All - Leep Calendar

Harmony Day celebrates Australia's cultural diversity. It's about inclusiveness, respect, and a sense of belonging for everyone, regardless of race, creed, origin, gender, or sexual orientation.

Africa

Mar

Baked Scallops Day, Ntl.: March 12

06:20 AM | -

National Baked Scallops Day falls in mid-March each year. Shellfish are low in fat and can be cooked and served in multiple ways. Scallops are a prized and popular delicacy worldwide. Scallops can be baked, fried, grilled, or folded into soups and casseroles and served as an entrée or an appetizer.

Africa

Mar

Cheltenham Horse Racing Festival, Magners (UK): March 12-15 (est)

06:20 AM | -

The Cheltenham Horse Racing Festival celebrates a four-day festival of horse jump racing with over £4.5 million of prize money. Dine on the United Kingdom's finest cuisine, delivered by Michelin star chefs; listen to live music performances from top bands and shop for treasures ranging from gifts to jewelry and attire.

Africa

Mar

Equal Pay Day for Women 2020 (US): March 12 (est)

06:20 AM | -

Equal Pay Dayoriginated with the National Committee on Pay Equity (NCPE) in 1996 as a public awareness event to illustrate the gap between men's and women's wages.

Africa

Mar

Farm Safety Week, Ntl. (CA): March 10-16

06:20 AM | -

Farm Safety Week, Formerly Canadian Agricultural Safety Week, is an annual event that raises awareness about farm safety and promotes safe practices in the agriculture industry.

Across Canada, various educational resources, training sessions, and workshops focus on farmers and agriculture workers to help them prevent accidents and injuries. Farm Safety Week is essential in promoting safety and creating awareness in the agriculture industry. It helps to reduce the number of farm-related accidents and injuries and contributes to the overall well-being of farmers and agriculture workers.

Africa

Mar

Girl Scout Day (1912): March 12

06:20 AM | -

National Girl Scout Day commemorates the first Girl Scout Troop meeting in 1912, attended by 18 girls. The organization's goal is to give girls confidence, character, and courage to do what is right and help young women develop mentally, physically, and spiritually. This incredible organization, started by Juliette Gordon, has grown to over 1.8 million girls worldwide.

Africa

Mar

Independence Day (MU)(1968): March 12

06:20 AM | -

The Mascarene Island nation of Mauritius off East Africa achieved its independence from Great Britain on March 12, 1968. Independence Day is a national holiday.

Africa

Mar

National Day (GA)(1968): March 12

06:20 AM | -

National Day in the African country of Gabon marks the March 12, 1968, anniversary of the foundation of the Gabonese Democratic Party. Gabon achieved independence from French rule in 1960. Today is a national holiday.

Africa

Mar

Organize Your Home Office Day: March 12

06:20 AM | -

Organize Your Home Office Day by Working Naked® is the second Tuesday of March and is set aside as the day to organize your home office. Get rid of old files. Run a deep virus scan on your computer. Clean off your desk, and get that to-do list done!

Africa

Mar

Plant a Flower Day: March 12

06:20 AM | -

Plant a Flower Day is celebrated each March and encourages people to enjoy wildlife gardening. Wildlife Gardening involves seeding and planting species that are native to your area and attract wildlife to your yard. Today is an excellent opportunity to get your family to work together, plant local favorite flowers, and chart their growth. You can start seedlings inside if you do not have a yard available. Planting indoors will also protect them from inclement weather and insects. Supported by the National Wildlife Federation.

