Too badass for 1998…
So I’ve moved my “interesting” anecdotes to their own Sunday feature… what will I do for SYW intros now? Well, for the time being…. in honor of today being my 23 year anniversary working at Mecca, I decided to jot down some items that would have been impossible or hard to find in a store when I started back in 1998 that have since, for whatever reason, exploded into their own huge categories with ample shelf space. I came up with ten of them, and will present them over the next ten SYW answer posts in countdown form for your amusement! To keep this list as natural as possible, new technology from the past 23 years that has become popular will not be considered…
And coming in at #10 for this week, we have those miniature collectible, often “surprise” toys that have satisfied America’s obsessive need to collect useless things. I remember Sheena (Not A Punk Rocker, to those of you old school bloggers) talking about the Lego “MiniFigs” they sold in the wake of last decade’s Lego Movie, and that seemed to be what launched the trend that created so many copycats among so many fictional franchises. Some of my SCT members who owe their existence to this trend that will not die include Tina, Zeeba and Bearcat, and of course, Ninja on a Skateboard who is the combination of two different items I found in one such “surprise ball” full of boys toys.
Now, while you ponder what else could possibly be clogging up Mecca shelves that would shock a late 20th century time traveler, let’s get on with those Share Your World questions! Provided, as always, by Melanie….
Two collectible minigifures for an alien race of giants. Hey, it happened on The Twilight Zone, so it must be possible…
Would you rather be a super nice person and be depressed all your life, or be happy and a total *sshole?
Most super nice people ARE assholes. At least that’s how their perfect Pollyanna behavior comes off as to those of us who are apparently happy, but feel the need to complain about things all the time. I don’t really see the logic in this question, though that may be the perceptionist in me who does not believe there are any absolutes in this world and that everything is subject to the judgment of the individual…. including whether nice people are really nice (A word I always read in Carlin’s voice), and assholes are somehow happier.
Super nice vs. asshole…. which one is truly happier?
Have you ever made someone cry?
I grew up with four younger sisters, of course I’ve made people cry before (See above question, Re: Assholes).
And I’ve been told the products of my creativity have occasionally made people cry. Whether that’s out of me touching a sentimental nerve or just because my work is so bad….. well, I might not want to know.
You poor thing! You’ve been killed off how many times!?!?
Are you a dreamer or a go-getter?
That I have such a vast and unusual imagination while toiling away at the same grunt job for 23 years should sufficiently answer this question for everyone….
Dreams and lead paint…. they go together so well!
If you were in a band, what instrument would you play?
The world is my band, and I am a virtuoso when it comes to the world’s tiniest violin…
I’ve used this before…. so it may be a repeat question. I’ll just wait and have Draliman look that up for me Sunday.
Do you feel gratitude is necessary?
Apparently not… I couldn’t find it on the nutrition facts chart.
Now we know why Mitzi is in such excellent health…
Evil Squirrel's Nest 
our answer to na super nice question was there before we read the end… hahaha
Like the song “Smiling Faces Sometimes” says, never trust super nice people…
I don’t trust super nice people. It’s a scam. And please don’t cry when I say that.
I won’t cry…. nor will I block you for agreeing with me. I’m just a nice person, but thankfully not SUPER nice…
Thanks, Bill for Sharing Your World! I’ve got one of those violins in my collection of useless things, but it didn’t come in a ball or one of those weird plastic eggs they used to put pantyhose in. Poor Buster. Some of us shed a tear or two over him. Oh, the possumanity!! 😉 Have a great week E.S. and thanks for making SYW a very good place to visit every Thursday! Have a super nice week! *snicker*
Being Buster, he would drown in the ocean of tears all those tender hearted people have cried for him over the years. If I were super nice, I might throw him a life saver…. as in the candy.
Interesting questions……I know more people who are a combination of all four of those descriptive words in the first question than ones that are nice/depressed OR happy/ *assholes. Which by the way I think is probably close to “normal” ! I think the only people I’ve ever made cry were my parents…..I made some really stupid decisions along the way and if I’d been “conscious” enough at the time I probably would have cried too! I’m a dreamer but not afraid to “go get it” , if I was in a band I’d play the kazoo (hahahahaha), and last but not least I’m one of those people who IS a believer in gratitude and I think if someone did something NICE for me I should be thankful…..everyone else can go jump off a cliff. 🙂
Pam
Super nice, depressed, happy and asshole can come in any and all varieties… so I thought that was a weird generalization. Sounds like you are not one of those super nice people since you invited everyone else to go jump of a cliff, so that makes you A-OK in my book!
I like to keep people guessing…….never get too predictable – that’s my motto (well…one of them anyway) !
Quote of the week “Most super nice people ARE assholes.” So are cats but we love cats. We don’t always love super nice people.
We all go get in our own way. Seriously, think about it.
The advantage cats have over their fellow human assholes (besides being cute) is that they don’t talk. They purr, but they keep their mouths closed. I often wish life had a mute button…
I agree – most super nice people are assholes!
I don’t even hide the fact that I’m an asshole behind some nice facade. That makes me slightly less assholish…
If you say so…bwa ha ha!
I remember NotAPunkRocker and her minifigs!
Most super nice people are only super nice on the outside.
Sheena’s minifig scenes were one of the primary inspirations for Shelf Critter Theatre. I miss her and Pigpool…
If I was in a band, I would definitely play drums. In grade 7 we started taking music class and I really wanted drums but got told that because I was a girl, I couldn’t. I ended up with flute instead and hated every minute of it. I love drums.
Drums look like the most fun instrument to play, and I love songs with crazy drumwork… but I have a feeling I’d just as easily poke my eye out rather than actually hit any of the percussion….
I’m absolutely dying to know what Mecca is selling these days. They used to sell USEFUL stuff. Now, they seem to specialize in tee shirts with weird scribbling on them. They never have anything for the house when i need it AND the food is actually more expensive than the other groceries in town. However, they do have the absolutely best bakery in the area and their fresh, hot French bread is to die for.
Must be a local thing since you’re not gonna save any money around here at the regular grocery stores unless your shopping list is restricted to what they have on sale. I’ve gotten an interesting over the past few months in what people will buy up when they have money burning a hole in their pocket…. and it’s just odd. I mean, what do you do with ten large storage totes big enough to hide a dead body in? How many microwaves and vacuum cleaners does one household need? And pillows…. I swear some people buy new pillows every WEEK! Mecca has always been built on wasteful excess, but never moreso than in the stimulus era…