No, not March Madness . . . .
Girl Scout cookie time!
For most of my life, the advent of GS cookie season has been a big deal. First, as a brownie, then junior, and then cadet, I sold cookies. I remember that we'd get a glossy bi-fold brochure with colored graph to sell cookies to neighbors. Thin Mints, peanut butter sandwich cookies, sometimes an oatmeal frosted, Trefoils (those shortbreads in the shapes of girls' profiles), lemon cremes, later Tagalongs and the ever-popular gooey Samosa. I understand that there are 3+ GS bakeries in the country and that the offerings vary slightly, but I haven't noticed too much change from South to Northeast, or over time.
Except that cookies are now $4 a box!! And I remember selling them for 75 cents. I swear.
For every box of cookies sold, we earned rewards. Each year had a different animal theme. I strongly remember the panda bear year and worked so hard to get beyond the patch (either 50 or 75 boxes sold, which is what I usually did), to 100 so I could have the mini stuffed animal.
The sale would start on a Saturday morning and girls were not allowed to start before then. I sometimes headed out with a friend but usually went alone. Selling in pairs doesn't really work. I was allowed to go to neighbors we knew and people in the nearby area. There was no selling at grocery stores then. And we didn't have a church. Dad didn't like to take the sheet to work because, as boss, he felt that it pressured his employees. But some of them always asked about cookie time and bought a few boxes. Mom and Dad bought the remainder I needed to get the patch or stuffed animal.
Thin mints were my favorites, though I did go through a Samosa and Tagalong period for awhile. DP still loves Samosas but I'm back to Thin Mints. DD loves the trefoils (only because we haven't given her any others yet) and I even bought two extra boxes at church this Sunday to ensure our supply for awhile. Because now, you can buy cookies after they've been ordered, not just as advanced orders. And no one, no one goes to the door anymore. It was a lean period when I didn't know any Girl Scouts--I bet I went for a decade while in college and grad school without any cookies. Once we started going to church, though, the supply line was reestablished.
And eventually, it's fun to think that DD will sell them. She'll take the sheet to church and neighbors to solicit donations--do they even still do rewards? Our house will be filled with colorful rectangular boxes for distribution and we'll buy more than we need. They freeze well, though who ever really lets boxes linger? And I know there are lots of websites and even official handouts on how to cook with cookies (like trifles or Thin Mint crusts), but I like my cookies unadulterated. They're too rare to waste on crust.
One day, I'll reminisce at length about Girl Scouts (and mourn the fact that DS will not have such an experience, as Cub/Boy Scouts are a sexist, homophobic, theocratic lot, at least officially)--I was one for years, from brownies through to being a camp counselor for a GS special needs camp. I loved the uniform, the badges, going to summer camp, the songs, the arts and crafts.
And of course, the cookies.
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