Today is October 20, a date dear to the Inner Rhino staff. On this date, in 2014, We launched ‘Your Inner Rhino’, and have chugged along pretty steadily for the past 9 years. (Yes, We got help with the numbers.)

Through Life’s many eccentricities, Your Inner Rhino has not lost our mojo; We are quasi-humble to note that We have posted on more days than there have been since 2014. (Again, thanks to our math connections’.) There have been predictable no-post intervals, but We managed to cover the situation with even more posts; Rhinos like a challenge, most of the time. We are batting 1000 plus other numbers.

So Hooray for the Staff and the Readers We serve. Thank you kindly for your attention, and look out for tomorrow!

“How-d’ye-do”s are generally thought of as involving a somewhat unpleasant surprise, here and there. ‘Your Inner Rhino’ has recently realized that, despite our attention to detail, We have been hoodwinking our Readers, not to mention ourselves. For some while, the numbering system for daily posts has been out of whack. As in really out of whack.

Instead of being Post #2,461 today, it is actually Post #3,315. Error is not a goal of ‘Your Inner Rhino’, so you can imagine the franticism of our reaction when this situation revealed itself. We have calmed ourselves since that magical moment, and must content ourselves by admitting our falibility, brushing the vestigial crumbs of our vanity aside.

Rhinos are fortunate to have broad shoulders. We proceed, perhaps Sadder, but certainly Wiser. Please join Us tomorrow, when We will reveal a more upbeat surprise.

Halloween is 2 weeks away; fact. So, in a generous Rhino spirit, We are offering our Readers free designs. All We need is a suggestion, and We will do what We can, legally. Then you just make the outfit at home.

Any helpful info, like: it is for a child or adult, colors you like, Captain Hook or the Crocodile, whatever strikes your fancy. No dubious humor; there is a YIR editor on duty, 24/7.

Soon is best for taking advantage of this offer. First come, first serve will be the general rule, one to a customer. Boo!

As Halloween slinks into our midst, Rhinos everywhere are focused on making an impression. Part of that process often involves a costume or get-up of one sort or another. Masquerade is as complicated as the Rhino-in-question allows it to get.

There is a time-honored scheme of calisthenics, which is enough to exhaust any Rhino, but not so demanding that further efforts are out of the question. What Trick-or-Treating needs primarily is Stamina. Rhinos have plenty all the time, but when events wring Us out, We too get pooped.

We need to build ourselves up. So let’s get it together and glow!

Today was Oscar Wilde’s birthday, in 1854. A remarkable wit and commentator, Mr. Wilde’s target was the limited thinking that led to British complacency, a sense of monied privilege and superiority that he felt could use some serious re-examination, on every level.

He was Stylish and demanding. Many of his contemporaries found him distinctly unsettling. Today many people find his work confusing, given the byplay of ideas, one against another.

Mr. Wilde is often quoted, but Rhinos like this: “True friends stab you in the front.”

Every month has an ‘Ides’ in the middle. Today is the official Ides of October, and you can imagine how We have been anticipating the day. Maybe you have too.

Preparations for Halloween are many and varied, from big issues, like what to wear, to lesser considerations, like will it rain during Trick-or-Treat? Here, We like to sketch out different solutions to pivotal decisions, and assign one staff member or another to oversee progress in the vicinity.

Timing holiday hysteria is never easy, and many Halloweeners get over-excited, but it is best to keep your eyes open during this advent season. The word to the wise would involve hiding, but We prefer to just bull our way ahead. No guts, no Hershey Kisses.

Today is National Dessert Day. (No, those of you Readers who doubt our sources, We do not make up these occasions.) Truly. Who decides the accolades of these many events? If We knew, We Rhinos would not divulge it too much, though We hate to pass up Anybody’s celebration. Especially those involving food.

Many desserts feature sugar, which has a bad reputation. Rhinos find that too much dessert can give a Rhino a headache, but We opine that if We ate a Lot More Sugar, We would develop a greater tolerance over time.

We hereby unofficially offer ourselves for running extensive tests of our theory. We make good team players on dietary questions. AND We do not need parking space!

Today is Friday the 13th, which has a bad reputation among the general public. We only point out the possibility of disaster and mayhem for those who like challenging situations.

All sensible Rhinos go right on chewing.

All the other Rhinos can spend the day quaking, hoping for a good Saturday.

Whatever similarities or differences, here We are, Rhinos and Toads, each doing our thing, crossing paths when We do, and getting on with the business at hand as We understand it.

Nature is calling the tune, and We critters proceed on our merry ways. We are not in any position to assess either the task or the process of fulfilling it.

If We have an attitude toward the circumstances, Rhinos would be hard-pressed to bellow about it, having so little grasp of our situation, muchless a Toad’s.

Ovid was a Roman classic poet, known for his set of tales, comprising the METAMOPHOSES. He dealt with Greek mythology, the transformations of both individuals and situations brought about by the excitable Greek gods.

Rhinos tell these stories, with improvements, to our tots. The stories are long on drama and passion, though they defy logic… Rhino Logic at least.

“Everything comes gradually and at its appointed hour,” is a sample of Ovid’s work. It’s the kind of observation Rhinos puzzle over. When else would anything arrive?