Reasons to Celebrate: Fact or Fiction?

Have you ever visited Punchbowl's Reasons to Celebrate page and wondered about the holidays that you see there? If you have ever questioned the truthfulness behind any of the daily occasions posted, you're not alone and it's very understandable! The often silly reasons to celebrate may have led you to wonder about their origin. While it's hard to believe that Wear Your Pajamas to Work Day (April 16) or International Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19) are holidays, they are all 100% true.

They might not be federal holidays like Memorial Day or Presidents Day or religious holidays like Christmas or Hanukkah (all of which are also listed as Reasons to Celebrate) but they are actual and very real celebrations created by someone else, at some point. Punchbowl just reports the facts and provides a daily dose of fun information about an unusual holiday for your reading pleasure.

Let’s take a look at a few examples:

  • January 22 is National Answer Your Cat's Questions Day. To unravel the mystery behind this one, look back to the long history of cohabitation between cats and humans. Historians believe that cats were domesticated as early as 12,000 years ago, but  still don’t fully understand each other. This is the day to make an effort! The California Veterinary Medical Association has even put together a list of possible cat questions and answers for the day.

 

  • Yellow Pig Day is July 17. It’s origins date back to the 1960s when two math students at Princeton were given an assignment that drove them nuts. Read about Yellow Pig Day and tell us if we could have come up with something like that!
  • How about National Waffle Day on August 24? You probably noticed that there are a lot of food holidays. This one celebrates the first patent of the waffle iron on August 24, 1869 by Cornelius Swarthout of Troy, New York. Yummy!

Are you intrigued? Sign up to get daily Reasons to Celebrate email updates and be the first to know about these quirky and unusual holidays!

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