THIS EMAIL EXPLAINS IT!

Happy National Pecan Pie Day! In my experience, pecan pie is a lot like cilantro. People either love it or hate it, and those that love it REALLY love it while those that hate it REALLY hate it. 

Me, I'm one of those people that loves it. In fact, pecan pie is my most favorite pie of all! Toasty, crunchy, nutty, buttery, and just generally delightful — I would eat it every day if I could!

Today is also National Eat Your Jello Day, which is disgusting in principle and in practice, but hey, if you dig the jiggle, do you. To each their own. 

Finally, a very Happy Different Colored Eyes Day! This holiday celebrates people (and pets!) with heterochromia iridum, a rare genetic mutation that gives single organisms differently colored eyes. 

Some famous humans with heterochromia iridum include actors Kiefer Sutherland and Jane Seymour, comedian Gracie Allen, baseball player Max Scherzer, and music icon David Bowie. Must be that Martian goblin blood. 

No disrespect, Ziggy.

*****

Before we delve into this week's community Q&A, let's celebrate some notable July 12th birthdays! We have a bunch today, so I'll list them thusly:

Ancient Roman Tyrants: Gaius Julius Caesar (100 BCE)

Thinkers/Philosophers/Writers: Henry David Thoreau (1817), R. Buckminster Fuller (1895), and Pablo Neruda (1904)

Actors/Comedians: Milton Berle (1908), Charlie Murphy (1959), and Steve Howey (1977)

Visual Artists: Andrew Wyeth (1917)

Fitness Enthusiasts: Richard "Sweatin' to the Oldies" Simmons (1948)

Education Advocates: Malala Yousafzai (1997)

OK! Assuming I don't die before then, I'll be back in your inbox on Wednesday morning with links to fun distractions! Before that, though, scroll down and learn all about fellow Boredwalk fan Ivan T.! As usual, if you'd like to be featured in an upcoming email, reply to this and let me know! Until next time...

Peace, love, and pecan pie,

Matt

Ivan relishing irony in his Everything Was Beautiful And Nothing Hurt Vonnegut-inspired tee!

1. What keeps you up at night?

Mostly watching old movies that I enjoy. Les Diaboliques is probably my favorite: it's about a man's wife and his mistress who conspire together to kill him, with a lovely unexpected twist. That movie could keep me up all month just thinking about it.

 2. What's a book you think the Boredwalk community should read?

Y'all should read Price of Salt. It's by Patricia Highsmith, written in 1960, and one of the first American novels to feature a lesbian love story with a happy ending. Highly recommend as a nice beach read.

3. If you could have any super power what would it be and why?

I would want to be able to reach into my back pocket and pull out anything that I needed at that exact moment: it would solve all of my minor annoyances.

4. Clear up a misconception (about your job, where you are from, some other topic you know a lot about).

LeVayan satanists are dope as hell, and I thoroughly recommend it for anyone's mental health. It's mostly an atheistic religion that practices the magic of self care and the ritual sacrifice of all of your personal shame and doubts. Like I said, dope as hell.

5. Where can the rest of the Boredwalk community find you?

You can usually find me in a park writing or on the couch napping.