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WE'RE ALL ABOUT THAT SPITE!
Here's a conversation Meredith and I just had while I was researching items for this email:
Me: "October 7th is National Kale Day. Does that please you?"
Meredith: "Well, you know how I feel about kale. I think every day should be National Kale Day."
Me: "It's also National Forgiveness & Love Day, to celebrate uncondi—"
Meredith: *wrinkles nose* "[expletive deleted] that! Let me know when it's National Spite Day; then we'll talk."
And there you have it: unvarnished insight into the Boredwalk email writing process!
Hungry for some links? Too bad! You can't get your links until you've eaten your birthday cake!
• First up, tillykke med fødselsdagen to Nobel Prize-winning physicist Niels Henrik David Bohr, born this day in 1885! Dr. Bohr's foundational contributions to our understanding of atomic structure led to his winning of the prize, but he was also a philosopher and, during the 1930s, helped save refugees from Nazism before fleeing Denmark himself to help the Allied war effort in the development of atomic energy. Wild!
• Next, usuku lokuzalwa olumnandi to Nobel Peace Prize laureate Archbishop Desmond Mpilo Tutu, born this day in 1931! Mr. Tutu was an instrumental figure in South Africa's anti-apartheid movement in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, and was the first black African person to hold the position of Bishop of Johannesburg (1985-1986) and Archbishop of Cape Town (1986-1996).
• Happy birthday to Daniel Keenan Savage, born this day in 1964! Dan has been writing the internationally syndicated sex & relationship advice column Savage Love for what feels like forever, but it's actually only been 29 years. His weekly podcast, the Savage Lovecast, is a still-spritely 14 years old.
• Finally, we have a quadfecta of musical birthdays today! Thomas Edward Yorke of the band Radiohead (1968), R&B icon Toni Michele Braxton (1967), and roots rock legend John J. Mellencamp (1951) are all experiencing a frosting-induced sugar coma today.
OK, link time!
Almost.
(Hint: it involves showing a lot of butthole.)
Plus there's some pretty sweet Cyrillic typography in there, too!
Which is accurate, and the strip is hilarious. Enjoy!
Well, wonder no more! Prizing includes gift cards, free access to future events, and other treats! See you at The Bronze!
Boredwalk Community: Don't Let the "Y'all" Fool You
1. What's your actual day job and what's your dream day job?
Before quarantine, I'd have said my dream job would be to write on a beach somewhere, undisturbed, and to actually make money on my novels. After quarantine, I have discovered that I need a real 9-to-5 to actually force me out of bed in the mornings, to give me a sense of purpose and deadline, and to provide the stress, frustration, and angst necessary to be inspired in the first place. So I'll continue with my actual day job quite happily: public librarian. (Ed. note: Seagulls have indiscriminate bladder control when in flight, so you're probably safer indoors, anyway.)
2. What's a book you think the Boredwalk community should read?
This is such an unfair question because there are so many life-changing books, and because normally I'd ask you all questions first, about what you like best in a book, what you last read, what motivates you to keep reading... but if you want a handful of "try this out and see" (I can't pick just one): Luster by Revan Leilani, Lila by Marilynne Robinson, Lock In by John Scalzi, or The "More or Less" Definitive Guide to Self-Care by Anna Borges. That last is nonfiction, and sleek, and wow, helpful right now. The others are nicely alliterated and have their own points of entry: black girl magic, Depression-era despair, future world effects of a pandemic! Cheers.
3. Clear up a misconception (about your job, where you are from, some other topic you know a lot about).
Don't let the "y'all" fool you: people in the South are not idiots. We are not all (TW) Confederate-flag-waving assholes. People in the South are nuanced just as you are nuanced. The sins of our soil are on the surface, for the most part, and culturally we are required to pay lip service to politeness; therefore, there is a thin veneer of dust caked in our smiles, but some of us are very aware, and working for change-still with a smile.
4. Where can the rest of the Boredwalk community find you?
Twitter: @lily_bart
My author page.
There's also tumblr, but let's not be too revealing.
...BUT THEY'RE ALSO ON INSTAGRAM.
Happy International Podcast Day! Sadly, we have not recorded this week's episode of The Boredwalk Podcast yet (that's happening tonight!), but if the spirit moves you, maybe go subscribe on the platform of your choice and be delighted when you're notified tomorrow afternoon that it's available! It'll be full of customer reviews, Question of the Day comments, Meredith's grievances regarding...well, everything...and my salty hot take on the first Presidential debate interspersed with my customary cynical witticisms about...again, everything.
Alright, let's eat some birthday cake before we get to those playful links!
• First up, happy birthday to Truman Garcia Capote, born this day in 1924! Mr. Capote was a literary luminary of the mid-20th century, known for both his fiction (Breakfast at Tiffany's) and nonfiction (In Cold Blood, which gave little Matt nightmares for weeks because no horror movie monster is as scary as a remorseless human chowing down on aspirin like they're Smarties).
• Next, la multi ani to Elie Wiesel, born this day in 1928! Mr. Wiesel was a Romanian-born American writer, political activist, Nobel laureate, and Holocaust survivor whose memoir Night remains a powerful document of the Holocaust perpetrated against Jewish Europeans during World War II by Nazi Germany. There aren't many books from high school that I feel warranted the "required reading" designation, but Night is one that absolutely does.
• Finally, happy birthday to Francine Joy Drescher, born this day in 1957! Ms. Fran and her trademark voice & cackle may have achieved the most fame on her sitcom The Nanny, but as far as I'm concerned her best roles were in the cinematic classics This Is Spinal Tap and UHF.
OK, link time!
That said, they're less funny than I am, so I guess you should keep opening these and reading them. Take that, Good Good Good!
I hope he keeps posting every. single. day.
3. These salty parrots are cracker-ing each other up!
A family-friendly safari park in the UK recently removed some parrots after they taught each other to swear and laughed about it. This is just one guy's opinion, but this seems like more of a value-add than a detraction. I say let 'em swear!
4. Former psychiatrist teaches us how to tame internet trolls with a Medium post and a handy chart.
This all sounds well and good, but I have a life to live; I can't just fritter away "humanizing" people and "setting boundaries." Be polite or be blocked!
5. I've saved the best for last: did you know that Satan has an Instagram?
True story! Get thee to Hell!