Ahoy thar, me hearties!

Don't be surprised if friends, or even strangers, greet you that way on September 19 (or on September 22 in Australia). Just smile back, and repeat the greeting to them, and to anyone else you meet. It's contagious. Normally-sane people in more than 40 countries will celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day, a unique annual event that began almost accidentally one day in 1995, when two Americans, John Baur and Mark Summers, were playing racquetball. For a story about this annual fun day that earns money for charities in many lands, click on PIRATE TALK.