PEZ: Screw the Candy. It's All About the Toy

This weekend I did the usual-- cleaned the house, drank a lot of wine, went to a PEZ convention .... Well, actually it was the Northeast Candy Collector Expo, but about 99 percent of it was PEZ-related.
First off, let me say that these PEZ collectors were the nicest bunch of people. I've been to all sorts of trade shows and conventions and expos, and I can easily say these were the friendliest bunch of all.
There's a lot that can be discussed about PEZ. It's interesting that it's known as a "candy," but the collectors really just want the dispensers. The candy itself-- little compressed tabs of sugar are fine, but you never see anyone just chowing down on a packet of them. They're always eaten within the vicinity of a dispenser. I have some ruminating (haha) to do on the whole PEZ thing, but for now, I think I'll just let the pictures do the talking.We knew we were in the right place when we saw this in the parking garage.

The most expensive PEZ at the show: a "Make a Face" PEZ made in the 1970's. It was recalled due to choking hazards. This one, because of the black wig, is from Europe and valued at $2400. If it was still in the original packaging, this baby would bring in a cool 4K. A die-hard PEZ fan and his ink.

There's a whole world behind PEZ collecting... what makes one more valuable than another. Here, a bagful of "Tigger + Eoor Eoor Mistakes."Bad picture, but I had to include this. This is a special edition big PEZ, "New York Goes to Hollywood." Apparently this is (was?) a reality show on VH1 and this chick is Tiffany. "It's like a slutty 'Bachelorette,'" said Ernie K. from Lancaster, PA. (He doesn't realize that's an oxymoron.) "I don't know why PEZ made this," he said. "It's something PEZ shouldn't be doing. She doesn't reflect PEZ because she's a mean gal." (Note to self: follow up with the PEZ company on this.)

Going to a wedding any time soon? Forget doves and hearts. Wrap your gift (a New York Goes to Hollywood PEZ, perhaps?) in this "Bride and Groom" PEZ wrapping paper. Old Skool PEZ.
Got some mad sewing skills? Check out these bolts of PEZ fabric. (Wedding dress, perhaps?!)

This little dude is named Sam and at the young age of 7, he already owns over 300 PEZ. He never eats the candy (well, sometimes), and his Yankees PEZ is his favorite.

And now ladies and gents, the big reveal. The moment you've all been waiting for. My surprise for PEZ Jody: Yes indeed, these are PEZ costumes! Here we have a French maid with shoes and water pitcher and a nurse with medical kit and shoes. I was so psyched to try these out on a Mickey Mouse PEZ, but then I discovered that they didn't fit because my PEZ had feet. You see, some PEZ have feet, some don't. I don't know why. (Another question for the PEZ people.) You'll just have to imagine how groovy these would look on Ernie or Bert.

Psychic PEZ Dreams and Other Such Facebook Gems

You might remember my pal Jody from Sweet Treat of the Week. She was the one who risked her life for a Hershey bar and lived to tell about it. Well, she posted something on Facebook the other day that just begged for more detail. It all started with this:

"Last night I dreamed that for Halloween my costume was a FUNCTIONAL PEZ dispenser. I dispensed "to scale" (that is, huge) PEZ candy. It seemed like such a brilliant idea, but now that I'm awake it seems sort of dumb. And difficult."

I needed to know more about this dream, so Jody graciously answered my questions.

CYY: What do you think brought on this dream? Have you been eating PEZ? Do you collect PEZ?
Jody: I have not been eating PEZ. However, I think I've seen some in the store recently.

CYY: What type of character were you in the dream? A bunny PEZ, Hello Kitty, witch, truck?
Jody: I'm me! It's a Jody PEZ!

CYY: Was the giant PEZ going to be edible? If so, would you have made it from scratch? What flavor?

Jody: Yes it was going to be edible. However I was not going to let anyone eat it. I was going to make them give it back to me so I could dispense it repeatedly.

CYY: Would you have made your children dress up as tiny PEZs?

