1.
Eat a vegetarian meal. October 1st is World Vegetarian Day – a great reason to explore the amazing array of vegetarian foods available to us these days. Consider hosting a vegetarian dinner party (you can find recipes
here), or visiting a local vegetarian restaurant. You can even make an
official pledge not to let a morsel of meat pass your lips all day.
2.
Read a graphic novel. October 2nd is the day the Peanuts Comic Strip was first published, in 1950. What an excuse to while away the day at your local comic book store or visit the local library to explore the wonderful world of graphic novels.
3. Take a walk around your local neighbourhood. The first Monday of October is
World Habitat Day. This year it falls on October 3rd, with the theme '
Cities and Climate Change'. Take some time to explore and appreciate your own city habitat – local parks, shops, community centres, etc.
4.
Visit the Observatory. October 4th to 10th is
World Space Week and this year the theme is '50 years of human spaceflight'. If you're feeling energetic, you can organise and
register your very own space-related event but for the lazier amongst us, it might be more realistic to just do a bit of stargazing.
Sydney Observatory at night
5.
Write your grandparents a letter. If you didn't manage to phone your Gran last month, maybe you could write her a letter this month. It seems appropriate, given October 7th is International Day for Older Persons and October 9th is World Post Day.
6.Go to a public lecture. Universities offer free, public lectures on almost every topic imaginable. October 12th is
Freethought Day – a celebration of rationality and secularism, held on the anniversary of the end of the Salem Witch Trials – making this a great month to find out what's on at a Uni near you.
7.
Eat spaghetti. Or ravioli. Or tortellini. Or lasagne. Or whatever sort of pasta takes your fancy. October 25th is World Pasta Day, and with so many different types of pasta so readily available, it seems a shame not to jump on the bandwagon.
8. Celebrate
Halloween. October 31st is Halloween, which traces back to the Celtic harvest festival of Samhain. Massive migration has now spread this festival all over the world, providing children and adults alike with an excuse to wear costumes and gorge themselves on lollies. Get into the spirit (pun intended) by holding a theme party, carving a face into a pumpkin, or scaring the crap out of neighbourhood children.
9.
Visit an art gallery. In the U.S. October is National Arts & Humanities month, initiated to encourage lifelong participation in the arts and humanities. I figure that's a worthy cause, no matter where you're from.
10. Watch a movie. Get some Russian history into ya' the fun way, by renting the movie 'October (Ten Days that Shook the World)'. October is also
Popcorn Poppin' Month, so make a real movie night of it with a big bowl of microwave popcorn.
