A day for naming your computer. A day for looking for circles. A pizza celebration that specifically excludes anchovies. November has some unusually specific observances tucked between its better-known holidays. These are informal celebrations, and while some have documented creators, others have origins that remain unclear.
ℹ️ See also complete list of all national days taking place in November.
Zero Tasking Day
Zero Tasking Day, observed on the first Sunday in November, invites you to accomplish absolutely nothing for a change. It takes its cue from the end of daylight saving time in most of the United States. In 2014, author Nancy Christie suggested using the extra hour to rest instead of adding another chore to the list.
Look for Circles Day
Look for Circles Day on November 2 turns an ordinary walk into a shape hunt. The State Library of Queensland suggests having young children spot circles on things like wheels and buttons. Learning to recognize shapes helps lay the groundwork for recognizing letters later.
Marooned Without a Compass Day
Marooned Without a Compass Day on November 6 imagines being stranded and having to find your way without a compass. A teachers’ calendar listed it as early as 2002, though who came up with the day is unclear. One way to mark it is to try following a paper map on a familiar walk.
Chaos Never Dies Day
Chaos Never Dies Day on November 9 gives everyday disorder its own annual observance. The idea is to accept that life will never be completely organized, rather than waiting for every loose end to disappear before you relax. An overflowing inbox or tangled drawer can supply the theme, but the suggested response is to step back instead of creating more chaos.
National Pizza with the Works Except Anchovies Day
National Pizza with the Works Except Anchovies Day on November 12 celebrates a loaded pizza with one rule. Pile on the pepperoni, mushrooms, peppers, or whatever your pizzeria puts on its “works” pizza, and leave off the anchovies. The observance appeared in a Florida newspaper in 2001, but who started it and why they singled out anchovies remain unclear.
Married to a Scorpio Support Day
Married to a Scorpio Support Day on November 18 is a Wellcat Holidays joke by Thomas and Ruth Roy. It imagines a day of solidarity for people married to Scorpios, with one very specific suggestion for spouses who have had enough of the household rules. Hide the flowcharts.
Have a Bad Day Day
Have a Bad Day Day on November 19 reverses the familiar instruction to have a nice day. Thomas and Ruth Roy created it as a joke about hearing that cheerful phrase repeatedly. Its original premise concerns the greeting itself, rather than deliberately making someone miserable.
National Absurdity Day
National Absurdity Day on November 20 gives you an excuse to make something deliberately ridiculous, like a weather report for the inside of your refrigerator. The date appeared in a 2002 calendar under the shorter name Absurdity Day. Its creator and starting year are unclear.
Name Your PC Day
Name Your PC Day on November 20 asks you to give your computer a name. Thomas and Ruth Roy’s reasoning was that people already name their boats, so computers could get the same treatment. Wellcat’s own entry says Binky is already taken.
Stay Home Because You’re Well Day
Stay Home Because You’re Well Day on November 30 is Thomas and Ruth Roy’s twist on calling in sick. Their joke imagines phoning work to say you feel perfectly fine and would like to spend the day at home enjoying it.
If naming your computer gets a day in November, what oddly specific thing would you give a day of its own?
