All - Leep Calendar

January is the National Braille Literacy Month in the U.S. and it marks the anniversary of the birth of Louis Braille January 4, 1809. Inventing the Braille code at the age of 15, Braille has changed the life of millions of people by giving those without sight the means to read and write. Even in today’s day and age of digital information, with audio books and recording Braille is used across the globe. National Braille Literacy Month is supported by a number of organizations servicing the blind.

Africa

Jan

Break-up Day, Intl.: January 20

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International Break-up Day marks the single day each year when more romantic couples will split than on any other. It is believed this may be because by January 20th, the holiday season has been over for three weeks and the next big stressor on relationships, Valentines Day, is still three weeks off.

Africa

Jan

Breckenridge Snow Sculpture Championships, Intl. (US-CO): January 20-29

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Organized by Breckenridge Brewery, the Breckenridge Snow Sculpture Championships is an annual event in which teams from across the world compete in sculpting giant figures from 20 tons of ice each. Taking place in Breckenridge, Colorado, the Budweiser Snow Sculpture Championships is a great event to spectate live, giving you the chance to both witness the amazing skill and speed of the sculptors, as well as to see the majestic works that they create.

Africa

Jan

Brexit Take 4: January 31

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Brexit Take IV? Yup! We thought this would be gone too, but the mess commonly known as Brexit is projected to continue into 2020 as deadline after deadline gets pushed back and Prime Ministers step down. We're not holding our breath for October 31, 2019 either. It finally happened on January 31, 2020. "Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?" This was the question asked of the British people in 2016 and the answer was leave. This is the month the official divorce from Europe comes to fruition. The European Union was created in 1958 and became an economic block in 1999 with the creation of the Euro. The purpose of the European Union was to promote free trade, ease of movement and economic stability on the European continent. Advantages are seen as maintaining sovereignty, limiting immigration of people from war zones and Eastern Europe, protecting British jobs, shoring up the power of the British parliament, and re-establishing Britain as an independent player on the world market. Disadvantages include loss of major industries as the relocate to Europe, reduced number of migrant workers, possible loss of security and foreign investment.

Africa

Jan

Bubble Bath Day: January 8

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Bubble Bath Day is an unofficial holiday that celebrates the sexy fun that are bubble baths. With a loved one or by yourself, with a glass of wine on the side and maybe even a good book, bubble baths are a great experience, especially after a long day of work or when it’s freezing cold outside.

Africa

Jan

Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day: January 27

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Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day was created by Jim Webster over a decade ago to celebrate his affinity for the crackle and pop associated with the shipping material created by the Sealed Air Corporation, bubble wrap. This invention was trademarked in 1957 and introduced to the public in 1960. This event is designed to put some fun into the workweek. Therefore it always occurs on the last Monday in January and provides the perfect excuse to stomp on some bubble wrap and annoy the heck out of your coworkers. Happy Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day!

Africa

Jan

Buffet Day, Ntl.: January 2

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National Buffet Day celebrates the Swedish dining invention of the 16th century originally referred to as a ‘smorgasbord’. A smorgasbord, or buffet, is meal designed to accompanying pre-dinner drinks like schnapps where the guests walked around and chose what they wanted. Essentially a big table of snacks, salads and treats. Today, buffet meals often include all the courses and are especially useful in serving multiple guests in a short period of time.

Africa

Jan

Bug Busting Day, Ntl. (UK): January 31

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National Bug Busting Day occur three times per year in the United Kingdom: January, June and October. It is a concentrated effort to stem the tide of lice infections within schools and the general population. The government, through the registered charity Community Hygiene Concern, teaches parents, educators and pharmacists how to detect and stop the spread of head lice and provide affordable Bug Busting kits. Community Bug Busting Days was started by the late Dr. RJ Donaldson, affectionately known as Paddy. Dr. Donaldson demonstrated in the 1970s that an intensive detection/treatment campaign can dramatically cut the prevalence of head lice. He was the tireless mentor of the Bug Busting Days organized by Community Hygiene Concern, taking a personal interest from 1986 in our development of wet methods of detection in preference to less effective dry or damp methods. Today Bug Busting Days are organized in partnership with the Department of Health. Lice are a big problem in schools. These parasites, once they infect an individual, can be very difficult to get rid of. The following are some facts: The eggs of head lice usually take 7 to 10 days to hatch. Combing dry or damp hair with a fine-tooth comb is not a reliable way to detect lice. Metal combs are not suitable for louse detection because these combs are primarily nit combs. Lice caught between the tightly spaced teeth remain unnoticed against the metal and can be combed back into the hair unharmed at subsequent strokes. There are no studies proving that wet head lice grasp hairs more tightly, thus hampering their removal with a fine-tooth comb. It is not scientifically proven that head-to-head contact must be prolonged to catch lice - close contact is enough. Head lice are a community problem. Approximately 20% of head lice cases occur in people over 16 years of age or under 4 years old.

