Day 20: Beautie and The Barbies (30 Days of Days)

Day 20:  The Most Memorable Day of My Childhood

Well, in my childhood, at times, I can't remember exact days...but estimates of time or age.  This is one of those instances.

Warning:  There will be a bit of back story before you get to the meat (lol), so I guess think of it as two memorables in one.

I developed a love for dolls when I was rather young.  My grandma liked going to garage sales and when she saw a doll she thought I would like, she would get it.  I was always grateful for whatever Grandma got me. 

True, the dolls had been used a lot. 

There was one doll whose arm kept falling off and had a cut in her upper arm.  I guess whoever was playing with it was trying to amputate her.  I would wrap the arm with tape to try and keep it secure.  I never tried to cover up the cut.  I just loved the doll the way she was.  I named her Barbara.  She also had hands that could move by themselves as well as flat feet, similar to me because my arch is almost nonexistent.

I also had Stacy (she was brunette), Jasmine (dark hair but had real lashes—not painted on), Scarlet (she had short hair) and Jennifer (she had very hard to style hair).  

I also got a guy who had flat feet who I named Steven.  He was solid all the way around, not like the Ken they had where there were some parts soft and the rest of the torso hard.  He was just hard all around—period.

There was a period of time where my grandparents did allow the other little kids to visit.  However, those weren't as careful with toys nor were they as trustworthy.  Plus, a couple of them were mean and didn't want to play with my dolls. They said my dolls didn't look like "real Barbie dolls".  The ones you find in the store—with the Barbie name on them.  Plus, they didn't look almost new.

It’s laughable because the ones who were saying it broke their toys almost every month.

The final straw, which caused my grandparents not to have any more kids come to the house, was when I discovered that one of my toys was over at another girl’s house.  It was an electronic toy, and with my electronic toys, I would always use the Dymo tape to label it and stick it somewhere on there.  

She had taken it but forgotten to take the Dymo tape off there.  

When I tried to retrieve my property, the girl accused me of trying to steal "her toy", and her mom took her side of the story and threw me out of their house.

Of course I told my grandparents.  They know I’m not a thief, and they had noticed my toy was missing.  Grandpa was hot as a firecracker.  Grandma said she would handle it.

Grandma and I came over there, and Grandma explained the situation.  When the girl handed her mom the toy, her mom said, “I don’t know what you are talking about; there’s no label in the back.”  But I could see the residue from the tape where the girl had ripped off the label.  My grandma noticed it, too, and pointed it out to the mom.

The mom had that look.  I mean, she had to know that her kid stole from me, but to save her ego, she acted like she didn't see what we both meant.  

Then, I noticed the remnants of the label on the carpet, and grabbed it.  

She got angry and told us to get out.  

Grandma told her, “You keep your thief of a child away from our house!”

That was the end of my having company over at the house.

I definitely needed more dolls.  I had enough imaginary friends.

There were these two Barbie dolls I had my eyes on for the longest.  The majority of the dolls my Grandma had given me, with the exception of Scarlet and Jennifer, were black.  However, the kids were right—the dolls I had weren't the real McCoy.

One of the dolls I was fascinated by because she had a switch and could move her arms.  She could push her hair back, come and brush her hair.  She didn’t need any batteries.  She was adorned in this fuzzy multifunctional coat and a long flowing gown.  She looked like glamour, and she immediately caught my eye.  Her skin was rich and dark.  She was a beauty.  She was Magic Moves.

The other doll I wanted because you could do things with her hair.  I always wondered how they got the barrette to stay in place in the center.  She had on a 70’s type jumpsuit, which I thought was rad.  Her skin wasn’t as dark as the other, but I really dug that her hair wasn’t the typical black, but it was a brownish type color.  She was Super Hair.

I guess my Grandparents noticed I had been eyeing them.

Around my birthday, I got such a wonderful surprise.  The very dolls I had my eyes on I did receive them (clapped for joy).  

Also around this time, we had a dog.  Her name was Beautie.  She had the coloring of a golden retriever, but she was a straight mutt. 

At the time, she was an indoor dog and hadn't given us any trouble, but in one day, many lives were changed.

I was playing with Magic and Super Hair, thinking later on, I would introduce them to the rest of the dolls.  Nature called so I went to use the restroom.  

When I came out, I let out a scream that sent Grandma and Grandpa running.

In the time it had taken me to tinkle, Beautie had mistaken one of Super Hair’s arms as well as her foot as food.  On one foot, Super Hair’s toes were gone.  From her upper arm to her fingertips, Super Hair had a permanent tattoo of teeth marks.

Beautie whimpered.  She knew she had done a bad thing, giving that very sad look.

My Grandpa went into action, yielding his switch and yelling.

WHAP, WHAP, WHAP….right on Beautie’s bum.

Beautie ran and howled.  When Grandpa opened the back door, Beautie was happy to make her retreat.  What she didn't realize was that the outdoors would be her new home permanently.

Grandma asked me if I wanted her to get me a new doll, since Beautie had destroyed part of Super Hair.  I knew it took a lot for Grandma and Grandpa to get both dolls for me.

Most kids probably would have taken Grandma up on her offer to get me a brand new doll.

However, I wasn't most kids. 

Besides, Super Hair liked wearing long sleeves anyway, and thank goodness Beautie didn’t eat her hair or get to Magic Moves.

Sure I got a few more black Barbie dolls after that, but none meant as much to me as my first two “authentic” ones—Magic Moves and Super Hair.

Food for Thought:  One time when I was at home—back in 2008, I took out Magic to see if she still moves.  After all these years, she was still able to get her move on.  

Day 20, that's a wrap!