Utah. The 45th state is mainly known for Mormons. Compared to the rest of America, Utah is a strange state whose historic and cultural foundations revolve around a religion, specifically Mormonism. Whenever anyone outside the states travels or passes through Utah, they'll most likely get a sense of the religion in some form.
As a result, Utahans have tried to make their presence more known outside the religion, usually by promoting their tourism. Miraculously, they were able to get some fame thanks to their bid to host the Winter Olympics in 2002 in Salt Lake City. Having failed previous times to win the bid, Utah finally got the chance to shine in the international spotlight. More than excited, it was a dream come true in his eyes.
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"And the next city... To host the 2002 Winter Olympic Games... Goes to... Salt Lake City, United States!" he announced, followed by a wave of applause.
I couldn't believe it! The moment the announcer said those words, I jumped out of my chair and told my neighbors the news. After making countless failed bids, I can finally host the Winter Olympic Games. Oh, boy! Oh, boy! I have so much work to do. I asked New York and California to help me with the planning. After all, they, too, hosted the Winter Olympics themselves. With their help, I'm sure everything will turn out well.
"It should be a star cuz America!" Cali argued.
"No! No! A star is a bad idea! Especially coming from you!" York accused.
"What do you mean by that?"
"You and the hippies drew the most hideous star I've ever seen! The countries thought the logo was drawn up by dumb kindergartners."
"It was in vogue!"
The two states duked it out in front of the whiteboard. I awkwardly watched from my chair at the back of the wooden table that took up most of the room.
"Guys... Maybe I can hel-"
"How about a mountain?" York drew a triangle on the whiteboard.
Before he could draw any further, Cali pushed him aside. "Really? A mountain? How original." She wiped away the triangle with a board eraser.
"Hey!"
"Now! Let a designer like me do the work."
The two continued to bicker. I couldn't help but watch, already overwhelmed by their insistence to make the Winter Olympics a success. Maybe asking for their help wasn't such a good idea after all.
"What is that?" York gave Cali a funny look.
"It's the Olympic rings, you dumb goof!" she huffed.
"Looks more like a chain of onion rings."
"You look like a chain of onion rings."
"H-Hey!" I raised my voice.
The two turned their heads and gave me deadly daggers. Their icy blue eyes made my skin burn. I shrank away, intimidated by their glares. But then, a light bulb popped up in my head.
"Uh, what is it, Utah?" York questioned, slightly paranoid.
"Light the fire within," I uttered with a twinkle in my eye.
Cali cocked her head perplexed. "Huh?"
I nodded excitedly. "Fire and ice. That will be my theme for the Winter Olympics."
Cali and York took a moment to grasp the idea. They seemed to agree, nodding their heads together in agreement.
"Yeah... Sounds pretty cool," he mumbled.
"This idea has great potential. I like it." Cali smiled.
I beamed. "I also have some ideas on the emblem."
I got up from my chair, and headed to the white board. I grabbed a blue Expo marker and started drawing shapes. For once, Cali and York shut their mouths, allowing me to concentrate while I draw. I recall some vague memories, allowing my creativity to pour into the emblem. Once I was done with the blue marker, I grabbed the red marker. I made some red lines, careful on how it looked with the blue. Considering there weren't any orange or yellow Expo markers in sight, I had to make do with the red marker. Hopefully they'll like it.
"Wow..." she awed. "I didn't think you could draw."
"I think the color palette needs to make some improvements, but I really like what you've done. Looks pretty rad," said York.
Touching up on the drawing, I got out a black Expo marker and wrote underneath the emblem, "Salt Lake 2002." After that, I did my best to draw the World Olympics emblem, five interconnected circles underneath the letters. Then, I was done. I took a step back to check out what I drew, making sure it wasn't only recognizable, but it also looked good as well. Much to my surprise, it turned out better than I expected.
"So, I thought about this for a while, and I decided to base my emblem on a snowflake," I explained.
"I can see that," York noted, "Is there a reason why you chose a snowflake?"
I shrugged. "My home has the best snow in the world."
"Isn't that subjective?"
"That's not the point," I sighed. "The blue at the bottom represents the blue mountains. The middle portion that's a darker shade of red is suppose to represent my history and culture. I want it to be orange, but you know. I have to make do with the markers we have," I confessed. "Lastly, the lighter shade of red represents the Olympic flame and the athletes' courage. I consider changing it to yellow if it fits better with the color scheme. Overall, it should look like a sun rising behind a mountain."
York nodded. "That'll work. Good job."
Cali giggled. "Great! We got a logo now!"
I rubbed the back of my neck as I smiled with them. "Thanks! I'm glad we can finally reach an agreement on something."
"Now we need to work on the mascots."
"Hang on. Mascots?"
"Yeah! You need something to represent the games and build tourism for the people coming here."
"I got Roni the Raccoon for the one in 1980." York, for whatever reason, waved around a Raccoon plushy in a sky blue ski suit in his hand.
