The fidget spinner was originally designed to keep autistic people occupied and not get too antsy. And...suddenly it's the hottest trend. I mean, stores are going utterly apeshit with this temporary gimmick (let's be honest...I cannot see this fad lasting very long) with some pretty elaborate designs. Hell, even I have to admit some of them are pretty impressive, like Captain America's shield, shurikens, odd designs that would totally make it in a hipster's art gallery...it's almost a shame that one day, all of that will be for nothing as this trend crashes and burns. I mean, look at the kendama craze - stores were flooded with this crap, and had its share of really eye-opening designs (my personal favorite was one designed as a mace...although God knows how the hell you'd play it properly) and the only reason I never scoffed at that trend was because kendama actually took skill to play. I mean, even the basic function of kendama wasn't an easy thing to do, and people created tricks for it. With fidgets, well...I'd say twirling a pen in your hand is more impressive.
Back in my time, one hot trend was Tech Deck. Mini skateboards you use your fingers to nail tricks you'd do with a real skateboard. And it was fun for a while, until Tech Deck got too popular and started making miniaturized skateparks...at that point, it got ridiculous. I liked Tech Deck because it was small enough to put in my school bag and whip out in a flash. During lunch breaks, a stack of books can be stairs, taping a pencil between desks could be the grind rail...and some kid has to spoil the makeshift creativity by lugging around this big ass set. He's the reason why Tech Deck got banned at my school.
Tech Deck was the only fad I really followed, if only because I loved skateboarding. And in a sense, it was pretty cool you could do what you'd do with a real skateboard - by God, these things came with micro tools you could unscrew the wheels and entire deck, and they offered a huge selection of boards to go nuts with. I mean, I even managed to find a mini version of the real skateboard I used (of course, as a teen...I always went with Hook Ups, my iconic board being the Hooters replica). Customizing my Tech Deck board was just as addicting as trying to nail tricks. So, in a way...I don't know if it's my old man tastes kicking in, or newer fads are really getting stupider.
I mean, kendama wasn't exactly a new thing. It's an ancient Japanese toy I remember seeing in history class, so it being a trend last year is more of a blast from the past (ranging centuries ago) than an actual fad that happened overnight. It's just that...leave it to stores to make such a big deal about it that they all but wear out the bandwagon as soon as it rolls. 7 Eleven's sold kendamas. And now they sell fidget spinners. It almost makes video games look like legitimate hobbies. Some video games require memorization, patience, skill, and reflexes. There, I mentioned video games. This blog is officially relevant.