National Unity Day in Russia is a relatively new holiday that celebrates an old event. Unity Day was first marked in 2005 to commemorate a November 1612 uprising against the Polish-Lithuanian occupation force in Moscow. There has been much controversy surrounding the holiday. Some say that President Putin instituted it as a way to deflect from his abolishment of a Nov. 7 holiday celebrating the October 1917 revolution. For years this holiday had been in flux, and was was renamed the Day of Reconciliation and Accord during the Yeltsin era. Putin finally deleted it altogether and instituted Unity Day as a way to celebrate all things Russian. The controversy continued with the way Unity Day has been celebrated, with criticism focusing on the neo-Nazi groups using it as a way to spread their message.

November 4 is also the feast day for Our Lady of Kazan, the holy icon most associated with the Russian Orthodox Church. Though the day’s celebrations do not center on the religious figure, it is the hope of some that Russians will eventually see Nov. 4 as a way to celebrate their heritage and strength.

Remembering the past is very important in the Japanese culture, and a big component of their Culture Day, celebrated on Nov. 3. The date is a renaming of the Tenchō-setsu, a holiday celebrating the birthday of the Meiji Emperor. With the death of the Emperor in 1912, Nov. 3 ceased to be a holiday until 1948, when Culture Day was born. On this day many cities hold art exhibits, culture festivals, and parades. The Japanese emperor also bestows the nation’s “Order of Culture” on national and international figures of importance on this day.

November 1 is World Vegan Day and before all you carnivores start booing, think about the health benefits of eating vegan style. Vegans enjoy all kinds of plant foods, fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, and mushrooms. They do not eat any animal products, meat and dairy, eggs or cheese or honey. So even if you don;t want to adopt vegan eating on a permanent basis, choosing to do you a few meals a week can make significant improvements to you health.

World Vegan Day was chosen as the anniversary of the founding of the Vegan Society, a group formed in 1944 to promote the vegan lifestyle. In addition to not eating animals or animal by-products, they also do not wear animal skins or furs, or purchase anything made with these things. The society has lots of information on products that directly or indirectly use animals in their manufacturing process.
The theme for Word Vegan Day 2008 is “Vegan Catering for All”. The group hopes to encourages restaurants to include vegan selections on their menus. And the food is no different than many mainstream dishes, though things may be tweeked to eliminate eggs and milk. Think pasta casseroles soy milk and cheese, or meatless chili with god fresh tomatoes. Of course vegetable soup is a common vegan recipe that we all love on a cold winter’s night. For thanksgiving, try this Praline Sweet Potato Casserole.

Ingredients (use vegan versions):

4 cups cooked, mashed sweet potatoes (or yams)
3 tablespoon melted soy butter
1/3 cup orange juice
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoon brandy
1/2 ts ground ginger (1 tablespoon fresh grated)
1 ts salt
1/8 ts pepper
1/4 ts allspice
1 ts grated orange peel
1/2 ts cinnamon

Directions:

Combine all ingredients. Mix well with an electric beater. Pour into a well-buttered 2 qt. shallow casserole. Spread with praline topping.

TOPPING: 1/3 cup brown vegan sugar, 1/2 cup chopped pecans, and 1/2 ts cinnamon.

Combine ingredients and mix until well blended.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes

Every country is proud when their leaders stand up to their enemies, but Greece in one of the only ones to have made a holiday out of it. On Oct. 28, 1940, the Greek dictator Ioannis Metaxas told a representative from Italian dictator Mussolini “no” when asked if the Greeks would allow the Italian army to cross its borders and occupy locations important to the mission of the Axis forces in World War II. The Italians didn’t take no for an answer however and hours later launched an attack on Greece, which began the beginning the Greco-Italian War. The Greek army valiantly fought the Italians and then later Hitler’s army, always refusing to submit to the Nazi demands. The Greeks’ fierce resolved resulted in Winston Churchill saying “the world will no longer say that Greeks fight as heroes, but heroes fight as Greeks”.

Today the Greeks continue to show their pride in these important events with patriotic displays on most public buildings during Okhi Day, every October 28.

