Northern Hemisphere Hoodie-Hoo Day
Why leave things to the groundhog (who caused great disappointment this year) when you can take seasonal matters into your own hands? If you're tired of cold temperatures and bare trees, Wellcat asks you to step outside and chase away winter. On Feb. 20 at high noon go outside and yell, "Hoodie-Hoo." Will it work? Who knows, but what else do you have to do today?
Presidents Day
Chances are you might not be working and you certainly won't be running errands to the post office or bank. It was George Washington who signed the Postal Service Act on Feb. 20, 1792, creating the U.S. Postal Service, according to the History Channel. The holiday commemorates the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln (born Feb. 12) and George Washington (born Feb. 22), but you can celebrate any president you like the most. The holiday was created due to the Monday Holiday Law, which moved George Washington's birthday observance to the third Monday of February.
Cherry Pie Day
What better way to celebrate a cold day in February and Presidents Day than with a warm cherry pie. We all know the fictional story about a young George Washington fessing up to cutting down a cherry tree. While that's one tall tale, he does have a connection to the cherry tree.
Washington's favorite drink, according to the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association, was the "cherry bounce," a brandy-based drink with cherries, Madeira and port. He took it "with him in September 1784 on an expedition across the Allegheny Mountains. The drink was a favorite of the Washingtons and an original recipe for it that was written in unidentified handwriting was later found in a pocket-sized memo book that had belonged to Martha.
* Bake a cherry pie with double the cherries, apples or cranberries. Don't forget the vanilla ice cream.
Fasching and Carnival
No matter how you slice it, the third Monday in February is a day of celebration. In Germany and Austria, the Monday before Ash Wednesday is Shrove Monday (sometimes Rose Monday). On Feb. 20 and 21, they celebrate with Fasching or the Feast of Fools. There will be processions of beautiful and grotesque masked figures. It's "a time of festivity and merry making -- a time to break the rules, poke fun at those who make them and then to make your own new rules," according to Deutsches Haus.
* Carnival. Other locations, including Mexico and Venice, Italy, celebrate Carnival, also with Feast of Fools, starting on Shrove Monday.
* Buns Day
. In Iceland children try to "wake up early and try to catch their parents still in bed and "'beat" them out of bed with their individually made Bolluvondur or "Bun Wands," which are colorfully decorated with strips of paper and gleaming ribbon. The parents are then obligated to give their children one cream puff for every "blow received," according to the Iceland Tourist Board.
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