Category: Nonfiction

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National Nothing Day

Today is one of the more interesting holidays. January 16 is National Nothing Day. The intention is to have one day where there is nothing to celebrate. One in seven January 16th often fall on Martin Luther King, Jr Day, which is the third Monday of January, thereby usurping the concept of celebrating nothing. However, celebrating nothing can come in many forms. Perhaps for the whole day you respond with nothing. What are you plans today? Nothing. What’s for dinner? Nothing. Perhaps you send an email with nothing written and leave it blank. I think one should decide what nothing truly means to them and take appropriate action.

Nothing is a pronoun meaning not anything, no single thing. I think one could argue that it doesn’t mean the absence of things but a lack of distinction. This might propose some existential questions, but I believe that nothing does not mean a lack of things. In a way, this post is really about nothing. I do hope you’ll all leave nothing in the comments. I had considered not posting at all today. But no post would be something. And a post about nothing is something. And also nothing. What is anything really? What is nothing?

In 1972, columnist Harold Pullman Coffin proposed National Nothing Day. The day has been observed in all its nothingness since 1973.  The observance is sponsored by Coffin’s National Nothing Foundation, registered in Capitola, California.

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Wacky Wednesday: January 13

Today is filled with many things. We have some great words, some remembrances, and some trivial things to celebrate. We continue our exploration into old English insults with Raggabrash. This word refers to a disorganized or grubby person. We all know someone who always seems out-of-sorts no matter how much they plan ahead. Next we have Rakefire. This refers to a visitor who outstays their welcome. This used to mean, and the name comes from, someone who stayed so late the dying coals in the fireplace would need to be raked over to keep it burning. 

We’ll start our holidays off with the token food holiday. Today is National Peach Melba Day. This is a dessert with peaches, vanilla ice cream, and raspberry sauce. It may even include whipped cream and a cherry on top. Today is also Korean American Day commemorating the first Korean immigrants coming to the United States in 1903. And it’s Stephen Foster Memorial Day celebrating the music of the first US composer. He’s songs include “Oh, Susanna,” and “Camptown Races.” And finally, today is also National Rubber Ducky Day and National Sticker Day. Someone makes stickers of rubber duckies, right?

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Coffee and Contemplation: My Favorite Books of 2020

I enjoyed many of the books I read during this last year. I read more books than I have in an entire year and I’m proud of myself for that. There were two in particular that stood out to me. It wasn’t so much the stories themselves but the writing and the way the stories captured my imagination. This isn’t a book review. Not really. I hope what I say will encourage you all to read these books, though one might be hard to find. These were both new approaches to old ideas. And there was something supernatural and magical about them.

The first book is “The Wolfman” by Nicholas Pekearo. Many have said this is the best werewolf novel ever written. I’m inclined to agree. It was tragic that Pekearo died before seeing it published. The story is about a man who is a werewolf and uses this condition to hunt and kill bad people like murderers, serial killers, etc… The main character reminded me of my father in many ways. Both his good and bad qualities. Copies of this book are online. Physical copies are more expensive. I don’t think it’s being printed for the moment. If you prefer e-readers, it’s still more expensive than others. Just fair warning but it’s worth every penny.

The second book is “The Night Circus” by Erin Morgenstern. The synopsis makes one think this will be a romance novel, but the romance is subtle. I didn’t notice the two characters were starting a courtship until half-way through. This could be because of the non-linear narrative. There’s no mushy stuff. There’s too much magic going on in the story. It has a little of everything and is well written. My enthusiasm for this novel overshadowed many of the others I read in 2020. This book is a little easier to acquire than the first one I mentioned. 

What were your favorite reads of 2020? I often stick with supernatural or magical realism type stories but please share any books that stuck out in your mind during 2020.