How to Celebrate Victory in Europe Day


Lieutenant Colonel Lyle Bernard, Colorado, 30th Infantry Regiment, 1943Today is Victory in Europe day or Day of Liberation in the Czech Republic (Den osvobození). As there is no school today in the CR, I have been thinking of ways to celebrate this hallowed day. And, though it couldn’t possibly carry the gravitas of Houseplant Appreciation Day (January 10th) or Pistol Patent Day (February 25th), maybe we should take a few minutes to commemorate today in some way.

Party Like it’s 1945

OK, you’re a young GI, you’re in Europe, you’ve just been cured off the syphilis, Hitler is dead, the kid probably isn’t yours, and the war is over, how do you celebrate?

You. Drink.

That’s right folks, raise a Pilsner, a bourbon, or a glass of milk in commemoration. It’s a good excuse, anyway.

I woke up this morning to find two receipts from two different pubs in my pocket, a vague recollection of stuffing money into a G-string, and a bone yard of chicken bones in a cardboard bucket with The Colonel’s face on it.

In other words, mission accomplished.

Movie Marathon

OK. Last night I lifted a (two dozen) pint(s) to the go-Bots and the 101st Airborne, so now I am suffering through a hangover that would sideline Keith Richards.

What to do?

If you answered: “move to the couch, shroud get under a blanket, eat cold KFC and have a movie marathon,” then you are a frickin’ genius.

Today, it shall start with the Band of Brothers marathon. Then I’ll have dinner with Kelly’s Heroes and dessert with A Bridge Too Far. You could also dip into the well of WWII classics, such as The Longest Day, Patton (which shows Pilsn), or Saving Private Ryan.

Really, it’s just a good excuse to watch a good war flick and eat popcorn.

Go to the Internet

This is for the person who wants to celebrate VE Day but doesn’t want to change their daily routine in any way, shape, or form. You will spend all day on the computer and the Internet, but why not read a little about WWII to change things up.

The Buzzfeed article features 12 interesting facts about WWII, including some fascinating tidbits. Do you know how Monopoly helped POWs break out of camps? Or did you know that Japan and Russia have never officially signed a peace treaty?

Yeah, that’s probably going to come up in the future.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/briangalindo/12-interesting-facts-about-world-war-ii-that-you-might-not-k

Or you can check out this Buzzfeed picture gallery featuring veterans arriving In Washington DC for the opening of the World War II Memorial. This will either make you smile, cry, or both.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/bennyjohnson/25-happy-faces-of-wwii-veterans-as-they-arrive-in-washington

Whatever you do on the Internet I do not recommend taking this internet quiz called How Long Will I Live? I did not need to know that I am going to die at 79.2 years old. I am 39.6 years old, therefore I am halfway dead. I didn’t need to know that.

How Long Will I Live?

http://gosset.wharton.upenn.edu/mortality/perl/CalcForm.html

Be Thankful

Seriously, folks. I know it is clichéd, but you should be thankful down to your goofy five-toed running shoes. Be appreciative of the men and women from every country who, you know, saved the world 70 years ago. And while you’re at it, you might want to think about the millions of others since then who have gone somewhere they didn’t want to and did something you never had to do.

So, somewhere in the middle of taking internet quizzes, looking at cats, and bitching about everything that happens in the world, think about those who helped make sure it isn’t now a much worse place.

  1. #1 by greg galeone on May 8, 2014 - 4:07 pm

    Great post damo. If I may recommend two books about WWII I have read in the last year or two. “Unbroken” by Laura Hillenbrand and “A Higher Call” by Adam Makos. Two excellent reads about regular people who rose to the challenge and were heroes of the highest order.

    • #2 by Damien Galeone on May 8, 2014 - 4:54 pm

      Hey Dad, thanks for the comment and the tips. I have read Unbroken and loved it, I totally back that recommendation.

  2. #3 by Eddie on May 9, 2014 - 2:53 am

    I third Unbroken 100%. I couldn’t put it down, and was reading it on breaks at work. The movie will be released Christmas and the screenplay was written by the Cohen brothers.

  3. #4 by Jake Smash on May 11, 2014 - 2:13 am

    Good one, D. To our absent friends and fallen comrades.

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