
So here I am. The Good Witch likes it when I use this space to ramble without any real purpose. She ought to be delighted today.
The title above, the one that claims I lust for Peeps? It’s absolutely true. Glynn might wish I’d verbalize other, more adult lustings but he knows nothing grabs my heart like those little chick-shaped marshmallows. Not if they’re the right, little chick-shaped marshmallows.
At this very moment, I am oh, so happy.
A Peeps-based tale has to involve a back story, and here’s mine: A long time ago, in a city far away from where I live now, I happened to stumble across a new kind of Peep. Released for the Easter holidays, this particular Peep was covered in dark chocolate and I’d never tried a dark chocolate Peep. To my delight, it was delicious. That very day, dark chocolate Peeps filled my every Easter basket. Until they didn’t any longer, because one day they disappeared from store shelves.
Apparently, my fellow shoppers had failed to realize the dark chocolate goodness that was in front of them. The Peeps went away, a victim of poor sales from a society that doesn’t recognize joy, but my desire for them never faded. As a certain, creepy thespian once proclaimed, “The heart wants what it wants”, and my heart wanted its Peeps. Knowing the Peep Corporation had made a horrible mistake and would, some sweet day, rectify their error, I continued to look for them.
Not obsessively. Not like I sometimes search for a rare Monster High character or the perfect, vintage bubble-cut Barbie, but not without some genuine effort, either. When I was in a store, especially around holiday times, I invariably drifted over to the seasonal section and looked for my favorite treat.
No matter how often I looked, I was not successful. The day before Valentine’s Day, things changed, but not in the way I expected.
In our local Target, I found a new kind of Peep. Called "Cherry Cordial Delight", these marshmallows were pink-to-red in color and dipped in dark chocolate. The package claimed they were Limited Edition, but I scoffed at the claim. How many editions of anything are truly limited? Everything ends up on Amazon, sooner or later.
On the shelf, there were two containers of three chicks, all the store had, and I bought both of them. That night, Glynn and I shared the first trio. I discovered these new Peeps weren’t as good as the ones I used to love. They were somehow better.
I decided it would be a good thing to own many, many more of these, but I knew our Target store was out. There were no other Target stores in our vicinity, not even close, but I didn’t care. There were other stores that sold Peeps. The next night, Valentine’s Day, the second container had been thoroughly munched. In the morning, I went on the hunt.
Everyone carried Peeps, but no one carried THESE Peeps. Not the Mom and Pop stores, or the grocery stores, or the big chain stores. Not even the gas station/convenience stops that carry the funky candies that should have vanished in the ‘50s. Going on-line, I soon discovered the reason for this: Target had an exclusive on the Valentine’s Day-only Peeps. Now that Valentine’s Day was over, even Target was out.
I tried to order them on Amazon, and failed. Until that moment, I thought Amazon had everything. You disappointed me, Jeff Bezos, that’s all I’m saying. But I’m a big girl, I understand that I was lucky to have tried the Best Peeps in the World at all, and I wasn’t serious at all when I told Glynn, if he loved me, he’d find more.
Because he did try, and that’s what I wanted most. That, and more of those cherry chocolate Peeps.
Four days ago, I returned to my local Target to pick up some multi-vitamins. The store was clearing out old V.D. merchandise, I happened to mention the cherry chocolate Peeps to the couple in front of me, and the male half of that partnership said, “Are these those?”
You’ve seen the picture in the upper right. FIVE packages of cherry chocolate Peeps had escaped from the storeroom, the original price reduced by 70%, and they were on the shelf in front of me. They may have been glowing with a Heavenly light; I don’t remember for sure. Immediately, I put them in my shopping basket.
Inspired by my obvious enthusiasm at the find, the man in front of me picked up his own discounted package of raspberry chocolate Peeps. I think we both knew, they wouldn’t be as good as the cherry.
That night, I opened first of the packages. They were maybe a tiny bit chewier than ideal but, still, such a treat. And a wonderful way to start a mini-vacation.
Next week? Gone fishin’.