LOL!!!

This is the funniest doll-related post on a message board that I have seen in a while.  I laughed 'til I cried.  Why is it that none of you alerted me to the existence of this figure before it sold out???  Click the link below.

I just got a MIB HT Michael Jackson Thriller figure for $43.60 with free shipping.

Opal is Graduating

They grow up so fast!  Well, they don't all grow up, but Opal has grown up and it is time for her to graduate from High School.

It seems like just yesterday that she entered high school.

She gained quite a bit of weight during her Freshman and Sophomore years.

She worked hard to take off the pounds, and by her Senior year a great womanly figure emerged.

She has changed a lot on the inside also over the years.  In her early years in High School, she hung out mostly with the same group of girls (Raven, Nakia, and Brandy).  She was perceived as being somewhat of a snob, but she was mostly just shy.

 She eventually gained confidence and found her voice, and learned that she could communicate and relate to just about anyone.  She had a natural way of getting people to feel comfortable enough to open up to her. She knew early on what she wanted to do in her career, and she felt that working at the radio station was a step in the right direction.  She was hired as an office assistant and worked after school.  One of the DJ's allowed her to go on the air one day, taking a few calls from kids and offering advice.  That's when things really took off.  The local kids began to call in asking for Opal, and she was given her own 1 hour segment which aired after school during the week.  One of the producers had some connections, and before long Opal had her own local talk show on cable access television.  She even had a celebrity on her show.  She is the youngest person in Roxville's history to have her own talk show.

Opal got accepted to all 3 colleges that she applied to, and she selected a nearby university with a great journalism program.  Her goal is to have her own nationally syndicated talk show.  Going to college nearby will allow her to keep her local talk show, but she still feels like college will be a world away from her friends and from her boyfriend.

She has been dating Tre for a year, and now their relationship is at a crossroads.  Opal is going away to college in the fall, and Tre will still be in high school.  Sometimes she wishes that she had not fallen in love with a younger guy, but she is happy to have had Tre in her life.  No matter what happens, he will always be her first love.

She is wondering what she should do now.  She loves him, and she does not want to let him go.  At the same time, she is anxious to move on in her life, and she wants to open herself up to new experiences.  And they say that long-distance relationships don't work.  Could she and Tre really make it work?  Or will he go back to his old girlfriend Kiyoni Brown as soon as she's out of town?  If they are going to break up, should they do it now, or spend one last summer together?  There are so many conflicting thoughts, feelings, and emotions swirling around all at once.  Opal feels joyful to move on in her life, but devastated to leave the ones that she loves behind.

Mass Blogger Interview Answers

Here are my answers to Ms. Leo's Mass Blogger Interview questions.

When did you start collecting dolls?
It depends on how many dolls make up a collection.  :)  I had dolls as a child and loved them, but unfortunately none of my childhood dolls made it into adulthood with me.  I had a rough brother, nephew, and niece who pretty much destroyed most of my dolls, and my mother would sometimes donate my old toys to the Children's Medical Center.  I bought my first doll as an adult in 1989 when I was 19 years old.  That doll remained on my shelf alone until around 1994.  After 1996, I really started to have a little bit of a collection.  In 1998, I started ordering dolls on the internet.  In 2005, I started ordering on eBay, and that's when things really took off.

What was your first purchase as a collector?
My first doll purchase as an adult was Fun-To-Dress Barbie 1988.  I bought her at a local TG&Y store while shopping for picture frames.  It was a few years before she even had clothes to wear, so I didn't even know if her name was accurate for a while (and it was).  A couple of years ago, she got a new(er) body.

My next purchase as an adult was Menelik from Olmec Toys.

After that, I purchased 1996 Holiday Season Barbie (Special Edition).

She has a different hairstyle these days and she is redressed for most of the year, but she still dons her original attire around the holidays.

And then of course I had to get a male friend for her, but I purchased another Barbie at that time also.  So I had to go back and get another Ken.  And then I saw an articulated Barbie that I had to have.  So I had to get her a male doll with some articulation, and I made my first action figure purchase on Amazon.com.  And I just kept going and going and going.

