An invisible man arrives at Iping Village (Feb 9)

It is during a blistery snowstorm that a mysterious man completely covered in coats and bandages arrives at the inn in the village of Iping, acting gruffly and demanding to left alone. The man continues to act bizarrely, becoming the talk of the town.  Eventually small thefts begin to occur and the man--Griffin--reveals his invisibility during a fit of temper with his landlady.  Griffin flees to the downs for refuge where he… well, you should really read the book for yourself.  It’s a classic and a short one at that.

How to Commemorate

• Hold a council to decide what you would do if you became invisible. (Skip over locker rooms. They’re a given.)
• Discuss how you would combat an invisible opponent. 
• Visit an old friend from school.

*Share your photos and celebrations on our Facebook or twitter pages.

Works Cited   

The Invisible Man (H.G. Wells)

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Griffin & Sabine (Send a card to a friend day--Feb 7)

What if someone could see through your eyes, but they lived on the other side of the world? What if you started receiving mysterious postcards with paintings on them depicting scenes of your life and work mixed with some tropical environment? What if you could page through someone’s mail, unfolding the letters from their envelopes, and learn the surreal and hand-crafted beauty of two people slowly falling in love?

All these things are wrapped up in the Griffin & Sabine trilogy--one of the most physically unique books to be published in recent decades.  One page will have the front of a postcard on it, and when you turn the page, you can read the back of the postcard. Some pages have envelopes on them, and you can pull out the hand-written letters inside.  And all of the pages are covered in intense and colorful artworks.  Trust me, this is a beautiful book (even suitable for an upcoming romantic holiday…) and very appropriate to read on Send A Card to A Friend Day.

How to Commemorate

• Send a (handwritten!) card to a friend. (Bonus points if you include a drawing.)
• Read someone’s mail.
• Buy stamps. (You know, so you have them for the next time you want to send a card.)

*Share your photos and celebrations on our Facebook or twitter pages.

Works Cited   

Griffin & Sabine (trilogy)

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Groundhog Day (Feb 2)

Ever feel like you're living the same exact day over and over? For weatherman Phil Connors, it's the literal truth. Caught in some form of temporal causality loop, crotchety Phil tries to make sense of it by at first trying to escape then enjoy then die (a lot) then--finally--finding a way to improve himself and the lives around him. Good life lesson, Bill Murray!

How to Commemorate

• Listen to “I got you, babe.”
• Play the piano (or listen to someone playing the piano).
• Help out a homeless person.

*Share your photos and celebrations on our Facebook or twitter pages.

Works Cited   

Groundhog Day (1993)

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Beckett vanquishes Castle based on her knowledge of Girl Scout cookies.

Oh, that Castle, making bets on who can solve a crime the fastest.  He kept it on the DL from Beckett.  He’s not stupid.  But he did get caught nonetheless.  She confronts him in the break room when she sees his envelope full of money.  She snatches it away, scolding “Girl Scout cookies are sold in February!”  And Beckett returns to the murder board.

How to Commemorate

• Buy Girl Scout cookies!
• Deconstruct everyone’s grammar.
• Pick someone and call them Honeymilk all day.

*Share your photos and celebrations on our Facebook or twitter pages.

Works Cited   

Castle, S2E2, The Double Down

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