Dear Mister Jones

A troika is a committee or group consisting of three members. I can’t believe how often I’ve seen or heard this word in the last couple of years. My favorite use of it, however, was when someone referred to the troika of the three monster-themed breakfast cereals: Count Chocula, Boo Berry, and Franken Berry.

Count Chocula was always my favorite, with Boo Berry coming in a close second. I never was much of a fan of Franken Berry, though. I don’t think it really had too much to do with the flavor. I think as a kid I always thought his head was way too big. How could anything taste good when it was represented by somebody with such a huge noggin?

My brother informed me recently that they’ve changed Boo Berry somehow and it no longer tastes the same as it did when we were kids. I don’t know if I believe him - I think I’ll have to go and buy at least 5 boxes just to make sure, and I’ll probably have to test out Count Chocula as well.