Happiness Is....

Back in the seventies there was this weird little craze that started with the Peanuts comics characters. Charles Schultz compiled a little book called, "Happiness is a Warm Puppy." Snoopy was on the cover hugging Lucy and it was just page after page of one-panel comics. Soon, the "Happiness is..." thing got out of control. There were cards and posters and stationery (kids: that was in the olden days when people wrote letters and put them in envelopes and mailed them through the Post Office-- an ancient ritual that has been rendered obsolete with the advent of e-mail-- back then stationery was a nice gift you gave your aunt or that your aunt gave you).

But, back to my ramblings: The most disturbing product that came out of it was odd-looking little statuettes of a cherubic-looking boy and girl hugging or holding hands, and then the little plaque said something sappy like: "Happiness is... YOU". They weren't naked in the literal sense but you could see their belly-buttons, so it was implied. You would see these creepy little knick-knacks in every dime store (kids: that was in the olden days when you could actually buy something for just a dime; the modern equivalent would be the dollar store. That's today's lesson on inflation!). These could also be found gathering dust in odd corners of people's homes. It was a sign that someone in their life was cheap and creepy.

The only reason I bring that up is because Valentine's Day is coming and it made me think: I should warn people not to buy a gift for their beloved that is cheap and creepy. Put some thought into it. Walmart has a nice selection of Simpsons boxers.