Towel Day is held on May 25 in memory of Douglas Adams, the genius behind all the many forms of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitchhiker%27s_guide_to_the_galaxy). Though every version of the story varies significantly—from radio to TV to novel to movie to video game to infinity—all versions focus on the story of Arthur Dent, an everyman Englishman who narrowly escapes the destruction of the planet Earth, and then spends much of his time wishing that he hadn’t.
Nothing seems to go quite right for Arthur, and that goes all the way to his clothes. When he was picked up by a passing UFO, Arthur probably wished that he was wearing something a little classier than a muddy bathrobe. Something that shows a little home-planet pride. You know, like a T-shirt that says, “Keep the Earth clean. It’s not Uranus.” Well it’s too late for Arthur, but you can pick up a shirt just like that right here: http://www.teehugger.com/Keep_The_Earth_Clean_p/thas1031.htmBe prepared, and keep your towel with you at all times, because you never know when you’re going to have to unexpectedly flee the Earth in the belly of a Vogon ship. But until that day comes, we all need to take serious heed of our comical T-shirts and keep the Earth clean. Douglas Adams knew it, and he left a legacy of ecological work to prove it.
In 1990, Adams and zoologist Mark Carwardine published the book Last Chance to See, in which they chronicled their BBC-Radio sponsored trip around the world to visit endangered animals, such as the Kakapo—a unique and awesome parrot from New Zealand. According to the Kakapo Recovery Programme, “The kakapo is the rarest parrot in the world. It’s flightless, it’s the world’s heaviest parrot, it’s possibly the oldest living bird and it has a subsonic mating boom that can travel several kilometers.” And, as of today, there are only 90 left in the world. You can help save the endangered Kakapo by making a donation to the KRP here: http://preview.tinyurl.com/dz5eqy
In 1994, Adams participated in a climb of Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money and awareness for the British charity organization, Save the Rhino. The entire way up the mountain, the climbing party took turns wearing a rhino costume—Adams included—as it was one of the conditions of the hike that someone had to be dressed as a rhino at all times. This is, of course, ridiculous, but it did the trick, and Adams and his crew raised about 100,000 British pounds through the event. Find out how you can help Save the Rhino today by visiting their website, here: http://www.savetherhino.org/
Be like Douglas Adams and get out there and do your part to help save our planet’s endangered animals this Towel Day. Much like knowing where your towel is, showing that you care about the Earth proves that you’re a real hoopy frood.
So long, and thanks for all the fish!
