Babes In Toyland

The Old Man still loves his toys. Thinking about them reminded me that I used some of my current ones this past Monday. It was golf day. It occurs to me that I have not released an update on the types of shots I encountered in some time. I had several Oprahs (fat) and more than a few Santa Clauses (got much better than I deserved). I also had a rarity for me, a couple of Lindsay Lohans (too thin and way out of control). "Playing" opened up a chain of thought for me, though, that encourages me to give you a rundown on various toys I got for Christmas through the years.

I got a Mickey Mouse watch one year. It was neat, especially when I took it apart to see how it worked. The last time I saw it, all of the parts were in a box of stuff in an old chest. That was probably 55 or so years ago. Wish I had that box.

How about the ViewMaster? You'd insert these disks with little color slides embedded in them into the machine and when you looked through the binocular-like instrument, there was the Cisco Kid and Pancho in 3-D. I had one with Hopalong Cassidy as well. I think his horse was named Topper. For some reason, Santa had included a disk with scenes from Tampico, Mexico. I remember wondering the childish equivalent of the adult, "Where the hell is that?"

Ahhhhh, my Erector Set. Developed by A. C. Gilbert, I believe, this was a fiendish mix of metal strips with holes along their entire length. You also had packs of small bolts and nuts. The concept was great, but in reality, I kept losing the nuts and bolts, the metal strips were kind of flimsy, and the electric motor blasted out so much ozone that dogs would howl and moan. I did manage to make what passed for a Ferris Wheel complete with the metal seats that came in the kit. Unfortunately, my engineering skill gene skipped a generation or two and the seats would never pivot as the wheel turned. They remained locked in position. Must have killed a bunch of imaginary carnival goers. Believe it or not, I still have the remains of that Erector Set. It's in a blue metal box that still latches about as poorly as it did then. Wouldn't take a million bucks for it, though. Well maybe a million.

One year brought the Lionel Electric Train. I recall Santa had it mounted on a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood. It ran in a big oval. You would put these little pills called "Smoke Pellets" in the engine and acrid, smelly white smoke would pour out for a few turns around the track. The smoke generators on these old Lionels generally lasted about a month and then never worked again. With my permission, my mom sold that train when I went off to college . What an idiot I was.

Of course there were the normal tricycles, wagons, and later bicycles, but the big daddy was when I got my first car. Notice the pride of ownership and sheer joy at my new-found independence.

Interestingly enough, this racy looking number was made in the U.S.A. Both the boy and the car.

In the spirit of reflection, spend a bit of time in the land over your shoulder. The innocence of a childhood Christmas will bring peace and quiet the bustle. Tell you what.....I'm going out to the garage and look at that Erector Set. I'll see you later.