December 21, 2016

Daily Holidays - December 21

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/december21.html

Global Orgasm Day This is the 8th year of the Global Orgasm for World Peace, held annually on the December Solstice & New Year. Millions of satistfied people around the world have participated, saying Yes! to World Peace in their own special way. Through links with the Noosphere Project at Princeton University, and more recently The Center for Subtle Activism, the Global O has been able to contribute in a unique way to the new sciences of the collective mind. We ask that you vote for a brighter future with your orgasm. Use it to pray for Peace. With you will be millions of people around the world. http://www.globalorgasm.org

Crossword Puzzle Day Sharpen your pencils and your minds, all in one go, on this glorious Crossword Puzzle Day! These amazing word twisters allow you to expand your vocabulary and problem solving skills all in one go. There’s nothing like a crossword to start the day with your morning coffee, something to get the old gears going before you head into work for another grueling day. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/crossword-puzzle-day/

International Dalek Remembrance Day is a recognition of the first time that the Daleks appeared on Doctor Who in 1963. It’s been celebrated as the day that the most instantly recognizable aspect of the show, outside of the TARDIS itself, came into existence. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/international-dalek-remembrance-day/

Winter Solstice

Look at the Brightside Day Every one of us has heard the phrase “Look on the bright side!” at some point in our lives, from friends to family telling us to cheer up. But, where does the phrase truly mean? To figure that out, we must delve deep into the mountain that is the past. So come with us as we explore the beginnings of the phrase and the holiday named after it, Look on the Brightside day. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/look-on-the-bright-side-day/

December 20, 2016

Republicans, unions brace for fight on right-to-work next year

As Republicans prepare to take power in the N.H. governor’s office and a majority in the state Legislature for the first time since 2004, one goal has risen to the top of the agenda: passing legislation to make New Hampshire a right-to-work state.

It’s a concept that’s been popular with Republicans across the country for decades: prohibiting labor unions from demanding fees from workers who aren’t unionized but may benefit from the union’s activities. The fees, which unions say are necessary and critics call oppressive, are opposed by many Republicans who say such fees discourage companies from moving to the state.

Since 1947, 26 U.S. states have passed the law. But bringing it to New Hampshire has proven tough for Republicans, as lawmakers have taken up the issue many times without success, drawing vetoes from Democratic governors such as John Lynch and Maggie Hassan.

Democrats generally oppose the legislation, arguing it weakens unions by undercutting their ability to collect funding.
Now, with a clean sweep of both the House and Senate in the November election, Republicans are hoping to push the law through next year.

http://www.sentinelsource.com/news/local/republicans-unions-brace-for-fight-on-right-to-work-next/article_131f10e8-cc6d-5cef-b9ac-142fc49c13b6.html

December 20, 2016

White Resentment on the Night Shift at Walmart

Seven years ago, I joined the night shift at a Walmart in rural Michigan. For $8.10 an hour, I spent four or five nights a week filling shelves with the flour and sugar and marshmallow fluff that residents of the local county, which in 2008 voted for Barack Obama, needed to get through the holidays. Four years ago, the county went with President Obama a second time, though by a thinner margin. But this past November, the county, like the state, turned red.

A few shifts into my time on Walmart’s sales floor, I spent a smoke break outside in the damp November air with a co-worker, a white single mother of four. We squatted on a concrete curb in the gray cast of parking-lot lights and surveyed what lay before us. Walmart’s expanse of asphalt, dotted with worn-out pickups and domestic sedans, gave way to a road lined with strip malls and dollar stores. Beyond it, a sign for Meijer, a regional competitor to Walmart, glowed red against a black sky.

I know people talk about working over there and they say it’s better because it’s got a union, I remember my co-worker telling me as she gestured at Meijer. But I’d rather have those dues in my paycheck. Besides, she told me, Walmart wasn’t as bad as everyone said. The night shift came with a 50-cents-per-hour premium, she got raises and after seven years, she said, she was up to $11 an hour.

