Stupid April Fools’ Day
By: Connor Lenahan
I’m not a fan of April Fools’ Day. At least not for most of the pranks played on the holiday. If it’s innocent enough of a change – designed less around around a prank and more a joke – then I don’t care. It’s the betrayal of trust and/or outright misleading someone that makes me mad. I’m not alone here – John Oliver tackled this exact issue this week.
What makes this day especially frustrating is that if anything truly weird yet entirely true happen then everyone will call bullshit on it. I don’t blame them. Frankly I do that most days of the year unless I see a quoted, credible source. However, I had two of the weirdest things to happen to me in recent memory happen in the last 24 hours. I swear to you that this actually happened. Papa don’t play those games.
T. Anthony’s Pizzeria is known as being a beloved staple of the Boston University community. Not only is the place otherworldly affordable, but any short order kitchen that will give me pizza past midnight is in my good graces. Everyone’s really. Boston is not really known for late night offerings, especially if you are under the age of 21. I just want some chicken tenders, yet that is overwhelming, apparently. T. Anthony’s can and regularly is the best friend you could ever have.
Last night I got hungry late while watching TV and decided to go grab a slice of pizza around 11PM. I walked in and found the place mostly empty. After all, who would be looking for food at a small spot on BU’s campus this late? Well it turns out the answer was Kelly Olynyk and Me.
Yes, Kelly Olynyk. As in the floppy haired center that played for Gonzaga and now is a Boston Celtic. While awaiting my pepperoni slice I looked to the side to see the majestic man and his perfect hair to my side. I actually was shocked at how quickly I could recognize Olynyk. I mean, yeah, he plays in the NBA, but he looks like a normal guy. I’m not kidding, if it weren’t for the fact that I have friends that are 7 feet tall, thus giving me a reasonable comparison, I would have assumed that Olynyk was simply another BU student.
Thankfully I had a craving for pizza late last evening, or else I’d have missed a Celtic on campus.
This brings us to today. Last night my girlfriend Laura told me that she heard that Academy Award winner Forest Whitaker would be on campus showing his daughter around. I thought it was cool in the moment and thought nothing of it more.
Then today I was waiting for the elevator at work when low and behold out walks the Oscar winner himself. I’ve been lucky enough to interact with a number of celebrities in my life, but this is one that actually caught me flat footed. I was astonished enough to just say a quick hello and get on the elevator. I then proceeded to giggle like a schoolgirl for the next twenty minutes.
The reason why, of all things, the trailer for Phone Booth is linked above is because that is the movie that made me realize who Whitaker was as an actor and made me a fan. I have not exactly seen his entire filmography, however, I have liked Whitaker in every role I have seen him in. To actually run into the guy today was all kinds of cool.
This really happened. All of it. I swear to you. No surprise, no joke. Scout’s honor.