Aziz Ansari, Neil Gaiman Join Chipotle’s “Cultivating Thought”

Comedian Aziz Ansari, comics legend Neil Gaiman and eight others are part of the second wave of Chipotle’s “Cultivating Thought” line of cups and bags, which feature short stories and illustrations. 

Others joining the series are Augusten Burroughs, Walter Isaacson, Amy Tan, Paulo Coelho, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Barbara Kingsolver, Julia Alverez and Jeffrey Eugenides. The stories are curated and edited by Jonathan Safran Foer.

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The idea behind the series is to present short essays and illustrations from writers and artists that will — as the company explains — “allow people to connect with the musings of these writers with whom they may or may not be familiar and create a moment of analog pause in a digital world, provoking introspection or inspiration and maybe a little laughter.”

The project, which started last year with contributions from Toni Morrison, Malcolm Gladwell and others, proved popular enough to continue. Series two will begin rolling out in stores shortly.

True to form, Ansari (Parks and Recreation) offers a comedic ditty about his toothbrush. Take an exclusive look at his story below. To check out the others, head to your local Chipotle.

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“Two Minutes About My Toothbrush” by Aziz Ansari

Why do we always want the best? I had to get a toothbrush the other day. Before I left my house, I searched “best toothbrush.” It seemed like the sensible thing to do.

As I typed in the search box, the auto-fill completed the thought immediately. I wasn’t alone in my toothbrush purchase insecurity. A flurry of articles came up with conflicting opinions and, for a moment, I felt stupid.

Every toothbrush I bought on a hunch has been fine. I’ve never been disappointed in a toothbrush. Why waste my time trying to find the best? Have you ever run into someone with no teeth and asked, “What happened?” And they replied, “Bought the wrong toothbrush. Should have done more research.”

Then again, I do use a toothbrush quite a bit. If you can get the best, why not? I mentioned the dilemma to a friend. She said her dentist had given her a great toothbrush called Timbul. She claimed it was “amazing” and it “changed the game.”

A game-changing toothbrush!

I went on Amazon and found it. There were 192 reviews. First review. 5 stars. “Great brushes.” From a guy delightfully named Skip Smiley.

Could I trust him? I clicked to see his other reviews.

I soon began to question Mr. Smiley’s integrity. Dude was giving 5 stars to everything:

A diving snorkel: “Love it.”

The book, I, Alex Cross: “Great book.”

An ink cartridge: “Just fine.” “Just fine” but still five stars? Huh? More research had to be done.

But then I thought about Skip Smiley. Maybe he figured it out. Maybe you just make confident decisions and feel great about them. Did Skip fret about which diving snorkel to buy? Doubtful. Instead of stressing out about other options and possibilities, he was swimming with his snorkel, making the best of life.

I decided to buy the toothbrush. And you know what?

It’s a great toothbrush.