Festivus is a made up secular holiday popularized and celebrated by the fans of the TV series, Seinfeld.

Celebrated on December 23, the holiday was created by writer DanO’Keefe who introduced it in a Seinfeld episode called The Strike.

Made-up Holiday

In the episode, first aired in December 1997, the holiday is conceived by the father of George Costanza one of the show’s central characters. In the episode, Frank Costanza reveals that he came up with Festivus as a response to the commercialization of Christmas.

According to reports, Festivus was initially created in February 1966 by Dan O’Keefe’s father, who made up this holiday to celebrate an anniversary with his wife.

Since the airing of the first Seinfeld episode featuring Festivus, the holiday has become popular among the fans of the show.

Popular TV Show

Seinfeld is a popular American sitcom that follows the lives of four friends who live in New York City. The show ran for 9 seasons between 1989 and 1998.

How to Celebrate?

• Host a Festivus party in accordance with the traditions set by the episode.
• According to Festivus tradition, the Festivus meal is accompanied with the airing of grievances, where every guest tells every other guest how they have disappointed them over the year. So tell all your guests how disappointed you are in them.
• Follow the meal with feats of strength, where the head of the household wrestles with other guests, and the feats end only when the head is pinned to the ground.
• Greet people by saying “Happy Festivus” or “a Festivus for the rest of us”.

Did You Know…

…that an unadorned aluminum pole is generally considered as the symbol of Festivus?

On December 22 add date nut bread to your holiday baking list because it is Date Nut Bread Day.

Made with different kinds of nuts like walnuts and pecans and dates that give it its distinct sweet flavor, date nut bread is thought to have been first baked in England.

Ancient Fruit

Grown in many parts of the world, dates are the fruit of the date palm. Food historians believe that the date palm was first cultivated for its fruit in the Middle East around 6000 BC. Farmers classify dates based on their texture and the sugar content into 3 types. These are soft, dry and semi-dry dates.

Date Nut Bread Day is an unofficial holiday which is also known as National Date Nut Bread Day.

How to Celebrate?

• Bake date nut bread and share with family, friends and coworkers. Remind them that it is a healthy treat.
• What about making little muffins instead of making a loaf of the bread?
• Experiment with the flavors of your date nut bread. What about adding strawberries to it? Or chocolate chips? Make a banana date nut bread or an orange date nut bread instead. Serve toasted slices of the bread with a pat of butter.

Did You Know…

…that contrary to popular belief, a peanut is not a nut, but is part of the legume family?

December 21 is International Dalek Remembrance Day, a day to remember the extraterrestrial cyborgs called Daleks in BBC’s Doctor Who universe.

Considered to be one of the biggest enemies of Doctor Who, the time travelling lord, the robotic Daleks made their debut on December 21, 1963 in a 7 part serial aptly called The Daleks.

These salt and pepper shaker shaped creatures were created by another enemy of the Doctor – Davros, who genetically modified his own people, the Kaleds and removed all emotions from them. The Daleks were then left to operate just on hate and vengeance.

Frightening Villains

Known for repeatedly saying exterminate and for wanting to destroy every other race in the universe, the metal covered, aggressive Daleks are popularly considered by science fiction fans as one of the most frightening villains ever shown on television. A 2010 survey by the sci-fi magazine SFX found that the Doctor’s arch-enemies were the most popular fantasy creatures on television and the big screen.

Today, Daleks are easily recognized icons in popular culture especially in the United Kingdom. Being or sounding like a Dalek is sometimes used as a way to refer to someone who’s behavior or voice sounds mechanical or robotic.

Remembrance of Daleks

Remembrance of Daleks is a 4 part serial in the 25th season of the British science fiction show. In the serial, Doctor Who returns to 1963 to retrive the Hand of Omega, a device that can fuel time travel by converting stars into supernovas.

Another popularly celebrated Doctor Who inspired holiday is Impossible Astronaut Day.

How to Celebrate?

• Spend the day doing a Doctor Who marathon.
• Host a Doctor Who party. Decorate the venue with Doctor Who inspired decorations and invite all the Whovians in your life.

Did You Know…

…that originally Daleks could not go up stairs? This lack of stair-climbing abilities was one way that Doctor Who characters could save themselves from these monstrous creatures. In a more recent avatar of the Daleks, the creators of the TV show have given them hovering capabilities, which they employ while uttering escalate in the same tone as they say eliminate.

December 20 is Sangria Day. This unofficial holiday encourages people around the world to enjoy the day with a tall glass of the delicious alcoholic beverage.

Typically made of red wine, sangria is a beverage that originated from Spain and Portugal. Usually, the wine is steeped with a variety of that is infused with a variety of chopped fruits and sugar for a few days before being consumed.

How to Celebrate?

If you are in the Northern Hemisphere, chances are that you are dreaming of a warm sunny day and a cool drink, and if you are in the Southern Hemisphere, you are probably looking for a cold drink to cool you down. No matter where you are on Earth, here are some ways you can celebrate Sangria Day:

• Make a huge batch of sangria and share with family and friends.
• Experiment with different kinds of wine and fruits to change the flavor profile of the Sangria you make.
• Don’t drink alcohol? No problem. Make yourself a batch of non-alcoholic sangria with ginger ale or any other sparkling fruit juice of your choice.

Did You Know…

…that the term Sangria comes from the Spanish word for bleeding? This is because the beverage is typically made of red wine, which is deep red in color.

Underdog Day is celebrated every year on the third Friday of December.

This unofficial holiday owes its name to the term “underdog” popularly used in sports and competitions and refers to someone who is popularly expected to lose.

