Three Ridiculous Holidays You’ll Accidentally Love

There are serious days on the calendar. Election Day. Tax Day. Days that come with responsibilities, reminders, and the low-grade stress of adulthood. And then there are days like today — December 16 — which exists purely to remind us that life is absurd, chocolate solves most problems, and some toys should have been recalled for crimes against humanity.

If you’ve been feeling worn down by the end-of-year chaos, take heart. Today delivers three offbeat “holidays” that feel less like official observances and more like a collective sigh of relief. No flags. No speeches. Just permission to laugh at the nonsense.

When Chocolate Becomes a Personality Trait

December 16 is National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day, which feels less like a holiday and more like a dare. The premise is simple: if it exists, someone, somewhere, has decided it should be dipped in chocolate. Pretzels? Acceptable. Strawberries? Classic. Bacon? Controversial but committed. Potato chips? Anarchy, but delicious anarchy.

This is the holiday that refuses to judge your choices. Leftover cookies? Chocolate. Marshmallows that have been sitting open since July? Chocolate. Something you found in the back of the pantry and aren’t fully sure what it’s for? Definitely chocolate.

The beauty of this day is that it demands nothing of you except indulgence. No self-improvement. No resolutions. Just the acknowledgment that melted chocolate can improve nearly everything, including your mood and your tolerance for other people.

If nothing else, it’s a reminder that joy doesn’t always need to be productive. Sometimes it just needs to be dipped and cooled on wax paper.

A Brief, Blessed Break From Children’s Entertainment

Then there’s Barbie and Barney Backlash Day — a holiday clearly invented by parents who have heard the same song one too many times and are hanging on by a thread.

This is not an attack on childhood joy. It’s a survival mechanism. A moment to quietly admit that some beloved children’s characters have overstayed their welcome. You can love your kids and still feel rage when a plastic doll’s theme song plays for the 900th time before breakfast.

Barbie and Barney Backlash Day exists to validate the thoughts parents whisper but never post: that the relentless cheer, the endless branding, and the aggressively catchy tunes can wear down even the most patient adult.

Today, you’re allowed to switch off the screen, hide the toy bin, or suggest — with great enthusiasm — that everyone try reading a book. It’s not cruelty. It’s self-care.

Honoring the Toys That Should Never Have Been Made

And finally, there’s Stupid Toy Day — a holiday that speaks to every adult who has ever stepped on something sharp, loud, or inexplicably sticky at 2 a.m.

This is the day to acknowledge the toys that made it into your home without your consent. The ones that beep randomly. The ones that shed glitter like it’s their job. The ones that require batteries you don’t own and instructions written by someone who clearly hates you.

Stupid Toy Day isn’t about shaming children. It’s about closure. About laughing at the design choices that defy logic and recognizing that not every innovation was a good idea.

It’s also the perfect excuse to “accidentally” set aside a few items for donation — or mysteriously forget where they went altogether. History will not judge you.

Why These Silly Holidays Actually Matter

Taken together, these three holidays form a strangely perfect trio. Indulgence. Sanity. Release.

They don’t ask you to buy anything new, fix anything broken, or become a better version of yourself by January. They simply invite you to laugh, snack, and acknowledge the chaos of everyday life.

And maybe that’s the point. In a world that constantly demands seriousness, productivity, and restraint, a day devoted to chocolate-covered nonsense, parental honesty, and bad toys feels almost revolutionary.

So dip something in chocolate. Turn off the cartoon. Throw away the toy that never should’ve existed.

And celebrate the fact that sometimes, the calendar gets it exactly right.