National Tap Dance Day is a great day to dance the day and the night away.

This day was created in honor of the birthday of legendary tap dancer Bill "Bojangles" Robinson on May 25,1878.

Tap dancing combined the elements of African drumming and dancing with the techniques of European clog and step dancing. It was a melting pot of cultures that came together in the late 1800s. Taps were added to the heels and toes of shoes in 1925 to make the fast tapping easier to hear.

You can celebrate National Tap Dance Day in a variety of ways:
•    Learn about Bill "Bojangles" Robinson.
•    Learn how to tap dance.
•    Learn more about tap dancing
•    Watch a movie with tap dancing.

This special day is the result of US Joint Resolution declaring May 25th National Tap Dance Day. President George Bush signed it into law as a national day on November 7, 1989.

Perhaps a Lucky Penny will be lucky for you today.

Today, a penny doesn't buy much.  It used to. Years ago, a penny bought a lot of things.  Most notably, Penny Candy got its name because a piece of candy cost a penny. Inflation has eroded the penny's value. There has even been discussion regarding discontinuing the minting of  the penny.

The penny still serves a very useful purpose ... at least some of them are lucky pennies.  Lucky pennies are found on the ground. Not all of the pennies you find will be lucky. However, it will only take one lucky penny to scratch off the winner on a scratch ticket.

Are you superstitious? Superstition has it that you should only pick up a penny that is lying face up.

Here are some other uses for pennies:
•    A handy screwdriver when nothing else is available.
•    A necessity for penny pinchers
•    A penny for your thoughts.
•    To put your "two cents" in.

Research did not find the creator or the origin of this day

Technically speaking  ---  It has been said that if we all live long enough we will suffer from “presbyopia”.  

“Presbyopia” is defined as … “a visual condition which becomes apparent especially in middle age and in which loss of elasticity of the lens of the eye causes defective accommodation and inability to focus sharply for near vision.”

At about age 40, most of us are introduced to bifocals which means, both near and far vision are becoming more difficult.

On May 23rd 1775 Ben Franklin reportedly invented bifocal glasses.

American Red Cross was founded by humanitarians Clara Barton and Adolphus Solomons. The American Red Cross was established to provide humanitarian aid to victims of wars and natural disasters in congruence with the International Red Cross.

The American Red Cross was founded 5/21/ 1881.

NASCAR Day is a one-day celebration of the NASCAR spirit and its fans. Held annually on the Friday prior to the NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge in May, NASCAR Day has become one of the most important and fastest-growing traditions in the NASCAR Family.

Since the first celebration in 2004, NASCAR Day has raised almost $5 million for charitable initiatives. By 2007, NASCAR Day had grown to include close to 3,000 companies across the country, raising millions of dollars for The NASCAR Foundation and its family of charities.

NASCAR Day was created by the NASCAR Foundation.

Today is Pack Rat Day. If you are a Pack Rat, don’t hide behind those piles of valuable "stuff" come out and celebrate this fun day.

In keeping with the intent of Pack Rat Day, here are some Do's and Don’ts’s:
•    Do go to garage and rummage sales. They can be pack rat gold mines.
•    Do keep an eye out for useful stuff being discarded by others.
•    Do look around your belongings and be thankful for what you have.
•    Do spend time thinking of uses for your things. Justification for saving is satisfying.
•    Don't clean your room, basement, garage or any other area today.
•    Don't discard anything today ... It may be valuable.
•    Don't even empty the trash today. You might have accidentally thrown out something useful.

Research did not find the creator or the origin of this day.

Root Beer was invented on this day in 1866 by Charles Elmer Hires.

Root beer was a traditional beverage and herbal medicine. The beverage was often alcoholic, usually around 2%. As a medicine it was used for treating cough and mouth sores. Commercially prepared root beer was developed by Charles Elmer Hires on May 16, 1866. He presented root tea powder at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial exhibition.

In 1893 Hires began selling bottled carbonated root beer. There was a dramatic increase in the popularity of root beer in the United States during the period of prohibition in the early 20th Century.  Local breweries resorted to brewing root beer since other, alcoholic, beverages were outlawed.

Everybody has a mother and absolutely no one is more special than mom. Often taken for granted, they are always our strongest supporter. You can't do wrong in Mom's eyes. When you are hurt, or not feeling well … there is no one else that can help you more than Mom.

Celebrate Mother's Day.  Spend time with her. If you cannot be with her, take time for a long phone call. Flowers, cards, candy, and gifts are all part of the day. But, mom wants some time with you far more than anything else.

The first Mother's Day was May 10, 1908 in Philadelphia.  Credit for the Mother’s Day holiday in the United States is attributed to Ms. Anna Jarvis, who dedicated most of her life to promoting the holiday.

Her inspiration was her own mother’s untiring dedication to raise eleven children.  On the second anniversary of her mother’s death, the second Sunday in May. Ms. Jarvis convinced her mother’s parish in West Virginia to celebrate mother’s Day.  She decorated the church with her mother’s favorite flowers (white carnations).  Carnations are still used today: red carnations representing living mothers and white carnations for those who have passed away.

Ms. Jarvis and her supporters continued to write to politicians, business men, and ministers.  In 1910, West Virigina became the first state to officially recognize Mother’s Day.  A year later, almost every state observed it as well.  In 1914, president Woodrow Wilson officially declared Mother’s Day as the second Sunday in May.