If she made it to 15 years at Walmart, which was common among workers on our shift, she said she’d even get to keep her employee discount card — which offered 10 percent off produce and other items — for life. As I talked to other co-workers, nearly all of whom were white, I got the impression that Walmart wasn’t necessarily considered a good job, but it was one of the best jobs in town. At least it wasn’t going to up and move to Mexico, the way factories had.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/17/opinion/sunday/white-resentment-on-the-night-shift-at-walmart.html?ribbon-ad-idx=4&src=trending&module=Ribbon&version=origin&region=Header&action=click&contentCollection=Trending&pgtype=article

December 20, 2016

Metro Detroit labor community to help unemployed and underemployed workers with distribution of food

DETROIT, Dec. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — For the eighteenth year, Teamsters Local 299 and the Metropolitan Detroit AFL-CIO will jointly conduct a Holiday Food Basket Giveaway on Saturday, December 17, 2016.

More than 1,100 baskets will be distributed from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM at Teamsters Joint Council 43 located on 2741 Trumbull Ave. in Detroit (Two blocks north of the former Tiger Stadium grounds).

“Every year, we see the critical need to help workers who are struggling at this time of the year,” Kevin Moore, president of Teamsters Local 299 and Rick Blocker, president of the Metropolitan Detroit AFL-CIO said in a joint statement. “And the local labor community comes together to contribute and volunteer in an effort to shed some light for working families in need.”

Started in 1999, the annual event has distributed more than 11,000 food baskets as part of a jointly coordinated program, which also has the support of Gleaners Food Bank, Spartan Foods, United Way of Southeast Michigan and several other businesses and organizations.

http://satprnews.com/2016/12/16/metro-detroit-labor-community-to-help-unemployed-and-underemployed-workers-with-distribution-of-more-than-1100-food-baskets-and-turkeys/

December 20, 2016

2 Teamsters anonymously bring Christmas happiness to tens of thousands of St. Louis kids

“This is divine intervention.”

Colonel Ronnie Robinson, deputy chief, St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, was expressing his feelings as the efforts of two dedicated rank-and-file Teamsters unfolded on a brisk Saturday morning Dec. 3 when dozens of volunteers loaded over 100,000 new toys and games, assorted Christmas items and clothing of all types into police cars, vans, flatbed trucks and church busses to be distributed by police, fire fighters and church groups on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to families whose children otherwise would never have Christmas.

“We just want smiles on kid’s faces at Christmas,” said Teamsters Local 600’s Roy Gillespie, who along with his friend and co-organizer, Teamsters 600 member Mike Koeller (a minister in the Leap of Faith Church in Maryland Heights), have been coordinating this particular incredible Christmas effort for the past four years. And all with the blessing of Teamsters Joint Council 13 whose other locals provide part of the volunteer manpower to make this happen.

You had to be there to see it, to believe that something like this is possible. Oh, yes, many groups gather money and toys for underprivileged and needy children for Christmas. But nothing on this scale.

http://labortribune.com/2-teamsters-anonymously-bring-christmas-happiness-to-tens-of-thousands-of-st-louis-kids/

December 20, 2016

Daily Holidays - December 20

National Sangria Day What could be better than a day dedicated to wine? Sangria Day is the perfect excuse to meet with friends and sample the delicious, fruity drink that is one of Spain’s claims to fame in the area of the culinary arts. Make sure your December 20th really packs a punch! https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/sangria-day/

Games Day Games Day was created by the British game production and retail company, Games Workshop, which started out producing more traditional games such as backgammon, and later moved on to fantasy universe games, such as Warhammer. This day of carefree whimsical frivolity was created rather abruptly in 1975 when another games convention that got cancelled, and the gap thereby created needed to be filled. The very first of these soon to become extremely popular events took place in London on December 20, 1975. In a very short period of time, these events really took the UK’s gaming community by storm and brought many people together, which did a great deal to build up the nation’s gaming scene. Of course, this style of convention quickly sprung up and became enormously popular in the US as well, and acts as a fantastic showcase both for gamers and their skills and the gaming industry. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/games-day/

Go Caroling Day Any fan of old classic movies knows that carolers were one of the hallmarks of any Christmas themed movie. Whether it was “It’s a wonderful Life” or Charles Dickens “Christmas Carol”, you could be certain at some point some warmly bedecked singers would arrive at someone’s door belting out the traditional songs for Christmas. While Caroling is slowly falling out of style, there’s still time to preserve this time honored tradition, and Go Caroling Day is your call to arms. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/go-caroling-day/

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/december20.html

December 19, 2016

Daily Holidays - December 19

Oatmeal Muffin Day While muffins have been a staple for quite a few centuries, starting with English style muffins which are yeast raised and cooked on a griddle, and have been dated back to the 10th or 11th century in Wales. American style muffins are known as quick bread muffins, which are made in individual molds. Quick bread muffins were not developed until close to the end of the 18th century, where pearlash, a refined form of potash, was discovered. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/oatmeal-muffin-day/