How many dolls do you own?
Today I counted just so that I could more accurately answer this question.  I have 277 dolls give or take (more like give, because I may have missed some of my smaller dolls).

What is your favorite doll and why?
My favorite doll is probably High and Mighty Darius Reid.

I don't even have any photos that truly do him justice.  He's just a good looking doll with great clothing and accessories, and he has articulation!

I watched him and bid for him unsuccessfully for over a year on eBay auctions before I finally won him.  By that time, I had become a little eBay savvy and I had decided to wait until the last few seconds of the auction to place my bid.  So I did, and I was thrilled to win!  I looked at the bidding history and saw that I had won by 2 cents!  Another bidder had entered a bid in the last few seconds also, and my max bid was only 2 cents higher than theirs.  I was thrilled to finally have this doll at a price that I was willing to pay, and I was even more thrilled when he arrived at my home in perfect condition (brand new in his shipper, never removed from box).  I kept him put away for a while and did not remove him from his box, but that didn't last long.

What doll or dolls are not your favorites and why?
I'm not crazy about reborn dolls because some of them make me shudder when I look at them.  They look so life-like, and yet they have no life >>shudder<<.  I'm not crazy about most big-headed dolls, but I do have a few in my collection.  I'm not really a fan of dolls that are easily breakable (I had enough broken dolls in my childhood to last me a lifetime).

What is the biggest challenge about collecting dolls?
I don't have enough space to display them all the way that I want to.

How do you display or store your dolls?
Several of my dolls are posed and displayed on shelves in my home.  I need to buy a curio or some sort of display case (maybe if I'd quit buying dolls, I could buy a curio).  I have a few dolls at work on my desk.  Most of my dolls are currently stored in an armoire in my bedroom.

Here are some photos from back in the day of some of my dolls on shelves.

Have you ever been to a doll show?
No, but I would love to go.

When you travel, do you look for dolls?
Always.  I have dolls from the majority of places that I've visited as an adult.

What is your latest purchase?
A Ken clothing pack.

What doll is on your wish list now?
Back to Brooklyn Remi.

And a bunch of expensive Hot Toys figures.

What do you wish you didn’t purchase?
Hmmmm, I pretty much like all of my dolls to some extent.  I did purchase an Afro Samurai figure (bloody version) for my husband that I'm not fond of.  But he likes it, so I don't even regret this purchase.

What is your favorite doll related item?
I have a white couch that pops up in my photos time and time again.

How often do you photo your dolls and what doll is the most photographed 
and/or photogenic?
I try to take photos of my dolls as soon as I receive them, and I take photos of my older dolls sporadically.  I've probably photographed my Calista doll more frequently than any other.

Do you talk to other collectors in person or just on the web?
Just on the web.

If you had the chance to speak to Mattel or other toy makers, what 
would you say?
Someone please make some articulated chubby dolls (all ages, male and female).

What doll do you wish would be reissued? 
The Boy Scout dolls (Bob Scout, Dave Cub Scout, and their friends).

What two dolls would you combine and how would you want them 
combined? (Muff style question)
I would combine my Booty Babe statue with a Triad Alpha.  I would love to have a doll with the body, looks, and hair of the Booty Babe with the articulation of the Triad Alpha.

 

If there is something I didn't ask that you would like to say, you can put 
that in too.
Do you have any dolls with a face that only a mother could love?  Yes, Dragon Jennifer.

Which doll looks the most like you?  I don't know.  My husband says it's the Booty Babe, but my mother-in-law recently said it's Dasia.  I guess I look more like Dasia with Booty Babe's hair.

Are there any upcoming doll releases that you are looking forward to?  Yes, Enterbay and Dragon are both releasing Men in Black 3 Will Smith figures.  Decisions, decisions!

Where do we go from here?

Darius slammed the limo door shut, and he and Adele stood there in stunned silence.  Finally, Adele spoke.  "This is APPALLING!" she said.  Darius bit his bottom lip and began pacing back and forth beside the limo.  Adele watched him with the same stunned expression on her face.  Palmer stumbled out of the limo a short time later, his shirt untucked in the back.  He assisted Zalika as she emerged from the limo.  Adele noted that the bow on the front of her dress was slightly off-center now.  

