Cheers!

Have you ever wondered why there are so many US national holidays? These days, it seems that there is a “holiday” just about every week. There are in fact so many, that I now have a Post Office and government office calendar app on my smart phone just to know when they are going to be open.

I was talking to some friends the other day, and I told them that I was thinking of becoming a lobbyist just so I can lobby to make Super Bowl Monday an official holiday. I’m serious! Questions and conspiracy theories surrounding the Super Bowl arise like “What would happen if all the toilets in a particular city got flushed at the same time during the commercial break?” Maybe that is why all the Super Bowl commercials have to be so interesting, to save us.  

Anyway, I thought with a little break in the action before the marketing for my book  really gets under way, I thought I would give you my devoted readers, the skinny on why we celebrate a few lesser known as to “why we do it” holidays. In no specific order, here they are:

St. Patrick’s Day-  

Became a holiday: 1903

Why we drink green beer and party down: Although St. Paddy’s day falls during the Catholic tradition of Lent, Lenten restrictions were lifted for this special day on eating meat and alcohol consumption. Hence the debauchery…

Original meaning: Meant to celebrate the arrival of Christianity in Ireland

DID YOU KNOW- The official color of St. Patrick’s Day was originally blue, however slowly over time transitioned to green. Shamrocks are popular due in part to a method of teaching the doctrine of the Christian Trinity using a 3 leafed shamrock. St. Patrick’s Day was not intended to celebrate Irish culture until introduced as a new tradition in the mid 1990’s. St. Patrick’s Day is not an official U.S. holiday (but should be)

Valentine’s Day-

Became a holiday- in the 1400’s.. really, that long ago.

Who is St. Valentine? St. Valentine was a martyr who was killed after marrying soldiers that were forbidden to marry and ministering to early Christians in Rome.  

Why men choose to go broke on this day and women love it- The idea of exchanging a “Valentine” comes from the tradition of St. Valentine’s last letter he wrote from prison just before his death, signed “from your Valentine” and the fact that many nations adopted the celebration of this Saint as a way to communicate unrequited love to their “sweetie’s”

DID YOU KNOW- The Eastern Orthodox church also celebrates this holiday, but they do it in July.  

Columbus Day-

Became a Holiday: 1937

Wha…?-  me neither…

Again wha? – I got nothing…

DID YOU KNOW- When Columbus landed, he was actually lost. Columbus never once set foot in the present day United States, yet we have a national holiday in remembrance of him. Hawaii, Alaska, and South Dakota do not celebrate or observe Columbus Day.

See why I want to make Super Bowl Monday a national Holiday?

Keep your head up, shoulders forward and phones on vibrate…

-Lou