Please Punctuate Properly People!

September 24, 2016 at 12:01 am | Posted in Today's Reasons To Celebrate | Leave a comment

Good morning practitioners of proper punctuation. Today is Saturday, September 24th. Today’s holidays are:

National Punctuation Day

Either through laziness, ignorance, or just a rebellious nonchalant attitude, with the advent of social media, proper punctuation seems to be all but forgotten. National Punctuation Day seeks to remedy this situation; if only for one day. From the lowly comma (,) to the mysterious and exotic ellipsis (…), proper punctuation enables people to communicate the written word easily and with more clarity. There is a big difference between “Let’s eat grandpa”, and “Let’s eat, grandpa”. Here is another example of the power of punctuation:

An English professor wrote the following words on the chalkboard and asked the students to punctuate it.
“A woman without her man is nothing.”
The majority of male students punctuated it: “A woman, without her man, is nothing.”
The majority of female students punctuated it: “A woman: without her, man is nothing.”

I could provide many more examples, but it should be abundantly clear to you by now that proper punctuation is the key to effective written communication. To help you in your attempt to properly use punctuation today below is a list of punctuation marks currently used in the English language. I have provided a link with each one that will explain its proper usage.

Comma (,)
Period (.)
Question mark (?)
Exclamation point (!)
Semicolon (;)
Colon (:) 
Apostrophe (‘)
Quotation mark (“)
Brackets ([ ])
Parentheses ( () )
Hyphen (-)  
Dash (—)
Ellipsis (…) 

To finish with National Punctuation Day, I leave you with this “blast from the past”  —by Victor Borge.

National Hunting and Fishing Day

National Hunting and Fishing Day, celebrated on the fourth Saturday of every September, is one of the most effective grassroots efforts ever undertaken to promote the outdoor sports and conservation.
After almost eliminating Buffalo from the planet in the 1870’s, sportsmen realized the crucial role animals play in nature’s plan. For over a century now, hunters and fishermen have led the way in conservation efforts. They were the first to recognize that rapid development and unregulated uses of wildlife were threatening the future of many species. Led by fellow sportsman and President Theodore Roosevelt, these early conservationists called for the first laws restricting the commercial slaughter of wildlife. They urged a sustainable method of using of fish and game, created hunting and fishing licenses, and lobbied for taxes on sporting equipment to provide funds for state conservation agencies. These actions were the foundation of the North American wildlife conservation model, a science-based, user-pay system that would foster the most dramatic conservation successes of all time. Species such as white-tailed deer, elk, antelope, wild turkey, wood ducks and many other species began to recover from decades of unregulated exploitation.
In the 1960’s, hunters and anglers embraced the era’s heightened environmental awareness but were dismayed to learn that many people didn’t understand the crucial role that sportsmen had played,and continue to play, in the conservation movement.
The first to suggest an official day of thanks to sportsmen was Ira Joffe, owner of Joffe’s Gun Shop in Upper Darby, Pa. In 1970, Pennsylvania Gov. Raymond Shafer adopted Joffe’s idea and created “Outdoor Sportsman’s Day” in the state. The concept soon emerged on the floor of the U.S. Senate. In June 1971, Sen. Thomas McIntyre, N.H., introduced Joint Resolution 117 authorizing National Hunting and Fishing Day on the fourth Saturday of every September. Rep. Bob Sikes, FL, introduced an identical measure in the House. In early 1972, Congress unanimously passed both bills. On May 2, 1972, President Nixon signed the first proclamation of National Hunting and Fishing Day, writing, “I urge all citizens to join with outdoor sportsmen in the wise use of our natural resources and in insuring their proper management for the benefit of future generations.” By late summer of that year, all 50 governors and over 600 mayors had joined in by proclaiming state and local versions of National Hunting and Fishing Day.

Fish Amnesty Day

When I first saw this holiday, I thought that it would have something to do with some sort of “catch & release” program. But alas, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Fish Amnesty Day was created by PETA in 1997 to counteract and coincide with the aforementioned, National Hunting and Fishing Day. This holiday is a day to recognize fish as living animals with rights and in need of protection just the same as other vertebrates. In addition to protection of fish, its purpose is also to convert near vegetarians who still eat seafood to take the final step and become fully vegetarian.

National Bluebird of Happiness Day

National Bluebird of Happiness Day celebrates the Bluebird. Bluebirds are a member of the Thrush family related to the American Robin. There are three bluebird types in North America: The Eastern Bluebird, The Western Bluebird, and the Mountain Bluebird. The mythology of the Bluebird of Happiness goes back thousands of years. The bluebird is widely accepted as a symbol of cheerfulness, good health, new births, prosperity, and hearth and home.
Once a common sight all across America, Bluebirds have decreased in number due to loss of natural habitat, overuse of pesticides, and predators. To celebrate this holiday, do some research on Bluebird species common to your region, then try to spot one.

