How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Embrace My ‘My Little Pony’ Obsession

I spend thousands of dollars on nostalgic toy horses. When I finally opened up to my husband about my hush-hush habit, it actually brought us closer together.

Photos by Carly Secrest | Edited by Lilly Dancyger

I hesitated, one finger hovering over my mouse’s left button. My laptop monitor glowed softly in the dimly-lit hotel room. The eBay listing on the screen before me had a “Buy It Now” option for sixty dollars. But sixty dollars was so expensive. It wasn’t as if the listing was for electronics, or nice jewelry – things that an average person wouldn’t hesitate to pay sixty dollars for.

This listing was for a toy. A toy from the 1980s My Little Pony line called “Oakley Moose.” As the name implied, it was a plastic moose with a lavender body, pink eyes and blue hair. It was adorable. When I looked at Oakley Moose, I felt the same delighted desire I’d felt as a kid, whenever I found a toy I wanted.