A fly spent 2 mesmerizing minutes on Mike Pence's head during the debate

There is nothing more sacred and indispensable to American democracy than the electoral process, that time-honored opportunity for citizens to hear out their potential leaders and decide the course of the country for the next four years.

But then sometimes a fly lands on a candidate's head, and the electorate collectively short circuits.

Midway through the vice presidential debate, a Musca domestica — that is, a humble housefly — decided to rest its weary wings on the snowfield of Pence's hair. Though what the candidates were discussing at the time was surely Important and Serious, no one heard a moment of it because their eyes were glued on the fly:

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Watch the two full minutes of the fly that you didn't know you needed, below. Jeva Lange