Schwenkfelder Thanksgiving 

On this date in 1734, members of the Schwenkfelder Church gave thanks for their deliverance from Old World persecution as they prepared to take up new lives in the Pennsylvania-Dutch counties of Pennsylvania. This day of thanksgiving is still celebrated today by the remaining members of the religion; all located within a 50-mile radius of Philadelphia. For more information on the Schwenkfelder Church, use this link.

Gallbladder Good Health Day 

I guess that before we start celebrating Gallbladder Good Health Day, we should figure out exactly what the heck a gallbladder is and what it does. The gallbladder is part of the digestive system and helps to keep it liver healthy. Your gallbladder stores the bile that your liver produces and after you eat, it releases some of this bile into your intestines to lubricate the intestinal walls. It is about 4-5 inches long, looks like a baby eggplant, and is located just under the ribcage and liver.
High fiber foods like apples are good for the gallbladder, whereas fatty foods are not.  For some reason, women are 3-4 times more likely to suffer gallbladder attacks than men, which is odd because women are more likely to eat a healthy diet than men.

National Cherries Jubilee Day

Cherries Jubilee is an easy flambéed dessert that is presented with much fanfare. A sauce is made of cooked, pitted cherries and cherry liqueur (Kirschwasser brandy can be substituted), which is flambéed in a chafing dish and ladled over a dish of vanilla ice cream at the table. It’s great entertainment for people who have never had flambéed food. Chef Auguste Escoffier created the dish for Queen Victoria, for her Golden Jubilee celebration (in 1887, her 50th anniversary as queen), hence the name, Cherries Jubilee.
This is an elegant and impressive dessert, yet remarkably simple to make. To celebrate this holiday, impress your family by serving this dessert tonight.

Family Health and Fitness Day USA

Festival of Latest Novelties

International Rabbit Day

Kiwanis Kids’ Day

National Public Lands Day

National Seat Check Saturday

R.E.A.D. in America Day

Save Your Photos Day

On this date in

• 1789 – Congress passed the First Judiciary Act. The act provided for an Attorney General and the lower federal courts.
• 1869 – Thousands of businessmen were financially ruined after a panic on Wall Street. The panic was caused by an attempt to corner the gold market by Jay Gould and James Fisk.
• 1929 – The first all-instrument flight took place in New York when Lt. James H. Doolittle guided a Consolidated NY – 2 Biplane over Mitchell Field.
• 1934 – Babe Ruth played his last game as a New York Yankee player.
• 1938 – Don Budge became the first tennis player to win all four of the major titles when he won the U.S. Tennis Open. He had already won the Australian Open, the French Open, and the British Open.
• 1955 – President Dwight Eisenhower suffered a heart attack while on vacation in Denver, CO.
• 1957 – The Brooklyn Dodgers played their last game at Ebbets Field.
• 1957 – President Eisenhower sent federal troops to Little Rock, AR, to enforce school integration.
• 1960 – The first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was launched. The USS Enterprise set out from Newport News, VA.
• 1961 – “The Bullwinkle Show” premiered in prime time on NBC-TV. The show was originally on ABC in the afternoon as “Rocky and His Friends.”
• 1963 – The Senate ratified a treaty that limited nuclear testing. The treaty was between the U.S., Britain, and the Soviet Union.
• 1968 – “60 Minutes” premiered on CBS-TV.
• 1995 – Three decades of Israeli occupation of West Bank cities ended with the signing of a pact by Israel and the PLO.
• 1996 – The United States and the world’s other major nuclear powers signed a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty to end all testing and development of nuclear weapons.
• 1998 – The Federal Reserve released into circulation $2 billion in new harder-to-counterfeit $20 bills.
• 2001 – President George W. Bush froze the assets of 27 suspected terrorists and terrorist groups.

Celebrity Birthdays

• John Marshall 1755 – Supreme Court Justice.
• F. Scott Fitzgerald 1896 – Author.
• Don Porter 1912 – Actor.
• Larry Gates 1915 – Actor.
• Jim McKay 1921 – Sportscaster.
• Sheila MacRae 1924 – Actress.
• Anthony Newley 1931 – Singer, actor.
• Jim Henson 1936 – Puppeteer.
• Linda McCartney 1941 – Musician.
• Gerry Marsden 1942 – Musician.
• Joe Green  1946 – Football player.
• Phil Hartman 1948 – Actor, comedian.
• Gordon Clapp 1948 – Actor.
• Kevin Sorbo 1958 – Actor.
• Nia Vardalos 1962 – Actress.
• Rafael Palmeiro 1964 – Baseball player.
• Megan Ward 1969 – Actress.
• Kyle Sullivan 1988 – Actor.