Adele shook her head and turned towards Darius and said "Well, you said that you liked the fact that she is spontaneous, HOW DO YOU LIKE HER SPONTANEITY NOW?"  Darius saw that this already awkward situation was about to potentially spiral out of control, so he hoped that he would be able to calm Adele down and quickly.  Calmly, he said "Adele..." but she cut him off.  "Of course YOU may call it being spontaneous, but I call it being a SLU..."  Before she could fully get the word out, Palmer turned to her and said sharply "You need to watch your mouth!"  Darius jerked as if he had been struck and said to Palmer "Don't speak to her that way!" and Palmer stepped towards Darius and said "Then you'd better tell her to shut her mouth!"

In the next moment, Darius and Palmer were standing toe to toe shouting at one another.  Darius towered over Palmer, but Palmer was not the least bit intimidated and did not back down.  As Adele watched Palmer puffing out his chest while yelling at Darius, she thought wow, is this the same guy that sat there flaccidly when Darius called me pretentious?

Zalika forced her way in between the two men, saying "Hey, hey!  Ok, that's enough.  Calm down."  The men reluctantly stopped arguing and took a few steps back.  Zalika said "Ok.  We should just go.  We should just get out of here.  We can still make it to the reception."  Adele rolled her eyes and said "Oh come on!  You can not honestly think that we are going to the reception now?  Let's just end this nightmare!"  Zalika said "Well, that's up to you.  These are your friends.  We can just go home."  Adele declared "I am not stepping foot in that limo!  I will make other arrangements to get home."  Adele began fumbling around in her purse for her cell phone.  Darius said "You know that we're too far from home for you to simply take a cab."  Adele snapped "Of course I know that!  I'll catch a plane.  I'll do something."  Darius said "It is very unlikely that you will be able to catch a plane on such short notice.  You'll end up staying all night here.  I don't want you heading out on your own.  I'd worry about you."  "Then why don't you come with me?" Adele asked.  Darius replied "Because I paid for this limo!"  Adele just shook her head at him.  She wasn't going to have this same argument twice in one day.

Darius said "If anyone should make alternate arrangements, it should be these two." as he gestured towards Zalika and Palmer.  Zalika said "Wait a minute, you bring us all the way here, treat us to a day of arguing and bickering, and now you want to leave us stranded here?  We don't even know anyone here!  No way!  I'm going home in that limo."  Palmer nodded in agreement and said "I did not come here prepared to make other arrangements to get home, and I will not be left stranded here."

Darius walked away and Adele followed.  Darius stopped a short distance away and began biting his bottom lip and pacing again, while Adele watched.  Finally, Adele said "Well this is really a mess."  Darius replied "You really have a knack for stating the obvious."  Just then, they saw Zalika approaching.  Zalika said to Adele "Pardon me MISS, do you mind if I speak to Darius for a moment...alone?"  Adele responded "Actually, I do mind."  Zalika had run out of patience with Adele and had taken a deep breath and opened her mouth wide and was about to give Adele a piece of her mind, when Darius said "It's okay.  Adele, give us a few minutes."  Adele hesitated, then walked away.

As Adele walked away, she saw Palmer making his way towards her.  For a split second, she thought about running, but of course that would be out of the question with the shoes that she was wearing.  She stopped and said to him "Just walk away Palmer!"  Palmer kept coming and said "I just want to talk to you."  Adele said "I don't want to talk to you.  Just leave me alone!"  Palmer said "I just need a few minutes." and Adele promptly replied "No!"  Palmer showed no signs that he was leaving, much to Adele's frustration.  He said "Just give me 5 minutes."  Adele let out a big sigh and said "You have 1 minute."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the parking lot, Zalika stood awkwardly in front of Darius.  She said "Sooooo, I guess that a second date is out of the question for us, huh?"  They both laughed.  Zalika acknowledged that it was a terrible joke.  She then apologized to Darius for the scene at the limo, but tried to explain things from her perspective.  When Darius had asked her to the wedding, he said that they would be going with a friend of his and her date.  He did not say that it was his ex, who he clearly still had feelings for.  She had put up with bickering and fighting and Adele's rude behavior towards her all day, and tried to make the best of it.  Palmer was the only thing that kept this from being a perfectly miserable day for her.  The two of them had found each other, and the timing wasn't perfect, but Zalika did not regret it.  She reminded Darius how he and Adele had gone off alone for a lengthy period of time.  She told him that taking all of that into consideration, she knew that he knew that it was wrong of him to even contemplate leaving without her and Palmer.