Cali wrinkled her nose. "Roni the Raccoon looks creepy."
"How would you know? You didn't even have a mascot for the Winter Olympics."
"If I did, it wouldn't be a furry with a derpy face."
Once again, the two argued over mascots while I watched in the background of their argument.
Sigh... I guess I should've known planning for an international event is going to be this challenging. Still, I'm sure I can figure it all out with a great deal of planning and some hard work.
~ A Few Years Later ~
"Hello! Welcome! Don't forget to see the opening ceremony tonight! Hello! Welcome!" I welcomed every county, province, region, state, territory, and nation to my home.
I couldn't believe there were so many people arriving to participate in the games. There was Ontario and Quebec fighting over bedrooms. Moscow and Saint Petersburg came in a few hours ago in a frosty mood for some reason. Lombardy arrived fashionably late behind the rest of the Italians. And then there's the perfect Oslo who I'll admit I nearly "fangirled" as Cali would say. Before long, I started to recognize the familiar faces of my neighbors.
"Hey, dude!" Colorado came sliding in on his checkered snowboard into the hotel lobby.
I grew worried he would slip and break his neck. Rightfully so as the Coloradoan tripped as soon as the snowboard reached the velvet red carpet. My tall neighbor fell on his right side in a loud, "Oof!"
I ran over to him in a panic. "C-Colorado! Are you alright?"
"I don't know, man," he groaned, slowly sitting up as he held his head.
I paled. "Wha-What? Did you broke a bone? A-Are you losing blood?!"
I looked around the lobby to see a bunch of faces watching us. I was about to call for help when I felt a hand ruffling my hair. I turned to see Colorado no longer groaning. Instead, he had a smirk on his face.
"Chill out, dude. You think I would break a bone falling on carpet," he chuckled.
I scowled. "I seriously thought you were hurt!" I scolded him.
"Sorry, Utah. I was only messing with you."
I pouted. "Seriously. Don't snowboard in the lobby. And no, skiing isn't allowed either."
I helped Colorado out of his snowboard. He stood up, making sure nothing broke after his fall. Not long after he stood up, the sounds of obnoxious Americans started coming through the doors of the hotel.
"What's up, bitches! The Fabulous California is here for the gold!"
Cali in a hot pink snowsuit slid her way into the hotel followed by a wave of snow that came crashing through the lobby doors. A couple of visitors were caught in the icy blast as the laughing Californian slid by us.
"Language!" I hollered.
"Bonjour, Utah." Vermont waved as he entered the lobby with New York in a normal manner.
Ignoring Cali's reckless behavior, I went over to greet the two "normal" states with warm hugs and friendly handshakes. "I'm glad you two made it." I smiled.
York gave me a strange look. "Uh, Utah. What's with your alcohol laws?"
I blinked my eyes. "I beg your pardon?"
"I thought I told you to change them before the Winter Olympics started. Do you have any idea how cranky the Germans will be without their beer?"
I crossed my arms. "Don't worry. I'm sure the Germans will be able to perform well without their beer."
"Exactly," Colorado interject. "The Germans are going to be more determined to win now that beer isn't going to distract them."
"Not just the Germans," Cali finally made her way into the conversation, "the Czechs and the Austrians also like their beer. They can get, like, hella wild when they drink at night. Imagine their dead-ass faces when you take away their precious alcohol."
"Aren't you guys basing this on stereotypes?" I questioned with a scowl.
"Nah!" She shook her head. "I'm basing it on Wikipedia!" She showed the Wikipedia page on a technologically advanced device I've never seen before.
"I thought the iPhone was made in 2007?" York pointed out.
"What's an iPhone?" Vermont was just as confused as the rest of us.
"Does it matter," I said. "The point of is, beer is bad for the body. Think about the moral indecency and impurity going on if I were to pass lenient alcohol laws."
Vermont grabbed my shoulders, staring straight into my hazel eyes. "Utah. I understand and respect your religion. I know you don't like beer, tea, and all such things, however, you do realize everyone around the world doesn't think the same way you do."
"I know." I nodded. "They can still have their beer. I just need their IDs, so I can keep a track record on their drinking habits and the amount of alcohol they drink."
He looked stunned as well as the rest of my friends. "Right..." he mumbled. "Although, you do realize we also like beer and alcohol and such. Right, guys?" Vermont turned to the rest of the states who all nodded with him. "Also, think about how Wisconsin is going to react after she could only have one bottle of beer at a time. Do you want to face the wraith of a cheesehead? Do you?"
I shook my head. "No. But I'm sure she'll live." I brush his warning off.
And that was my first mistake during the Winter Olympics. On that day, I learned how powerful the voice of the people can be. Especially Wisconsin's who led the Germans and the rest of the beer-drinking regions on a complaint war against my boss's phone. I ended up lessening the alcohol restrictions in the hopes of calming their anger and appeasing their demands. Oh well...