Celebrate the day with an easy taste of Greek tradition, Spanakopita or Greek Spinach Pie.
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 pounds fresh spinach, rinsed and chopped - the bagged kind works best
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese
16 sheets phyllo dough
1/4 cup olive oil

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a 9×9 inch square baking pan.
Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic, until soft and lightly browned. Stir in spinach and parsley, and continue to saute until spinach is limp, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. It’s very important that it cools so that the moister in the spinach is absorbed.
In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, ricotta, and feta. Stir in spinach mixture. Lay 1 sheet of phyllo dough in prepared baking pan, and brush lightly with olive oil. Lay another sheet of phyllo dough on top, brush with olive oil, and repeat process using eight total sheets of phyllo. The sheets will overlap the pan. Spread spinach and cheese mixture into pan and fold overhanging dough over filling. Brush with oil, then layer remaining 8 sheets of phyllo dough, brushing each with oil. Tuck overhanging dough into pan to seal filling. Cut into serving sizes before baking.
Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until golden brown.

Angam is word from the Republic of Nauru, an island nation in the Micronesian South Pacific. It means: “jubilation”, “celebration”, and “to have triumphed over all hardships”, an apt description of what the Nauruan people have done when their population was threatened with extinction - twice in fact.

The Nauruan people suffered a great loss of population during World War I, when they were held by Germany. After the war they came under the power of Australia, New Zealand and Britain. The Australian Administrator declared that the population of Nauruans was alarmingly low. He said that if they were to survive as a race the population should more than 1,500. It was declared that when the population of 1,500 was reached, that day would be called Angam Day and would become a public holiday. The 1,500 baby would be the Angam Baby and would receive gifts and national honors. October 26, 1932 marks the day the Angam baby was born. The first one.

The need for a second Angam baby came during World War II, when 1,200 Nauruans were evacuated to Truk. Only 737 returned after the war and of the 600 left behind on Nauru, a total of around 400 survived, bringing the population total to just over 1300. The hunt was on for the next Angam baby. She came on March 31, 1949, and was named Bethel Enproe Adam Even though Bethel was born on a different date, October 26 is still held as the official Angam Day.

Smack dab in the middle of Chemistry Week (Oct. 18 - 24) is Mole Day, a holiday set aside not to honor the ground dwelling creature, but a measurement of mass. I take it that mole is short for molecule, because one mole is a mass (in grams) whose number is equal to the atomic mass of the molecule. This relationship was first discovered by Amadeo Avogadro (1776-1858), who received credit for the discovery after his death.

Chemist are a crazy bunch and they celebrate their holiday with a wacky spirit. Every year the Mole Day Foundation creates a theme and poster for the event. This year’s theme is “Mole of Fortune” complete with a mole Pat and Vanna. I hope someone sends them this poster!

There are creative ways to celebrate this holiday with family or in the classroom. This is a great holiday for fun and of course food. Last year I included a mole sauce recipe, this year try my favorite guaca-mole.

Ingredients
2 really ripe Haas avocados
1 clove minced garlic
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp cumin
1 T fresh cilantro
1/2 chopped tomato

Cut avocados in half and dish out the insides. Mash the avocados and then mix in other ingredients.

If you want a super quick way to do this, add about 2 T or more to your taste of a really good salsa to the avocados. Let site for about 20 minutes so the flavors combine.

For the first time ever, the world will celebrate Global Handwashing Day on Oct. 15, 2008. The event is part of the United Nations International Year of Sanitation, which highlights the importance of hygiene. Activities for Global Handwashing Day 2008 will revolve around schools and children, with developing nations being the main focal point. According to the holiday’s website, “Handwashing with soap is the most effective and inexpensive way to prevent diarrheal and acute respiratory infections, which take the lives of millions of children in developing countries every year.” If it’s not a custom in a culture to use soap, introducing the idea can be a challenge.

Even for those of us in a more industrial area, handwashing needs to be emphasized. Cold and flu germs as well as intestinal afflictions can be seriously curtailed with vigilant washing.