Darius acknowledged that he had not put his best foot forward that day, and that he regretted that he had lost his cool a couple of times.  He told Zalika that prior to the scene at the limo, he had made up his mind that he was going to apologize to her for how the day had turned out.  Zalika asked "But not now?"  Darius said "Noooo, I won't be apologizing now."  Darius said that as he was walking from the church to the limo, he was thinking of ways to make it up to Zalika.  "Of course, that's out of the question now." he said, and Zalika replied "Of course."  Zalika told him that she didn't care about that, and that she just wanted to get through the rest of the evening as peacefully as possible.  Darius said that he was willing for them all to ride home together, but that Adele had to agree to come as well, because he wasn't willing to leave her there alone, and he was not willing to stay there with her either.  Zalika shook her head and said "There's no way that she will agree to ride with all of us."  Darius said "I'll have to try to convince her."

Zalika and Darius walked back to the limo, and Darius thought of things that he might say to Adele to smooth things over enough to where they could all have a somewhat peaceful journey home.  First, he would remind Adele of their discussion in the church office, and tell her that it would be rather hypocritical to remain upset with Palmer and Zalika, when she was trying to get back with him just moments before. Adele and Palmer were already standing outside of the limo as Darius and Zalika approached.  Adele said "So, are we ready to go home?"  Darius and Zalika looked at each other with shock, and Darius responded "Yes, let's go."  He wanted to ask Adele what had changed her mind, but thought it would be best to save that discussion for another day.  As Darius and Adele entered the limo, Zalika quietly asked Palmer "How in the world did you change her mind?"  Palmer said "I'm a politician, so I know a thing or two about negotiating." and he winked at Zalika.

Adele was relieved to be on the road home, but was extremely annoyed at the constant chatter from Zalika and Palmer.  They were blathering away like old friends, and giggling like giddy school children.  She wished so much that she had brought her earphones.  She tried turning up the music inside the limo, but they only talked louder.  Darius just sat there silently, staring into the distance as if none of this bothered him.  Adele came to realize why Zalika and Palmer got along so well, because they really did have a lot in common.  They communicated effortlessly.  They would probably go on to have a great relationship.

Suddenly, Adele threw her head back and let out a loud belly laugh.  It was so loud and sudden that she startled the other passengers.  The driver even rolled down the tinted glass partition between them and gazed at Adele in the rear-view mirror for a moment.  Tears welled up in Adele's eyes and Darius thought that she would pull out her handkerchief at any moment, but she didn't.  Adele gasped for air and tried to speak "It's just so funny..." she said before she was overtaken by laughter again.  

By this point tears were streaming down her cheeks, and Darius watched in amazement.  "Here we are at the end of our relationship, we've come here to celebrate our friends taking their relationship to the next level, and we get to witness the birth of this new relationship..." Adele laughed some more.  Darius watched as make-up stained teardrops hung precariously from Adele's chin.  At any moment, they are going to drop onto her dress, and she will not be happy, or so he thought.  The tears fell and Adele kept laughing.  She said "I mean it really is ironic, don't you think?"  Zalika turned to Palmer and sang under her breath in her best Alanis Morissette impression "It's like raaaaaaiiiinnnn on your wedding day..."  Palmer stifled his laughter and nudged Zalika.  Adele said to Zalika and Palmer "If the two of you end up getting married, then you should make me and Darius your maid of honor and best man, because you wouldn't even be together if it wasn't for us!"

