also the voice of many other iconic characters from Sesame Street like Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, and Grover, among others. He voiced the character of Yoda in the Star Wars films as well.

National Wine Day  

Wine has been an important part of human history and culture for thousands of years. Archaeologists in Speyer, Germany discovered the oldest bottle of wine in existence while excavating two Roman stone sarcophaguses in 1867. The bottle dates back to at least 325 AD. It is now on display at the History Museum of the Pfalz in Germany. To celebrate this holiday, visit a winery near you today. If you don’t live near a winery, have some wine at home with your dinner tonight.

National “Brown Bag it” Day 

Let’s face it, fast-food restaurants and “roach coaches” aren’t particularly known for their healthy dining options. Most offer only foods that are high in calories and low in nutritional value. Packing your own lunch for work or school is a great way to make sure you know that you are getting proper nutrition during the day. And, eating at such places day in and day out can negatively affect your tight budget…Packing your own lunch is a great way to save money.
To celebrate National “Brown Bag it” Day, pack your own lunch today before you go to work/school. If you are retired, pack a lunch and go to a park.
Author’s Note: When packing your lunch, be sure to take into account the availability, or lack thereof, of a refrigerator, and make appropriate food choices. Food poisoning is nothing to be scoffed at.

National Missing Children’s Day 

Towel Day 

World MS Day

On this date:

• In 1787 – The Constitutional convention opened in Philadelphia with George Washington presiding.
• In 1844 – The gasoline engine was patented by Stuart Perry.
• In 1895 – Oscar Wilde, a playwright, poet, and novelist, was convicted of a morals charge and sentenced to prison in London.
• In 1925 – John Scopes was indicted for teaching the Darwinian theory in school.
• In 1927 – Ford Motor Company announced that the Model A would replace the Model T.
• In 1935 – Babe Ruth hit his final home run, his 714th, and set a record that would stand for 39 years.
• In 1953 – In Nevada, the first atomic cannon was fired.
  In 1961 – America was asked by President Kennedy to work toward putting a man on the moon before the end of the decade.
• In 1968 – The Gateway Arch, part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in St. Louis, MO, was dedicated.
• In 1977 – An opinion piece by Vietnam veteran Jan Scruggs appeared in “The Washington Post.” The article called for a national memorial to “remind an ungrateful nation of what it has done to its sons” that had served in the Vietnam War.
• In 1981 – Daredevil Daniel Goodwin scaled Chicago’s Sears Tower while wearing a “Spiderman” costume, in 7 1/2 hours.
• In 1985 – Bangladesh was hit by a hurricane and tidal wave that killed more than 11,000 people.
• In 1986 – Approximately 7 million Americans participated in “Hands Across America.”
• In 1992 – Jay Leno debuted as the new permanent host of NBC’s “Tonight Show.”
• In 1997 – Senator Strom Thurmond became the longest-serving senator in U.S. history (41 years and 10 months).
• In 1997 – Poland adopted a constitution that removed all traces of communism.
• In 1999 – A report by the House of Representatives Select Committee on National Security and Military/Commercial Concerns with the People’s Republic of China concluded that China had “stolen design information on the United States’ most advanced thermonuclear weapons” and that China’s penetration of America’s weapons laboratories “spans at least the past several decades and almost certainly continues today.”
• In 2000 – The Walt Disney Co. and Time Warner Inc. signed a long-term deal that ended a dispute over the airing policies of Time Warner. Time Warner had blacked out Disney programs for a 39 hour period the previous month due to the lack of an agreement.\
• In 2001 – Erik Weihenmeyer, 32, of Golden, CO, became the first blind climber to reach the summit of Mount Everest.
• In 2001 – Sherman Bull, 64, of New Canaan, CT, became the oldest climber to reach the summit of Mount Everest.
• In 2006 – In Houston, former Enron Corp. chiefs Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skillings were convicted of conspiracy and fraud for the downfall of Enron.

Celebrity Birthdays:

• Ralph Waldo Emerson 1803 – Essayist, philosopher, poet.
• Luther Bill (Bojangles) Robinson 1878 – Tap dancer, actor.
• Igor Sikorsky 1889 – Aviation pioneer.
• Ginny Simms 1916 – Singer.
• Claude Akins 1926 – Actor.
• Jeanne Crain 1925 – Actress.
• Miles Davis 1926 – Musician.
• Kitty Kallen 1926 – Singer.
• Robert Ludlum 1927 – Author.
• Beverly Sills 1929 – Opera singer.
• Tom T. Hall 1936 – Singer, songwriter.
• Dixie Carter 1939 – Actress.
• Leslie Uggams 1943 – Actress, singer.
• Frank Oz 1944 – Actor, puppeteer.
• Karen Valentine 1947 – Actress.
• Patti D’Arbanville 1951 – Actress, model.
• Connie Sellecca 1955 – Actress, model.
• Mike Myers 1963 – Actor, comedian.
• Anne Heche 1969 – Actress.
• Justin Henry 1971 – Actor.
• Molly Sims 1973 – Actress.
• Cillian Murphy 1976 – Actor.