Milk Names

Have you ever noticed the names printed on gallons of milk?  I think they’re the names of the employees who check the milk.  Probably.  The quality milk quality checkers.  (I couldn’t decide if ‘quality’ should go before or after ‘milk’ so I put it in both places.)  Don’t worry, I took a photo just in case you have no idea what I’m talking about:

Have you ever wondered about these people’s lives?  Maybe I’m crazy, but I think a lot about these people on a regular basis.  The only problem with this is that I will never ever find out who these people really are.  Instead I invent stories for them.

Eric, for example, is 52 years old and has a wife and two children, both of whom attend college in the state of Colorado.  His wife stayed at home but recently started a jewelry business which she promotes on her blog.  Eric has high cholesterol and enjoys taking care of his raspberry bushes with his Shih Tzu named Tony.  Eric is actually the CEO of Western Family, and happened to inspect this gallon of milk while doing his time on the TV show “Undercover Boss.”  After doing the show, he fired an incompetent delivery guy and gave nobody a raise.  His dog Tony recently got a cataract in his left eye.

David is 16 years old and wants to be an accountant.  He lives with his grandmother, Evelyn, who got him a job inspecting milk because she’s good friends with the manager’s wife, Martha.  He works every day after school except on Tuesdays, when he has oboe lessons.  David skipped the first grade but doesn't tell anyone because he’s a bit short.  His father is a truck driver he only sees on holidays and his mother was killed in a boating accident when David was 4.

Diana is a 20 year old blonde who is originally from Kentucky, but moved to Nevada when her boyfriend, Ron, joined a band and dumped her.  People are always telling her she looks like Hilary Duff, but she just doesn’t see it.  She got a small apartment in a college town and inspects milk to pay the rent.  In her spare time Diana watches Ellen, eats oatmeal, and looks at pictures of Ron on Facebook.

Anyway….It’s been a good day.  If you asked me what I did, I might say that I went to work, did my laundry, and cleaned my room, but I did so much more, too.  I found a dead spider in my suitcase.  I danced to Ke$ha all by myself.  I watched a video of Nick Jonas playing baseball and he fell on his face.  I remembered being clever when I named my aloe vera plant Ali V.  I ate a handful of Skittles and saved the red ones for last.  I thought of some Amy Proverbs (watch for them on Twitter @amylouhilton).  I drank out of my Captain America cup while listening to a song called Captain America, and I didn’t do it on purpose.  I stepped on a pinecone.  I took a selfie of me in my shorteralls:

AND I read an amazing story written by my good friend Wes (http://inscape.byu.edu/2013/06/13/so-close-to-heaven/).  You should read it as well.