While October 12 is traditionally celebrated as Columbus Day in the United States, it also marks an important turn of events in colonial history. On October 12, 1692, Governor William Phipps of the Colony of Massachusetts made a decision that brought to an end the horrendous Salem Witch trials. The trials had been a black time in America, when gossip and misunderstandings led to the execution of dozens of innocent people. Gov. Phipps declared that spectral evidence (supernaturalism) would no longer be admissible in court, ending the trials for lack of evidence. Though popular belief was that black magic was real and a threat, Phipps went with his heart and decided that only physical evidence, not gossip, could be admitted in a trial. He saved lives with that decision and put an end to a terrible time in his colony.

To honor Phipps and all of those who think for themselves, Oct. 12 was designated Freethought Day. The city of Sacramento, CA has an annual Freethought Day celebration, which is “a tribute to freethought, liberty of conscience, naturalistic ethics, secular government, and civic values. ” The holiday can be celebrated in your area by the community coming together for a common goal, such as a clean-up day or a youth event. The important thing is to act in a way to benefit all humanity, no matter what beliefs or religion inspire you.

Though they have a history steeped in political upheaval, the islands of Fiji conjure up peaceful thoughts of hammocks and pineapple drinks. As recently as 2007, a coup led by military forces installed Ratu Josefa Iloilo as president. This Pacific island group has seen trouble many times since its independence from Great Britain, who ruled them as a colony since 1874. Independence was granted on Oct. 10, 1970, a date now marked as the national holiday Fiji Day.

The theme for the 2008 Fiji Day is “Diverse Harmony for a new Fiji”. The population is made up of native Fijians, (Melanesians) and Indo-Fijians, descendants of Indian indentured servants brought to the islands by the British in the nineteenth century to work on the sugar plantations. As a result of this INdian influence, much of the cooking in Fuji involves spices. The islanders also follow the Indian tradition of eating on the floor while the family sits on mats, using no utensils, just hands.

A tradition in Fiji is the lovo, prepared by digging a large pit and then lining it with dry coconut husks. They are then set on fire and stones are heaped on top. When the flames subsides the food is wrapped in banana leaves and are lowered in the pit. Meat and fish and vegetables are cooked for about two to three hours.

Traditional Fiji foods involve many items found easily on or around the islands, such as fish, coconut and pineapple. A popular side dish is Pineapple and Sweet Potato Bake, which uses a cheese sauce on top.

Ingredients
2 medium sweet potatoes, baked, peeled and sliced into 1/2 inch slabs
1 fresh pineapple, peeled, cored and sliced into 1/4 inch slabs (or use 1 can or pineapple rings)
½ cup freshly grated coconut
¼ cup green onions, chopped
2 cups cheese sauce (see below)
sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Arrange each layer (sweet potato, pineapple, coconut, green onions) in a lightly oiled pie plate in that order, seasoning each completed layer with the sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Pour cheese sauce over top. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Cheese Sauce
6 Tbsp butter
6 Tbsp flour
2-1/2 cups light cream
2 tsp dry mustard
2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
Combine flour and butter in heavy pan over medium heat. Cook for 2 minutes, until flour starts to brown. Slowly stir in the cream. Stir constantly until desired consistency achieved, then add cheese, mustard and salt and pepper to taste. Stir until cheese is melted, remove from heat and use immediately.

It seems incredible that in these days of “Dirty, Sexy, Money” on a national television we could still be talking about banning books, but the issue is alive and well. Every year the American Library Association and other related agencies receive demands for various books to be banned from libraries. The issues range from the religious viewpoint in “The Golden Compass” (Philip Pullman) to racism portrayed in “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain.

To highlight the importance of books and the need to fight censorship, Banned Books Week is held the last week of September. This year’s celebration is from Sept. 27 to Oct. 4 and includes events at libraries throughout the country. Here’s a really great set-up at a the Twin Hickory Public Library, Glen Allen, VA, as featured in Boing Boing.

Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Library Association, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, the Association of American Publishers, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, and the National Association of College Stores. Banned Books Week is also endorsed by the Center for the Book of the Library of Congress.