I Love You Cathy Williams, VP of Marketing

The dreams of our youth are awful but elusive beasts. They stalk our days and lead us to the aspirations of heroes and the actions of fools. Many of the dreams are cast aside in the maturity of reality. Some dreams take a long time to come true. Some never do. Some come true even though we do not realize it at the time. Some come true with such a sudden unexpectedness as to leave us mute with joy. Two weeks ago today, one of my childhood dreams came true.

The seniors had just completed a long, rainy day at Disney capped off with a sub-par meal at the Rainforest Cafe. Our leader informed us that we would be heading off to Epcot to see the end of day show and then we would bus over to Downtown Disney. I inwardly groaned at the thought of going to Downtown Disney as it sounded like Disney World without the rides and shows (which leaves nothing but themed stores and themed food).

It took two standing-room only buses and over an hour to get from Epcot to Downtown Disney. After a full day of perusing Disney merchandise, I was feeling the lowest I had felt during the week in Florida. I was downright sullen and ready for bed. Then I overheard someone say, "Lego Store." My interest perked up a bit but I had been to a Lego outlet store and it was nothing to blog about.

I wearily pushed my body in the general direction of the Lego store, past the Disney Art Gallery, past the Disney Plush store, past the Disney pin kiosk, past the Disney sports store, and past the Disney princess beauty shop. Across the water I saw the large white letters on a red field. Light was spilling out of the store like the light at the end of a cold, dark Disney cave. A massive Lego sea creature rose from the bay, and I stumbled into the store, blinking and stunned in the bright, plastic light.

Various displays of building brilliance were scattered about the entrance. Including this airport. As you can see there has been an accident and emergency crews have responded.





The details of each display were whimsical and creative. In another part of the airport, Yoda is having his bags searched by airport security. Look closer and you can see the tragic cause of the accident.



Behind the counter is a massive wall of mini-figs.



A large Lego monkey transverses the wall with a magnifying glass to provide a close up view. In another part of the store you can make your own mini-fig (three for $9.99). You get to chose a pair of pants, a shirt, a head, a hat, and an implement for each.



But none of this was the culmination of my childhood dream. The back corner of the store held that delight. It was this that almost made me late for the bus back to the resort:



What is the big deal, you ask?

When I was a child, Lego was my favorite toy. A list of Lego sets was on every birthday and Christmas list from the time I got my first set when I was about seven until I was, well let's just say, a much older individual. My best friend and I constructed a massive Lego city in his basement and treated each Lego brick as a precious stone. We created our own Lego nomenclature and mini-economy.

Both of us thought that it would make building much easier if bricks were available by the piece and, perhaps, available through the mail. So we took turns writing the company about our concerns. No, our dreams. Cathy Williams, the VP of Marketing of the Lego Group, was always kind enough to write us back, thanking us for our interest and informing us that, sadly, Lego bricks were not available by the piece or through the mail, but here is a new catalog that I am sure you will enjoy looking at.

I think I carried a torch for Cathy for a few years. I hoped to marry her and work in the product development division and meet her in the company dining hall for a long lunch over which I would talk her into selling Lego by the piece. I know that I frequently had vivid and wonderful dreams of entering a toy store and seeing bins of Lego bricks sorted by size and color and available for five or ten cents each.

And there they were:



Dozens of bins filled with plastic wonder. Available by the piece. The only difference was that you could buy as many pieces as you could fit into a plastic canister for only $12.95. Cathy had heard our voices. My dream was fulfilled. Thank you, Cathy.


Peace

btw: I left the store having spent less than thirty dollars, and my son was thrilled to add to his collection. Also, I have heard that there is a Lego Store at the Mall of Georgia. That is probably much too close to me.

Update: I looked it up. There is a Lego outlet at Discover Mills in Lawrenceville, GA, and it has a pick-a-brick area!