This Wednesday, on May 25th, people will celebrate Towel Day. Towel Day has been around since May 2001. Douglas Adams fans created the day as a tribute to him 2 weeks after he passed away. He is the author most known for his series The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Douglas Adams is quoted as saying, “A towel is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have.” I personally haven’t heard of this series or the author but when I went on the site, nationaldaycalendar.com, and read their segment entitled 7 Essential Ways to Use Towels, I knew I had to write about towels.

According to Nationaldaycalendar.com, towels can be used as a pillow, they can create shade, we can tote things around in a towel, they can be folded into shapes and be considered art, towels can be toys, we can donate used towels to animal shelters and finally, they are the quintessential rag. I agree with all those great ways to use a towel. But one other use for a towel was missing: towels can be used as messengers. Tea towels and/or kitchen towels have been so fun to give as thoughtful pinches because they are usually very creative, witty and we can relate to the messages that are printed on them. Look thru some of the photos below of towels that I have either given away but mostly received.

I gave this towel to my neighbor who works hard and doesn’t like half ass workers.

Found these at Wal-Mart many years ago and gave a bunch out for Christmas **pinches.** I like the texture of the tea towels, they absorb the most.

I am the recipient of these fun kitchen towels.

I love the Flamingos on these towels because our place in Costa Rica is on Playa Flamingo. The smaller, Christmas tree towel is a Swedish towel that is reusable and is more like a sponge.

When we moved to Denver last summer, this basket was given to us by the family of a co-worker of my hub’s. The towel is perfect for us!

From my friend Rachel Sartin. So true Rachel, so true.

From my cousin Jay-Jay - who always finds the best towels.

Gave this to a friend and I had no idea that she was pregnant with her second boy.

I bought this towel for myself because it resonated so much with my thoughts.

My latest towel that I received on Mother’s Day 2022. Along with pork skins. Of course all of this is from my cousin Jay-Jay.

More towels from my cousin Jay-Jay. There is a towel for every city the hub and I lived in since we met. California is of course a state - but he lived in Pasadena and I lived in Newport Beach and Redondo Beach so this covers all the areas. Chicago for when he worked for the Bears. Miami for the Dolphins and MSP for the Vikings. As soon as the hub got the Denver job, the Denver towel was sent to me. Jay-Jay is on top of these things! I decided that they were too nice to use as actual towels so in this case, the towels are art. Below are towels that pertain to Colorado. I will put the third towel in a Welcome Basket for a coach’s family who is moving here from LA. Another use for towels - for reference. I learn a lot by looking at these towels everyday.

Here’s another example of using a towel for reference. I bought one of these for my friend Bisi, who’s 40th birthday to Napa was cancelled due to Covid. I had to get one for myself too. Good information.

Of course, every NFL team gives out towels that represent their teams. I love the dark color of this one. Perfect to use when removing eye makeup.

Turkish towels are lovely. They come in all colors. My friend Allison gave me this one and an orange one. Another use for towels: they class up a bathroom for sure!

I am dying to get back to a store in Boulder, CO. The store had a display of a bunch of towels with funny sayings on them. When I was there, I was with a couple of friends and I didn’t want to take up their time by going into the store. I know that I would have been in there for hours trying to buy pinches for everyone that I know. I love getting towels that fit the person perfectly. As my cousin Jay-Jay always says, you can never have too many kitchen towels. I use some of my kitchen towels in my bathroom to wipe my hands after washing them.

The last towel that I’ll feature is this one. The word PEACE is sewn onto this towel. I’ve had this towel for 20 years and it is also a gift from my cousin Jay-Jay. She knew that the hub and I use the word *peace* to convey love and respect. Isn’t she so **thoughtful**?

On Towel Day, use the hashtag #towelday and mention @natdaycal. Post pictures of some of your favorite towels. Again, the Douglas Adams fans created the day in his honor and so it may not be something you know about or want to honor but even so, towels are useful in so many ways. We can celebrate that can’t we?

Pinches,

Barb