Does anyone remember when stores sold penny candy? A single
piece of candy for a penny. They had other candy too, some was priced at two
cents and some even up to five cents! I guess they still sell the same candy,
it just takes more than a penny to pay for it these days. It’s more like dollar
candy now.
I was always a cheapskate. Even as a kid, I didn’t like
wasting my money. I would only buy the penny candy. Sometimes, I got lucky and
the store would be having a sale, three pieces of candy for two cents! Yay!
Time to stock up!
Problem is, I didn’t really like candy that well. I did eat
it occasionally but it wasn’t what I craved and I could easily do without it. I
always thought it looked good in the store but by the time I got home, I
usually didn’t eat it all. So, I would save it. I had a big bag in my room that
no one knew about. Wasn’t sure what I was saving it for but as it turns out, it
was for a good cause.
When I was a kid, we had a lot of people stay with us. Once,
when we had visitors, they had a boy about my age. I don’t think you could say
that we were friends though. He was a little too annoying for that. I tolerated
him; only because my dad said I had to. But the day I came home from school to
find the kid had eaten ALL of my candy, my tolerance sort of faded. (More like
flew away at the speed of light).
But before I could get myself into trouble, I learned the
kid had come down with something and was sleeping—after having puked his guts
out and moaning that his stomach hurt. Apparently, eating an entire bag of
candy that had been accumulating for years tends to make a body quite sick! I
wasn’t sure if it was the fact the candy was old or that he’d eaten all of it
that had done him in but either way, I was happy.
I never told his parents, or mine, what he’d done. They just
figured he’d gotten a bug and become sick. I did mention it to the kid though—indirectly.
While he was still sleeping, I’d made a trip to town with my
mom—and replenished my candy supply. When we returned, the kid was up and
feeling better. But, not for long. “Want some candy?” I asked, opening the bag
so he could see my stash.
He just shook his head as his eyes glazed over and he looked
like he was going to puke again.
Ah! Penny candy. Cheap Thrills!
~ ~ ~
Bruce A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen
books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead
Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, and
The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook and paperback on iTunes,
Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Smashwords, or at www.bruceabordersbooks.weebly.com.
Amazon Profile - http://www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS.
Bruce A. Borders also serves as the Vice-President of Rave Reviews Book Club.
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