More Travel and Dining Expenses for "Bowdlerizing Brigham"?

[Doctor Scratch]

What we can see here are all the classic hallmarks of addiction. He’s addicted to fast food and sugar. How can you tell? He’s been directly confronted with the obvious (eating this stuff is unhealthy) and he simultaneously admits it and yet makes excuses about how it’s “okay” and continues to do it. He’s in denial.

What this shows is that even a high-ranking Mopologist is vulnerable to addiction. His belief in Mormonism hasn’t saved him from compulsively poisoning his own body.

There is a part of me that hesitated from pointing all this out—this is obviously a sensitive, difficult topic. But he has been so cruel and dismissive towards others for decades that, well… You reap what you sow.

[I Have Questions]

Today’s calorific payload…

As the place where we were staying in Escalante didn’t offer a complimentary breakfast, four of us headed out in one of our vehicles to find some food for the morning. We settled on Escalante Mercantile & Natural Grocery, where I had a spinach/blueberry/strawberry/banana smoothie. I liked it, partially because it wasn’t overly sweet.

We headed out of Escalante, through Bryce National Park and Panguitch, to the southbound I-15. Nearing Parowan, we noticed a sign alerting us to “the best cinnamon rolls in the West.” The passengers in the car voted to exit into Parowan and try them. Alas, though, they didn’t live up to their billing — though, conceivably, had we been able to eat them perhaps five or six days earlier, they might have.

Eventually arriving in St. George but too early to get into our motel, we scouted the St. George Tabernacle for a possible future shoot there (and were given some very helpful information by Elder Hansen in response to a question that I posed to him for this evening’s filming) and visited Brigham Young’s winter home, where we were scheduled to film in the evening after the site closed to the general public.

After a few minutes in our motel — the famously luxurious St. George Inn and Suites (which, unlike last night’s lodgings, features actual en suite showers and and toilets!) — we went for a late lunch or early dinner at the Rib & Chop House, where I enjoyed a Diet Dr. Pepper, a bowl of bison chili, and a carrot soufflé. I thought it my best meal of this entire epicurean gastronomy tour.

”Diet” Dr Pepper

We filmed outside of the Brigham Young Winter Home and Office and in the home’s parlor, recording a special installment of Becoming Brigham. President Gil Gardner, who directs the Southwest Utah Historical Sites Mission, kindly kept the site open for us and stood by as we worked. We’ll release this particular episode on Monday, 1 June 2026 — Monday is our regular day for posting installments of the series — to observe Brigham Young’s 225th birthday. According to his daughter Clarissa, doughnuts and maple syrup were a favorite treat of his, so, in honor of the day, we enjoyed some doughnuts with maple syrup on camera and wished him a Happy Birthday. (For the zealous cub reporters over at the Peterson Obsession Board, who profess to be deeply concerned about my diet and my health: I myself skipped the maple syrup and I actually ate only about a quarter of one of the doughnuts.)

Quite the show of will power there at the end.

[Doctor CamNC4Me]

Ah, yes. A 300 lbs Mormon foodaholic blogging about crushing a stale cinnamon roll after drinking a fruit smoothie is chef’s kiss for self-unaware satire. Whatever the case may be, I rather enjoy reading about Dunkin’ Danut’s gostronomic self-owns.

Wait. Holy crap.

DAN. DAN!! Dan Dan Dan! Bro!

*holds hands up, palms outward*

One word: MUKBANG

Instead of a religious blog no one reads, you would get so, much, attention, if you entered the mukbang creation space. You could call it:

Mormon MUKBANG

Or if that’s a trademark issue, MORE, MAN, MUKBANG.

You could literally get hundreds of thousands of views. Literally. You’d make so much money you could fund a dozen films about Brighamite Mormonism!

DO IT. DOOOOOOOOOOOO IIIIIIIIIIIIIT!!!!!

[Tom]

We headed out of Escalante, through Bryce National Park and Panguitch, to the southbound I-15. Nearing Parowan, we noticed a sign alerting us to “the best cinnamon rolls in the West.” The passengers in the car voted to exit into Parowan and try them. Alas, though, they didn’t live up to their billing — though, conceivably, had we been able to eat them perhaps five or six days earlier, they might have.

I’m stunned that the Proprietor and his entourage quite literally forgot the Relief Society Sister in Parowan by not paying a visit to her humble home. She has been a devoted supporter from the beginning, donating the widow’s mite to the Interpreter Foundation every month, and this is the type of treatment she gets in return. It’s truly sad to see the Proprietor disregard President Boyd K. Packer’s solemn apostolic charge to Latter-day Saint apologists to “never forget the Relief Society sister in Parowan” in favor of consuming a few stale and unsatisfying cinnamon rolls. (I can attest that the Relief Society Sister’s homemade cinnamon rolls are much tastier than the ones sold downtown.)

[Everybody Wang Chung]

We headed out of Escalante, through Bryce National Park and Panguitch, to the southbound I-15. Nearing Parowan, we noticed a sign alerting us to “the best cinnamon rolls in the West.” The passengers in the car voted to exit into Parowan and try them. Alas, though, they didn’t live up to their billing — though, conceivably, had we been able to eat them perhaps five or six days earlier, they might have.

