The second Monday of each new year is National Clean Off Your Desk Day. This year it falls on January 12th!

I was really kind of hoping that there was a National Clean Off Your Desk WEEK! You see, I am a bit of a Pack Rat….I don’t think ONE DAY would do it! In my defense however, I am an ORGANIZED Pack Rat!

My entire office is a maze of piles of folders, baskets of things to file,  stacks of  ”things to look at again”.  Behind my external drives are the business cards that need to be entered into my data system. Next to them are the scraps of paper with important notes written on them to be sorted and acted upon at a later date.  

What is frightening to some, but comforting to me, is that I do know what is in each stack…I can put my hands on just about anything I need (give me 10 minutes and I’ve got it… I promise).  As a matter of fact, I think most of those stacks have been there since LAST year’s National Clean Off Your Desk Day. If my memory serves, me, I got sidetracked on that Monday and … well … just never got back to it.

So the bigger question is not if I “WILL” celebrate National Clean Off Your Desk Day, but rather if I “SHOULD”? How many times do we file something away for the sole purpose of making sure we have put it in a safe place so we don’t lose it..only to forget where we have put it and ultimately DO lose it!!!

I HATE WHEN THAT HAPPENS!!

So, I think I will have to take the stance that Cleaning Off My Desk this coming Monday might just be a waste of time for me…or that it will result in lots of lost time for me in the future. I can live with my messy desk. I am comfortable with my messy desk. And I have to say, I LIKE my messy desk.

I admit that several times a year I WILL address the lack of filing and pile of things to go thru. And you needn’t worry that I neglect important things. I don’t. 

BUT, my messy desk is ME! People would wonder what was wrong if they walked into my office and actually COULD see the desk top…”Not busy Gretchen? Too bad! Maybe business will pick up soon for you!” I wouldn’t be able to stand the sympathy!

So, this coming Monday while the rest of the world is Cleaning Off Their Desks, I plan on taking a long lunch and relaxing. If someday I find myself bothered by my messy desk, I’ll deal with it then. Otherwise, don’t worry about me…I’ll be fine! I’m surrounded by my “STUFF” and that’s a good thing!

By the way, for those of you who are “neat-niks” and won’t spend your day cleaning, and for those of you who prefer your organized chaos, as I do…the invitation stands…where should we meet for lunch?  For the rest of you, I’ll have a second dessert in your honor!

Now, where did I put that cat???

IT’S HERE!   National Chocolate Day! October 28, 2009!

Of course Chocolate deserves quite a bit of attention from a site that devotes itself to celebrating special memories. Chocolate is capable of taking a normal afternoon and turning it into an event all by itself.

Ghirardelli, Dove, Hershey, Nestle, Lindt, Godiva, Milk, Dark, Semi-sweet, White Bittersweet, Unsweetened, Cocoa …chocolate cake, chocolate ice cream, chocolate chip cookies, chocolate fondue, chocolate covered raisins, chocolate syrup, chocolate easter bunnies, chocolate frosting, chocolate truffles, chocolate liquor, chocolate brownies, chocolate covered cherries, chocolate sauce, chocolate martini’s, chocolate mousse, chocolate eclairs, chocolate donuts, Count Chocula, Cocoa Crispies, chocolate fudge, chocolate pudding, chocolate kisses, hot chocolate, chocolate mint …chocolate edible undies! 

Chocolate..once called The Nectar of the Gods!

In looking for the origin of National Chocolate Day, it quickly became obvious that there is more than one National Chocolate Day.  In fact, I found 3 separate dates, in 3 different months in the first 3 minutes of looking. It led me to one conclusion…Chocolate is worth celebrating more than once a year.  

Chocolate is an essential part our lives. We come up with all sort so excuses why we crave it…”I lost my car keys, if I only had some chocolate”…”I’m so nervous about my doctor’s appointment, I’ll just have a quick bag of chocolate covered pretzels”… My hair looks horrible today, GIVE ME THAT CHOCOLATE BAR!”  Let’s be honest…how many of us bought Halloween candy at the beginning of the month under the pretense that we were just shopping early…only to open it, devour  it, and now have to go buy a big bag for the actual trick-or-treaters that will show up at our doors on Saturday night?

