Oh, the advertising characters of my youth . . . they all seemed to be magical creatures: from the Keebler Elves that baked cookies in trees to the "Silly Rabbit . . . Trix are for kids" bunny who stole cereal from children all over the country. Saturday morning cartoons were interrupted by cartoon characters hawking all kinds of things!
When I was a kid, I loved Cap'n Crunch Cereal . . . I ate it without milk because I didn't like soggy cereal (I still eat cereal without milk). It was nothing but sugar really, but in those days nobody worried about too much sugar . . . we kids never sat still long enough for it to be a problem anyway. I'll tell you what though, the sharp edges on those little square pieces tore my mouth up! Froot Loops ran a close second to the Cap'n . . . the different colored rings were supposed to be different flavors . . . in reality they all tasted the same! And Lucky Charms . . . we saved the marshmallows for last because . . . well . . . ummm . . . because MARSHMALLOWS! I'm pretty sure my sister spent time just picking the marshmallows out of the box . . . leaving me with nothing but the yucky oaty pieces!
Rice Krispies were another story . . . alone they didn't taste like much . . . tasted like nothing really if you want to know the truth . . . probably because they weren't 96.275% sugar like all my other favorites. They could, however, if you added butter and marshmallows, could be transformed into the sweetest little treats. Bet your mom has made Rice Krispies squares for you at some point . . . if not, no doubt I have.
However this breakfast dullard had a magical secret . . .
. . . made a noise when you added milk . . .
. . . SNAP! CRACKLE! POP!
Well, according to the commercials, that's what they were supposed to sound like!! They really did sort of crackle when you added the milk . . . I found that pretty fascinating. My grandmother loved them, and I loved to listen to the sound. She once fed me a bite of her breakfast . . . the only time I ever ate milk and cereal together (almost the only time, this will be important in a minute). Except when that bite hit my mouth, it lost all magic for me . . . soggy cereal . . . ick!
I was probably 3 or 4 when that happened.
Flash forward a few years . . . likely at age 6 or 7 . . . I was up and ready to go to school when I spied a box of Rice Krispies on the counter. Pretty sure I'd lost that memory with my grandmother because I don't think I would have begged my mother for a bowl of Rice Krispies WITH milk . . . I was too excited about once again hearing the SNAP! CRACKLE! POP!
Mom TOLD me I wouldn't eat them, but I insisted that I'd eaten them with Grandmother and loved them. Mom said she'd give them to me without milk if I wanted them, but that she knew I would take one bite and not finish them. No doubt I insisted because the next thing that happened was my mom poured some Krispies into a bowl, and I pulled it close to my ear . . . anticipating that SNAP! CRACKLE! POP! I even smiled as I listened . . . until the very last sound. She warned me that I'd better eat every last crumb, or else, as she put the box away.
Then I took a bite . . .
. . . and gagged!!!!
Of course I told Mom I no longer wanted them, but much to my chagrin she made me sit there and eat EVERY. SOGGY. BITE.
Yeah, I don't put milk in my cereal . . . EVER! Of course I really don't eat much cereal anymore anyway. I still love those Rice Krispies Treats though!!Fun Fact: Cap'n Crunch was introduced the year I was born . . . guess it was fated to be my favorite cereal! This is a picture of one of their earliest boxes:
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