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Five or six years ago, I discovered that October isn't just the spookiest month of the year, it's one of the yummiest, too! Not just for the bags of Halloween candy but because it's also National Pizza Month and National Popcorn Popping Month!
I only heard of the month-long national "holidays" when the kids very carefully explained why they should be able to have pizza and popcorn for dinner every night in October. That's taking it a little far, but I am willing to meet them halfway...and get a family dinner night every week in October in the bargain.
For the last five or six years, we get together one day a week in October to celebrate our favorite junk foods. The whole family settles down in the living room to watch a movie while we vie for the cheesiest slices of pizza and eat handfuls of freshly popped popcorn. While it can be hard to get everyone together at meal time, no one ever misses out on October family dinner nights. That alone is worth celebrating.
What could be cuter than a newborn piglet? TWO newborn piglets! Last week, a Visayan warty pig named Fancy gave birth to two adorable striped piglets at the Brevard Zoo in Melbourne, Florida.
Though the Visayan warty pig is native to two of the Visayan Islands in the Philippines, director of animal programs at the Brevard Zoo says people often mistake them for domestic pigs or wild boars. “They’re actually members of a distinct species on the brink of extinction,” she says.
So these two little piglets are a very big deal. Along with their siblings born to Fancy in 2008, they're poised to help revitalize their species and become legends in their own time.
The Australasia section of the zoo is closed for renovations, so guests won't be able to get up close and personal with the piglets for a few months. But the zoo promises to keep their Facebook page updated with cute videos like these:
Your "Things That Make You Go, 'Awww'" Gift Guru,
Linda
Samson is one big city fat cat. Not the kind who rides around in limos and lights his cigars with burning hundred dollar bills — this fat cat is even fancier than that. And he's gigantic!
Sampson is well-known as the biggest cat in New York City. The Maine Coon weighs in at a whopping 28 pounds. Not only that, he's fully four feet long! The famous feline has over 100,000 followers on Instagram and he's one of the most pampered pets in the city. Maybe in the world.
Samson's human, Jonathan Zurbel, takes him for regular walks around NYC. In a stroller. And his personal groomer is paid $120 a week to care for the coddled cat. Don't take my word for it, they've even been featured on television:
Maine Coons are some of the biggest domesticated cats in the world, weighing between 8-18 pounds. Despite his considerable girth, the colossal cat is perfectly healthy. And he's quite happy, too. With a life like his, who wouldn't be?
When I was a kid, I collected coins with my grandmother. I didn't exactly let my friends know about it, because I knew they'd think it was "nerdy". But it was something I could enjoy with my grandmother and she would never call me a nerd. We used to search out all kinds of different denominations from circulating currency back then. And later we got into specially minted collectible coins. Because of her, I still collect them. (I even have the entire set of state quarters, collected one-by-one.)
These days I'm too old to care whether anyone thinks I'm a nerd, so I proudly display my collection. My favorites are pop culture coins, especially ones that celebrate and honor my favorite actors, singers, and comedians. Every time I add a few new pieces, I reconnect with those very early memories of sitting at my grandmother's kitchen table and sorting coins on her floral vinyl tablecloth.
Finally, the kids are back at school. Don't get me wrong...I love having my kids at home. I love summer. I love the camping, the fishing, and the beach going. But I also love a house that doesn't look like a hungry horde just ravaged the place.
Which is one of the reasons I love Back to School season. The "hordes" are in the classroom now instead of making a wreck of my house. Which means their teachers are the ones in charge of their boundless energy and curiosity.
That's why I always try to send a little something special to their teachers at the first of the year. Teachers don't get a lot of praise. They don't make a lot of money. But most will say they can't think of a more rewarding job.
I certainly can't think of a more important job than educating our children. So teachers deserve a little recognition. Even if it's just a small gift that makes them smile as the new school year begins.
