January 3rd is... J.R.R. Tolkien's Birthday (1892), Super Soakers Birthday (1991), Festival Of Sleep Day, National Write to Congress Day, Humiliation Day, National Chocolate Covered Cherry Day, Brooklyn Bridge Birthday (1870), National Drinking Straw Day (1888), Alaska Admitted as 49th U.S. State/Alaska Admission Day (1959), Memento Mori/Remember You Will Die Day, Electric Watch Birthday (1957), Women Rock! Day (1987), Earth at Perihelion/Perihelion Day, Fruitcake Toss Day, Hero's Day (Haiti), Tamaseseri Festival, Feast of Saint Genevieve
PLUS - interesting books to read and free printables, paper crafts, kid crafts, activities, and coloring pages.
Want more Holidays to celebrate? Click for our Index of Holiday Freebies
J.R.R. Tolkien's Birthday (1892)-- John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born on January 3, 1892, in Bloemfontein, South Africa. After serving in World War I, he embarked upon a distinguished academic career and was recognized as one of the finest philologists in the world. He was a professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford, a fellow of Pembroke College, and a fellow of Merton College until his retirement in 1959. He is, however, beloved throughout the world as the creator of Middle-earth and author of such classic works as The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. He died on September 2, 1973, at the age of eighty-one.
Read: The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings
-- The books that inspired the epic motion pictures, by J.R.R. Tolkien. The Lord Of The Rings, The Hobbit, The Fellowship Of The Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return Of The King. Arguably the most famous and beloved fantasy series of all time, J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings is a must-have for any bookworm. Tolkien’s masterpieces brought serious, widespread recognition to (and appreciation of) the fantasy genre, which hasn’t been the same since.
• The Complete Lord of the Rings Trilogy -- From the wonderful landscapes of the Shire and Lothlorien, to the stark and sunless land of Mordor, the courageous Hobbits pursue their quest, bearing the awesome Ring of Sauron, the Dark Lord! This epic trilogy takes up where The Hobbit leaves off, tracing the legend of the One Ring, found by Bilbo in the Goblin's cave, to its final destruction in the Crack of Doom.• Lord of the Rings: The Card Game -- A cooperative card game putting 1-2 players (or up to four with two Core Sets!) in control of the most powerful characters and artifacts of Middle-earth. Players will select heroes, gather allies, acquire artifacts, and coordinate their efforts to face Middle-earth’s most dangerous fiends. By cooperating to overcome the obstacles drawn from the encounter deck, you will complete the quest before you and claim victory!
• Lord of the Rings Coloring and Activity Books
J.R.R. Tolkien: Master of the Rings
Amazon Freebies:• Free Lord of the Rings ebooks. No Kindle? Download a FREE Kindle Reading App
• Read Lord of the Rings ebooks for free with a Free Trial of Kindle Unlimited
• Free Lord of the Rings apps
• Free Lord of the Rings games
• Listen to Lord of the Rings LPs with a Free Trial of Amazon Music Unlimited
• Watch Lord of the Rings Videos for Free with a Free Trial of Amazon Prime
• Listen to Lord of the Rings Audible books with Amazon Audible, and Get Two Free Audiobooks
• Free Alexa Skills | Lord of the Rings
Free Printables, Coloring Pages, Activities and Crafts:
• The Hobbit - Free ebook
• FREE Printable Favorite Authors Puzzles: J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Father Christmas Letters by J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Hobbit: Resources and Activities for Kids
• Free Printable – Not all who wander are lost
• The Lord of the Rings Word Search
• Printable J.R.R Tolkien Quotes About Love
• J.R.R. Tolkien's classic 'Lord of the Rings' papercraft printables
• J.R.R. Tolkien's maps
• LOTR Project is dedicated to bringing J.R.R. Tolkein's works to life
Super Soakers Birthday (1991)
- Once one of the most feared weapons on the water-front, the original Super Soaker SS 50 was a
MUST-HAVEfor any water-weapon enthusiast. Unlike its motorized predecessors, Lonnie Johnson developed a gun which relied on air pressure and arm pumping for pressurizing the firing chamber. The end result was a water blaster capable of delivering more water farther and faster than any other water gun on the market. The brand name, Super Soaker®, was introduced nation-wide in 1991 through a series of TV-advertisements.
Festival Of Sleep Day
- Celebrated by learning about and experiencing a sound sleep. The hustle and bustle of the holidays are finally over. You made it through Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. Now you are all caught up on the holidays and your body is ready for a nice day of sleep. Today's the day to sleep in and feel how good it feels to have a nice comfortable sound sleep.
National Write to Congress Day
- Why live in a democracy if you don't express yourself? On this day, take a few minutes to identify your local representative and write him or her an e-mail or a letter about an issue of your choice. Don't know who to write to? Go to National Write Your Congressman.
Humiliation Day
- On this holiday, we take the opportunity to make up for the hurt we put others through. Sometimes we say or do something which hurts others without our knowledge. Humiliation Day stresses the need to understand the negative effects of humiliation. Go ahead and say sorry to someone you have hurt or convey your feelings to someone who has hurt you.
National Chocolate Covered Cherry Day
- The holiday serves as a celebration of chocolate covered cherries. Chocolate covered cherries generally consist of maraschino cherries smothered in milk chocolate sauce, then refrigerated overnight. The sauce consists of butter, cream and semi-sweet chocolate. The cherries are normally covered in sugar prior to being dipped in the chocolate.
Brooklyn Bridge Birthday (1870)
- On January 3, 1870, Washington Roebling began construction on the Brooklyn Bridge; when it opened 13 years later, it was the largest suspension bridge in the world.
National Drinking Straw Day (1888)
- Celebrate the invention of the drinking straw - enjoy this day by drinking cool drinks with cool straws all day long! Drinking straws have been improved since that day in 1888 when it was first invented. Straws are made of paper or plastic, and include bendy straws, candy straws, and spoon straws too.
Alaska Admitted as 49th U.S. State (1959)
- On January 3, 1959, Alaska, with a land mass larger than Texas, California and Montana combined, became the 49th state in the union. It is a large state, 1/5 the size of all the other states together, reaching so far to the west the International Date Line had to be bent to keep the state all in the same day. It's also the only U.S. state extending into the Eastern Hemisphere.
J.R.R. Tolkien's Birthday (1892)
- On the 3rd of January 1892, JRR Tolkien was born in Bloemfontein, South Africa. To celebrate this event, on this day each year Tolkien fans around the world are invited to raise a glass and toast the birthday of this much loved author.
Memento Mori/Remember You Will Die Day
- Contrary to the way it sounds, Memento Mori Day is to remind us not only do we die, but we are now alive and should celebrate this fact. Wouldn't it be great if they renamed this one,
Remember You Live Day? Wouldn't this sound so much happier, and a little less like a threat from a hit man.
Electric Watch Birthday (1957)
- On January 3, 1957, Hamilton held a press conference to announce the
World's First Electric Watch.The idea of a watch which never needed winding was very exciting to consumers back in the 1950s, who were not only tired of always winding their watches, but were also captivated by progress and modernity. The Hamilton Electric was an instant hit.
Women Rock! Day (1987)
- Aretha Franklin became the first woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.
