Take Thursday without a grain of salt? August 29 is More Herbs, Less Salt Day

According to a number of the Usual Suspects, Thursday, August 29 is More Herbs, Less Salt Day.

Usual Suspect Holiday Insights suggests that today was chosen for this observance because, in the Northern Hemisphere anyway, the harvest of garden herbs may be at its peak.

We stress, therefore, that "herb" is here used in the sense of a food additive and not in any other, er, colloquial sense.

There's some support for today being Chop Suey Day, and that could be entertaining: One hour after you celebrate, you may feel like celebrating all over again.

As mentioned here previously, Thursday is also the observance of the Beheading of John the Baptist. John had only one head to lose but, according to Wikipedia, that head has been found in many places:

• Roman Catholic tradition holds that the head on display in San Silvestro in Capite in Rome is that of John the Baptist, discovered for the second time, as also maintained by Pope Benedict XVI in August 2012.
• Islamic tradition maintains that the head of Saint John the Baptist was interred in the once-called Basilica of Saint John the Baptist in Damascus. Pope John Paul II visited the tomb of John the Baptist at the Umayyad Mosque during his visit to Syria in April, 2001. Consequently, Muslims also believe that Jesus Christ will return to this location in the Second Coming.
• n medieval times, it was rumored that the Knights Templar had possession of the head, and multiple records from their Inquisition in the early 14th century make reference to some form of head veneration.
• Amiens Cathedral claims the head as a relic brought from Constantinople by Wallon de Sarton as he was returning from the Fourth Crusade.
• Some believe that it is buried in Turkish Antioch, or southern France.
• It is believed that a piece of his skull is held at the Romanian skete Prodromos on Mount Athos.
• A reliquary at The Residenz in Munich, Germany is labeled as containing the skull of John the Baptist.

Heady stuff, indeed.

Sir Richard Attenborough turns 90 on Thursday. And you can send champagne wishes and caviar dreams to Robin Leach Thursday as well; he turns 72.

Every male of a certain age remembers Rebecca De Mornay from Risky Business and, in particular, a certain ride on the CTA 'el.' (There is a wistful pause, perhaps a sigh.) Ms. De Mornay turns 54 on August 29.