Ten Reasons Why October is the Best Month of the Year

Though each month of the year has reason to celebrate, some are simply superior to others. December often gets a lot of attention—for obvious reasons—while July and August are frequently praised for their warm summer weather. Still, there is one month that stands above the rest—October. Why? Here are ten reasons:

10. The beginning of “film” season. Every calendar year starts with the annual winter dumping ground—where Hollywood releases all the garbage that wasn’t good enough for the year before—and then slowly fades into a months’ long onslaught of brainless blockbusters. And though I can’t wait to see X-Men: Transformers vs. Avengers in the Battle for the Planet of the Apes of the Guardians of the Galaxy in IMAX REAL3D, it’s the fall movie season that builds excitement for fans of intelligent filmmaking. Just look at this short list of movies previously released in October: Gravity, Fight Club, The Social Network, Captain Phillips, Michael Clayton, Margin Call, Argo, Seven Psychopaths, All is Lost, 12 Years a Slave, Gone Girl, Saw 3D…okay, maybe not that last one.

9. The most comfortable weather of the year. Nobody talks about the weather in October. Do you know why nobody talks about the weather in October? Because it’s comfortable. You just spent the last three months hearing people complain about how hot it is outside, and you’ll spend the next six months listening to people complain about how cold, rainy , and snowy it is. Enjoy October. You deserve it.

8. The kids are back in school. In some parts of the country, kids go back to school in August. In other parts, September. Now it’s October, which means no matter where you live, the kids are locked up Monday through Friday, out of sight, out of mind. Sorry teachers.

7. Awareness Month. Unless you can’t see the color pink, you’re probably aware that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. But did you also know that it’s also “Awareness Month” for the following: Celiac Sprue, Health Literacy, Liver, Healthy Lung, Dental Hygiene, Down Syndrome, Infertility, Domestic Violence, Lupus, Spina Bifida, Rett Syndrome, Sudden Infant Death, Medical Ultrasound, Blindness, and Mental Illness? Can you think of a specific challenge to raise money for each?

6. Columbus Day. It’s the twenty-first century and we know for a fact that Christopher Columbus did NOT discover the United States. It is also widely believed among scholars that the explorer was a murderer, rapist, and a pedophile. Still, our government gives all of its employees a paid day off to celebrate the man. But would you expect anything less from our government? U.S.A.! U.S.A.! U.S.A.!

5. Oktoberfest! Holidays are oftentimes celebrated by drinking large quantities of beer. This holiday is a celebration of drinking large quantities of beer. If the government is going to give a day off of work for anything…

4. I was born is October! I know what you’re thinking: how does your birthday make October better for anyone else? Well, if I was never born, then you wouldn’t be reading this awesome top ten list.

3. Foliage. There are few things in nature more beautiful.

2. Halloween.  Though it is perfectly legal for adults to dress in silly costumes and get drunk any night of the year, Halloween in the one night where nobody will call the cops on you. No guarantees though.

1. The World Series, and other sports. There is not a more exciting time in sports than October baseball. I think last week’s one game playoff between Kansas City and Oakland proved that. And if you don’t like baseball, October is the only month of the year where all four professional sports are playing at the same time—football, basketball, hockey, and baseball! And if you don’t like sports, then, well, there are plenty of great films playing at your local movie theater…