It may be the strangest Christmas gift
I've ever received.
First of all, let me explain why I'm
talking about Christmas presents in the middle of June. When
Loraine's parents came up for the Memorial Day weekend they brought
gifts from Loraine's niece and nephews that were a little too big or
too fragile to ship. So we got to open them at the end of last
month, and I've spent the last two weeks looking at what may be the
most bizarre (in a very good way) gift I've ever been given.
Specifically, this--
What it is, you ask? Well, I answer,
it is a display case containing a package of Apollo-Soyuz
commemorative cigarettes.
What? You've never been given 42-year
old space-themed cigarettes in a display case for Christmas?
8-)
You all know I'm a space geek, with
quite the collection of space memorabilia. But even I have never
heard of ANYTHING like this pack of Apollo-Soyuz commemorative
cigarettes. In fact, never even in my wildest imagination could I
even have considered something like a pack of Apollo-Soyuz
commemorative cigarettes. Yet I now own them.
Is this an amazing world or what?
Loraine's nephew Nathan found them in
an antique store in Bay City, and immediately thought I would go
bonkers over them, which I did. It's nice that when he thinks of me
he thinks of space. But what he may not know is that the
Apollo-Soyuz mission, flown in 1975 as a sign of detente between the
US and the (then) Soviet Union, was the first ever space launch I saw
in person. So the flight has always had a spot in my heart, and now
to be given this gift is actually kind of sweet.
Plus, consider this, as well—as an
avid non-smoker, these are the only cigarettes I'll ever own (and
yes, the package DOES contain the original 42-year old product).
Somewhere in the boxes of crap I have
spread around I have a few souvenirs that I picked up during the
flight. I have no ideas where they are, nor do I have any idea if
they're even still in good shape. But if I ever get a few minutes
(or hours), I should dig them up, clean them off, and put together a
whole little Apollo-Soyuz monument.
With, of course, the commemorative
cigarettes as the centerpiece.
On that wildly absurd note, that's it
for this week. Have a great weekend; get out and enjoy some of the
warmth!!
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