In reality, we don’t need an excuse to eat Chocolate.  Did you know that… it is a myth that chocolate aggravates Acne. 10% of the recommended daily allowance of iron is found in one ounce of chocolate or cocoa. You would have to eat more than 12 Hershey Bars to equal the caffeine in 1 cup of coffee. And a single chocolate chip provides enough energy for an adult to walk 150 feet,therefore only 875,000 chips to walk around the world!

So eat up folks. Buy Chocolate today…boost our economy and keep Americans working. I think the importance of chocolate is the one thing that might bring this country together…we can all agree that Chocolate is Life!

Just in case you want more Chocolate holidays to celebrate,  here’s a short list of some SPECIFIC Chocolate days that we won’t want to miss either:

American Chocolate Week–March 14-20

National Milk Chocolate Day–July 28

National Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day–November 7

National Chocolate Mint Day–February 19

National Chocolate Chip Day–May 15

National Chocolate Eclair Day–June 22

National Chocolate Covered Anything Day–December 16

National Chocolate Covered Raisins Day–March 24

National Chocolate Custard Month–May 1-31

National Chocolate Pudding Day–June 26

National Chocolate Ice Cream Day–June 7

National Chocolate Milkshake Day–September 12

There are some days that should be celebrated…well…just because you have nothing better to do? That’s National Mole Day! How surprised was I to learn that if had nothing to do with the furry little creatures that we all hope we never actually come across!

The “Mole” in question is a number, specifically  Avogadro’s Number (6.02 x 10^23), which is a basic measuring unit in chemistry.  That’s the only explanation I’m going to give you. If you really want to get the facts, check out the National Mole Day Foundation for more info. I read it all. I’m sorry to say I don’t understand it.  But I’m always up for a good reason to have a party.

Mole Day was created as a way to foster interest in chemistry. Supposedly schools all over the world celebrate Mole Day.  Again, I don’t remember it from when I was in school. I DID take Chemistry, and I DID pass it.  I swear! Must have skipped class on Mole Day.  Just one more reason to tell my kids that they could miss the good stuff if they skip out of classes.

October 23 from 6:02 a.m. to 6:02 p.m.! That’s the time to celebrate Moles! WooHoo!

If you are a Chemist, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for things like plastic, deodorant, and ant killer. Also perfume, Sweet n’low, fabric softener and Neosporin. And now Moles.  

Guess I never paid much attention to Moles before. Though the furry little moles are the bane of many lawn owners, they do make a significant contribution to the health of your lawn. Their extensive tunneling and mound building mixes soil nutrients and improves soil aeration and drainage. Moles also eat many lawn and garden pests, including cranefly larvae and slugs.

Well, now I have a new appreciation for both the number and the animal. I wonder if I can convince anyone in my family that National Mole Day requires gift giving.  Wish me luck!

As a child I loved when it was time to carve the pumpkin! Nothing quite like getting elbow deep in slimey, gooey pumpkin guts!  We always saved the seed too! Dried them out on wax paper, and saved them to be planted in the back yard the next spring.  It was like we were always in preparation and anticipation of Halloween.  What wonderful memories!

I carved many a pumpkin in my day with my 3 “just-about-grown” kids, but with the hot, Florida weather, within less than 48 hours, our creative Jack-o-lanterns were always a pile of MUSH!

I miss having my kids at home to celebrate all the fun holidays.  But don’t worry, I’ve found plenty of things to keep me busy. And I’ve found a great way to make creative pumpkins that won’t  rot overnight!

This year???  Pumpkin Faces of my dearest friends!

What you’ll need:

*Any size pumpkin will do, but I found that a smaller one seems to be good. You can use a real or fake pumpkin. Of course, the fake pumpkins can be used year after year!

