Do you remember those tiny magnetic beads that you could build huge things with? Those were quickly taken off the market, after kids started making fake lip rings with them and accidentally swallowing them. Literally tore about their intestines. Gross.
There are so many toys with similar stories. It's amazing how many things that are obviously dangerous in childrens' hands that companies just sold anyway. Here are a few examples.
U/Breadsticksamurai asked: Older generations of Reddit: What toys did you have as a child that would be considered too dangerous to be given to a child today?
So many awful things accidentally eaten by an unbeknownst child, so little space in this article.
Sounds delicious.
Super Elastic Bubble Plastic.
The deliciously toxic polyvinyl fragrance was too much to resist. Once the bubble deflated, leaving what looked like a wad of chewed gum almost always ended up being chewed by my kid self. Play-Doh (salty), Silly Putty (faint/mild tasting), Slime (wet/salty), modeling clay (greasy), and Bubble Plastic (sweet/rubbery). I knew them all, and I'm sure I wasn't alone. Looking back, all of them seem harmless EXCEPT Bubble Plastic. It came out of a metal tube that was probably lead, and it smelled sweet, but toxic.... the way a pile of brand new rubber baby doll heads mixed in with a barrel or two of whatever Monsanto was dumping into the ocean that day. What could go wrong?
When that didn't kill us, there was always the mosquito spray truck we used to chase after on our bikes at night. God only knows what brand of Agent Orange they were dispensing, but we must have inhaled gallons of that, and no one gave it a second thought.
Damn you, Fisher Price.
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Fisher Price people. They still have them, but they're no longer sized to fit exactly into a small child's pharynx. Everything else had to be scaled to fit the new fat ones: garages with only two levels instead of three, the plane was all wrong, the castle didn't have the oubliette and the swing-out stairs...
And as with any little girl, the curvy blue blonde-ponytailed mom was my ideal for what I'd look like as a grown-up. Except with legs.
Not consumed, but still painful nonetheless.
Slap bracelets. The old ones had a sharp piece of metal inside them and those HURT. And of course we didn't just wear them, that was no fun. We had to have full on playground wars and come in from recess with our arms all torn up. Also I knew two different kids who broke their ankles using a Skip-It. Thank goodness I was an Indoor Kid, those things would have been a disaster for my clumsy a**.
Playgrounds have changed so much since back in the day. Back then, they were basically death traps.
Metal slides were the worst.
In the late 90s my elementary school had a metal slide about 15ft tall. The ladder to climb up, and the "railing" around the 1ft wide platform at the top were made of skinny metal tubing that got slick af when it was wet. The sides of the slide were about 6 inches tall, super easy to just go over the edge. Several kids fell or were pushed off over the years when I was there. One boy had to be hospitalized not once, not twice, but three times after jumping off it.
Around 2001 the school tore it down and replaced it with an extremely lame plastic slide about 8ft tall, with sides about 1ft tall.
Oh, and I have a children's science textbook from the 1930s that describes all sorts of experiments with electricity kids can do with the power outlets in their home. What could go wrong?
Those are deadly.
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On playgrounds, there's always the spinning gate.
It was a gate on a pole. You stood on the back of it and kick off like a skateboard and just... spin around on it.
Think a merry-go-round, but smaller and crazier.
See? Those slides were awful.
Playground equipment like see-saws, merry go-round, and metal slides. I once burned a layer of skin off my thighs going down a hot metal slide (summer in Georgia) in shorts.
Some things really make me wonder, why were we even allowed access to these things in the first place?
I’m sorry WHAT?
My dentist used to give me Vials of Mercury to bring to school for show and tell. My parents bought me a rock collection at a natural history museum that included a chunk of asbestos from which you could pull fibrous material. We also had metal trucks with extremely sharp edges and lead based paint jobs.
The most intense water guns.
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Super Soakers where getting a little out of control from the mid 90's to the early 2000's.
They held a ton of water and felt like someone was spraying you with a pressure washer; hitting someone in the eyes would temporarily blind them and crying wasn't uncommon.
Slip and slides whew also pretty rough when a rock poked up through the plastic and caught your stomach after a 30 foot head start. So much blood.
Sounds like an accident waiting to happen.
I have a crayon melter that melts crayons and lets you pour it into molds so you could make your own crayons and rings.
Turns out production stopped because of a failure to stop the heater from being turned on if the lid was opened.
This is just terrifying.
I had a large red plastic toy box that looked like a treasure chest in my bedroom closet growing up. When I was around 7, late at night the toy box would start taking to me from the closet, calling my name, Michael, in a low, creaky voice. For weeks, I was terrified to fall asleep because I knew I'd wake up to the voice again, yet every morning when the sun filled my room I'd open the lid to the box and it would just be toys, like it should be.
Finally, I was able to convince my mom that I wasn't making it up, and got her to sleep in my room that night with me, and shortly thereafter she woke me up with "Michael wake up, I hear it".
Long story short, we discovered it was my Talking K.I.T.T. with very low batteries, talking away in slow motion by itself.
I don't know if those should be illegal, but I definitely feel like the experience damaged me.
It’s honestly a wonder we survived our childhoods.
How did they get away with making those?
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Playground pre-restrictions 1965'ish. Metal rings hanging from chains similar to swinging from monkey bars but a lot more fun.
