Spring Loaded: A Message from the Editor

Hello and welcome to Pezhead Monthly! It's a new year, filled with hope and promise, and I am pretty excited. Among other things, there will be new Star Wars and Avengers movies, the landmark 25th year of Pezamania, and lots of new Pez I am sure, not to mention plans for a new place to display the Pez later this year.

However, there is also something to be said for looking back at the year that was, and that's exactly what this issue does. I reflect on some of the notable moments from my year as a Pezhead in 2014, including some of the adventures and Pez finds that made it a truly memorably year. It's hard to believe I've been at this for more than 20 years, and re-reading a letter I sent to Pez Candy Inc. in 1994 (which I include in this month's issue) was a real thrill. Following this feature story is some Pez poetry, including Pez Haiku #140 (which is oddly not about Twitter), as well as one of my favorite poems from the archives, "New Beginnings," which ties Pez to the end of one year and the start of another. Deep, man.

Lastly, as this month's cover image suggests, I will be turning 40 this month. Is it the most anticipated event ever? Will I flip out with glee like a Pez dispenser? Perhaps not. But you know what? It's not so bad. I am happy, I am with a girl that I love very much, and I have a wonderful hobby that I am reminded of in ways big and small all the time, one that has led to many friendships and unforgettable moments, and one that I get to celebrate on these very pages. Life is good!

Thanks for reading. Take care and see you soon!

Joe Durrant
Editor, Pezhead Monthly
joe@pezheadmonthly.com

In this month's issue:
Reflections on a Pez-Filled 2014
Pez Poetry

Reflections on a Pez-Filled 2014

2014 was another great year to be a Pezhead. I went on some fun adventures, added a lot of new Pez, added some new features to the PezheadMonthly.com website, and even hit a major milestone as a Pez collector.

I went on 2 big Pez adventures this year, accompanied in both instances by my lovely girlfriend Jes. The first adventure was Pezamania 24, which I made somewhat of a big deal about in this publication in the days leading up to the big event. As I noted in the recap, although I had been to Pezamania 13 times already, this was the first time that anyone had joined me on the trip. Jes has been very supportive of my Pez hobby over the years, accompanying me to the Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia, the Saturday show at the 2012 MNPezCon 2012, and countless Pez hunts at stores, flea markets, and more. So she was quite interested to experience the biggest Pez convention in the world this past July, Cleveland's Pezamania. She had a great time, and she even won a prize consisting of wine and restaurant gift cards. I enjoyed having her there, introducing her to my fellow Pezheads and showing her to nearby must-stops, including ba Sweetie candy store, Winking Lizard, and The Melt restaurant. And of course, Pezamania provided me with yet any crazy haul.

The next big Pez adventure came less than a month after Pezamania. To celebrate 6 years together, we made our way to Boston. Turns out that, lo and behold, about 3 hours away from that fair city was the Pez Visitor Center, located at the US factory in Orange, CT. (Okay, this fact was possibly well known to us ahead of time, and we may have planned a road trip here.) This was not the first time there for me, having gone a couple of years ago at NEPezCon, but I was very excited to return there with Jes. Despite a slightly overcast day on the drive, we really enjoyed our visit. We saw lots of great Pez on display and took a bunch of pictures. And, go figure, I walked out of the Pez Visitor Center with 2 full bags of stuff, including new Scooby Doo and Hello Kitty sets and 3 buckets of Pez candy. The Pez candy, alas, was not long for this world. I was frankly surprised that it made it back home. No regrets, just sayin'.

In 2014, I also added many new Pez to my collection. I added over 90 new Pez dispensers, as well as other items such as the Less Than Jake "Pez Collection" CD, a couple of Pez bobbleheads, some "Pez for Mayor" swag (see previous issue for details), and, on the very last day of the year, a hot set of Pez coasters, thanks to Santa Jes. The highlight of the year in terms of my Pez scores had to have been completing the Eerie Spectre softhead set at Pezamania 24. This is one of my favorite sets and I am so glad to have them all!

Other highlights included the Scooby Doo set, which was long overdue, and the two new volumes of the US Presidents, from William H. Taft to Lyndon B. Johnson. The pair of new Target dogs was quite nice. I even managed to add a new Batman Pez to my collection- but that's a story for another day (hopefully next issue!).

In terms of this website, while I was not able to update it every month (flagrantly ignoring the "Monthly" part of Pezhead Monthly), there were some notable features. In July, I put a lot of time into the 24 Days of Pezamania, which was a collection of Pez convention-related features from the archives and a few new features as well. The new features included a Photoshop that can partially be owed to Google Earth, a Beetlejuice homage, a video slideshow of my Pezamania story to date, and, my personal favorite, a video featuring the glorious convergence of Pezamania (beyond just the convention) and Hulkamania. In October, I unleashed a new Egg Baby Pez/Halloween mashup and even gave our beloved/feared Egg Baby its own archive page. I rounded out the year covering a whole bunch of recent Pez scores and putting a Pez twist on a major award from a classic Christmas movie.

And finally, in 2014 I hit a major milestone: I marked 20 years as a Pez collector. I must confess, I do not know the exact date that I got my first Pez dispenser, or the exact moment when I considered myself to be a Pezhead. But a key moment in this journey occurred during my sophomore of college at Niagara University. As proof, here is a copy of a letter I sent to Pez Candy Inc. (before this crazy new "email" thing took off). This is the first time that I have shared this letter on this website.

(click here for a larger view)

You can tell even back then how excited I was to be collecting Pez, and you can see some of the lengths I went to to express my love of Pez, including delivering a speech. One of my goals for this year is to at long last convert a video of that speech into a digital format, and share it on this website.

However, it may have been when Pez responded to me when I knew that there was no turning back, and that it was indeed a Pezhead's life for me. Here is a copy of that letter, which was accompanied by a list of dispensers and a catalog.

(click here for a larger view)

So there you have it: an action-packed year filled with adventures, much more Pez for my collection, new Pezhead Monthly features, and a milestone of 20 years as a Pezhead. 2014 was indeed a year for the books, and I can't wait to see what 2015 has in store.

Pez Poetry

Pez Haiku #140

The new year will bring
New Avengers, new Star Wars,
And of course new Pez.

New Beginnings (from the archives)

The twelfth Pez candy is dispensed,
The last one of the bunch,
Those candies, once alive, intense,
Are gone with but a crunch.
The chamber that was full one time
Is now a barren place;
The hopes and dreams once in their prime
Have left without a trace.

Let not this chamber go without,
Do not deny its share.
There's other Pez to have, no doubt,
And not a one to spare.
To end this darkness and suspense,
More Pez shall now be sowed:
Another twelve to be dispensed,
Another twelve to load.