*8X10 photo of your friend or family member. Doesn’t have to be printed on photo paper. If you have your photos on your computer, just print on a sheet of white paper.

*Scissors

*Hot glue

Step 1: Print our your photo.

Step 2: Cut out the individual features of your friend…eyes, nose, mouth, hair, ears, etc.

Step 3: Hot glue the face pieces to your pumpkin to re-create the face.

It’s as simple as that! These are so much fun to give as gifts. Can also be made on small pumpkins or gourds and used as place cards on your Halloween dinner table.

Have fun this Halloween!  Stay Safe!  BOO!

Monday, September 28th…National Ask a Stupid Questions Day.  

Usually when someone says “Can I ask a stupid question?” the response is “There are no stupid questions”.

But let’s face it.  There really ARE stupid questions.

Here are some of my favorites:

Do I look fat in this?

Do you mind if I smoke?

What little light on my dashboard…you mean I was supposed to pay attention to that?

Do I have to pay for that now?

Is it gonna hurt?

Why can’t I have a raise?

Do you really love me?

Do you remember what day this is?

Are we there yet?

I’d love to hear what YOUR favorite stupid question is!

If you have children, or if you were ever a child yourself, you most likely played with Play-Doh.  The most famous toys in history are immortalized in the National Toy Hall Of Fame….and yes, Play-Doh is there!

Introduced in 1956, Play-Doh is the creation of  Joe  McVicker, who created a modeling clay from wallpaper paste for his sister’s preschool class. The kids were looking for a more “user-friendly” clay and it became an instant hit!

Play-Doh was first sold at Woodward and Lothop Department Stores in Washington D.C. in a 1 1/2 pound can, and only in White! In one short year it was reintroduced  in primary colors; Red, Yellow and Blue.

One of Hasbro’s jewels, the formula for Play-Doh stays a very guarded secret today after being pateneted in 1965, ten years after it hit the market.

What makes Play-Doh so special?  Everything! It is easy to keep soft…just remember to keep it sealed in it’s airtight containers.  (Even a ziplock baggie will keep it fresh)  Want to immortalize your creation?  Leave it open to the air overnight and it will harden. Unfortunately, most of us learned that lesson the hard way though, right?

But the best thing about Play-doh is that you can make ANYTHING with it. I’m from the generation that didn’t have the fancy products with the food makers and shape and animal molds. I had to make my own hamburgers…and grasshoppers…and  aliens.  Somehow they all turned out brown! Well, that’s what you get when you mix version of blue and red and yellow…duh! It didn’t matter. They were all works of art and I couldn’t have been more proud of my designs.

But whether you remember your Play-Doh creations or not, I will bet you money there is one thing you won’t ever forget…the SMELL of Play-Doh.  (You just nodded your head and had a major flashback, right?) Just in case I have tempted you to run out and buy a can just to be able to open it up and take a big whiff, here’s another option.  

 Play-Doh actually markets it’s own Perfume Spray. Seriously! Another product where I have to question “Now, why didn’t I think of that?”  It was created for the 50th birthday of the modeling clay,  is distributed through Perpetual Kid and Demeter retailers and is available in 1oz. bottles. I can only guess that you could be THE  topic of conversation if you decided to spray yourself and then head out to a cocktail party!  Although, if you are a kindergarten teacher, it might be just the trick to get the kids to love you unconditionally.

It is estimated that 900 million pounds of Play-Doh have been sold to date. I think I can personally claim a couple hundred pounds all by myself..between my exquisite artistic creations and the globs of Play-doh left behind in the rug of my childhood bedroom. I’m sure my mom wishes she had the internet all those years ago to look up How to Get Play-Doh out of carpets!

Enjoy National Play-Doh Day on September 18th. We should all celebrate the kid inside us!

NOTE: Do you have a child ten years or younger who loves Play-Doh?  Visit “Ready Go Play-Doh“ to find out how to win a $10,000 grand prize and Daily Giveaways. GOOD LUCK!!!