The year was 1985. I was in high school and working part-time at a local grocery store. We had a small toy section in the non-foods area of the store, and among the items intended for five year-olds was a small selection of MPC model kits.
The 1/72 F-86D caught my attention, but I didn’t buy it immediately. I’d pass it every time I had to run for a price check in that part of the store and every evening I’d “close” and be tasked with corning sweeping and dust mopping. I would imagine how I might build it and paint it, but I never pulled the trigger. This went on for months and months.
One day I finally bought the model. It was only five or six dollars as I recall, so it didn’t impact my meager budget all that much. I suppose that was the most unusual place I’ve ever purchased a kit, a grocery store. That’s a pretty lame story, I must admit. I hope other members of the Union have more compelling stories to share.
Ironically, I never build the model.
