This Is A Legit Holiday...

Today is National Pie Day.  I know, right?  I had no clue and so I feel as if I've failed you in alerting you to this very important day.  As best as I can tell from much Googling, National Pie Day was established by the American Pie Council (again, I know, right?) and actually not by some Congressional resolution or presidential declaration.  The American Pie Council even has a countdown clock to today on their website: http://www.piecouncil.org/. (On an unrelated note, it is also National Handwriting Day.  Who makes this stuff up?  Apparently you can just take something you like now and make it a day.  I therefore declare tomorrow to be National Let's Drink White Wine Day.)

I would seriously love to know how the Pie Council picked January 23rd as pie day.  Do you think that a bunch of people who work there all wrote random dates down on slips of paper and then someone drew out of the bowl and "January 23rd" was written on there, so they just went with it?  It just seems to me that you would pick something more logical, like March 14th (get it? 3/14? 3.14? Pi? Anyone?).

Turns out the National Pie Council is quite the national organization (except if you live in Arizona, Maryland, New Jersey, Tennessee, or Vermont...then you aren't eligible to participate and no, I have no idea why).

You may join as an amateur or a professional and each year, they host a national pie-baking competition (along with hosting a bunch of "pie industry seminars".  This year the competition is in Orlando in late April.  I'm seriously trying to convince Jeanne we should go, but she just rolls her eyes at me and I have no idea why because I guarantee you it will be warmer in Orlando in April than in mid-Missouri.  Also, I would totally bet you could write that whole thing off as a travel expense (and if you are reading this from the IRS, I totally plan to look into all applicable regulations and tax laws and keep the receipts...maybe even in a fancy file folder instead of a shoe box.  Please don't audit us.)

And if Jeanne doesn't go for the warmer temperatures and tax deductions galore, the grand prize is a trip for two to Zurich for three nights (again, with the random choices, Pie Council...is Zurich known for pie or something?).  I can guarantee you that whomever wins the whole competition would much rather be gifted with a magical electric apple peeler than a few nights in Zurich with an epic case of jet-lag.

The categories to enter are more than types of pie I even knew existed and yet I'm convinced we should go to this.  If anything, we always have a ridiculous amount of fun together.  Plus, it is always good to scope out the competition and find out new trends in pies.  The website also strongly encourages that we "arrive early to enjoy the merchandise mart".  Really, could they make this deal sound any sweeter?  I can't even guess what sort of wares they are peddling in the mart, but I would like to find out.

I wonder if the website will change the countdown clock to National Pie Day to the countdown clock for the National Pie Competition tomorrow?  We need to be honing our skills.  Or learning to ski for the Swiss Alps.