Always Learning June 1, 2008
Posted by carpebanana in : Ramblings , trackbackHomeschoolers try to create an environment of learning and never miss an opportunity. So, Grandma Millie provided us an interesting opportunity by sending home a giant container of cheese balls like this (only MUCH larger):
As we are eating them with supper, Mr Music asks, “What does ‘utz’ mean, anyhow?” And, as I say, not to miss a learning opportunity, we passed out slips of paper and pencils and everyone wrote down a secret guess about what ‘utz’ means.
You could do one, too, before you read on. 
We came up with these answers:
* a company (this slip was smeared with a lot of orange dust: think PigPen eating cheese balls and you’ve got the picture)
* utz is from the company’s founder’s initials… probably Uriah Thomas Zimmerman who is/was an Amish/Mennonite type around Lancaster, PA
*utz is what you say whe you burp. because: you eat to many cheese balls.
* Unusually Tasty Zimmies
* no comment
* ‘UTZ’ is the nickname/abbreviated name for the family business “Stolutzefenmillerschmidt” is the full name of the Amish family that started the pretzel business (which branched out to potato chips, cheese curls & cheese balls)
and
* Actually a last name, but can be used as an acronym for universally tasty znacks for more information see en.wikipedia.org/utz
The last answer was the closest. According to utzsnacks.com, we learned that it is a last name: It all started with Bill and Salie Utz’s quest for a fresher potato chip. After almost a century, and quite a few automatic potato chip cookers later, UTZ snacks deliver freshness you can taste in every satisfying crunch.
But I still like the answer about burping. And the “Zimmies” name just may stick around the Bananas.
Comments»
They look like we call “cheezels” (though cheezels are donut shaped) or “twisties” (though twisties are spirally type things).
I found the following the other day, and thought you might be interested (not, of course, that you have all day to play computer games!):
http://www.ferryhalim.com/orisinal/g3/slide.htm
It’s about monkeys and bananas.