Adele kept going on and on about relationships and their stages, and the laughter kept coming and so did the tears.  At this point, Darius had difficulty in determining whether she was laughing or crying (maybe a bit of both).  He had never known her to display her emotions this way.  He looked at her with her tear-streaked face, and he thought that she looked beautiful.  He reached for her hand, held it and squeezed it for a moment, and then let go.  They gazed at each other and smiled.  Adele laid her wet face on Darius' shoulder, and her make-up stained his tailor-made suit.

Adele let out a huge sigh and said "Let's go to the reception."

Raise Your Glass

As Adele and Darius were having their discussion in the church office, Palmer and Zalika were having a discussion of their own.  They chatted about the long drive to Morristown, about the wedding, about Adele and Darius, and about themselves.  The conversation between them flowed very naturally, and they made each other laugh.  They felt comfortable together and enjoyed each other's company.  

When many of the other guests began to leave the church, Palmer became a little concerned.  He asked Zalika if Adele and Darius had told her where they would be.  Zalika shook her head "no".  Palmer asked if they had told Zalika how long they would be, and Zalika shook her head "no" again.  Palmer then asked Zalika what exactly Adele had said.  Zalika straightened up and became very rigid, raised her head and looked down her nose at Palmer, and said in her best Adele imitation "MISS, I need to speak with Darius.  Right now.  ALONE."  Palmer laughed and said "That was a pretty good imitation."  Zalika shrugged her shoulders and laughed.

Later, Palmer suggested that maybe Darius and Adele had gone back to the limo.  Zalika and Palmer walked outside but did not see the limo.  Palmer said that he thought that the driver had parked just down the street, and the couple walked the short distance and found the limo.  "Let's just wait for them here." Zalika suggested.  "Ok" Palmer said as he reached for the fully stocked bar.  During the drive to Morristown, Zalika had suggested that they all have a drink before the wedding, and Adele and Darius had both balked at the idea.  Zalika had later apologized to Darius, thinking that perhaps her suggestion had been inappropriate since they were on their way to a church.  "Oh no, it's not THAT", Darius had said.  "I didn't want to be in a moving vehicle with open containers, when there was a chance that some of it could spill on my clothes.  I'm sure Adele felt the same way."

Palmer found some champagne in the limo's bar and grabbed a couple of glasses.  He opened the bottle and poured them both a glass.  Then he proposed a toast:  "To Rod and Danielle - I don't know them but they seem nice.  I wish them much happiness."  Zalika raised her glass and said "To Rod and Danielle!" and they drank.  Zalika said "I propose a toast to Darius and Adele - may they both someday love another person as much as they love themselves.  And their clothes.  And their shoes.  And their money.  And..." they both began to laugh.  Palmer raised his glass and said "To Darius and Adele!" and they drank.  They continued on in this way for quite some time.  The more time passed, the sillier the toasts became, and the more they laughed.

They were still laughing about Palmer's last toast when Zalika said "To Laverne and Shirley - schlemiel schlemazel!"  They both cracked up laughing even more.  Palmer said "To Laverne and Shirley!" and they drank while trying not to choke on their drinks between their laughter.  Palmer raised his glass again and said "Ok, I've got a good one.  To...  US."  Zalika was taken by surprise.  She had expected to hear something silly that would make her laugh.  She wondered if Palmer was just joking, but by the look on his face, she could see that he was sincere.  She smiled broadly and raised her glass and said "To us."  And they drank.  And then their champagne glasses fell to the floor as they leaned forward and kissed passionately.

Was it the champagne that had lowered their inhibitions?  Were they moving too fast?  In that moment, they did not care.  All they knew was that being together in that way was far more intoxicating than the champagne.  As they began to undress each other, they gave no thought to where they were.  They just wanted to be together right then.  They both felt that this moment was like a dream.

If it was a dream, then they were suddenly rudely awakened when the limo door flung open and they saw Darius and Adele standing there.  Adele let out an audible gasp, and they all froze for a moment with startled expressions on their faces.  Palmer grabbed his jacket and covered Zalika as she shrieked "Close the door!!!"