Never-Ending Miscellany

Trapper Keepers. Anyone else notice the surge of vintage-80s stuff available now/again? I saw Trapper Keepers in back-to-school advertisements a couple weeks ago. I remember you just had to have one; mine was beige and had a picture of kittens on it, though the ink-splash one pictured here is pretty sweet. Next thing you know, we're going to start seeing GI Joe lunch box-thermos combos again. They're probably already on shelves. By the way, I had Snoopy on my lunch box. [Dang. The site where I pulled the picture has my old lunchbox (w/o the thermos) for $48. Too bad mine's banged up and has been storing crayons in my parents' basement for the last ... couple decades.] Anyhow, this shouldn't be a surprise. Everyone who grew up in the 80s is now having kids, and what better way to market to parents than through nostalgia? Brilliant.

Postage Rates. Every time the USPS raises first-class postage prices, there's always outcry. I don't understand - 41 cents to pick up a letter at my house, deliver it clear across the country directly to someone else's home, all in a matter of days? Sounds like a bargain at twice the price.

More Bad Chocolate. Saw these chocolates at the grocery store - thought I'd give them a go. Bad idea. They're $5 for 6 pieces. One of them was all melty and misshapen, so I didn't even try it. The tops don't correspond *at all* to what's inside, so the one with red patterns on top wasn't the raspberry ganache I was expecting. One (the cacao truffle) was so bad I spat it out - and I usually commit to swallowing chocolate, even if it's bad. No discernible differences in taste among them all, either. Cheap transfer patterns on top, too. Run. Far.

My Plate Obsession. I have a serious thing for plates and bowls and assorted kitchenry. Someone needs to send me $200 so I can have these. Please and thank you. :)