55 Ways to Celebrate Texas Friendship Day on Sunday, August 2, 2009:

Celebration of Texas Friendship Day throughout our state on Sunday, August 2, 2009, will present a golden opportunity for each individual Texan to decide for himself how he would like to honor or befriend a mutual-consent personal friend that day.

Texas Friendship Day, a day exalting the great roles held by platonic love and platonic affection in nearly all Texans' lives, will be a heartfelt day throughout our entire state. That very special day has been officially endorsed and officially designated to take place on August 2, 2009, by the Texas House of Representatives (H.R. 3132, authored by State Rep. Dawnna Dukes during the regular session of the Texas Legislature in 2009).

Official information about the "Texas Friendship Day" resolution (H.R. 3132) that was approved by the Texas House of Representatives on June 1, 2009, can be found at either or both of the following links:

http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/tlodocs/81R/billtext/html/HR03132F.htm

http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/BillLookup/Text.aspx?LegSess=81R&Bill=HR3132

Among the thousands of law-abiding and honorable ways in which you might choose to honor or befriend a personal friend of yours on Sunday, August 2, 2009, are:

(1) You might choose to invite a personal friend to have breakfast or brunch or lunch or a snack or dinner or supper with you in a nice restaurant situated near where you or your friend live.

(2) You could purchase two tickets to the August 2, 2009, Texas Rangers home game against the Seattle Mariners, and then invite your personal friend to accompany you to that professional baseball game in Arlington, Texas.

(3) You might choose to invite a personal friend of yours to attend a live-theater play performance with you.

(4) You might choose to invite a personal friend to enjoy an outdoor picnic with you.

(5) You might choose to invite a personal friend of yours to accompany you to a nature park for a shared hike or shared enjoyment of swimming at that nature park.

(6) You might choose to purchase a small gift item, such as an inspirational book, and give that to your personal friend.

(7) You might choose to invite a personal friend of yours to accompany you to a movie theater for shared enjoyment of a first-rate movie.

(8) You might invite a personal friend of yours to meet you at a coffeehouse or teahouse for shared enjoyment of coffee or tea and a friendly and warm personal conversation.

(9) You might ask a personal friend of yours if you could perform an errand for him or her on Texas Friendship Day, such as by watering the plants in his or her yard.


(10) You might invite a personal friend to join you on a leisuretime one-day trip into a nearby town or rural area destination that appeals to both of you.

(11) You might offer to conduct an oral-history taped interview of your mutual-consent personal friend on "Texas Friendship Day." You could then give a copy of the resulting oral-history audiotape or videotape to your friend as a nice memorabilia item that your friend could keep.

(12) You might bake a loaf of whole-wheat bread, or nutritious and low-fat cookies, for your personal friend, and then present that loaf of bread or tasty cookies to your personal friend on "Texas Friendship Day."

(13) You might ask your friend to mention to tell you about one tourist site or cultural site open on Sunday, August 2, 2009, that your friend has never visited, but would like to visit. You could then invite your friend to join you on a shared outing to that tourist site or cultural site.

(14) You might invite your friend to accompany you on a shared tour of a museum or art museum that is open on "Texas Friendship Day."

(15) You might purchase a special friendship-theme greeting card, and then write a very appreciative and affectionate message on that greeting card that you could then give or mail to your Texan friend on "Texas Friendship Day."

(16) You might ask your friend to cite to you the name of one restaurant, cafe, coffeehouse, or teahouse that your friend has never been to, and would like to visit as a customer. You could then offer to treat your friend to a shared meal or shared tea or coffee outing to that restaurant, cafe, coffeehouse, or teahouse.

(17) You might choose to invite your personal friend to join you for a shopping trip to a fashion wear store or boutique that is offering a sale on Texas Friendship Day. You could then offer to purchase one item of clothing or boutique item that your friend particularly likes.

(18) You could invite your personal friend to join you for an inner-tubing ride or paddle-boating ride on a river where it is safe to ride in an inner-tube or paddle-boat, and where the business renting you that inner tube or paddle-boat would be situated closeby.

(19) You could invite your personal friend to pursue with you a favorite hobby of his or hers on Texas Friendship Day. If your personal friend collects postcards or maps or photographs or artworks, you could invite your friend to accompany you to a store that's open for business on Sunday, August 2, and that would offer those types of items for sale.

(20) If your personal friend enjoys collecting antiques, you could invite your friend to join you for an outing to a first-rate antique store open on Sundays that is situated within driving distance.

(21) You could invite your personal friend to join you for a shared round-trip ride on an Amtrak passenger train or Greyhound bus to a nearby destination with lots of scenic appeal or charm.

(22) If you are artistically inclined, you could offer to draw a sketch or paint a portrait of your personal friend on Texas Friendship Day.

(23) If you enjoy taking photographs, you could offer to take numerous photographs of your friend that day, and then give your friend copies of those photographs.

(24) You could ask your friend if there is any intriguing historic site anywhere in Texas that your friend has not visited yet. You could then invite your friend to accompany you on a weekend trip to that historic site.

(25) You could invite your friend to join you for a shared outing to a fresh-water lake beach or an ocean beach.

(26) You could ask your personal friend if there is any magazine or newspaper that that personal friend of yours would like to subscribe to, but currently does not. You could then purchase a gift subscription to that magazine or newspaper for your friend, and provide your friend with a receipt about that gift subscription on Texas Friendship Day.

