National Nothing Day

Fruitcake Toss Day.

Houseplant Appreciation Day.

National Blonde Brownie Day.

These are just some of the weird and wacky holidays to celebrate this January. As if the run of Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day didn't keep us busy enough... we are now called to dress up our pets on the 14th, acknowledge penguins on the 20th, and do everything backwards on the last day of the month.

Perhaps the inner holi-dork in you thinks it's cute, and you do your darndest to keep up with the odd-ball observances. More than likely, it's the crazy lady in the neighboring cubicle at work that thinks it's cute, and goes so far as to scold you for forgetting to give her an unprompted squeeze on National Hug Day. Either way, a window of relief from such celebratory madness is in sight. At 11:59pm on 1/15 (National Hat Day), you may officially hang that hat up on the holiday hub-bub for a solid 24 hours. That's right: It's National Nothing Day.

Researching National Nothing Day was no easy task. As Holidayinsights.com puts it, "This day is an "un-event". The expectation is that we do not create or otherwise promote this day. In other words, we do nothing. And, to say anything more would contradict the purpose of this day. " Thus, there isn't much written about it, which is just how things should be.

Harold Pullman Coffin, a columnist for the San Francisco Examiner was responsible for establishing National Nothing Day. It was first observed (or should I say, not observed) in 1973. Some say it was out of his own amusement that Coffin would initiate such an oxymoronic holiday, for the notion of celebrating nothing certainly contradicts itself. Others believe he truly wanted Americans to take a breather from the rat race and live their own, personal definition of "nothing" for a day.

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Don't Click if you'd rather see nothing.

Photo by mclgreenville / memorymotel