All of us know of someone who works very hard but never gets recognized for their hard work. In addition, they are usually expected to fail in their efforts. Maybe, you have been in a situation like that? Celebrate all such underdogs and unsung heroes on Underdog Day.

How to Celebrate?

• Remember that it is sometimes ok to be an underdog. It may be frustrating sometimes, but when underdogs win, they tend to upset the expected order of things.
• If you know of an underdog, tell them to persevere on.
• If you feel you are an underdog, work harder and shatter everyone’s expectations.
• Watch the American animated series, Underdog. The series, which aired on NBC in the 1960s, detailed the adventures of Underdog, a superhero who spoke in rhyming verse and wore a caped costume.

Did You Know…

…that the opposite of an underdog is a top dog and in if an underdog wins in a competition, the outcome of the event is known as an upset.

Wright Brothers Day on December 17 recognizes the first time Orville and Wilbur Wright successfully flew their heavier-than-air, mechanically propelled aircraft in 1903.

©iStockphoto.com/marcnorman

In the United States, the day has been observed nationally since 1959 when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a proclamation declaring December 17 as Wright Brothers Day.

Read more about the holiday

How to Celebrate?

• Read more about the history of aviation.
• Visit your local aviation museum and learn about the science behind building a safe, fast and efficient aircraft.
• If you have always wanted to learn how to fly, why not start lessons on this day?

Did You Know…

…that Orville and Wilbur were the only two in their immidiate family never to attend college?

December 16 is all about chocolate because it is Chocolate Covered Anything Day.

©iStockphoto.com/bhofack2

And we are not complaining because it is the one-day where no one can question our obsession. Want to drizzle chocolate over your salad? Go right ahead, it is Chocolate Covered Anything Day! Add chocolate to your morning cup of coffee? That is a brilliant idea! Eat chocolate covered fruits for lunch? You are in the spirit of the holiday!

Celebrating Chocolate Around the Year

Chocolate is a very popular theme for a fun holiday. Other chocolate themed holidays are Chocolate Pudding Day, Milk Chocolate Day, Chocolate Pecan Pie Day, Chocolate Milkshake Day, Chocolate Cupcake Day, and Chocolate Cake Day.

How to Celebrate?

• Eat only chocolate covered items on this day. Chocolate covered donuts for breakfast, chocolate covered fruits for lunch and a chocolate rubbed steak for dinner.
• Get creative and try to experiment by pairing chocolate with dishes and food items you may never think about putting together.

Did You Know…

…that the earliest record of humans consuming chocolate dates back to 1700 B.C.?

December 14 is Monkey Day. The day celebrates monkeys and all other primate cousins of humans such as apes, chimpanzees, and gibbons.

©iStockphoto.com/Bridgendboy

While the origins of Monkey Day are not known, there are many theories as to why this holiday was created. Some sources suggest that it started as a prank by some college students, while others suggest that it was started by people who wanted to raise awareness about monkeys, their habitats, and their role in the environment.

Many Different Species

Monkeys are primates that usually live in trees and are active during the day. There are about 260 different species of monkeys around the world. Scientists classify monkeys into two different categories – old world monkeys found in Asia and Africa and new world monkeys found in the Americas.

Believed to be highly intelligent animals, monkeys can vary in size. The smallest monkey, the pygmy marmoset is about 5 inches (13 cm) tall, while the largest, the mandrill can grow up to 3 feet (1 m) in height.

Special Status in Many Cultures

In many parts of the world, monkeys are revered and worshiped as gods. The monkey is the animal representing the 9th year in the 12 year cycles of the Chinese Calendar.

How to Celebrate?

• Learn more about monkeys and non-human primates.
• Donate your time and money to a non-profit organization that works to conserve and preserve monkey and simian environments.
• Visit your local zoo to observe monkeys, apes, and other primates.
• Watch Planet of the Apes and other movies with simian characters.

Did You Know…

…that monkeys went into space before humans did? The first primate to go to space was called Albert II, a rhesus monkey.

Take out all your baking supplies, unleash your imagination and build a gingerbread house on December 12 or Gingerbread House Day.

This unofficial holiday celebrates the tradition of making houses and architectural models out of gingerbread cookies. The tradition can be traced back to the 1600s.

How to Celebrate?

• Make your own gingerbread house. Maybe try and recreate a architectural landmark with gingerbread?
• Take part in your local gingerbread house competition or hold one of your own!

Did You Know…

….that according the Guinness Book of World Records, the World’s largest gingerbread house was made in 2013 by the Traditions Club in Bryan, Texas, United States? The house was 60 ft (18.23 m) long and 10.1 ft (18.28m) tall.

December 11 is Noodle Ring Day, a day for comforting baked pasta.

©iStockphoto.com/Tuned_In

Popular during the mid-1900s, Noodle Ring Day is a dish made of flat noodles or any other type of flat pasta baked in a ring mold or a bundt pan.

Fill the Ring

Making noodle ring from scratch is easy, all you need is some cooked pasta, eggs, bread crumbs and a cheese that melts easily. Mix all the ingredients and put it in a mold and bake until all the eggs cook and the cheese melts. Unmold and fill the center with a filling of your choice. Many recipes recommend chicken salad, sautéed vegetables or canned tuna as a filling.

How to Celebrate?

• Dig out your grandma’s cookbooks and make a noodle ring for dinner.
• Don’t like the pasta that is available in the stores? Make your own from scratch and then use to make a noodle ring.
• Make a dessert version of the dish – use sugar while baking the noodles and instead of a savory filling use fresh cut fruit or a custard or pudding.
• Host a vintage dinner party and have friends bring their favorite vintage dishes to share. Make a noodle ring as your contribution to the dinner table.

Did You Know…

…that experts believe that people around the world consume over 600 types and shapes of pasta?