(27) You could invite your friend to attend a religious service, and particularly a religious service featuring a sermon or discussion about mutual-consent personal platonic relationships and friendships.

(28) You could ask your friend in advance what he or she would most like as a present on "Texas Friendship Day." You might then choose to purchase that present for your friend and give it to your friend on Texas Friendship Day.

(30) You could invite your personal friend to join you for an outing to a Texas-theme memorabilia store. You could then browse through that store with your friend.

(31) You could prepare a special meal inside your home or apartment for your personal friend, and then treat your friend to that nice meal.

(32) You could search for a poem about friendship you like, or a poem you like that best describes your personal friend, and then you could then read that poem aloud to your friend on Texas Friendship Day.

(33) You might choose to organize a public forum in your Texan city or town or county featuring speeches and public discussion and questions from the audience about what makes for successful and mutually-beneficial and lasting personal friendships.

(34) You could write a poem about your friend as a personal tribute to himself or herself. You could then read that poem aloud to your friend on "Texas Friendship Day."

(35) You could sponsor a special party in honor of your personal friend, with each of the guests at that party being individuals who like and admire your friend, and would like to give a speech in praise of your friend at that party.

(36) You could write and mail a personal letter to your friend in which you tell that friend of yours what you most admire about himself or herself, and what a big difference he or she has made to your own life.

(37) You could purchase a botanical plant for your personal friend, whether that be an indoor plant or an outdoor patio plant, and give that plant to your fiend on "Texas Friendship Day."

(38) You could invite your friend to participate in a jointly produced and mutually-agreed-upon "You Tube" videotape in which the two of you together in a wholesome and heartfelt manner express and share with the entire world the ways in which you are happier and have more options in life and feel more creative as a human being because of your personal friendship and your personal friend.

(39) You could identify your personal friend's top five platonic (non-sexual, non-romantic) passions in life. You could then hand your friend a gift certificate you had purchased that's honored by a store or business catering to one or more of your friend's leading platonic passions in life.

(40) You could write a short story or essay inspired by your friend, and then hand that friend the short story or essay on "Texas Friendship Day."

(41) You might invite a personal friend to join you in a shared bicycling adventure outdoors.

(42) You could ask your personal friend if he would be willing to let you write a book inspired by his life story, with the understanding that you would give your friend a chance to review that book manuscript before you submitted it for publication by a book publisher.

(43) You could obtain a list of local civic groups that your friend might want to join, and then, with your friend's permission, pay his first year's or first six months' membership dues in that civic group.

(44) You could celebrate "Texas Friendship Day" in part by giving each of your favorite culinary recipes to your personal friend. Your personal friend, in turn, might choose to give you each of his or her favorite cooking recipes that same day.

(45) You could identify a nationwide, multi-state regional, statewide, countywide, or citywide award that you truly believe your personal friend might have a chance of receiving. You could then present your friend on "Texas Friendship Day" with an essay or letter of recommendation you write to the selection committee that determines which individual or individuals are awarded that honor.

(46) You could identify a television show that celebrates mutual-consent personal friendships, and you could obtain tickets for you and your friend to visit the studio where that television show is produced. You could then possibly qualify to have a role in that particular show as contestants or participants.

(47) You could compile a notebook or scrapbook full of sincere words of praise for your mutual-consent personal friend that you had obtained from numerous persons who like and admire your friend. You could then give that notebook or scrapbook to your friend on "Texas Friendship Day."

(48) You could attempt to identify one or two musical recordings that you and your friend both enjoy quite a bit. You could then make a point of playing those two musical recordings in the presence of your friend while you host your friend inside your private residence.

(49) You could pursue lots of Google research and other factual research to identify the places and cultural attractions that you believe your friend would enjoy the most, based on the leading platonic passions that your friend has expressed to you through the years. You could then obtain and compile a variety of brochures and pamphlets---guides to tourists, for instance---to 10 or more of those places and cultural attractions. You could then hand those brochures and pamphlets to your friend on Sunday, August 2, 2009.

(50) You could search for the one wall-hanging poster that you believe would most appeal to your personal friend. You could then purchase that poster and give it to your friend on "Texas Friendship Day."

(51) You could offer your personal friend a private singing performance in which you would sing to your friend each of his or her five favorite songs.

(52) You could write a song in praise of your friend, and then sing that to your friend on "Texas Friendship Day."

(53) If you play a musical instrument that your friend enjoys quite a bit, you could play a solo clarinet performance or a solo flute or saxophone or trombone or trumpet or solo recorder performance, for instance, during a visit by your friend to your home on Texas Friendship Day.

(54) You could identify the two or three famous living persons, or living celebrities, whom your personal friend admires the most. You could then write to each of those famous persons and ask each of them to please send you an autographed photograph containing a special inscription that is addressed to your personal friend. You could then give each of those inscribed photographs to your friend as a present to him or her on "Texas Friendship Day."

(55) You could choose to sponsor a very wholesome intergenerational party in honor of your mutual-consent personal friend, with numerous friendly parents, along with their children and teenage youths, being invited to attend that tea and healthy-foods party.
This wholesome intergenerational party might have a nice rejuvenating and cheerful effect on your friend, particularly if he or she is either middle-aged or a senior citizen. To make sure that the party is successful, you could hire a day-care-services educator and friendly high-school teacher and child-friendly party-consultant with expertise on how to keep children and teenage youths entertained, to assist in planning and supervising that very inspirational party.