Look for An Evergreen Day was originally established by the National Arborist Association to create a day to appreciate the beauty of these trees outside of the confines of merely being bedecked with glittering lights and ornaments· Even in the depths of winter these noble trees keep their foliage, providing that wonderful green and white contrast that is so representative of deep winter. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/look-for-an-evergreen-day/

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/december19.html

December 18, 2016

Daily Holidays - December 18

Bake Cookies Day occurs in the middle of the holiday season, and is a great excuse to bake some delicious cookies to help you get through the cold, winter days! Why not try some cinnamon flavored cookies (such as the snickerdoodle) to get your kitchen smelling of winter festivities? Or there’s always the classic ‘sugar cookie’ with brightly colored royal icing, silver candy balls and sprinkles, cut into a myriad of seasonal shapes. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/bake-cookies-day/

International Migrants Day Migration has been a courageous expression of the individual’s will to overcome adversity and to live a better life. Today, globalization, together with advances in communications and transportation, has greatly increased the number of people who have the desire and the capacity to move to other places. This new era has created challenges and opportunities for societies throughout the world. It also has served to underscore the clear linkage between migration and development, as well as the opportunities it provides for co-development, that is, the concerted improvement of economic and social conditions at both origin and destination. So, now let’s jump right into the past of what is International Migrant’s Day! https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/international-migrants-day/


http://www.famousbirthdays.com/december18.html

December 17, 2016

Daily Holidays - December 17

National Maple
 Syrup Day Oh, hey! Did you know that maple syrup had its own holiday? No? Neither did we! So, before we delve into the history of and the most popular thing to put on pancakes, waffles, French toast and more, let us take a moment to thank the maple trees for the sap that becomes the sweet syrup we know and love today! That’s the whole focus of Maple Syrup Day! https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/maple-syrup-day/

Wright Brothers Day The brothers Orville and Wilbur, tenacious American inventors, recorded the first manned, powered flight in 1903 at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. They were not the first to build experimental aircraft, and news of fatal glider crashes involving other aviation trailblazers influenced the direction of their research and development. The Wright brothers focused their efforts on pilot-activated flight-stabilizing controls. Their discoveries form the basis of modern flight. In 1903 when aviation was in its infancy, sustained flight was measured in seconds and piloting was a developing skill, and although early flight lacked sophistication, it threw open the doors for the evolution of the aviation industry, and set the stage for the global travel system that we take for granted today. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/wright-brothers-day/

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/december17.html

December 16, 2016

Daily Holidays - December 16

National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day Chocolate, a candy loved by both children and adults alike. But how much can it go on? What edible creations can molten chocolate create? Where in the world are certain chocolate dishes made a favorite staple? Well, in order to find the answers to all those questions, we must do a time hop into the past, for this is the search of the history of Chocolate Covered Everything Day! https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/chocolate-covered-anything-day/

Ugly Christmas Sweater Day Lurking in the murky depths of many people’s wardrobes is a colorful, brash and (in most cases) highly embarrassing novelty Christmas jumper which, were it not for Ugly Christmas Sweater Day, would probably never see the light of day· When for Ugly Christmas Sweater Day comes along, it’s time to stop being ashamed of the contents of your (likely gifted) wardrobe and start busting out the ugly· There is such a thing as ‘so awful you can’t really hate it’ (the nether-regions of Netflix has multiple movies that fit this criteria), and Ugly Christmas Sweaters fit the bill in your wardrobe. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/ugly-christmas-sweater-day/

Underdog Day Honour the world’s greatest unsung heroes, runners up and unlikely winners who have pulled off the unexpected on Underdog Day! For those that may not know, an “underdog” is a person in a competition or other event who is popularly expected to lose or fail. The individual expected to win is called the favorite or top dog. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/underdog-day/

Reconciliation Day They say that all good things come to an end, thankfully this remains true for horrid atrocities as well. One such ending took place in 1991 with the ending of apartheid, a system of racial segregation that existed in South Africa on the back of legislation introduced by the National Party. The Day of Reconciliation was introduced in 1994 as a way to heal the rift between the people of South Africa, and bring harmony to a nation still suffering from decades of injustice. https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/day-of-reconciliation/

http://www.famousbirthdays.com/december16.html