The grocery store cereal aisle is a continuously altering landscape. Boxes adorned with popular icons will eventually disappear to be replaced by the next rising star of children's entertainment. So, if you think you might crave Shrek cereal twenty years from now you better stock up. Even the veterans feel the effects of change, whether it's something as simple as a change in the toy prize you find covered in sugar dust at the bottom of the box, or a massive overhaul to the crunchy bits themselves. I'll miss you old Trix, even if you did look like rainbow colored rabbit turds.

While my main breakfast staple continues to be cereal, I try to avoid the aisle fads, most of which don't even get a spot on the shelves. They're just stacked up in lonely piles at the end of the aisles. Even if they are tasty I don't want to get my hopes up over something that probably won't be there the next time I shop. Plus it looks a bit odd to be buying Yu-Gi-Oh's with no kids in sight. Although my adult mind has been able to evade an dependence to something that will eventually let me down, I wasn't as smart when I was a kid. There are a few cereals that even now I crave.

First on the list is Smurfberry Crunch, an offering from those tiny, mushroom dwelling, blue folk. Sadly, other than my devotion to it I can remember very little about it. The most prominent thing being that it managed to make the list of cereals for whatever reason I was not allowed to have. Along with Fruity Pebbles, this was a treat only available at my grandparents' house. I can't even remember what it tasted like. My brain insists that it tasted similar to crunchberries, but after almost thirty years together I know better than to trust it. However it tastes I'm sure it wouldn't live up to twenty years of expectations. It is interesting to note how the whole vibe of the cereal would have been different had Gargamel been on the cover instead of Papa Smurf.

Next up is an item from the Krispies boom of the 80's. It seems Kellogg decided to boost their lineup of Rice and Cocoa Krispies, by adding newcomers Frosted and Marshmallow. Frosted Krispies seemed to be a bit of overkill since any self respecting kid already dumped enough sugar on Rice Krispies to create a veritable snowfield. Marshmallow Krispies on the other hand were a stroke of genius. On the outside, they appeared to be nothing special, just ordinary Rice Krispies with some plain looking marshmallows. Joined together these two forces ruled my breakfast empire. It was a sad day when it finally vanished from the shelves.

I can understand why Smurfberry Crunch went missing, since it was directly tied to a cartoon, but what went wrong with Marshmallow Krispies? With all the rice based cereals out there, why aren't there any that have the delicious marbits that I crave? I blame the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles foray into the breakfast aisle. TMNT cereal is best described as Rice Chex with marshmallows. Unfortunately in Ralston's quest to make the cereal more kid friendly they covered the chex pieces with a sugary shellac. That may seem like a good thing, but instead of adding a boost of sweetness, this glossy coating made the cereal impervious to milk. The end result was a cereal so sharp and crunchy it made Cap'n Crunch seem like melted butter. Rice and marshmallows never saw each other again.

Lastly we have that which I crave the most, Magic Middles. I know what you're thinking. Indeed Magic Middles were not cereal. They were fudge filled cookies of both the chocolate chip and shortbread variety. More importantly the shortbread version also came in a mini size. I'm not sure what inspired me but one day I put about a dozen of the miniature cookies in a bowl and covered them in milk. Not surprisingly their dense fudge center kept them from floating. There submerged beneath the milk the cookies were transformed into something words cannot even begin to describe, but it was the most incredible thing I have ever had for breakfast. I've held out hope for years that Magic Middles would resurface, but it doesn't look too promising since Keebler has started to reuse the name for cookies that don't even come close to the originals.

There are many more cereals that have come and gone that held a place at my breakfast table but these are the three that continue to haunt me. Were they really as good as I remember? Who knows? There will never be another chance to find out, unless of course practical time travel becomes a reality in my lifetime. I don't have my hopes up though.

cravipat escaped the blue labyrinth long enough to write this.

0 adventurers found their way to the golden castle.

Words uncovered in the catacombs : food