I’m stunned that the Proprietor and his entourage quite literally forgot the Relief Society Sister in Parowan by not paying a visit to her humble home. She has been a devoted supporter from the beginning, donating the widow’s mite to the Interpreter Foundation every month, and this is the type of treatment she gets in return. It’s truly sad to see the Proprietor disregard President Boyd K. Packer’s solemn apostolic charge to Latter-day Saint apologists to “never forget the Relief Society sister in Parowan” in favor of consuming a few stale and unsatisfying cinnamon rolls. (I can attest that the Relief Society Sister’s homemade cinnamon rolls are much tastier than the ones sold downtown.)

Tom,

I think the damage has been done. Prominent widow, Mavis Ethel Monson of Parowan, didn’t mind that the Afore spent her monthly donations on the silly Ghost Committee, or even beef pizzas, but discovering via his blog that he had breezed through Iron County without stopping to thank her, or to try her world famous cinnamon buns was just too much for her to handle. The straw that broke the camel's back was the Afore posting a selfie at a local Parowan gas station holding a limp, plastic wrapped cinnamon bun that looked like it had been run over by the entire Willie handcart company. Devastated, Mavis has now publicly declared that her monthly widow's mite donation will now be going to the local cat sanctuary.

[Doctor Scratch]

I think some credit is due here: the Afore has really helped to educate all interested parties on just how donations to Interpreter are spent. We knew, of course, that the money was paying for him to travel, stay in motels, and eat for free, but I admit that I'm a bit torn on how to feel about details. He has wanted to frame our criticisms of him as being some sort of thing about him enjoying all this "luxury," though I don't think anyone said that, exactly. But I'm happy to declare, very clearly, that it is beyond obvious that the food options (at least) are not in any way "luxurious." "Trashy" is more how I'd describe them. Even if the option for "more luxurious" was on the table, these recent reports suggest that it wouldn't matter: he would still gravitate towards the deep-fried junk and sugar-loaded foods on the menu. Dr. Robbers is correct: the Afore seems to have the tastes of a 5-year-old.

The fact of the matter, in any case, is that people are paying money to Interpreter so that he can wolf down junk--including stale cinnamon rolls, Philadelphia cheesesteaks, onions rings, and donuts with maple syrup on them. It just feels "off" somehow. Would this be better if the money was being spent, say, on a prime aged New York strip, or if he was upgrading to the caviar and truffle supplement? Or if he was staying in the finest hotel room in all of St. George? It's honestly hard to say. Regardless, the main point--that he is getting to do his hobbies for free, thanks to donor money--is still true.

[huckelberry]

Perhaps even Daniel gets a chuckle from the food police jokes here.

[Everybody Wang Chung]

Perhaps even Daniel gets a chuckle from the food police jokes here.

Let's hope so.

Prompt to Gemini: "Create a picture of Mormon apologist, Daniel C. Peterson eating a large chicken fried steak at a diner in Filmore, UT."

[Marcus]

I think some credit is due here: the Afore has really helped to educate all interested parties on just how donations to Interpreter are spent. We knew, of course, that the money was paying for him to travel, stay in motels, and eat for free, but I admit that I'm a bit torn on how to feel about details. He has wanted to frame our criticisms of him as being some sort of thing about him enjoying all this "luxury," though I don't think anyone said that, exactly. But I'm happy to declare, very clearly, that it is beyond obvious that the food options (at least) are not in any way "luxurious." "Trashy" is more how I'd describe them. Even if the option for "more luxurious" was on the table, these recent reports suggest that it wouldn't matter: he would still gravitate towards the deep-fried junk and sugar-loaded foods on the menu. Dr. Robbers is correct: the Afore seems to have the tastes of a 5-year-old.

The fact of the matter, in any case, is that people are paying money to Interpreter so that he can wolf down junk--including stale cinnamon rolls, Philadelphia cheesesteaks, onions rings, and donuts with maple syrup on them. It just feels "off" somehow. Would this be better if the money was being spent, say, on a prime aged New York strip, or if he was upgrading to the caviar and truffle supplement? Or if he was staying in the finest hotel room in all of St. George? It's honestly hard to say. Regardless, the main point--that he is getting to do his hobbies for free, thanks to donor money--is still true.

One additional issue, he has stated that when his fellow executive producer Deborah Peterson traveled for film-related events with him, her expenses were not covered, while his were. Is this another way of hogging the donations for his hobbies?

[Doctor Scratch]

One additional issue, he has stated that when his fellow executive producer Deborah Peterson traveled for film-related events with him, her expenses were not covered, while his were. Is this another way of hogging the donations for his hobbies?

That is a very good and valid point, Marcus, and it has been made repeatedly on this thread and thus the Afore has seen it and is choosing to ignore it.

And it actually is perhaps even worse, in my view. On this current trip, it seems to be 4 men and Ms. Camrey Bagley Fox. I hope I’m not out of line in pointing out that, by most conventional standards, Sister Fox is a young and attractive woman. So these older Mopologist dudes will pay to hang out with her while their wives stay at home? Well, I think you can see how this looks….