Epic Brain Freeze

What happens when you combine work-related stress, limited free time, lack of motivation, and a healthy dose of writer's block?  You get an epic brain freeze!

That's exactly what I've been dealing with the past week or so.  Hopefully I'll find some cardboard inspiration sooner than later, but don't be surprised if the number of posts I publish drop temporarily... until I can get out of my funk.

However an occasional brain freeze isn't necessarily a bad thing.  One of my favorite childhood memories is sitting out in front of my local 7-11 after school slurping down a cherry Slurpee.  They were so delicious that it was worth the routine brain freeze.

And every now and then 7-11 would take a great thing and make it better.  I know what you're thinking.  How can you possibly make a Slurpee better?  

Well... it's actually pretty simple.  You add a 1.75" lenticular baseball player coin to the bottom of specially marked cups, so when your customers are finished with their treat, they get a second one.  It was the gift that kept on giving.

Depending on the year, the coins would contain either two or three photos that could be seen when you tilt them back and forth in your hands.

From what I can gather, 7-11 would usually create multiple sets each year and distribute them regionally.  The sixteen coin set you see above is the 1985 Central (sometimes called Southwest) set.  Eleven of the sixteen coins feature guys who played on teams found in the central part of the country.  Twenty-nine years later... half of the checklist eventually landed in Cooperstown.

These days you can find most mid 80's 7-11 baseball coin sets for $4 to $10 on eBay.  Personally... I think that's a bargain, because it comes from a very special time period.  They were my formative years in terms of collecting cardboard and these coins were a huge part of them.

Well that's it for now.  I'll try to publish at least two posts a week... but it might be awhile before the three to four post weeks return.

Happy Monday and sayonara!