Defy Superstitions Day
It’s no coincidence that Defy Superstitions Day occurs on Sept. 13. If you live in fear of black cats, picking up a coin when it’s tails side up, or Friday the 13th, you need this holiday. On Defy Superstitions Day let go of the ingrained superstitions you may have. You’re not alone, though, an estimated 17 million to 21 million people in the U.S. have a fear of Friday the 13th, according to Paraexplorers. In 2011 Defy Superstitions Day (luckily?) falls on a Tuesday not a Friday. There are two sides to every coin, and there is more than one way to look at something that’s traditionally perceived to be unlucky.
The number 13 has many different meanings, not all of them bad.
* 13 is the number of Archimedian solids according to Mathworld.
* The U.S. had 13 original colonies and the U.S. flag has 13 stripes.
* The Assumption of the Virgin Mary occurred on a Friday 13th.
* Alex Rodriguez, Dan Marino and Wilt Chamberlain have all worn the number 13.
National Peanut Day
Peanuts seem like a true While very much an American snack. They’ve paired up with America’s pastime, baseball and “American’s consume more than 6 pounds of peanuts and peanut products each year,” according to the American Peanut Council. The peanut, a legume not a nut, originated in Paraguay. The plants were disseminated through South America, the Caribbean and Mexico.
European explorers introduced peanuts to Africa according to “The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink.” As a result of the Civil War northerners were introduced to peanuts and due to demand, cultivation increased. Prepare yourself a Peanut Tofu Wrap or Peanut Butter Brownie Bites garnished with peanuts.
National Celiac Awareness Day
You may be noticing more grocery stores carrying gluten-free items. Some even have devoted shelf-space to for gluten-free groceries. In 1888 Dr. Samuel Gee described connected the dots between diet and controlling the Celiac disease. “Celiac disease disrupts the absorption of nutrients in the small intestine” according to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse.
“There is a kind of chronic indigestion which is met within persons of all ages, yet is especially apt to affect children between one and five years old.” – Gee
The U.S. Senate passed the Celiac Awareness Day Resolution, to be observed annually on Gee’s birthday, Sept. 13.