Birmingham has gone crazy.
I don’t know if the reaches of this phenomenon are national or if it is just local – I’m hoping that all of you can tell me.
(By the way, if it IS just local and at some point becomes national, I want this post to document the fact that Alabama can, in fact, be a trendsetter for something that has nothing to do with NASCAR, meth labs, or football.)
So what’s the craziness about?
Animal Bracelets, or Silly Bandz, as they’re officially called:
These charming yet simple bracelets, which can be bought* for the ridiculously cheap price of $2.99 for a dozen (* bought in the theoretical sense, of course, seeing as how they’re completely unavailable for purchase anywhere in this city), have kids from the ages of 2 to 17 COMPLETELY obsessed.
And a good percentage of the parents are also under their spell . . .desperately seeking them for their begging kids.
Signs on the store doors say “Don’t ask – we don’t have animal bracelets!”, or “We have an animal bracelet waiting list over a month long.”, or “You’d have better luck getting your own cat to wrap around your wrist than to find Animal Bracelets here!!”
Five year olds have now resorted to begging their moms to pack them extra school snacks so that they can trade them for a fix of bracelet intoxication.
In fact, Animal Bracelets are to schools what cigarettes are to prisons and mental wards: the most accepted form of currency.
The funny thing is, if you’re actually doing what you’re supposed to with animal bracelets (i.e. WEARING them), they don’t look like animals at all, but just a bunch of wrinkly bracelets:
At least the jelly bracelets I wore as a kid hung on the arm right.
But I can’t deny the power of these magical creations. They ARE pretty darn cute:
And photogenic.
I actually happened to have bought some for Ali earlier in the summer before they became The Next Beanie Baby, or my poor child would definitely be going without.
(Who am I kidding? I’d be just as madness crazed as everyone else.)
Little does she know that High School girls would pay her big bucks to take them off of her hands. Unfortunately for them, she doesn’t quite understand the concept of money yet, so I’m pretty sure she’d rather have her pretty animal bracelets than dirty, wrinkled, green paper.
(A debit card, however, she might totally understand.)
Of course, now that I’ve shown her stash on the internet, I will be locking my doors and windows extra tight.
What, you think no one would have the lack of heart to rob a two year old?
You obviously haven’t seen all of the addicts out there, wild-eyed and half-crazed, looking for their next fix.
Hey – maybe the Meth Lab operators will realize there’s a better profit margin and a greater pool of addicts in the Animal Bracelet market, make a few changes to their labs, and start a new product line! That’d be a decent trend for Alabama to start…
I had NO idea! Phew, glad my kids haven't seen this.
I was clueless to the new trend…oh well. It's good to be 26 without kids in that case.
I got a call that there were some in a certain store in town so Abbie and I are headed there today.
well, they've made it to montgomery. hannah came home with 3 last sunday from church for knowing her memory verses…guess there is a craze here too. i thought they were just some silly bracelet from oriental trading or something. wow!
never heard of them in Florida.
I was waiting for you to do a post about those! :) I have alot of them and my friends and I trade the bracelets!!!
They are even coming out with $ signs, hearts, bones, etc.
I have baby ones too.
Weird, I have never heard of those, but it sounds like they are pretty exciting stuff. :) Glad you beat the rush and got yours early. Maybe you started the whole thing! :)
Oh, yes, we have some too. We got extremely lucky. They happened to have just put out a box of them when we were at Learning Express and, by the time, we left, half of them were gone! I love a trend that only cost me 3 dollars!
I have never heard of them down here yet, but I am sure it is coming.
You just NEVER know what is going to strike a chord with teens. It's crazy!
I have never seen these or even heard of them….but my 5 year old son saw the picture at the top of your post and said "Are those ANIMAL BRACELETS?" I guess they do look like bracelets and animals…but he told me that his girlfriends at school have them. Who knew? I'm so glad I'm "in" on the animal bracelet thing now. Thanks for sharing!
I just left a friend's house and her girls were showing theirs off. I guess I'm just too old because I certainly don't get it! But kudos for you for being ahead of the trends!
I have never seen them but I am fairly far removed from what is cool in the older kids scene. I think they're cute, though!
I have a 4 year old that came home from preschool with some of these, she wears them everywhere!!!
I have never seen them. But I'm sure if Alex does she'll let me know…
Yippie! Now Alabama can be known for something good besides meth labs. :D
I haven't heard of animal braclets but now I have a great Christmas gift idea for my neice. – Utah
Correction: It's not just kids 2-17…college age kids are wearing them too! Just walking around at UAB I feel like I'm so not with it because I have no animal bracelets. ::Sniff:: Oh well. I'll pass on the tween trend. :P
I hadn't even heard of the animal bracelets until you and Nikki were talking about them last week. They are really cute, but I can't believe even the high school kids are into them…crazy!
You better buy a safe to put Ali's animal bracelets in just in case one of your blog stalkers needs a silly band fix :)
My Jessie has gone absolutely GAH-GAH over those things!
I have nothing against the bracelets but what about them makes people go nuts?! You are right, it's just like the beanie baby craze and like that this will die sooner or later. I just don't understand! lol
oh my gosh…can't STAND these things!! of course, the only thing they're good for is taking off your wrists and making into animals all over your school desk in the MIDDLE OF A MATH LESSON! oh, and coughing and/or sneezing all over so you can trade them with your friends and pass around a second helping of the swine flu or strep. (wow…am I getting old and grumpy? or am I just a first grade teacher?)
I don't get them. Everytime I go into Learning Express or some other kiddie store they have signs on their doors saying they are out of stock. What is so special? I even got an email about them from a specialty store in town. Kelly said they are banned from her classroom, maybe the whole school, I don't remember, because the kids are too busy trading and playing with them. Good grief!
April
WOW! I can't believe it! I told myself I wouldn't but I bought them even after I told my two boys no.
O well at least they wanted Silly Bandz and not a doll. LOL! I ordered them the dinosaur and pet shapes online at http://www.buysillybandzhere.com
for $4.95 a pack and got them in three days.
They were so excited. They acted like they had just got a million dollars or something.
I met a girl from Tennessee yesterday and she was wearing animal bracelets and it reminded me of this post.