Cap’n Crunch Cereal – the breakfast food of my childhood – has been something I never thought about for years , but it is only now that I am because of an accidental uncovering of a childhood item that brought everything back to me. I started realizing how much I loved eating Cap’n Crunch cereal as a kid when by chance I found a buried treasure.
ACCIDENTAL DISCOVERY
While finally getting to cleaning up a portion of the
garage this weekend, I unearthed an old Cap’n Crunch treasure chest from my
childhood. Inside were items I had saved as a kid that tweak my heartstrings a
little including: a 1969 moon landing button, a French coin, a pair of dice, and a casino
chip from the Bahamas. I must have stuck them in this box 30 or more years ago,
and over the years threw other things into the box on top of it. When I moved
to where I live now, this – and a number of other boxes – simply came along for
the ride. I wasn’t sure what was in any of them, but I figured on going through
them one day and deciding what to keep.
COUPON CUTTING
As I sat on a chair holding the discovered item, my
memories started coming back to me. I had seen on the back of the cereal box –
and in an exciting a TV commercial – that I could get the coveted item by cutting
box-tops from my favorite cereal. I do not recall how many box-tops I needed, but
I remember bugging my Mom to buy more Cap’n Crunch. I recall writing out the
address on long envelope, putting the box-tops in it, and licking a stamp. This
was too important to put into a mailbox, so I insisted Mom take me to the post
office to make sure it went out as quickly as possible.
CHILDHOOD TREASURE
I had been waiting for the arrival of my treasure
chest for a long time, and one day when I came home from school there was a box
on the doorstep. I knew that had to be my Cap’n
Crunch treasure chest – now available on eBay from $45 and up.
I ran up to my room – unwilling to share with anyone the delight of opening the
box – and ripped it open to see my prize.
The treasure chest came with a lock – of course, it
did – and a shovel (which could be used as a spoon), coins, a treasure map, and
a tray that came out of the chest, and there was a slot on top of the box to add coins while the box was locked. That tray would be filled with the golden
nuggets of Cap’n Crunch cereal and drowned in a sea of luscious milk. That is
what I ate for breakfast every day for I don’t know how long.
LOST AT SEA
Unfortunately, at this time I do not know what
happened to the items inside the treasure chest. As I tired of Cap’n Crunch, the “treasures” that came with the chest became lost at
sea, or perhaps got snagged by some imaginary pirate who thought there was gold in
there and settled for what he found.
I do recall keeping the treasure chest on a shelf in
my room for years, gradually filling it with the items that I found when I
discovered it after all these years. At some point I must have needed that shelf
space for books, my glowing globe of the world, Mets paraphernalia, and
whatever else I put there. That is when I must have taken the treasure chest
and shoved it in a box. While it wasn’t lost, I had forgotten about it, and that is why I was
delighted to see it again when I found it all these years later.
NO MORE CEREAL
I kept hearing in school that breakfast was the most
important meal of the day. One day I came home and told Mom that other kids
were eating pancakes, scrambled eggs, and omelets for breakfast, but I was
getting cereal. I boldly stated, “I want a hot
breakfast!”
Mom gently touched my cheek and nodded, “You will get
a hot breakfast tomorrow.”
The next morning, I was bleary eyed, but marched down
to the kitchen anticipating my great breakfast. I sat in my usual chair and Mom
had her back to me as she was standing at the stove. I sipped my milk and
waited for about a minute, and she turned around and put a steaming bowl in
front of me – my hot breakfast was
oatmeal!
She had garnished it with cut up strawberries and a
thread of honey. I looked up at her and said, “Mom, this is cereal!”
“No, dear,” Mom smiled, “this is hot cereal.”
From then on into my high school years, I had oatmeal, Cream of Wheat, or farina for breakfast on a school day – I'd only get the eggs or pancakes on weekends. I have to say the hot cereals were much more satisfying, and I was happy knowing my Cap’n Crunch days were over for good..
MY KIDS
Keenly aware of my childhood experience, my kids were
spared the indignity of the cold breakfast cereal routine. Oatmeal has
definitely been on the menu, but so have eggs (any style), pancakes, waffles,
and English muffins. I don’t think they have missed out on anything, and I know
for certain that these foods are healthier than sugary cold breakfast cereal.
AND IN THE END
I don’t regret my childhood experience of eating cold
cereal. I know Mom had good intentions, and it certainly was much easier putting
cereal into a bowl and pouring milk over it than frying eggs or making pancakes on a school day.
But because of that, I had the exciting experience of
sending away for something – it was the first time I had ever ordered anything.
The treasure chest was free, but it gave me hours of imaginary play with its
contents and the pirate figures I had.
Now, that I have recovered the treasure chest, it sits
proudly upon my shelf once again, next to a Captain Action figure and a Lost in Space Jupiter 2 model. They are
all part of my childhood – a very happy one at that – and now I wonder about
going to the store and buying a box of Cap’n Crunch. Should I dump all that stuff
out of the treasure chest – cleaning it of the detritus of decades in a box –
and pour some milk over those golden nuggets. I probably won’t end up doing
it, but I can dream, right?
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