National Scrabble Day celebrates the popular board game. It’s been popular around the world ever since. People young and old enjoy this game. What better time to play it, than on this April 13 holiday!?

Scrabble was created in 1938 by Alfred Mosher Butts. It is sold by Hasbro, Inc.

It’s very easy to celebrate Scrabble Day. Just get out your old board game, dust it off, and play a few rounds with family or friends.  

The versatile and invaluable safety pin was patented on April 10, 1849. Patent #6,281. On Safety Pin Day, an April 10 holiday, we celebrate this invention and its inventor.

The year was 1849. Inventor Walter Hunt was in debt. He owed $15 to a friend. Hunt decided the way to get out of debt, was to invent something that he could sell. What was that great idea, that profitable invention? It was the safety pin. He wisely applied for and received a patent for this invention. The safety pin is much safer than a straight pin and quickly became popular. He sold them for a profit. Later, he sold the patent and received $400 for it. He paid his friend back and pocketed the remaining $385, which was a handsome amount at the time.  

Note: A similar invention was made in England. It was called the “English Pin”.

If you are a little shaky or are experiencing tremors, that’s because today is Richter Scale Day. This April 26 holiday celebrates the birth of the inventor of the Richter Scale. Born on April 26, 1900, American seismologist Charles F. Richter (1900–1985) invented the Richter Scale in 1935.

Earthquakes have been shaking the earth since the dawn of time. They are the result of the movement of the tectonic plates deep underneath the earth. When these plates move or slip along each other, they create immense energy and shock wakes resulting in surface earthquakes and tsunamis. Large earthquakes result in tremendous loss of lives and property.

The Richter Scale measures the amount of energy released by an earthquake by measuring the magnitude or seismic waves produced by an earthquake. The Richter Scale measures range from 0 to 9. On the scale, each increase in number represents an earthquake 10 times more powerful. At 4.5 an earthquake can damage buildings and structures. At 7 on the Richter scale, severe and catastrophic damage can occur.

Are you on the outs with someone? Reconciliation Day is a special day to patch relationships and make amends. The goal of this April 2 holiday is to re-establish relationships between family, friends, and couples. Life is too short to hold a grudge against those we love. Rather, talk about your problems and issues. Be the first to offer the peace pipe or olive branch. Then, re-start the relationship. Kiss and makeup.

Estranged couples may find today to be an opportunity to work out their problems. People who have had a “falling out” with family members are encouraged to reach out and “mend the fence”. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if our country’s major political parties could talk to each other and find an agreeable middle ground!?

For those considering a reconciliation, the old saying is “It’s never too late”. But, that is not true. Someday, it could be too late. So, please use today to begin your reconciliation. 

Thinking about going on a road trip? Why not dust off those old paper road maps and plot a course to get away!? Today is Read a Road Map Day, an April 5 holiday.

Nowadays most people use a GPS to go from point A to point B. You would think these tools would make paper maps obsolete. It has all but completely outmoded the old paper road maps we relied on. Yet, these paper maps persist. Why? Simply because some people just like to have them handy when planning for a trip, or when on the road. GPS units in your vehicle has also taken a big bite out of the popularity of online road maps like Mapquest.

Paper maps and online travel maps are not totally obsolete. They still have a useful function, or they would not exist. You can find paper maps through state and local travel bureaus, state, and local visitor centers, and at many rest stops along major highways.  

Read a Road Map Day encourages us to take a step back in time and discover the value that road maps still have. Our GPS gets us to our destination in the quickest and shortest manner. But, is your trip about the destination or the journey? Road maps can help us to identify and plot routes that make the journey a more pleasant experience. There is so much to discover along the way. You can identify small and interesting towns or historic sites along the way that are passed by on today’s superhighways.  

Reach as High as You Can Day is a day to expand your horizons. This April 14 holiday is truly an uplifting experience. Today, there are no limits. You can literally reach for the sky and soar to new heights in everything you do today.

Is there something you’ve wanted to “go for”, and felt it was just out of reach? A new job, perhaps? Maybe a date with that cute co-worker or classmate. Whatever the challenge you face, if you reach as high as you can, you just might win the prize. And, you will never know until you try.

The sky is the limit for you. So, use Reach as High as You Can Day to reach and attain, or even surpass, your goals and objectives. You’ll be oh, so glad that you did! 

Song of the Day: Jumpin Jack Flash

Movie of the Day: White Men Can’t Jump

Dontcha just love food holidays? Today is National Prime Rib Day. This April 27 holiday is a real culinary treat. This is definitely my kind of day, the kind of day you can sink your teeth into. National Prime Rib Day gets your mouth watering and starts you drooling. Many of us look to this day on the calendar to enjoy one of America’s favorite roasts.

For just a day, forget about the diet. For just today, don’t fret over the high fat and cholesterol content. And mad cow?………. well isn’t prime rib worth the risk? After all, if you don’t have some prime rib today, you’ll be “madder than a wet……cow!”

There’s only one way to celebrate Prime Rib Day. And, that is with a big, thick, juicy cut of prime rib, cooked perfectly to your liking. Don’t forget the au jus and the fully loaded baked potato.

See How to Cook Prime Rib Roast

Great Poetry Reading Day is today, an April 28 holiday. This day honors some really great verses. We all were introduced to poetry in high school. During those impressionable teenage years, many teens became enamored with poetry, especially the romantic kind. 

There’s lots of poetry out there. Some poems are good, and some are not so good. Today is intended to read the world’s greatest poetry. But, you don’t have to limit your readings to famous poets. If you wrote a poem to that special someone, today is the perfect time to read it to her.

Tip: Guys, you will score a lot of points, if you read romantic poetry to your lady today. Today is also Kiss Your Mate Day.

Today is International Plant Appreciation Day, an April 13 holiday. Plants are our friends, our counterparts. We breathe in oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. Plants take in carbon dioxide and give off oxygen. Why, you could say it’s a marriage born in heaven, or at least the garden of Eden.

Today is a perfect opportunity to get closer to the plant world. Pamper your indoor plants. Don’t have any? Well, what are you waiting for? Go out and buy some. This special day falls in the spring, a perfect time for you to plant outdoor plants. If you are not yet a gardener, now is the time to start a relaxing and rewarding, lifetime gardening hobby.

Learn all about gardening and all of your favorite plants at The Gardener’s Network.

Let’s chow down and celebrate! Today is Pigs in a Blanket Day. This April 24 holiday is a day to eat pork sausage wrapped in a pancake. Why? Because that’s what “Pig in a Blanket” is. Somebody somewhere decided that this was a very special treat for them. So, they created a special day to celebrate this culinary delight. Aren’t you glad that they did?

How does one go about celebrating Pigs in a Blanket Day? Cook up some sausage. Make some pancakes. Wrap the sausage inside of the pancake. Add maple syrup. Then, dig in.

For the diet-conscious:

• If you are generally in good health, consuming this high-calorie and high-carb food once will not cause long-term health problems.
• If you are on a low-fat diet, we won’t tell if you use low-fat turkey sausage.
• If you are on a low-carb diet, look for a low-carb pancake recipe. Dozens of these recipes are just a quick internet search away.
• Also, diabetics can use low-carb syrups. Or, just use butter or margarine.