Down and dirty [on being a potatoe]

“I felt humble, on the outside, people didn't even give me a second thought. They came expecting me to fulfill an immediate desire, to satiate their appetites was my demise. You think they would learn—but no—shipment upon shipment went out every other week traveling south via Pan American. My bleak existence literally went from out of the ground, thrown into the bin and then—into the fryer.

 

You see I start way down in a place that no one can think of. There, I am dirty and for the life of me am bewildered since daily I contend with a mysterious power that creeps over me. I grapple with tubular strands that randomly appear here and there and before I know it I have gone viral!

Even a modest vegetable must deal with spiny networks.

My reality is pierced with the drone of down home talk. I feel they take me for granted since 'I am easy to cultivate'. People use me and make me into mouth watering delectable offerings that not one can refuse when famished.

So, I feel I have no recourse—but to find a way to become invincible. I thought about it and I thought about it and I came up with a solution. I would be a 'ready to eat favorite vegetable' that could be prepared in too many ways to count and be a seed at the same time.

This is my redemptive moment. I recreate myself by being either a small nugget people like to play with, every size and shape in between, or a monster vegetable from a pack that was down and dirty who can do some serious damage to the grader who handles me. Please know and understand, I am not bitter.

Yet, I had to do something for myself. Even though I am not the prettiest vegetable on the block my ambition is to be a household standard, a staple, you know one who is always around, no pun intended!

I am happy to report I think I’ve achieved that. To become forever indelible in the minds of the people, mainly the ones that sit down at the dinner table.”

—Binje Aloo [potato] of WA Farms, inspired by my days working as a potato grader in 2010 at WA Farms with Bill and Sandra Zylmans