Q. I have been searching for Post Alpha-Bits and have not been able to find them anywhere. Still, the Post Web site says they are available. What's the deal?
-- Linda Freivogel
A. Ah, you bring back memories of a wonderful time when, as Archie Bunker might sing, men were men and cereal companies still proudly called their products Sugar Frosted Flakes, Sugar Crisp, and Sugar Smacks.
It was a golden age for us who, like Calvin, loved to bounce off the walls after a Jethro-sized bowl of Chocolate Frosted Sugar Bombs to start the day. Even better, they came with prizes. I still have some of the plastic Mustang cars that I'd fish through the flakes to find and the baseball cards that I'd cut off the back of the box.
Post's Alpha-Bits was always one of my favorites. (Remember Loveable Truly, the "post"man who delivered the "letters"?). Not only did I enjoy the taste, but I could always practice spelling "antidisestablishmentarianism" to impress my folks. (Of course, there'd be nothing left in the bowl by the time I got done, but that's beside the point.)
By the 1980s, the evil food police had begun to rear their ugly heads. Parents, forgetting the joys of spending the morning in a glucose-sweetened haze, began clamoring for Post, Kellogg's, Nabisco and General Mills to make cereals more (ugh) healthy. Soon, Sugar Crisp became Golden Crisp and Sugar Pops turned into the generic Corn Pops.
Sorry, but "Corn Pops Are Tops!" just doesn't have the same ring to it. Frosted Flakes weren't as great. Super Bear should have gone on strike.
And that, my friend, sort of explains what has happened to your Alpha-Bits, according to Laurie Guzzinati, a spokeswoman for Kraft Foods, of which Post cereals is now a subsidiary.
A couple of years ago, Post decided to reformulate Alpha-Bits to make it one of its "sensible solutions" to breakfast. But as you saw on the Alpha-Bits Web page, they didn't take out just some of the sweetness. No, sir, they went whole hog -- "0 Grams of Sugar" the box proudly proclaimed.
Don't let the happy smiles on the kids' faces fool you. After they tasted this whole-grain concoction, apparently the only thing they were spelling with their letters was "Y-E-C-H-H." The product was pulled off the shelves.
In its place, Post offered its Canadian version of Alpha-Bits, which had some sugar but less the previous American formulation. However, this cereal had limited distribution, which may be why you're currently having trouble finding it.
Now the good news: The cereal has too much consumer loyalty to let it die, Guzzinati said. So, to celebrate Alpha-Bits' 50th anniversary this year, Post will begin distributing a new new Alpha-Bits nationwide starting in June.
It will have something everybody can love -- 10 grams of sugar per serving for the kids along with 15 grams of whole grain and extra iron, zinc and choline, which are thought to aid in the development of young brains.
And, Guzzinati promises, it also will have "better letter integrity." That means they won't get soggy as quickly, so little hands still may be spelling supercali ... (well, you know) when they're supposed to be getting ready for the school bus.
Q. My parents have a set of 1960 World Book Encyclopedias, and they have World Book yearbooks from 1962-1983. Do you know of anyone who might collect those books or where we can donate them?
-- Terri Hoff
A. I have been trying for 20 years without success to find a happy answer to this common woe. Sadly, encyclopedias are like new cars -- as soon you take them out of the showroom they're already becoming dated.
The computer age only compounds the problem. Why waste the paper and shelf space when you can put it all on a CD or DVD?
So, I can't imagine anyone wanting a 1960 set, which was printed before the first manned space launch. You might have better luck with the yearbooks, but there are dozens and dozens on eBay going for as little as 79 cents -- even as far back as 1918. It's just so much easier to Google what you need these days.
Q. Recently I bought a friend a patch with the emblem for the Department of the Army. Now, we're wondering what everything on the patch is and what it means. Can you explain?
-- Mabel Grogan, of Belleville
A. Ma'am, yes, ma'am! What you purchased is a slight variation of the Army Seal, which was used to authenticate documents from the time of the Revolutionary War on.
It remained unchanged for two centuries as it proudly depicted the ideals of U.S. Army -- loyalty, vigilance, courage, etc. At the bottom was the designation "War Office," which was synonymous with Army Headquarters, and the Roman numeral equivalent of 1778.
But in 1974, the Pentagon for whatever reason suddenly realized there was no emblem that identified the Army. They couldn't use the seal, because that was for official documents and not for public display.
So, they compromised by using most of the original seal with two major changes: "War Office" became "Department of the Army," and 1778 was changed to 1775, the year the Army was established. On Jan. 29, 1974. Secretary of the Army Howard Callaway gave the new emblem his blessing.
Here's a brief summary of what you see and why, according to the U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry:
At the center is a piece of body armor known as a Roman cuirass, a symbol of strength and defense. Jutting up from the head opening are, from right, an esponton (or half-pike) used by subordinate officers, an unsheathed sword and a musket with bayonet. These, along with the cannon and cannon balls under the U.S. flag and the mortar and mortar bombs under a banner with an Army flag pattern are simply some of the weapons the Army might use in its fight to defend liberty.
Now, the most curious item is that strange hat that rests on top of the sword. It looks like something Waldo or Papa Smurf may have lost -- hardly something that would inspire confidence if you saw it on a general -- but it's actually a symbol that dates back thousands of years.
It's called a Phrygian cap, a soft, red conical topper that was worn by the inhabitants of Phrygia, which is now basically Asia Minor. Centuries later, Romans used it as a symbol of freedom from tyranny, adding it to coins minted around the time of Christ.
Nearly two millennia later, the cap, held aloft on a Liberty Pole, became a popular symbol for the American colonists as they fought off the shackles of King George III. Later, the French and Irish would use it as well.
Two final notes: The drum and drumsticks on which the American flag is draped are meant to depict public notification of the Army's intent to serve the nation and its citizens. Finally, the motto "This We'll Defend" on a scroll held by a rattlesnake is a popular symbol on flags of the era and signifies the Army's constant readiness to defend and preserve the country.
The colors, of course, are those commonly associated with the ideals of the country and the Army: Blue for loyalty, truth and perseverance, red for courage and zeal, white for heroic deeds, black for determination and constancy and gold for achievement, dignity and honor.
Send your questions to Roger Schlueter, Belleville News-Democrat, 120 S. Illinois St., P.O. Box 427, Belleville, IL 62222-0427 or rschlueter@bnd.com
