February 1, 2023 - National Texas Day | National Serpent Day

Welcome to February 1st, 2023 on the National Day Calendar. Today we celebrate the strange towns of the Lone Star State and symbols that slither. Texas is a big state and leads the way in many things such as livestock production, cotton production and, some would say, friendliness. Another thing Texas is good at is odd place names. Like…Bacon, Bangs, Beans, Bee Cave, Bigfoot, Blackjack, Bluntzer and Bobo, Bootleg, Bugtussle, Cat Spring, Cut and Shoot, Ding Dong and El Gato, Goodnight and Gun Barrel City, Happy, Humble, Hoop and Holler, Hornbeak, Knickerbocker, Latex, Log Cabin, Muleshoe and Lovelady. There’s Nada, Noodle, Oatmeal, Raisin, Scissors, Scurry, Smiley and Snook, Spearman, Tarzan, Uncertain and Who’d Thought It! Oh, and let’s not forget Zipperland, Hutto, the hippo capital of Texas and the town of Clark which changed its name to Dish, Texas in 2005 so each of its 201 residents could get free Dish TV for 10 years! On National Texas Day, celebrate the small towns that give this big state character. Most of our symbols have specific meanings; a heart for love and compassion, a dove represents peace, and the serpent symbolizes… medicine. Yes, medicine. The Caduceus and the Rod of Asclepius are both symbols of medicine utilizing a staff entwined with serpents. So…why a snake? The answer goes as far back as Moses who reportedly used a bronze snake on a pole to cure people bitten by snakes. Caduceus is the symbol of Mercury in Roman mythology. Apparently Mercury stopped a fight between two serpents by throwing his rod at them at which point they wrapped themselves around the rod and the symbol was born. On National Serpent Day, celebrate this once feared creature and don’t be buying any snake oil. I’m Anna Devere and I’m Marlo Anderson. Thanks for joining us as we Celebrate Every Day! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices