On the Dole

Product placement has always been a part of many a corporate strategy to get goods and services recognized and top-of-mind, from daytime television shows originally sponsored by US soap manufacturers to fast food characters in bright, cartoonish costumes.

And so, somehow my brother and I received the ultimate take-home promotion: branded tropical fruit pillows from Dole Food Company. Where did they come from? Who knows? But they were life-changing, whether our parents realized their impact or not.

My brother got a stuffed banana — a decent size, actually — that was about the length…