Jody: Yes, when my children were at an age when I could have made them do things, I would most certainly have made them dress as PEZ. However, now they are both taller than I am and I refuse to be bullied.

CYY: Could you sketch a drawing of what you looked like in the dream. (Okay, I know this is pushing it.)

Jody: Yes, I'm scanning something and will e-mail it to you.

I'm bummed that you can't really see this picture because it's quite a sight. The first picture shows the PEZ costume; the second shows how the candy is dispensed; and the third is an X-ray vision of how Jody would actually wear the costume. As you might imagine, she got lots of comments on this, including this gem from another former Sweet Treat of the Week, Kris:

"Because I'm reading this prior to my first cup of coffee, until I saw the X-ray vision, I was thinking a costume FOR PEZ. Which is really an equally brilliant idea. I mean, just imagine if you had different costumes for your Batman PEZ! It would change the whole experience."

Well ladies and gents, guess where I went on Saturday? To the Northeast Candy Collector Expo, which largely consisted of PEZ collectors and guess what? I have some exciting news to reveal to you. But it will have to wait until tomorrow, because I have a lot to say and many pictures to go with it. I need some time to let my thoughts gel. Stay tuned.

Dear Santa, All I Really Want is Something with the CVS Logo on It

Sometimes you see something in a store and you wonder, now who the heck would buy that? Like those ceramic statuettes of cupids and doves you see at the dollar store meant as wedding favors, or $12 "fancy" pasta sauce next to the Ragu. But just as there is someone for everyone, so there is also some*thing* for everyone. When my partner in crime saw this, she knew it was meant for me:
Yes, my friends. A CVS truck Pez dispenser. Who on this great earth would want this? What kid wants to wake up on Christmas morning to find one of these in his stocking?
I think I can safely say that I'm perhaps one of just a handful of people in the world who loves this. Back in high school, I worked at CVS. At one point, I got "promoted" to "3rd key," which means I was the third person, behind the manager and the assistant manager, to have a set of keys to the store. (I promptly lost my keys and the company had to send out a locksmith to change all the locks in the store. Oops. My bad.) In any case, I was on my way to a high-flying career with Consumer Value Stores! But then things started to kind of suck there-- we were robbed at gunpoint at 2 in the afternoon; I had to haul my butt out of bed at 3 a.m. for a truck delivery; and one of the cashiers constantly referred to me as Missy. I quit for a while, then I went back. Then my partner in crime started working there and things got fun again, but then she left to go to college and I was a big loser left to stake out my future in health and beauty aids. Eventually I got my act together and went on to get my degree in the lucrative fields of English and Fine Art. But to this day, whenever I'm feeling stressed or anxious, I have a recurring nightmare: I have to go back to work at CVS and I don't know when I'm on the schedule and I don't really want to work there, but I'm afraid I'll get fired.
I know. I have issues. But I also have a CVS eighteen-wheeler Pez. And I'm all the better for it.

Pez Witch!

I know I'm coming to the game awfully late on this one, but I've recently discovered the pure ridiculous joy of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I've been known to wait by the mailbox of ill-repute, anxiously looking forward to the next Buffy DVD from Netflix.
I'm on Season 3 and the past two episodes have had major candy references. The first, "Band Candy," dealt with the fact that the candy the kids were selling was making all the adults in town act like wacky teenagers. Fun!
The second episode, "Lovers Walk," (which, by the way, was one of the best so far) had the most touching scene of Oz giving Willow a Pez witch as a present. I had that exact Pez witch, but it got discarded in the Big Purge '07. (Because, you know, the move was made ever so much easier because we didn't have to pack and carry a Pez!)

Breaking News

I turned on the TV today just in time to see that, due to the massive storm that dumped inches of snow on the Northeast, the Pez factory cancelled the second shift. This can only mean one thing: PEZ SHORTAGE! All I can say is, stock up now or else your dispensers will be sitting empty and lonely for who knows how long!