A lot of people, when they come back from California, come back with wine stuffed in their suitcase.  When I came back from California, I came back with Chocodiles stuffed in my suitcase.

For those of you wondering what a Chocodile is, think Twinkie covered in chocolate.  When I was a kid, I use to love Chocodiles.  The local Quick Check use to have them for 25 cents and I would get them when I could.  In those days, Chauncey Chocodile was good friends with Twinkie the Kid and life was good (Chauncey has a Facebook page…he is lonely, you should friend him).

Sometime towards the end of the last century, Hostess stopped distributing them on the East Coast with only a handful of factories making them on the West Coast.  Because of Hostess freshness standards, that is where the Chocodiles remain today.  So, on my previous three trips to California, I would go out of my way to find the elusive treat, but had no luck.  My most recent trip looked as if it were headed the same direction.

I went to the local Walmart and found the other Hostess products…I was disappointed to not find any there.  However, as I walked out, to a chorus of angels (and I am pretty sure the roof opened up and a ray of light shined down on them), I spotted them!  I felt like King Arthur receiving Excalibur from the Lady in the Lake as I grabbed them.  Much like when I was a kid, they were individually sold, but now cost 66 cents.  So, obviously, I grabbed as many as I could (regretting the fact that I hadn’t grabbed a cart on my way in) and a Rubbermaid to protect them in my bag on the way back east (I did make a second trip back to the Walmart to restock…they are so damn good).

When I got home, I did share one with the boys…Thats right, I said “one” and I’m not ashamed of it!  The are still content with lesser treats like Ding Dongs and Ho Hos…I’m not wasting these wonderful delicacies on their immature taste buds.  Of course, I have them sitting on my desk in the office in full view, torturing the boys.

So, anyway, a few weeks have now past and my Chocodile supply has dwindled down to two and Benjamin came up to me and asked if he and Matthew could have a Chocodile.  With no shame, I explained to him that I didn’t have enough for him and Matthew, despite the fact they were in his full view.  He pointed at them and counted them, “One, two…”, and then points at himself and says, “One” and then at Matthew, “Two.”

He may be a clever boy, but he didn’t get my Chocodile.  The last two are for a special occasion…I’m not sure what that occasion is, but I have to think quick…The freshness date is April 19.

P.S. Soon after writing the draft of this, I deemed writing a blog post about how I selfishly hoard snack cakes from my own children worthy of being a special occasion and I am now down to one lonely little Chocodile.