Count Your Buttons
Count your buttons may be like counting your blessings -- if you consider buttons blessings. Without buttons, how could we fasten shirts? Or "like" anything on Facebook? Or send text messages every 15 minutes?
As for an Oct. 21 connection, the only types of buttons with any connection to the date are those on the first Trimline phone placed in service on Oct. 21, 1963, according to Today in Science History.
The phone featured a dial and hang-up button on the handpiece, although the familiar rotary dialer was still present. Callers no longer needed to use the phone's base to end a call. Today we take the convenience of the hand-held, base-free phone for granted. So let's count our blessings -- or, more specifically, our buttons!
Reptile Awareness Day
"Every year, reptile fanatics have a day that they can celebrate and share their passion; a chance to educate others who may not know about these amazing creatures called reptiles, and the habitat loss and threat of extinction that faces so many reptile species," according to the Reptile Channel. Reptile facts from the Smithsonian National Zoological Park:
* The world is home to 8,240 species of reptiles.
* Reptiles depend on external sources to maintain their body temperatures.
* Every continent except Antarctica has reptiles.
Simchat Torah
The Simchat Torah, following the Sukkot festival, is "characterized by utterly unbridled joy" when there is celebration for the "the conclusion and restart of the annual Torah-reading cycle," according to the Chabad-Lubavitch Media Center. The highlight of Simchat Torah, is the "march and dance with Torah scrolls around the reading table in the synagogue."
Pumpkin Cheesecake Day
Desserts don't get any more decadent than the rich pumpkin cheesecake topped with fresh whipped cream. Try Praline-Pumpkin Cheesecake or Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake.
National Mammography Day
One-third of American women are not regularly screened for breast cancer, according to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Mammograms for women 40 and older make early detection possible. Monthly self-exams are also encouraged for all women.
Paying for a mammogram:
* If you have a high co-payment or can't afford a mammogram, look for an FDA-certified facility offering low-cost mammogram. These are available in October.
* The National Breast and Cervical Cancer Control Program offers breast cancer screening to low-income, uninsured and underinsured women.
* Call Komen at 1-877 GO KOMEN to find low-cost screening options in your area.
