Considering this pop culture column is called Spin Cycle, we couldn't very well ignore the latest craze: fidget spinners.
Think of the toys, which resemble the head of a Phillips Norelco electric razor as tops that spin in the hand rather than on a table. These simple hand-held devices with rotating blades -- along with fidget cubes that allow users to flick, click, roll and spin -- make up most of Amazon's 100 Best Sellers in Toys & Games. They range in price from about $2.50 for the "GongFu Star Fidget Spinner Toy Time Killer" to about $24.99 "TYZEST Spinner Fidget EDC ADHD Focus Toy" that brags of its "precision copper material."
Some parents believe they are helping their children cope with anxiety. One parent of a child with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder told me: "Ever since he started using it in class, we have not had to use meds. His teacher was against it until she saw an improvement. ... It depends on the child."
Another told me, "My son pulls his hair and picks his fingers until they bleed when he's nervous or stressed. Fidget spinners and fidget cubes keep his fingers busy."
A friend whose son was diagnosed with ADHD was encouraged by his teacher to use a spinner and his test scores have drastically improved.
Still, the spinners that are all the rage are causing some outrage. Some school districts are taking steps to ban them, saying these toys that supposedly relax the user distract classrooms, due to noise and lights and well -- whee! -- being toys.
To read through online item descriptions of these fidget spinners, they promise to cure everything. Even conditions that don't appear to exist:
• "A great gift for quitting smoking, reducing stress and anxiety, killing time, EDC, ADD, and ADHD sufferers."
Wow, relieves all that and EDC too! Hold up, what is EDC? We looked it up and didn't discover anything relevant. We found Estimated Date of Confinement, the estimated delivery date for a pregnant woman, and the Electric Daisy Carnival, some electronic dance music festival in Las Vegas. And then our own ADD acted up.
• "TAKE A BREAK FROM WORK: Take a break from work and let your brain wonder [sic]. Great for anxiety, ADHD, quitting bad habits, keeping you occupied during a long drive."
Maybe it keeps one occupied to a fault. The same manufacturer cautions after the long drive reference, "Don't fall asleep!" Maybe while taking a spin isn't the ideal time to, well, take a spin.
• "LIFE BECOMES COLOURFUL AGAIN: We all have a dream to make life interesting. How many times [do] we feel tired and bored during a day? Is there a way to change this? Yes! This is the solution!"
When you can have a $2.47 hunk of plastic and metal -- one promising to help with nail biting, smoking and leg shaking -- who really needs a bucket-list trip to boring Bora Bora?
• "Excellent paly [sic] toy -- spend some easy time playing with your kids to just see who is more 'spinworthy'. Not only will your kids enjoy it, but you'll also find yourself immersed in this tension-relieving game. Help your kids develop their focus and at the same time bond through a simple, discrete [sic] and fun game." Another description said: "Defeat Fidgeters [sic], Anxiety, Focusing, ADHD: If you have the trouble an [sic] not focus on one thing or like to press knuckles, this toy is a good choice to help you to trong [sic] your brain control or release pressure."
Help with focus? Maybe. Help with spelling? Clearly not.
• "FIND INSPIRATION: Why is it that your best ideas seem to come to you at random times throughout the day? It's because you stopped trying so hard. Spinners are a great tool for inspiration at your desk."
After all, they did help me fill this column.
Spin an email to:
Spin Cycle is a smirk at pop culture. You can hear Jennifer on Little Rock's KURB-FM, B98.5 (B98.com), from 5:30 to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday.
Style on 05/21/2017