The Sweet Potato/Yam Controversy

Now, there seems to be some bit of a confusion as to the identity of the sweet potato. Here's a clip of an interview I was able to have with Mr. Sweet Potato Head:

Me: Wow, thanks for being able grant me this interview!

MSPH: It's no problem at all. It's not like I've had much on my schedule after HE arrived on the scene.

Me: Er... He?

MSPH: ::sigh:: Yes, Mr. Potato Head.

Me: I sense some sort of loathing in your tone...

MSPH: Well, my therpist and I are still dealing with a few jealousy issues. I was actually scheduled to appear on the toy scene before HE showed up, but there was a miscommunication somehow. The result was a delay in the distribution process of Mr. Sweet Potato Head toys. Hence the fame of Mr. Potato Head, and the demise of Mr. Sweet Potato Head.

Me: Oh, I'm so sorry.

MSPH: (regains composure) That's alright. I'm dealing with it much better now than I was about 40 years ago.

Me: Um, okay... anyways, let's see... oh yes... there seems to be some kind of confusion about your identity as compared to the yam. People are still getting you two mixed up. How do you explain it?

MSPH: Yes, people are still getting us mixed up. It's starting to become rather irritating, and I've come to set the record straight today. I've been around for so long though... you'd think that people would be able to tell the difference between me and an ordinary yam by now.

Me: Well, where do you think the confusion stems from?

MSPH: Well, I think it really starts because we're both sweet, and have both have that brownish skin tone. But that's about where the list of our similarities ends. I have smooth skin, whereas theirs is rather on the rough side (I unlike Yams, do try to keep up a regular regimen with my skin with a variety of essential oils and a monthly massage at the local health spa to keep it properly moisturized and healthy looking). But I also think it is because Mr. Potato Head and I are really incredibly distant cousins, and so is the yam. In actuality, I'm really not a potato at all, and thank goodness for that.

Me: Really? I didn't know that you and Mr. Potato Head were that far apart on the family tree.

MSPH: Yes, actually, Mr. Potato Head is part of the Solanaceae Family, and I am from the same family as Morning Glories. A simple tomato is actually a closer relation to Mr. Potato Head than I am.

Me: Wow! That's really neat. So, how can one actually tell the difference between you and a yam?

MSPH: That's an easy answer, and so simple! I am sweet and have orange flesh, unlike Yams, which are just starchy, dry and have white flesh. The difference is so clear, I don't understand why people are still getting us mixed up. There are so many deluded people out there who are still uneducated about their root vegetables! Hmph!

Me: Ooookay... well getting on in this interview... what have you been up to these past 40 years?

MSPH: Well, to tell you the truth, absolutely nothing. I had such plans of grandeur and fame, and they were all smashed to pieces by that troublesome tuber. When I think that all he has could be mine, it... it... j... ju... just.....

 

That was pretty much the extent of the sweet potato/yam discussion. The rest of the conversation was mainly focused on Mr. Sweet Potato Head's resent of Mr. Potato Head's fame, especially since Mr. Potato Head's recent acclaim on the silver screen as himself once again in the popular Disney movie, Toy Story 2. Some of it was rather profane, and there were quite a few tears shed and tissues used, so I decided to save you the heartbreak I felt for this poor unrecognized fellow.