On our recent brief trip to Phoenix (look for a post on that later), we went to a mall in Chandler to get out of the heat and look for some shorts for me. In the food court of the mall, they were having a small baseball card/comic/collectibles show, with various vendors set up with folding tables, displaying their wares. I used to collect baseball cards when I was a kid, so I was mildly interested but didn't break stride as we walked by the various displays. But then....I spotted something. On a table manned by a yellow-toothed, trucker cap wearing, baseball card "aficionado" were three boxes of original, series 3.....Garbage Pail Kids. Now Garbage Pail Kids were a staple of my youth. I collected them and traded them with the voracity of a frenzied llama. My brother and I would compare collections and see who had the weirdest/best/rarest etc. We even forced our dad to videotape us discussing the merits of our collections.So imagine my delight when I saw the classic GPK wrapper staring back at me. Deanne knew what she was in for when I was heard to exclaim "oooooooo Garbage Pail Kids, remember these?!?" I immediately picked up one of the packets and looked at the back - Copyright Topps 1986. 1986, I was 7 years old. The stallkeep piped up "two fer two dollars, six fer ten, and the whole box fer sixty five." I squealed in delight. "I'll be back, I need to get some cash." So I went off and found an ATM and withdrew the requisite amount of cash. Before I could turn around back towards my childhood, Deanne said "Oh look, this place has shorts," in a desparate attempt to distract me from my purchase. So we tramped around looking at shorts and shirts and various other....crap. But I knew that we would have to pass by the Garbage Pail Kids on the way out of the mall, so I sallied forth. Eventually, we drew nearer and I fumbled in my pocket for the $20 bills I had withdrawn earlier. "How many are you going to get?" inquired my wife. "10," I said. "10?! What are you going to do with 10 packs of Garbage Pail Kids, frame them?!?" she asked, knowing her husband all too well. Frame them...that's not a bad idea - and I think she knew I was thinking that because she immediately said "Don't even think about it." We eventually agreed on 5 packs but I got 6 due to the stallkeep's generosity. I pocketed the wax packs and went on my way.
