Let’s celebrate August 13th!
What special holidays are celebrated on August 13th?
August 13th is a holiday for blame passing, eyeglasses, filet mignon, trail mix and more.
Lefties, skinny dippers and other celebrants mark August 13th as a special holiday.
Here are several popular August 13th holidays (arranged alphabetically).
Blame Someone Else Day
“I didn’t do it. It wasn’t me.”
That’s the catchphrase for Blame Someone Else Day on August 13th? Do you have an alibi? How about a scapegoat?
Apparently, no one has owned up to the origin of this proverbial buck-passing holiday. Still, folks will shift blame from sunup to sundown on August 13th – it’s Blame Someone Else Day.
Blame Someone Else Day may occur on August 13th or on the first Friday the 13th of any given calendar year. Since everyone seems to deny responsibility for this inauspicious occasion, the holiday may take place, as needed.
Eyeglasses Day
“Hey, four eyes, where did you get those eyeglasses?”
August 13th is Eyeglasses Day. From prescription eyewear to simple readers, bifocals to blinkers, progressive lenses to pince-nez pairs, folks don glasses for better vision on this date. (CTRL-click here to read “Designer Eyeglasses and Discount Spectacle” in a new window.)
Although the actual data is difficult to document, many optometric historians attest that the first eyeglasses were created on August 13, 1285 (or possibly 1287). Actually, drawings of hand-held eyeglasses have been found in ancient hieroglyphics as well.
Whatever the origins, eyeglasses are celebrated on August 13th, a dandy day to make a spectacle.
Filet Mignon Day
Do you love steak? Can you tell the difference between a Porterhouse and a T-bone? August 13th is Filet Mignon Day, an epicurean holiday celebrating fine steakhouse cuisine. (CTRL-click here to read “Steakhouse Savvy: How to Order Steak Like a Bona Fide Beefeater” in a new window.)
Beefeaters, take your marks. It’s Filet Mignon Day on August 13th? Fire up the grill, or pick up a menu. How do you like your steak cooked?
International Left-Handers Day
Southpaws, rejoice. August 13th is International Left-Handers Day, created by the Left-Handers Club.
The Left-Handers Club, a society of southpaws, was formed on August 13, 1992, in the United Kingdom. Each year, on August 13th, lefty events are held throughout the U.K. (and several other spots) to celebrate left-handers and the challenges they face in a right-handed world. Left-handed tea parties, left-handed sporting activities, left-handed pub games and other left-handed events are offered.
Did you know that right-handed people tend to function most prevalently from the left side of their brains, while right-handed people rely much more fully on the right side of their brains? Considering this fun fact, which sort of person is most likely to be in his or her right mind most of the time?
Perhaps ironically, on August 13, 1963, left-handed pitcher Warren Spahn set a record for strike-outs by a southpaw pitcher. The Milwaukee Braves star pitched his 2,382nd strike out on this date. By the end of his 21-season Major League Baseball career, lefty pitcher Warren Spahn had accrued 2,583 strikeouts.
Incidentally, the official mascot of the Chicago White Sox baseball team is named Southpaw (see photo).
Skinny Dipping Day
Swimmers may skip the skivvies on August 13th – it’s Skinny Dipping Day. Folks may opt for birthday suits, rather than bathing suits, for recreational swimming, particularly by moonlight.
If you hear a splash in the nigh on August 13th, it just might be a skinny dipper or two. Overnight camp counselors may avert their eyes, as cabins empty after dark, with campers sneaking out for a quick dip.
Skinny dippers better beware, though. The second week of August is National Recreational Scuba Diving Week in the United States, so you never know who might be lurking (and looking) underwater. Best look before you leap.
Trail Mix Day
Happy trails! August 13th is Trail Mix Day. What do you like in your trail mix? Do you enjoy dried fruits (such as apricots, dates or raisins), grains, granola, nuts or even candy bits in trail mix? Call it gorp, scroggin or a healthy snack.
Toss a handful of your favorite trail mix in a bag, and set out for a scenic hike. It’s Trail Mix Day on August 13th.
CTRL-click here to read “A Handful of Healthy Trail Mix Recipes” in a new window.
Special Saints Days (Various)
The Calendar of the Saints lists the following for August 13th: Benildus, Cassian of Imola, Cassian of Todi, Centolla, Concordia, Francis of Pesaro, Francisco Castells y Brenuy, Gertrude of Altenberg, Helen, Herulph, Hippolytus, Jakob Gapp, John of Alvernia, José Boher y Foix, José Juan Perot y Juanmarti, José Tàpies y Sirvant, Junian, Ludoiph, Mark of Aviano, Maximus the Confessor, Nerses Glaietsi, Our Lady Refuge of Sinners, Otto Neururer, Pascual Araguàs y Guàrdia, Pedro Martret y Molet, Pontian, Radegunde, Silvestre Arnau y Pascuet, Tikbon of Zadonsk, Wigbert and William Freeman.
Notable Anniversaries on August 13th:
French revolutionaries captured and imprisoned several members of the French royalty on August 13, 1792, including Marie Antoinette, who was later guillotined.
On August 13, 1889, American machinist William Gray invented the first pay telephone. Installed at a bank in Hartford, Connecticut, William Gray’s pay phone became popular. Within a decade, more than 75,000 coin-operated telephones could be found across America.
The first Greyhound buses began service on August 13, 1914, in Minnesota.
In Chicago, the Transcontinental Roller Derby started on August 13, 1935, with the first events held at the Chicago Coliseum.
Various Other August 13th Holidays
August 13th is also Annie Oakley Day, Central African Republic Independence Day, Daughter’s Day, Earthquake Day (Scotland), Fairies’ Anniversary of Snick-Snacker’s Right Foot, Feast of St. Cassian, Feast of St. Pontian, Festival of Huitzilopochtls (Aztec), Festival of the Volcano (Guatemala), Friday the Thirteenth (varies), Hecate – Old Roman Goddess Festival and Herbert Hoover Day and Kool-Aid Days.
Additional August 13th holidays include Lao Issara – Day of the Free Laos (Laos), Montserrat Annual Pilgrimage Day, O-Bon – Shinto Festival of Souls (varies), Occupation Day, Rathkamp Matchbook Society Convention, Republic of Congo Revolution Anniversary, Runic half-month of As (first day), St. Hippolytus the Martyr Feast Day, St. Radegundes Queen of France Holiday, St. Wigbert the Confessor Feast Day and Women’s Day (Tunisia).
Happy August 13th to one and all!
Other Notable Holidays:
Click here to check other calendar dates for notable holidays and additional holiday content from this author.
(Note: Annually, some dates may fluctuate to accommodate weekends and local calendars.)
Sources:
http://halife.com/daily/trivia.html
http://halife.com/religion/ch04.html
http://holidayinsights.com
http://saints.sqpn.com/month00.htm
http://www.brainyhistory.com/events.html
http://www.brookston.org/almanac
http://www.earthcalendar.net
http://www.everythingpreschool.com/holidays
http://www.holidays.net/dailys.htm
http://www.holidaysforeveryday.com
http://www.kidsturncentral.com/holidays
http://www.partyguideonline.com/months