Africa

Jan

Burns Night Supper (UK) (1759): January 25

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Burns Night Supper is celebrated every year on January 25 by Scotland and poetry lovers worldwide. On this night people honor the birth, the life and the art of Robert Burns who is considered one of greatest poets and bards ever produced in Scotland. Burns was born on January 25, 1759 died on July 21, 1796. The first Burns Night Supper was organized by his closest friends 6 years later in 1802. They gathered, read his poems, sang his songs, ate haggis and drank to his memory. Ever since, lovers of Burns’ poetry have been doing the same every year.

Africa

Jan

Buttercrunch Day, Ntl.: January 20

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National Buttercrunch Day in the U.S. celebrates the candy known as buttercrunch, (think of the center of a Butterfinger® bar). Like most food holidays, this day is properly celebrated by cooking and eating buttercrunch. Pair it with chocolate or caramel for a rich, delicious dessert.

Africa

Jan

Cable Car Day (1873): January 17

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National Cable Car Day marks the anniversary of the use of the first cable cars created by Andrew Hallidie in San Francisco in 1873. Hallidie was born in England and moved in the U.S. in 1852. Once stateside he created the wire-rope suspension bridge across Sacramento's American River and applied the same technology ore cars, allowing them to be pulled from underground mines. A little more than 20 years later, Hallidie started working on his cable cars in San Francisco as a replacement for the dangerous and unreliable horse-cars in the hilly city. Today, cable cars are one of the most emblematic aspects of the west-coast city.

Africa

Jan

Caesarean Section Day (1794): January 14

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Caesarean Section Day marks the anniversary of the first successful Caesarean Section, performed in America by Dr. Jesse Bennett January 14, 1794. This first procedure, done in the patients home in Virginia, was without the use of equipment or antiseptics. The official note in his medical journal is: "Jan. 14, 1794, J.B. on E.B. Up Feb. 15, cured March 1st.” Shortly there after he would be called upon to perform the same operation on his wife, saving her life and that of their only child, a daughter. Prior to the Caesarean Section or C-section, babies that couldn’t be born naturally either died in childbirth, or, if operationally extracted, killed the mother in an effort to save the child. The C-section permitted the safe removal of the child without killing the mother.

Africa

Jan

Camcorder Day, Ntl. (1982): January 20

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National Camcorder Day marks the anniversary of the marketing of the first camcorder by Sony electronics in 1982. This professional version led the way to the first consumer version which premiered in 1983. These tape-based predecessors were the precursors of todays digital video cameras and smart phones. Prior to the camcorder, film had to be used to shoot film. The camcorder reduced the cost and made it much less expensive to shoot in the field.

Africa

Jan

Carnival of Blacks & Whites (CO): January 4-6

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A celebration of multiculturalism, the end of slavery and the diversity of Columbian Society, Carnaval de Negros y Blancos (Carnival of Black & White) is annual celebration in Columbia. Featuring food, music, dance and art, carnival goers paint their bodies with black and white stripes the second day of the festival to signify the abolition of slavery by the Spanish crown. On the final day carnival participants throw white powder on each other as a symbol of equality and the integration of all peoples into the culture.

Africa

Jan

Catholic Schools Week: January 26- February 1

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On the last week of each January and often into February, Catholics celebrate Catholic Schools Week. Organized by the National Catholic Educational Association, this week focuses on the positive impact catholic schools have on society and the hard-working people that make Catholic schools one of the most sought after alternatives to public education.

Africa