Today the SuperOptimist turns 141.* (Not in years, but in columns placed on the world wide web.) Naturally, this is cause for revelry, so we’d like to invite you to join us as we dig in to a generous slice of our favorite pie.

At the same time, we pause to reflect on the great gift bestowed upon us as transmitters of SuperOptimist thought. We were first visited by this powerful force in 2006, which resulted in a book that offered a contrarian take on what most humans refer to as “problems.”

Secrets of the SuperOptimist

We thought we had completed our mission with the book’s publication and subsequent second edition, and spent the next 11 years practicing SuperOptimism like a figure skater practices a triple lutz, or an equestrian practices dressage. Yet the spirit channel contacted us again in the spring of 2019, perhaps in anticipation of a major world event which would disrupt our lives the following year.

So we recommitted to writing down the signals we received, sent during the wee hours via lucid dreaming, walking meditation, and glimpses into the space-time continuum.  And now, there may be much more the SuperOptimist wishes to impart to help people survive — and thrive — in this decade and beyond.

We will continue to share these wisdom transmissions, while celebrating each day as if there is no tomorrow. The fact that death can come quick or slow, that money can evaporate after years of saving, that your team may not win the next three-game series  — it’s living in the mystery that makes life an exciting, if unpredictable, adventure.

Finally, we celebrate you for spending some time with us. We hope you will continue to enjoy more slices of our pie in the future.

*At a time when friends have unexpectedly taken flight due to something smaller than the smallest bacterium, we dedicate this column to Bob Levine, one very cool dude who brought joy and humor to many.  

 

Thinking that life has become pretty routine? Wondering if the world will ever recognize your accomplishments in middle management? Concerned that your obituary will read like a boilerplate legal document? If you want to leave a mark before you go, we suggest getting your name in the record books.

For world-class athletes like sprinter Usain Bolt and tight-roper Nik Wallenda, attempting to break a new world record in their respective fields requires a great deal of intense training and unwavering focus. Luckily for the rest of us mere mortals, there are hundreds of other less glamorous records out there begging to be broken by anyone with a pulse.

How about “most t-shirts put on at one time. (current record: 31) Most tennis balls held in one hand (Current record: 26).  Fastest time to assemble a Mr. Potatohead while blindfolded (current record: 16.17 seconds). Most apples crushed with bicep in one minute (current record: 8). Fastest time to duct tape a person to a wall (28.53 seconds).  Most pieces of pumpkin pie eaten in 10 minutes (48, or 16.8 lbs. of pie).

Better yet, make up your own amazing feat to astound and delight.* Remember, all records start with envisioning the impossible, and then determining that you can overcome the odds.

*How about “most superoptimist.com blog posts read in a single sitting?” (This record is up for grabs, as far as we know).

 

No one knows how much time they have on earth. We act as if we must take care of ourselves so we can live to be 100. But how many of us make it to that age? And do you really want to?

Maybe it’s time to wake up and reshuffle the deck. Starting with a piece of blueberry pie for breakfast. It’s not as deviant as you may think. Pie’s a pastry, after all. It’s meant for breakfast since it goes great with coffee. Plus wth breakfast pie, you have all day to burn off the calories. And what goes better with pie than ice cream? Add a dollop of vanilla with your pie; it’s no different than putting cream in your coffee.

“The pie is an English institution, which, planted on American soil, forthwith ran rampant and burst forth into an untold variety of genera and species. Not merely the old mince pie, but a thousand strictly American seedlings from that main stock, evinced the power of American housewives to adapt old institutions to new uses.” – Harriet Beecher Stowe 1869 novel “Oldtown Folks.”

Pie became so strongly identified with America by the 19th century that writers and journalists from both near and far declared Americans to be suffering a kind of pie madness. New Englanders, who were particularly prone to pie-eating, made good fodder for satire and good targets for scolding by increasingly health-conscious cookbook writers. As more Americans traveled abroad and became acquainted with European food culture, it became fashionable to condemn pie as food for the “rustic.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson found pie to be just such a pleasing medium, as his friend James Thayer recalled, describing a breakfast taken with Emerson and friends in the 1870s. Pie, Thayer reported, “at breakfast was one of Mr. Emerson’s weaknesses.” Emerson offered slices to his fellow diners, who one by one declined, prompting him to protest in humor, “but … what is pie for?”