Rolled ice cream. According to the first website that popped up on a Google search (so it must be reliable) rolled ice cream occurs when a liquid ice cream base is poured onto an ice-cold metal surface. Then, one uses a spatula and scrapes columns of the ice cream forward, creating multiple rolls that get picked up and put into the container of choice. Maybe you already knew that. Well, smarty pants, what else do you know about this frozen treat? Let’s give you a little test.
Rolled ice cream is also known as:
A). Burrito Ice Cream
B). Stir-Fried Ice Cream
C). Tubbed Ice Cream
D). Telescoped Ice Cream
The correct answer will be given at the end of this blog…no cheating!
This week, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Chip Stone. Chip is the owner of Stonecraft Jewelers, Diamond Chippers Ice Cream Shop
, a local Djing business, and is the lead vocalist for the band “High Jacked.” Yes, he juggles a lot (more on that later) but nonetheless, he made time to sit down and chat. We arranged to meet at Stonecraft Jewelers and as I walked in I was met with an array of sights and sounds. The glitter and shine of the precious stones behind the glass, the sound of elegant clocks chiming on the wall, it all took me in. And all of this imagery was even made even more astonishing to me when Chip’s first words about his story were “My parents pretty much had nothing.”
“My parents had nothing and I knew I didn’t want to live with absolutely nothing my whole life. My very first job was when I was seven and that was a paper route…and I haven’t quit working since. I never went to college, I became an EMT after a six-month course, but other than that I never went to formal college.” Chip explained.
“I went on a mission with the Mormon church (35 years ago) and just as I got home I was having some chemical balance issues, and they didn’t know what was going on. They tried to figure out what to do: seventeen medicines, hypnosis, shrinks, all of it. And I basically had to tell myself that I had six months to figure this out or you’re checking out. After meeting with (now the prophet of the Mormon Church) I was encouraged not to give up, so after a couple of days I went down to the library in Provo, Utah; I was just trying to find answers. But there was a book sticking out, an old black book, and I pulled it out and it said Medical Diagnosis. I started looking at and in the book, it said “Diagnosis: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.” It gave a description and it was exactly what I had. I checked the book out and took it to a counselor I was seeing and he agreed that’s what I had. He knew somebody who was doing a double-blind study on the subject and he sent me to go see him and I ended up getting on some medication…and after two weeks, I was totally good. After a year and a half, I went off the medication to see what would happen, and I’ve never had a problem ever since. But the interesting thing was, about two/three weeks after turning that book back into the library, I went back there because I wanted to see it again; I went in there, and the book didn’t exist. They had no record of me checking out the book, they had no record of the book; I had to check with my counselor to make sure I had actually brought him that book and he assured me that I did. So, obviously, the “Big Guy Upstairs” was doing something.”
What an interesting testimony! What would Chip do after this life-changing event? “After all of that, I had to decide what I wanted to do. I decided locksmithing was kind of interesting and goldsmithing I knew nothing about. But I was going to knock on doors until I find somebody who did. So, I knocked on doors all over Provo and Salt Lake and told people not to pay me but just to teach me! And I found a guy who agreed to teach me goldsmithing! I worked for him for free for eight hours a day (while working another eight hours a day job) for six months. Finally, he hired me full time but I moved here when he went out of business, worked for a little bit and then decided it was time to do it for me and opened my own store. Djing; I’ve been doing that since high school, off and on. Twelve years ago my brother, who did my prom, helped me put it altogether officially. And I’ve played in bands since I was a kid, so six years ago we decided to put a band together and we’ve been doing it ever since; we’re playing the Red Lion all next month.” And as far as the ice cream store goes? “Elko’s been very good to me, and I wanted somehow to do something to give back. So I, well I the Big Guy upstairs directed me, found a vehicle to do it. It wasn’t to make a bunch of money. The whole idea was to give families a place to hang out. There’s nothing better to look around and nobody is on their phones, the kids are talking and visiting…that was the whole idea of it. And hopefully, Elko supports it!”
Gosh, see, I wasn’t joking when I said earlier that Chip was juggling a lot. How does one keep the passion going through all of that? “I’ve always believed whatever you do for a living you better enjoy it and you better love it. If you look at it as a job every day, you’re doing something wrong and it’s time for a change. I’ve always believed life’s short and if you don’t enjoy what you’re doing you’re doing it wrong. People always tell me that they don’t know how I do it (four businesses) well, I love everything I do. But it’s also not me, it’s all the other people who have helped; I come up with the idea but they’re the ones who have made everything happen. You can’t do it on your own and if you try, you’re wasting your time.”
It was obvious Chip has a lot of passion for what he does, so what’s next on his radar? “The DJ company and the band, we’re trying to change the music culture in Elko. Live music has gone way downhill in Elko. We want to be able to have live/local music in places, like the Red Lion (where High Jacked is playing).”
I wanted to have Chip speak more into that point…as he’s engaging the Elko area in all of the different ways he is, what has he noticed about our town? “Elko is one big basket of America! We have people from everywhere and different lifestyles. And everyone comes with their own set of thoughts they’ve grown up with, and they come here and you see that everyone may look at things differently. So we have to learn to understand people better and appreciate different walks of life and not make so much of what’s good/bad or right/wrong but rather being open-minded to other people’s values.”
That’s very true! Did you have any other nuggets of wisdom for us before I exited the jewelry store, Chip? “It’s always bothered me that you never tell/share with the people the good we see in them until they’re dead. I always wish people would let down that wall and not be afraid to share their true feelings…about the good! It’s easy to share the bad and talk people down, but not wait until someone’s funeral to be vulnerable to share the good they see in others…and keep coming into that ice cream store so it can continue!”
Amen! Thank you for your time and for sharing your experiences with us, Chip Stone! And, speaking of ice cream, let’s see if you answered the trivia question correctly. If you said “B” you were right! You win the satisfaction of knowing something I had to look up on the internet. Now, go treat yourself to a scoop! That, or maybe a new diamond ring!
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See you around!
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Really nice job. Chip is always very personable when I see him and Hijacked is great. 😀
Chip Stone was a good friend when I lived in Elko 23 years ago. He is what made Elko feel like home. And after all these years when I came back through Elko, Chip was the main attraction! Love that man! He has touched so many lives with his love and kindness.