National Hugging Day

Today is National Hugging Day. When Grant stopped blogging for a while, I would occasionally get notes from him, letting me know about strange holidays. Certainly not National Hugging Day. More likely, Take a Nunchuck to Work Day. Okay, I made that up. Perhaps I will register takeanunchucktoworkday.com. Perhaps not.

On the National Hugging Day website, the Most Huggable People in 2009 are:

President Barack Obama and Family, Washington, DC The Obama family has been seen hugging one another freely and openly throughout the campaign making the most huggable "First Family."

Robby Jackson, Flagstaff, AZ At 8 years old, he decided it was important to adopt a "Robby's National Hug Day" at his school. All of his classroom peers and teachers received a hug celebrating "Robby's National Hug Day." It went so well that the kids hugged the next day. He hugged his family and friends. He did this all on his own! His family researched National Hug Day on the computer and realized that we already do have a "National Hug Day. His mother added, "Great news for us!"

Edna Hazlett, Fredericktown, PA According to a fellow church member, Edna always jumps up from her pew and throws out her arms with a big smile on her face. "All your troubles seem to float away with her arms around you."

Andrea Mumford, Baton Rouge, LA According to her coworkers, "she is always smiling and laughing, [and] she can't keep her arms off of people because she loves to hug everyone!"

When I think of hugging, I can't help but remember something a co-worker once told me. She recalled an event where she and her husband were caught in the act by her daughter. Days later, the woman was in the kitchen, and her daughter was playing with friends. Said daughter told her friends "Daddy was hugging Mommy with his penis yesterday." The co-worker was mortified.

On the bright side, I suppose, at least the daughter did not say that the Daddy was hugging the babysitter.

Anyway, now every time I hear something about hugging, I think about my co-worker and her husband, caught by their daughter.

I never caught my parents – thank goodness – but most people who have talked about their parents and sex seem to have caught them at least once. Now I am not sure if it is because the people who talk have caught their parents, but I always pipe up and say that I suspect my parents never had sex. Or, perhaps, my parents were much more discrete than other parents (thanks Mom and Dad!). Being a Southerner, discretion is so important.

February 8 is Grammy night. I think that night should be I Kissed a Girl Night in honor of Katy Perry. Me, I will be wearing cherry ChapStick.