October is a busy month. Halloween notwithstanding, there are plenty of things to consider about this autumnal month, though they don’t necessarily involve costumes. As citizens of the 21st century, we’re seeing the evolution of awareness into a second nature, where knowledge of sundry concepts, causes and efforts becomes inherent in the fibers of society.

For instance, October is not simply October, but Adopt-a-Shelter-Dog Month, Antidepressant Death Awareness Month, Bake and Decorate Month, Book Month, Canine Good Health Month, Celebrate Sun Dried Tomatoes Month, Celebrating the Bilingual Child Month, Children’s Magazine Month, Chili Month, Communicate with Your Kid Month, Construction Toy Month, Dental Hygiene Month, Depression Education and Awareness Month, Disability Employment Awareness Month, Diversity Awareness Month, Eat Better Eat Together Month, Family Sexuality Education Month, Go Hog Wild – Eat Country Ham Month, Liver Awareness Month, Medical Librarians Month, Organize Your Medical Information Month, Photographer Appreciation Month, Popcorn Poppin’ Month, Positive Attitude Month, Right-Brainers Rule Month, Sarcastics Awareness Month, Spinach Lovers Month, Talk About Prescriptions Month, Vegetarian Month and Workplace Politics Awareness Month.

And that’s just for starters. Your Mountain Times staff is aware of this, uh, awareness, and would like to bring some other matters to public attention.

Cara Kelly: Me Day

On her very own day off, Cara would likely stare at her poster of Matthew Broderick singing in the shower.

After writing several articles about October is [insert just cause here] awareness month, I couldn’t help but thinking about what I would like to bring awareness to. Although November is probably already taken for something slightly more critical, I would dub it “me-day” or “mental health day” awareness month. I believe that many people in the U.S., especially after spending an incredible summer in the Mediterranean paradise of Greece, are work-a-holics who do not fully appreciate a good mental health day.

For several years I have been celebrating my own mental health day on Nov. 8 in honor of a close friend of mine. Although my life as a single 22 year old is a generally a bit selfish, with my only real responsibilities to other people revolving around washing the dishes, occasionally walking my roommate’s dog and making a weekly home-cooked meal for my “little sister” in my sorority who is still subjected to the monotony of cafeteria food, it is still nice to be a little self-indulgent every once in a while.

Whether it be a long hike on the Appalachian Trail, a relaxing cruise on the parkway, or a day spent in bed reading fashion magazines, an entire day devoted to frivolous interests can do wonders for a bad mood. I would encourage everyone to take one day a year to invoke the spirit of Ferris Bueller and play hookie. Even though I believe that a good life is spent working hard, helping others and whole-heartedly following passions, spending a day doing something that has no benefits besides sheer enjoyment is truly invaluable.

Melanie Davis: Celebrate in October

October seems to be the month of awareness. There are a few very important awareness campaigns, domestic violence, crime prevention, adopt-a-shelter dog month. All very worthy causes, but there are quite a few lesser known causes for which October is designated.

Melanie plans to eat chili as many times as possible in celebration of Chili Month

Here are a few I will be participating in: Celebrate Sun Dried Tomatoes Month, Chili Month and Go Hog Wild – Eat Country Ham Month. In fact, I may combine all of the above into one tasty recipe.

If I get tired of the chili recipe, October also happens to be Seafood Month and Spinach Lovers Month. The food possibilities are endless, down to the snacks, in Popcorn Poppin’ Month.

I will be gathering friends for a night or two at Skateworld, as well. I wonder if they be offering special pricing for Roller Skating Month?

Work should be fairly interesting in October, especially in our office. Not only is it Workplace Politics Awareness Month it also happens to be Sarcastics Awareness Month. I don’t think we need a month to celebrate sarcasm. In a newspaper office, we seem to celebrate it everyday.

Monday, Oct. 6 will be a day of pranks in the Mountain Times, also known as cubical land. The first Monday in October is dedicated to Cubical Day.

Enough about the awareness campaigns and celebrations of one thing or another. October also happens to be Self-Promotion Month, so I want to talk about me. Fortunately for you, I have run out of room.

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Scott Nicholson: National Month of Sundays Month

Celestial bodies make for great names, especially days.

It would be easy to say that The Dark Knight was my favorite movie of the summer. After all, it is the only one that I saw more than once. Fearsome, exciting and full of director Christopher Nolan’s trademark wicked wit, The Dark Knight is a worthy successor to Batman Begins, one of my favorite films of all time.

The summer movie that surprised me the most was probably Get Smart. I was no big fan of the original television series and was not sure if the new movie would add anything to its legacy. Anne Hathaway, Steve Carell and the rest of the cast did a marvelous job keeping the hilarity high while the plot moved along at a feverish pace. I’m hoping that Hathaway will continue to look for comedic scripts as she seems to have a real knack for humor.

The other action/comedy filmed that worked its magic on me this summer was Tropic Thunder. The idea of putting three egotistical actors (perfectly played by Jack Black, Ben Stiller and Robert Downey Jr.) in the middle of a war zone that they think is a movie set is pure genius, and the films within the films are as funny as the film itself.

Downey scored twice this summer with his major roles in the hits Tropic Thunder and Iron Man. As his character, Nick Lazarus, would say, “I’m the dude playing the dude disguised as another dude!”

Jeff Eason: Gravity Conservation Month

Many of you may be unaware of it, but October is National Gravity Conservation Month. That’s when we take a

This diagram, courtesy of the Gravity Conservation Corps, shows how a tree planted on the bottom of a hill uses less gravity than a tree planted on the top of hill.

moment to consider the immense amount of gravity that it takes to keep our cars in our driveways, our pets on our lawn, and enables the game of horseshoes to be a friendly, rather than lethal, affair.

Believe it or not, we may soon experience a gravity crisis. If we keep using gravity at the current rate, our great-great grandchildren won’t have enough to keep their little caps on their little heads. Did you notice in the Summer Olympics that records kept being broken in the pole vault and high jump events? That’s the telltale sign of gravity losing its grip on all the earth’s belongings.

You may be asking yourself, “What can I do to conserve gravity?” Well, for starters you can take those heavy items off of the top shelves and put them on the bottom shelves. Try not to jump if you don’t have to. This weekend, ask yourself if you really need to get out of bed and use all that gravity. Every little bit helps.

Sadly, there are a lot of people in this country that think gravity conservation is for sissies. They think it’s their right to use as much gravity as possible without thinking about how it might affect future generations. When their great-great grandchildren are living in a horrible future with stuff just floating around in the dirty air, those kids will know exactly whom to blame.

Thanks for giving National Gravity Conservation Month the respect it deserves!