Other than that minor mistake, the 2002 Winter Olympics turned out to be a success. Surprisingly, I was able to gain some money from the games instead of losing money. Everyone who participated and watched the games were all enthused by the competition, telling me how much they like my home. Such comments made me wish the games lasted a little longer. But all good things must come to an end.
Well, not necessarily. Maybe in the future I'll host the games again. 2020? 2024? Either way, I can't wait!
~ Bonus Scene I ~
"Everyone! Settle down! I have an emergency announcement I want to make!" I announced with the microphone in hand.
I watched the entire room of states, provinces, regions, counties, territories, and nations silencing themselves to hear what I had to say.
"Thank you for coming first of all," I acknowledged. "I know everyone who came to my home have trained very hard to not only be here, but also perform at their very best in the games. Each and every one of you will compete very hard to win a medal for your country. Some of you will probably not win a medal. And that's okay. Because performing well with respect and honesty is better than the winners who cheat by lies and whatever means." I swore I heard a few snickers coming from the crowd, but I ignored them.
"As most of you know, the World Anti-Doping Agency have already busted a couple of people for doping. Doing drugs is not okay. It's not good. It's not fair. And it's disrespectful to the integrity of sportsmanship. I understand many of you are willing to do anything in order to win. However, doing drugs is not the way to do it. Therefore, please do not do any drugs not prescribed by the agency. If the test come out positive, not only will you be disqualified, but it'll also cause the removal of your medal as well as bring shame on your name. Do not ruin your image for the sake of winning a medal with dishonest methods."
Seriously, doing drugs isn't cool.
"Now. Are there are any questions I could answer regarding the subject?" I asked the room. Only one hand was raised among the hundreds. I sighed. "Yes, Colorado?"
"Does weed count?"
"... Yes. Cannabis will get you disqualified from the Games."
"Damn it..."
"Language."
~ Bonus Scene II ~
"Oooh!" Cali wagged her eyebrows. "I didn't think you were that desperate to host the Winter Olympic Games," she tease.
I hid my face in shame. "I-I wasn't involved! I only told them how much I wanted to host the Winter Olympic Games. That's all!"
I didn't think they would go that far as to bribe them!
She kept poking my cheek. "Oh, Utah! How could you? I thought you were pure and innocent. Instead, you were the greedy Devil in disguise. Oh, what dishonor you've brought on our-"
"Knock it off, Cali," Colorado pushed Cali aside. "It's not your fault, dude. You weren't directly involved in the scandal, so I'm sure you're not going to be punished," he assure me.
I wiped my eyes. "I just really wanted to host the Winter Olympic Games..."
"Me, too."
Cali rolled her eyes. "Yeah right. The one time you weren't high, you turned down the opportunity to host the Winter Olympic Games."
"Do you have any idea how much it'll cost to host the Winter Olympic Games? Plus, the environment was my priority at the time."
"You turned down the Olympics!"
"The environment though!"
"Hey, assholes," York interrupted us, sleepily leaning against the doorway of his room, "Keep it down will you. Vermont and I have a hockey game tomorrow."
Cali crossed her arms. "And I have a skating routine."
"Fuck you."
"Fuck you, too."
They stuck their tongues out and flipped each other off.
"Language, you two," I groaned.
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Utah
Nickname: The Beehive State
Human Name: Atticus Young
Gender: Male
Age: 17
Foundation Date: Established as Utah Territory in 1850.
Union Date: January 4, 1896 (45th)
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Hazel
Notable Traits: Blonde highlights. Slightly tall in height. Healthy in both appearance and weight (despite this some might call him "boring"). His navel represents the town of Levan. Modest clothes, never dressing scantily; proudly claims the "dad" look.
Favorite Foods/Drinks: Utah Scones, Fernwood Mint Sandwiches (mint chocolate), Pastrami Burgers, Fry Sauce, Green Jello, Aggie Blue Mint Ice Cream, Salt Water Taffy, Cherries, Funeral Potatoes (baked casserole), Postum (caffeine-free beverage)
Favorites: Honey Bees, Skiing, Rock Climbing, Mormonism, Reading
Personality: Responsible and Virtuous. One of the few states who doesn't curse, usually replacing his curse words such as, "what the fudge". He's both charitable and hardworking, known for his strong sense of morality and family values. Doesn't like anyone mentioning polygamy, often getting salty whenever someone teases him about the subject. Obsessive with health, both physical and mental, often avoiding alcohol, drugs, sex, and even coffee and tea!
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Utah was one of the more difficult states to write a story on. There were a couple of topics I thought on doing, however, I didn't feel like writing a chapter that's heavy on history or dark in tone. It didn't help the ones I planned involved aspects of Mormonism I didn't want to spend a lot of time on. Anyway, hopefully everyone liked this fun chapter on the Winter Olympics.
Feel free to vote or leave a comment on your thoughts of Utah or place suggestions for future chapters on Utah (history, facts, etc.)