BOISE, ID — After nurturing his sourdough starter for 14 months, 34-year-old Trent Bakley admitted this week that the fermenting jar of flour and water now appears to have a clearer sense of purpose than he does. The starter, affectionately named ‘Kevin,’ has reportedly doubled in size 47 times, developed a complex personality, and according to Bakley, ‘is basically thriving in ways I haven’t since college.’
Bakley, who feeds Kevin twice daily with organic rye flour while his own diet consists largely of the bread Kevin produces, says he’s begun to feel a strange competitive tension with the living culture. ‘Kevin’s out here bubbling with potential, growing every single day,’ Bakley said, gesturing to the jar on his counter. ‘Meanwhile I’ve had the same LinkedIn headline since 2019.’
Local fermentation expert and self-published cookbook author Denise Okoro says this phenomenon is increasingly common among home bakers. ‘People start these starters during periods of personal stagnation, and then the starter just keeps doing its one job perfectly, forever,’ Okoro explained. ‘It’s humbling. Kevin has never once hit snooze on his alarm or scrolled his phone for three hours instead of doing the dishes.’
Bakley’s partner, Rina Alvarez, confirmed that household conversations have shifted noticeably. ‘We used to talk about our future, our goals, maybe traveling,’ Alvarez said. ‘Now it’s just, did you feed Kevin, is Kevin too cold, should we take Kevin on vacation with us. Kevin has more scheduled check-ins than my own doctor.’
As of press time, Bakley was reportedly considering journaling to ‘reconnect with a sense of steady, incremental growth,’ though he acknowledged the irony that his sourdough starter would probably journal more consistently than he will.
