Celebrate lesser-known July observances

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Mary Davis
  • Public Affairs
Vance Air Force Base, Okla. --  Independence Day isn't the only July observance; it's just one of the more memorable ones.
There are a slew of observances this month that most people don't know about, but would celebrate if they only knew they existed.
For instance, did you know it's American Beer Month? I'm sure every beer aficionado will raise a pint to that! In fact, did you know President Teddy Roosevelt took more than 500 gallons of beer on an African safari? I hope he was able to shoot something other than his foot.
It's also National Baked Beans Month (don't stand down wind of folks celebrating that observance!) and Anti-Boredom Month. What's funny about that observance is the Web site link is broken (http://www.boringinstitute.com/recentevents/
17antiboredom.html). Maybe they're too bored to fix it.
In 1984, President Ronald Reagan designated July as National Ice Cream Month. Some legends about the origins of the frozen dessert involve the Italian explorer, Marco Polo, who is said to have brought the recipe back to Italy from China. Many moons later, two explorers -- Ben and Jerry -- discovered "Chunky Monkey Ice Cream," and the world hasn't been the same since.
Hot-diggity dog -- it's also National Hot Dog Month! It is still a mystery what goes into hot dogs (frankly, I'm afraid to find out what they're really made of).
According to the History Channel, each baseball season, 26 million hot dogs are consumed. Those tasty little dogs can be traced back to Germany and Austria, and became an American favorite by stuffing it in a bun and smothering it with mustard and other fixings.
The "grillmeister" in your house can celebrate National Grilling Month in your own back yard. Just don't celebrate Grilling and Beer Month together, unless you like your food on the crispy side.
The month also has two national fruit observances -- Peach Month and Blueberry Month. Each year, Porter, Okla., residents celebrate the fuzzy, sweet fruit with a festival. The Peach Festival takes place July 14 and 15. Take a trip down Highway 51. Porter is southeast of Tulsa.
All in all, you couldn't pick a sweeter month to enjoy than July!