Potato Cross x 2

Everyone is talking about it. Or at least everyone that tracks homespun local interest reports that attract national and international media interest because they are about Jesus or Mary showing up in some unexpected place. So here we have one story that becomes a couple stories, which all end up being the same kind of story, the old Madonna of the Toast story.

According to The BIG One – WTAM 1100, Dennis Bort of Berea, Ohio, was peeling potatoes, on Christmas Day no less, when he found a cross in one of the spuds. Now it’s up for grabs on eBay. But guess what? It’s not the only potato cross available on eBay right now. On New Year’s Eve a woman in Iowa found one too, though this one is more rough hewn.

Who remembers this potato cross from my January 23, 2008, post? You don’t remember? It’s much better than this post, which is just more of the same when it comes to these stories. There is one bid on the Iowa potato, while the Ohio one has a minimum of $1,000. Guess what? That one won’t sell. But, if you check out the older story, you can also get a little dose of James Joyce and my secret ingredient for making the best potato salad.

Jesus Ultrasound

Hi all you Madonna of the Toast fans! Did you miss me? Doesn’t seem like I missed too much in the world of the visual manifestations of religious and secular icons, though I do have one to share.



This Jesus on the Cross ultrasound: according to this Fox News 6 report, Monet Sledge from Lorain, Ohio, went to the doctor, pregnant with her first child, “expecting to see little body parts . . . Like a face, arms and legs." The baby girl’s legs, as seen by her doting mother, however, are extended in such a way to resemble Jesus’s stretched arms. In Sledge’s words: “I was shocked like really.”

Some people have told Sledge to sell the ultrasound image on eBay. Others think the image means the child will have a blessed life. Only time will tell, but the best news of all is that the baby is healthy.

Gnarled Jesus Profile

Ohio’s Ashtabula Star Beacon reports that Greg Wolfe and two others were chopping wood last week when this log got spit out of a “gasoline log splitter.” When Wolfe’s friend said it looked like Jesus, Wolfe ignored him, busy with the task at hand. The log was set aside, and once the men were done, they all agreed that it looked like Jesus. The pensive human lines of the wood are definitely noticeable, especially the nose, cheek bone and lips. One person suggested that Wolfe should view this log's creation as a sign that he doesn't spend his Sundays in the right place.

Now, Wolfe has the gnarled profile on exhibit at his store, Andover Appliance, in Andover, Ohio: “he’s trying to spark interest within the public to come and take a look at it.” Do I smell an eBay campaign in the making?

And speaking of eBay, after more than 13,000 visits in less than a week and 96 bids, the Jesus Spoon from last post sold for $760. How about that?

Jesus Didn't Use a Footstool to Wash Feet

This footstool, discovered in a home on Church Street in Toledo, Ohio, has reaffirmed Roberto Colon’s faith. According to Colon, and his wife, the face of Jesus can be seen on this worn, wooden piece of furniture, though Colon concedes that the face is easier to see from a distance. Reported by WTOL, the broadcast includes a mention of Donna Lee, a person I interviewed for Madonna of the Toast because of the Jesus pierogi she fried up one Easter morning a few years back. You’ll have to read the book to find out more about Lee, but I can tell you that during the course of our conversation she belted out an excellent rendition of “New York, New York.”



Lee sold her divine foodstuff on eBay for $1,775. For now, Colon plans on keeping the footstool, though he hasn’t ruled out auctioning off the item. He thinks bidding would begin at $100,000! When Jesus washed the disciples' feet, it was an act of humility, something Colon may get a dose of with such grandiose monetary expectations. Good luck, Roberto.