By Hannah Gonneville –
Silly Putty, Hot Wheels and Barbies
Toys you wish were still on your Christmas list
A pile of packages wrapped in red and green lie underneath a tree covered with strands of cranberries and ornaments made from glue and glitter. Clothed in flannel and fuzzy slippers, children rush to the mound and begin searching for their names on the tiny black labels. Soon the ripping, tearing and shredding begins and the toys hidden beneath the paper appear. Scissors and pocketknives begin freeing Tonka trucks and Polly Pockets from their plastic prisons. The black trash bags burst with crumpled paper balls and clear plastic boxes. Along with tiny shreds of wrapping paper, the silver twisty bands, which retrain Barbie, litter the carpet. Barking robotic dogs and crying baby dolls join the chorus of Holiday music.
Media Credit: Hannah Gonneville - Boys get ready for Nerf!
When the mall became more interesting than the toy store, this image of Christmas and the holidays changed. Now, the rectangular gift boxes under the tree hold new sweaters and sweatshirts. There is no cardboard to rip open or plastic boxes to cut through. All that is needed is a pair of scissors to cut off a tag or a loose thread. There may be a few new movies to watch or a bunch of new songs to listen to courtesy of an iTunes gift card, but there are no Hot Wheels or Play-Doh to play distract you from annoying family members. This holiday season, as you accumulate closets full of new clothes and stacks of gift cards, here are some toys that you may wish you could still find under the tree.
Elefun
The cloth butterflies that spurted from plastic elephant’s trunk provided hours of amusement. Running around with nets in hand, we used to try to catch all our butterflies before everyone else. Of course, one would always get stuck in the elephant’s trunk, and if the battery ran out, the trunk would crumple to the ground. “I would take off the trunk, turn it on and watch all the butterflies fly all over the room,” says Christie Rossi, a junior. Of course, this would also lead to an angry mother and more time spent tracking down all the butterflies.
Silly Putty
In its egg shape container, this nude colored material could mold to anything and even bounce if morphed into a ball. If placed on newspaper, it would copy the print. Some types of putty came in different colors, such as green or purple. Other kinds could even glow in the dark, while others changed colors in different temperatures. However, if you got it stuck in your hair, it became a sticky mess.
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Media Credit: Hannah Gonneville - Pretty in pink!
Tamagotchi
The eggs that hatched into little creatures demanded a lot of attention. They needed to be fed, cleaned up after or even, put to bed. However, these creatures became so important that you would ask mom to feed them while you were at school. Attached to each was a key chain so you could clip them to your pants or backpacks. Tamagotchi are still around and now can even be played on the Nintendo DS.
Easy-Bake Oven
“Who doesn’t want to cook cake with a light bulb?” asks, Kelsey Knight, a freshman. While the miniature cakes you attempted to cook always came out mushy, it was exciting to pretend that you were a famous bakery chef. The oven never made desserts worthy of professional praise, but for a toy less powerful than a microwave, it was pretty impressive.
Mom’s supervision was often required and Dad became the taste-tester. The Easy-Bake was certainly on most girls’ letters to Santa and some may be wondering if the little pink and white oven would be useful in college.
Along with other board games, dolls and trucks, these toys made the holidays exciting. “I wish I could still wake up on Christmas morning and open a new Barbie or Polly Pocket,” says Rossi. “I like trying on my new clothes, but sometimes I miss dressing up a new doll.”