Africa

Mar

Black Swan Day (2020): March 13

06:20 AM | -

Black Swan Day marks the day the COVID-19 situation turned upside down in the United States over eight hours on March 13, 2020. An event is considered a "Black Swan Event" when it upends norms and changes how society behaves going forward. It is a sudden and disruptive event. March 13, 2020, certainly fits that description. On March 13, 2020, the United States declared a National Emergency over the novel Coronavirus. On that day, the US had 2,183 cases with 48 deaths. Globally, the world had recorded 145,417 cases and 5,427 deaths. What we were about to engage as a global community, nobody knew. Everyone has a story about that day, and this is mine. FRIDAY THE THIRTEENTH At 7:30 AM, March 13, 2020, I arrived my office in Bala Cynwood (Bah-la Kin-wood), Pennsylvania, wary of the fact it was Friday the 13th, but looking forward to getting the day over so the weekend could start. I was doing direct marketing door-to-door, business-to-business for 100% commission. I hated it with a passion but needed income as I researched LEEP. Every morning we held a ninety-minute "sales meeting," remedial training for the never-ending stream of recruits, 90% of whom never made it to 30 days, let alone a whole week. This day I lucked out, and I didn't have to take a trainee into the field. SCHUYLKILL GHOSTS & BUBBLE GUM LIGHTS At around 9:30 AM, I headed to my car, swung onto City Avenue, and headed toward Center City on the Schuylkill (Skoo-kull), interstate highway 76. It was the first indication that this would not be a typical day. There wasn't a single car moving westbound on the I-76, not one. Usually, the infamous highway is bumper-to-bumper at this time of day, actually any time of day. Where were the cars? I exited onto the PA1 northbound. On this road, another major highway, no cars were going southbound either. Two miles in, and still no cars on the other side. Drivers traveling my way were looking around as puzzled as me. A woman in hijab passed, catching my eye; she nodded and shook her head, confused. I grinned back half-heartedly and shrugged. Suddenly, over the crest ahead, a flood of bubble gum lights and sirens spilled into all the southbound lanes, swelling from the emergency parking lane to the Jersey barrier dividing us. Dozens and dozens of police motorcycles rushed toward us, followed by police cars, fire engines, command cars, and ambulances. Each vehicle was fully animated, and all had sirens blaring. Confused, my car compatriots and I all eased over to the shoulder, trying to figure out what to do. The flood of rapidly moving vehicles was over a mile in length. Then I saw the hearse. It was a funeral procession for a first responder. It is hard to explain the fear this engendered. My first thought was terrorism. Why else would roads be closed and hundreds of emergency vehicles of every flavor be traveling quickly toward Center City, lights flashing and sirens blaring? Fortunately, it was a show of respect, not my worst fear. However, the day continued in its strangeness. SHADES OF 1918 My first stop in North Philadelphia was an Irish pub with two locations in the city. The person I needed to speak with wasn't in, but his father was. I asked about their plans for Saint Patrick's Day the following week. "I don't know," he confided. "My father lived through the 1918 pandemic, and we're not sure what this is yet." The Spanish Flu. Over 12,000 Philadelphians lost their lives within six weeks during the 1918 second wave. It tore through the city after a Labor Day parade attended by an estimated 200,000 people. THE SIGN Wishing him luck for Saint Patrick's Day, I left and headed into the territory I planned to work that day, an area of light and heavy industrial manufacturing peppered with strip malls and various fast food joints. After about thirty minutes, I got my first contract, a multi-location retailer with a warehouse. Fabulous. After about forty minutes with them, I headed to a Starbucks. Parking, I exited the car, looking forward to sitting down. Instead, a sign at the door read: "Takeout only until further notice due to COVID-19." What? Gingerly, I scanned the other storefronts in the strip mall. Most were closed, except for a Redwing shoe store and a Duncan Donuts. The closed locations all had similar signs. Several strip malls later with closed signs, and I began to panic as I needed a restroom. The Taco Bell, cheesesteak place, and sub shop all refused customers inside. Nearly every location I could enter was empty, and the proprietors were worried and not friendly, which was highly unusual. Typically only nail salons and pawn shops were mean to me. Everyone was on edge. By 3 PM, I called it a day. Until I entered my car, without access to a radio during the day I didn't know that all hell had broken loose. The White House had officially declared a National Emergency over the Coronavirus. Several outbreaks in the US were reported, and suddenly people were discussing shutting everything down. "They can't shut everything down," I thought, "can they?" MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2020 That weekend, there was a stayed uneasiness. Monday morning's commute was better than Christmas week, with hardly any cars on the road. After our mind-numbing sales meeting, I headed to Philadelphia's Italian Market (my favorite place in the city) and checked in on existing clients until my 1:30 PM appointment with a culinary school in South Philly. As I left the school with a new contract, my phone started vibrating and screeching with an alarm I'd never heard. The text read, "The state of Pennsylvania will shut down at 5 PM today, March 16, 2020." What the?!? No! I'm supposed to get my hair cut tomorrow! Little did I know it would be seven more months of mop head before that would happen. Dumbfounded, I stood on the sunny street with budding trees staring at the message on my phone. It was 3 PM, exactly. Fortunately, I had made my commission for the week. Screw it! I didn't want to go home, and I didn't want to work. I wanted people, a communion of strangers, so I headed to a pub within stumbling distance of my house. About 15 of us sat in the small 1930s era bar, drinking cheap wine and bottled beer, tipping the bartender liberally, and discussing events with trepidation. The owner wandered in around 4 PM and informed us that the bar and most other businesses would indefinitely close at 5 PM. We watched the news on the tele and tried to make light of this new reality. At 4:55 PM, a final toast before one-by-one, we spilled out the door and made our way home. It was the end of an era and the beginning of what would become two and a half rather surreal years for everyone. ________________ As of today, January 19, 2023, 672,364,867 cases of COVID-19 have been reported globally. Six million, seven hundred thirty-seven thousand, four hundred seven people have died, and the US stands at 103,708,163 cases with 1,127,080 deaths, the highest in the world. I don't think I'm a fan of black swans anymore.

Africa

Mar

Coconut Torte Day, Ntl.: March 13

06:20 AM | -

National Coconut Torte Day occurs each March. Celebrate by gathering ingredients to make one. Build up three or more layers of cake while liberally slathering the layers in between with flour, ground nuts, breadcrumbs, sugar, eggs, and of course, lots and lots of coconuts. You will make some new friends with this one. National Coconut Torte Day is an unofficial event with no sponsor.

Africa

Mar

Deaf History Month (1988): March 13-April 15

06:20 AM | -

Deaf History Month begins on the anniversary of the White House declaration on March 13, 1988, for Deaf Awareness and ends on April 15. Within the month are three other celebrations: Deaf Civil Rights Victory Day, signed into law by President Lincoln, one marking the charter that granted college degrees to deaf students, and the opening of the first public school for the deaf on April 15, 1817. This month celebrates the contribution of the deaf and hard of hearing persons to society and the importance of American Sign Language. Sponsored by Friends of Libraries for Deaf Action, the National Association of the Deaf, and the American Library Association, showcases include art installations created by the hearing impaired and online events that aim to educate the public about hearing loss.

Africa

Mar

Donald Duck Day (1914): March 13*

06:20 AM | -

Donald Duck is one of the two most recognized cartoon characters of the Walt Disney Company. Today is the actual birthday of the character, March 13, 1914. He was first mentioned in the book "The Life of Donald Duck." The second Donald Duck Day, June 9, marks the anniversary of his screen debut in 1934.

Africa

Mar

Earmuff Day (1873): March 13

06:20 AM | -

Earmuff Day commemorates the invention of the earmuff, the 1873 invention by a boy named Chester Greenwood from Maine. The boy's sensitive ears turned weird colors in the cold. Unfortunately, he loved ice skating, and the solutions seemed too bulky or itchy. So he experimented and fashioned his Champion Ear Protector, patented in 1877. We have been wearing them ever since.

Africa