Bargain & A Surprise

Yesterday, Saturday, June 8, was a very productive day for me. I accomplished a lot. I purchased a component for my car that will make a difference in how I listen to music and podcasts while on the road. I'll be writing more on that later.

In the late afternoon, I went to Bowling Green that included: some grocery shopping, stocking up on our supply of vitamins and supplements, and buying a new home answering machine system. 

But the thing I will remember the most about yesterday has to do with Legos. I made two very unexpected additions to my collection. One was a bargain and the other a very pleasant surprise. I'm very excited about them both. 

First the bargain. Early Saturday morning I made my way through the yard sales that were set up in Smiths Grove. It was the annual community yard sale day. 

I'm always on the look out for an interesting toy, collectible, or vinyl record album cheap. But on this day I was coming up empty. That is until I got to the plethora of tables set up at the far end of town. 

Among a group of toys which at one time were organized but now mostly scattered on a blanket on the ground I found a plastic brick kit of a Transformer robot. I'm very familiar with these. 

The series of "Lego like" toys are made by Kre-o; a division of Hasbro. They're that company's answer to Legos. There are 5 robots in the Transformer series. I already have three. This kit of "Ratchet" would be my fourth. 

I checked out the brief case shaped box. It was no longer sealed and there were a couple of pieces of cardboard torn off. It had obviously been opened but a look inside made me smile. 

The nearly 200 pieces were all still sealed in 3 plastic bags and the instruction book was like new. I knew I had to have this toy. 

There was no price on the box so I approached the woman who was selling the stuff. I asked her how much she wanted for "this open box robot toy." I tried my best to sound as disinterested as I could hoping that might influence her response. That's when I heard her say "25 cents". 

I couldn't believe it. I had expected $5 or $10. I wanted to jump for joy but did my best to be "matter of fact." As quick as I could I got out my cash. Within a minute I had my new Transformer brick model robot in a plastic bag and was heading home.

Later in the day I drove into Bowling Green with a "to do" list to work on. My course I needed to take led right past the front door of one of my favorite places: Toys R Us. 

I was stopping just to look and see if there was anything new on their Lego shelves. But on my way down the aisle to that area of the store I saw something on an endcap that made the hearts of both the Lego and the Star Trek geek in me skip a beat. It was my 2nd Kre-o discovery of the day. Here's what I saw:

It was a plastic brick model of the original Starship Enterprise. Being a real "Trekkie" I was a bit weak in the knees as I picked up the box to get a closer look. Even in the midst of my elation the price (a bit over $50) required further investigation. I had to determine if spending that much money on a "toy" could be justified to my wife. 

I read the big and small print on the box. It was "motorized" and could be powered with just 3 AA batteries; the "cherry on the sundae". I just couldn't leave the store without this thing. 

I searched my mind for the logic that Paula would understand. I simply came up with the "I saw it and just lost my mind" approach. I would not be looking for acceptance I would be asking for forgiveness. Sometimes that's better and my wife is the best at granting that in our relationship. 

So I got in line at the checkout, put down the plastic, and left the store with my new plastic brick model. 

I will be assembling the Transformer first. I'll probably start working on it sometime this week. 

It will be a few weeks before I start working on The Enterprise. But when I finish it, I will post a picture either on this blog or on Facebook. I'm excited about going where my Lego building has never gone before.