Google Doodles

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is New Year's Eve 2022



Today’s Doodle celebrates New Year’s Eve, a time to reminisce about 2022 and look forward to a fresh start in 2023. Whether you’re setting off fireworks or setting goals for next year, here’s to the great things to come in 2023!

3… 2… 1…

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is New Year's Day 2023



Happy New Year! However you choose to ring in the new year, here’s to good fortune in 2023!

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2023



Today’s Doodle celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day or MLK Day in the United States, and was illustrated by Brooklyn-based guest artist Richard A. Chance. The national day of service honors Dr. King — the late civil rights movement leader and activist who was a lifelong advocate for social and racial equality.

Dr. King was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. From a young age he was heavily influenced by his father — a pastor and community organizer — and eventually began his own career of service in Montgomery, Alabama as a community leader in the NAACP.  In 1955, Dr. King helped lead the Montgomery bus boycott after Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her bus seat and violated local Jim Crow laws in Alabama. These peaceful protests — which are widely considered the first mass demonstration against segregation — lasted for 385 days and gained national attention.

He continued to spearhead some of America’s most groundbreaking social justice demonstrations. In 1963, more than 200,000 demonstrators marched towards the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. to protest economic and racial inequality. This March on Washington is one of the most famous acts of the Civil Rights Movement, and it is where Dr. King delivered his exalted “I Have a Dream” speech. It remains one of the largest rallies for human rights in the U.S. and is credited for helping to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964. He also participated in the Selma to Montgomery Marches in 1965 to advocate for equal voting rights. That same year, the Voting Rights Act was passed.

Dr. King was later awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, and posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal. In honor of his birthday, MLK Day is celebrated on the third week of January every year. It was signed into law in 1983 and has been celebrated by all 50 states since 2000.

Today and everyday, Dr. King’s dream lives on in the hearts of millions of Americans who are taking action and giving back to their communities. Happy Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day!

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is Lunar New Year 2023



Today’s Doodle celebrates an important holiday in several Asian cultures, Lunar New Year! After the first new moon of the Lunar calendar each year, communities around the world set up decorations, make festive food and gather with loved ones to usher in the new year.

The traditions of the Lunar New Year festival date back thousands of years to a popular legend. A mythical beast called Nian was known to show up each Lunar New Year’s eve and terrorize people and livestock. Loud noises, the color red and fire scared Nian away, so it became a tradition for families to decorate their doors in red paper, set off fireworks and leave lanterns burning all night.

Today, red remains a key part of Lunar New Year celebrations as people hang red lanterns in the streets and gift money in red envelopes to children and retired seniors. Traditional meals are popular during celebrations and they vary across the world. For example, pineapple tarts and yusheng (a dish with raw fish and a salad) are a staple in Singapore and Malaysia, while communities in Vietnam enjoy bánh chưng (a rice cake made with mung beans, pork, and other ingredients wrapped in bamboo leaves).

This year marks the Year of the Rabbit, which is associated with peace and prosperity. The Doodle artwork is crafted from paper to honor Chinese paper-cutting (Jianzhi), which is a long-time Lunar New Year tradition.

No matter where you’re celebrating, here’s to a wonderful Lunar New Year and 2023!

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is Celebrating Bubble Tea

It's an interactive doodle, so here's a link to interact. https://www.google.com/doodles/celebrating-bubble-tea



Tangy and fruity or sweet and milky? The combinations are endless! Today’s interactive game Doodle celebrates bubble tea, also known as boba tea and pearl milk tea. Honeydew, matcha, raspberry, mocha – no matter the flavor, don’t forget to mix in some bubbly balls made with fruit jelly or tapioca. Bubble Tea gained such popularity globally that it was officially announced as a new emoji on this day in 2020.

This Taiwanese drink started as a local treat and has exploded in popularity over the last few decades. Bubble tea has its roots in traditional Taiwanese tea culture which dates back as early as  the 17th century. However, it wasn’t until the 1980s that the bubble tea as we know today was invented. As waves of Taiwanese immigrants over the past few decades brought this drink overseas, innovation on the original bubble tea continues. Shops around the world are still experimenting with new flavors, additions, and mixtures. Traditional tearooms across Asia have also joined in on the boba craze, and the trend has reached countries like Singapore, Japan, South Korea, and more!

Satisfy your craving and make a yummy cup of bubble tea in today’s interactive Doodle, which features Taiwan’s indigenous Formosan Mountain Dog as well as a crew of familiar Doodle characters!

[Gopher Gary]

Bubble tea is still the doodle I see today. Maybe someone took the day of at Google. 

[renaeden]

I've never tried bubble tea, although I have seen places that sell it.

[Gopher Gary]

I've never tried bubble tea, although I have seen places that sell it.

I've never tried it either. It doesn't look visually appealing to me, plus I have texture issues that set off my gag reflex so I worry a gelatinous glob in my drink wouldn't go over well. 

[Fun With Matches]

I've never tried bubble tea, although I have seen places that sell it.

I LOVE bubble tea. The milk kind, and the fruity kind, and the kind that actually tastes like tea. Popping boba, brown sugar tapioca pearls - very tasty.

[DirtDawg]

I've not tried it. I probably will just to say I did.

I use tapioca to thicken fruit pies or making some custard based pies when I float an inch of meringue on top. Butterscotch custard, heavy on the tapioca with maple meringue top is one of my favorites.

