Home “Cooked” Food in Utah

If you go to any sort of get-together where people bring food here in Utah, it’s pretty much a guarantee there will be jello. Not necessarily regular, ol’ jello, though. It’s seldom plain; something will be added. Usually something strange.

Think Raisins. Shredded carrots. Slivered almonds. Things you would never think to put in jello are common here. Toppings mostly consisting of cream cheese are the norm. Not only do I find most of these very unappealing, I have a hard time understanding how these concoctions ever came to be in the first place. It’s like someone bought all the ingredients for a carrot cake except for the actual cake mix, got home, realized the problem, and figured the box of orange or lime jello in the cupboard would work just as well.

Surprise – it doesn’t.

Please help us, B. Dylan Hollis. You’re our only hope.

I Work with Celebrities

Ok, so I don’t actually work with celebrities. But I found when I started a new job at a large company that I assigned people actors’ or characters’ names in my head until I learned their real ones. Now, I don’t really follow any famous people, but I guess I know of enough of them to name them or their roles here and there. And when I switched to yet a different large company some time later, I followed that pattern. So all in all, I’ve worked with:

  • Jason Alexander
  • Young Wilford Brimley
  • Crispin Glover (almost exactly how he is as George McFly)
  • Dr. Wilson from House (Robert Sean Leonard)
  • Stuart from Big Bang Theory (Kevin Sussman)
  • Thinner John Goodman (whose name actually is John!)
  • Maid Marian from Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio)
  • And my favorite, Aging Peter Griffin

Now who is Aging Peter you might ask? This guy, whose real name I do know these days, looks exactly like the cartoon character Peter Griffin from Family Guy come to life, but with gray hair. He’s a grandpa, you see. So I call him Aging Peter in my mind, and I love him. Unlike that cartoon character, he is the nicest, happiest fellow you could ever meet. He always greets me with a smile. Thank you, Aging Peter.