Cracker Jacks look... how shall I put this? OK: I've had no sugar for the last six weeks for health reasons and I've got a sugar craving like you wouldn't believe. And I still don't want to eat them.
I've never seen a cockroach, so the picture of the prize was a real WTF for me until ril explained. It all makes sense now.
Huh. I like popcorn. And cracker jacks are alright, though it's never occurred to me to go out and buy a box. People still ship fancy versions of caramelized and candied popcorn in great tins as Xmas presents all over the U.S.
I had not thought of Cracker Jacks in years. As a kid, I used to open the boxex upside down to get the cheap plastic toy. You young kids don't remember when plastic was cheap and not ubiquitous (melamine and bakelite was ubiquitous).
Cracker Jacks still are caramel covered corn. The toys were prizes for us kids. Real prizes to cherish for a day, then lose interest. It was a treat to open the box, eat the candied corn and then find the prize no matter how silly.
I wonder what kids today look at and get thrilled about? A new cell phone? An IPOD? That's expensive tastes for childhood thrills.
FairyHedgeHog- As for roaches, "Joe's Apartment" is a movie you should see. It will really clue you into the the secret lives of roaches. (like take a deep breath of the funny cigarette first!) {smiley}
I occasionally buy Cracker Jack and am usually disappointed. Not only does it not taste as good as it did when I was eleven, the prizes are always just little paper pamphlets with jokes or riddles or transfers.
I'm guessing it's the same tins of candied treats zipping around the continent every year. The USPS is getting wealthy, the candied corn makers are all out of business.
Back home, we do the same thing with socks. Socks don't come in tins; and they fit through the mailbox so no one has to get woken up unnecessarily. We're considerate, you see. Considerate and humming with barely suppressed rage.
So long as I can still manage an expression of outraged indignation, I maintain citizenship privileges. I do have to report to the high consul every three years for a new rod to be inserted, however.
I actually make excellent caramel corn. The secret is using real butter. I use it instead of shipping peanuts, when I mail gifts. Little plastic bags of caramel corn packing and gifts? Yes, my giftees love me.
23 comments:
I get the joke but, not being from those shores, need to know: What exactly are Cracker Jacks?
Thanks! Now that I know what they are, I must rush out and not buy some.
Cracker Jack
Imagine the cheapest, crappiest prize ever to be included in a cereal box. Now imagine something ten times as disappointing.
Sample Cracker Jack prize (enlarged for greater visibility)
Wow. Well, I knew the draw couldn't be the peanuts and caramel.
So they actually gave away a plastic replica of a squashed cockroach? Cool.
In my experience of eating popcorn, the prize is that you don't choke or throw up.
Some Unchosen captions:
That's right, ladies. Robert Downey Jr. isn't the only guy who looks dead sexy in tin foil.--inferno armadillo
"Gin in one. Tonic in the other. Time to tackle the slush pile."--Ulysses
Man! I knew I should have gone to the restroom BEFORE I put this on.--anon.
"I've got to quit volunteering to speak at SFWA conventions."--Kiersten
Cracker Jacks look... how shall I put this? OK: I've had no sugar for the last six weeks for health reasons and I've got a sugar craving like you wouldn't believe. And I still don't want to eat them.
I've never seen a cockroach, so the picture of the prize was a real WTF for me until ril explained. It all makes sense now.
You've never seen a cockroach? Wow!
Are they really that common? Over here we get wasps, mice, ants and moths but no cockroaches that I know of.
Huh. I like popcorn. And cracker jacks are alright, though it's never occurred to me to go out and buy a box. People still ship fancy versions of caramelized and candied popcorn in great tins as Xmas presents all over the U.S.
Yep, hedgehog, cockroaches are ubiquitous in many parts of the world, including most of the U.S.
I had not thought of Cracker Jacks in years. As a kid, I used to open the boxex upside down to get the cheap plastic toy. You young kids don't remember when plastic was cheap and not ubiquitous (melamine and bakelite was ubiquitous).
Cracker Jacks still are caramel covered corn. The toys were prizes for us kids. Real prizes to cherish for a day, then lose interest. It was a treat to open the box, eat the candied corn and then find the prize no matter how silly.
I wonder what kids today look at and get thrilled about? A new cell phone? An IPOD? That's expensive tastes for childhood thrills.
FairyHedgeHog- As for roaches, "Joe's Apartment" is a movie you should see. It will really clue you into the the secret lives of roaches. (like take a deep breath of the funny cigarette first!)
{smiley}
Wow, FH, no sugar for six weeks. I'm impressed. Seriously.
Lots of good captions here - you guys are good with the one-liners. I wish I could do that.
People still ship fancy versions of caramelized and candied popcorn in great tins as Xmas presents all over the U.S.
I'm not at all surprised.
Oh, ril, are you telling me you have no edible subtext going on?
No crappy cultural caramelized chews?
No tins?
I occasionally buy Cracker Jack and am usually disappointed. Not only does it not taste as good as it did when I was eleven, the prizes are always just little paper pamphlets with jokes or riddles or transfers.
I need to stick with FiddleFaddle.
If I tell you, it's not a subtext, right?
I'm guessing it's the same tins of candied treats zipping around the continent every year. The USPS is getting wealthy, the candied corn makers are all out of business.
Back home, we do the same thing with socks. Socks don't come in tins; and they fit through the mailbox so no one has to get woken up unnecessarily. We're considerate, you see. Considerate and humming with barely suppressed rage.
There's a segment of Amazon's food and gourmet sales that has baskets of "old" candies.
Try occasional inconsideration on for size, maybe, but not too much -or you'll lose your passport, won't you?
So long as I can still manage an expression of outraged indignation, I maintain citizenship privileges. I do have to report to the high consul every three years for a new rod to be inserted, however.
I seem to have missed something: ril, where is 'back home'?
I actually make excellent caramel corn. The secret is using real butter. I use it instead of shipping peanuts, when I mail gifts. Little plastic bags of caramel corn packing and gifts? Yes, my giftees love me.
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