Honestly, I never would have thought to thicken my tea.

[Fun With Matches]

The tapioca comes in the form of 8mm balls. They’re boiled until chewy/gummy then mixed with brown sugar syrup. You then add them to a very milky tea and suck them up through a special thick straw. I actually really disliked them at first, then got used to them, then loved them.

I would usually use cornstarch to thicken desserts. I’ve never used tapioca flour or starch.

Sort of related to the idea of thickened tea - I like Spanish hot chocolate, where you whisk cornstarch into hot chocolate to make it thick and goopy.

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is Celebrating Mama Cax



In honor of Black History Month, today's Doodle celebrates Haitian American model and disability rights advocate Mama Cax. Illustrated by Brooklyn-based guest artist Lyne Lucien, Mama Cax is best known for shattering expectations around beauty. The model and advocate proudly strutted down catwalks on her prosthetic leg, often designed with colors and patterns. On this day in 2019, Mama Cax made her debut on a runway at New York Fashion Week.

Mama Cax was born Cacsmy Brutus on November 20, 1989, in Brooklyn, New York and grew up in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.  At age 14, she was diagnosed with bone and lung cancer. As a result of her cancer, she underwent an unsuccessful hip replacement surgery at age 16 which led to the amputation of her right leg. At first, Mama Cax was depressed and struggled to accept herself with a prosthetic leg, as she wanted it to look realistic and match her skin tone. 

As time passed, Mama Cax began accepting and loving her new body. She started wearing stylish prosthetic covers with pride incorporating it as part of her personal style. She also began expressing her love for fashion and style with colorful outfits, hair dyes, and bold makeup. During this time of embracing her disability, Cax also leaned into her athleticism and learned to handcycle — she went on to complete the New York City Marathon!

As the body positivity movement grew,  Mama Cax noticed that Black women and women with disabilities were underrepresented in social media. She began posting regularly and advocating for inclusivity in fashion and using social media to discuss her body insecurities. She officially broke into the fashion industry as a model in an advertising campaign in 2017 and was signed by Jag Models shortly after. In 2018, she landed a Teen Vogue cover, and the following year, Mama Cax walked in both the February and October New York Fashion Weeks.

Mama Cax’s life was tragically cut short by medical complications in 2019. The model and activist is remembered for expanding the image of what people with disabilities should be or look like. Today’s vibrant Doodle artwork is a reflection of her bright life. The artwork highlights the many facets of her identity including her Haitian heritage, her NYC hometown, and her fashion career with her prosthetic incorporated into the look.

Thank you for being a positive role model and advocating for inclusion in the fashion and beauty world, Mama Cax.

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is Valentine's Day 2023



Rain or shine, will you be mine?

Today’s Valentine's Day Doodle celebrates the most romantic day of the year, when people all over the world express affection to their lovers, friends, and partners through gifts, greetings, and more.

Did you know that during the Middle Ages, European countries like England and France believed that February 14th was the start of mating season for birds? They associated this phenomenon with love and began romantic celebrations soon after. The holiday became more popular throughout the world in the 17th century.

Whatever your forecast looks like today, we hope you enjoy celebrating with your special someone.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is International Women's Day 2023.



Today’s Doodle honors International Women’s Day by celebrating many ways in which women support women. The vignettes within each “GOOGLE” letter highlight just a few of the many areas in which women around the world support each other to progress and improve each other's quality of life.

Women in positions of influence who advocate for progress across issues central to the lives of women everywhere.  Women who come together to explore, learn, and rally for their rights. Women who are primary caregivers to people of all walks of life. Women who are critical support systems for each other in motherhood.

In honor of women across the globe who are supporting each other across all aspects of life — Happy International Women’s Day!

[Gopher Gary]

Today's Google Doodle is Celebrating Filipino Adobo



Every bite is tender, juicy, and soulful. Today’s animated Doodle celebrates adobo, a way of cooking and a favorite Filipino dish! Adobo can be found far and wide, whether it’s at a five-star restaurant in Manila or inside the homes of Filipino families around the world. The word ‘adobo’ was first added to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) in December 2006, and was included on the word list of the next OED quarterly update, released on this day in 2007.

There are many different kinds of adobo in the Philippines but they all share the same basic elements: marinated meat or vegetables braised into a stew. Common ingredients include vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, bay leaves, and black pepper. The local flavors make Filipino adobo much sweeter, sourer, and saltier in taste compared to other versions.

Several areas within the Philippines give their adobo a regional twist. Locals in Visayas enjoy adobong puti (white adobo), considered by some to be the original indigenous style, which exclusively uses vinegar without any soy sauce. In places like Southern Luzon, where coconut milk is a food staple, creamier adobo recipes like adobong manok sa gata (chicken adobo with coconut milk) are extremely popular. Others substitute meat with seafood like squid, or locally available vegetables like kangkong (water spinach) or sitaw (string beans).

After evolving throughout the centuries, this iconic dish is now enjoyed worldwide. It’s a symbol and expression of Filipino pride that varies from region to region, family to family, palate to palate. The history is rich, the taste is unmatched, and the aromas are enticing – the children in today’s artwork would definitely agree! Wherever and however it’s served, adobo leaves stomachs happy and mouths watering for more.