February 10th is Umbrella Day

If you're not sure what to do today then make sure it's a dry one because it's Umbrella Day!

Open up this wonderful invention for shade or protection from the weather.

Let's get right into celebrating Umbrella Day!

Why is this a holiday?

The umbrella gets its own holiday because can you actually imagine living without this wonderful invention? Unless you live in the dessert, I'm sure you can't count the number of times you've popped open an umbrella to keep you dry. So since umbrellas are so commonly used we must celebrate them!

As most of you know umbrellas can also be called a parasols, when they're protecting you from the sun instead of the rain, and that's actually how this invention got its start. From Ancient Egypt to Ancient Rome you see parasols pop up all over in art and so on. Whether it's attendants holding them over kings' heads or used by a fashionable lady, this invention predates all of us.

And collapsible umbrellas are even mentioned way back in 21 A.D. in China! But it appears that protection from the sun was the main purpose for umbrellas or parasols in the past; they had other means of keeping dry back then. But eventually, by the 18th and 19th centuries, people started using them to keep dry as well as out of the heat.

Robinson Crusoe even made his own umbrella in Daniel Defoe's story; which is why the first heavy umbrellas were called "Robinsons" in England and France. But now a days umbrellas and parasols come in all different shapes and sizes, heck some even open automatically! I know as a kid I use to have fun just opening and closing my automatic umbrella.

We see them all over from Mary Poppins to the Penguin to people singing songs about them. So today you really have no excuse to be scorched by the sun or soaked by the rain.

So how can you celebrate today?

Well, if it's rainy outside or really sunny then you could carry around an umbrella all day to protect you from the elements. Don't be afraid to share the protection either! If you happen to be walking beside someone that's out in the rain, then move your umbrella to cover both of you. That way you both can enjoy this great invention!

Or maybe you don't even have an umbrella. If that's the case then today would be a great day to go shopping for one. Pick up a nice durable one that won't flip inside out in the wind and maybe even get one that opens automatically for those split second rain storms. You can even pick up a couple of umbrellas for your deck if you have one.

Or if you're really feeling creative then why not compete with your friends to see who can make the best umbrella?  Use whatever you have laying around the house and then test them out one by one.  The winner gets... to be dry!

It doesn't matter how you decide to celebrate today, I just hope that you'll be protected from the elements!