Update: I lost a front tooth since I was leaning in to give her grief to hurry up (patience has never been a strong suit.) she swung back to launch and connected with my mouth. I did not wait around to learn if it was intentional nor did my parents File a law suit. Ah, those were the unsafe days.
What even.
Jarts! Later in life (as in "the 80s") they redesigned them so they were rounded at the end. The ones we had were cast aluminum with a weighted point and fins.
For those unfamiliar, the intent was to set up two targets, and each player (or team) would stand at opposite ends, with the goal to set the lawn dart in the ground within the circle. Yes, we would throw giant metal darts at each other, playing a game that our parents bought willingly for us.
I still remember overshooting one time and leaving a nice hole in the neighbor's siding!
They didn’t think that through.
We had Thundercats rings that went to the plastic toy models of the characters. The rings (essentially a battery) would connect to the back of the model to make their eyes light up. Too bad the batteries would ground out and melt the plastic on both the toy and the ring.
Ok, these were lowkey really cool.
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Beyblades.
Apparently they still exist and host tournaments but they are much smaller than they used to be.
To this day, the most fun toys I remember having.
Not gonna lie, I lowkey would totally get back into them as a hobby as an adult, kinda been there in the back of my mind over the last few years.
Even the kids were reckless in their toy creation.
All the things we made. Bobby pins and a rubber band, lawnmower go-kart, treehouse (ever try to climb a tree with a 8' long 2x6 and a hammer while biting on a mouth full of nails) gotta start somewhere. Wrist rocket shooting 1" steelies.
Personally, I remember back when there were those giant spaceship things you could climb up on old playgrounds. I'm pretty a sure several people died on those things.
It seems like a lot of toys are more safe now, but arguably less cool. At least, kids of that time might say so.
For many childhood memories are overrun by living nightmares.
Yes, children are resilient, but that doesn't mean that the things we see as babes don't follow us forever.
The horrors of the world are no stranger to the young.
Redditor -2sweetcaramel- wanted to see who was willing to share about the worst things we've seen as kids, so they asked:
"What’s the creepiest thing you saw as a kid?"
Serious Danger
"Me and my best friend would explore the drainage tunnels under the Vegas area where we grew up. These were miles long and it was always really cool down there so it was a good way to escape the heat of our scorching hot summers. We went into this one that goes under the Fiesta casino and found a camp with a bunch of homeless people."
"Mind you we are like 11 years old lol. And we just kept going like it was nothing. It wasn’t scary then but when I look back at it we could have been in some serious danger. Our parents had no idea we did this or where we were and we had no cellphones. We could have been kidnapped and never have been found."
oofboof2020
Waiting for Food
"I was at a portillos once when I was 12 and I was waiting with my little brother at a booth while my parents got our food. This guy was standing with his tray kind of watching me then after a couple of minutes he started to walk over really fast not breaking eye contact with me."
"He was 2 feet from the table and my dad came out of nowhere and scared the s**t out of him. He looked so surprised and just said he wanted to see if I’d get scared or not. He left his tray full of food near the door and left. My folks reported him but we never went to that location again since we found a better one closer to home."
nowhereboy1964
Captain Hobo to the Rescue
"When I was a pretty young teen, my friends and I were horsing around in San Francisco and started hanging out to smoke with some homeless guys. Another homeless dude came up and began aggressively trying to shake us down for anything (money, smokes, a ride, drugs- all of it) and wouldn’t take no for an answer."
"We got in over our heads and could tell this guy was now riling the other 2 guys up and they were acting like they wanted to jump us. Some grandfather-looking old homeless man appeared out of nowhere and yelled at us to get the f**k out of here- nice kids like us don’t belong down here at this hour!!"
"Captain Hobo saved our lives that night. My parents sincerely thought we were at a mall all day lol."
FartAttack911
Survival
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"I was 7 and survived the 2004 tsunami in Thailand. Witnessed the wave rise way above the already massive palm trees (approx. 40ft?) and my family and I watched/heard the wave crash into the ground from a rooftop."
faithfulpoo
These Tsunami stories are just tragic.
On the Sand
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"We were a group of kids who went to swim in a local lake. And there was a dead body on the beach with their hands raised and their legs bent unnaturally that local police just took out of the same lake. I've never put my foot in these waters again."
oyloff
Be Clever
"I was walking to school and I was about 5 or 6 years old and some guy pulled up beside me in his car and asked if I would get in. He also offered me sweets to do so. I said no. The creepy bit was when he calmly said ‘clever boy’ to me, then drove off. I’ve never even told my parents or anyone else about this as it would most likely freak them out."
OstneyPiz
Bad Jokes
"Dad's side of the family pranked me by burying a fake body on our back property and had me dig it up to find valuables. Was only allowed to use a lantern for light. They stuffed old clothes with chicken bones. Sheetrock mud where the head was... Random fake jewelry as the treasures... I was like maybe 10 or 11.. I remember digging up the boot first and started gagging because it became real at that point."
Alegan239
YOU
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"Woke up to find my little brother staring at me in the dark, asking, Are you really you?"
PrettyLola2004
Siblings can really be a bunch of creepers.
No one should talk to others in the dark though.
Not all pet owners have the same relationship with their pets.
While anyone who decides to become a pet owner, or pet parent as some say, love their pets equally, some never ever let them leave their side.
Taking their pet with them to work, running errands, even on vacations.
Many pet parents even allow their pets to share their bed with them when going to sleep.
For others though, this is where a line is finally drawn.
Redditor Piggythelavasurfer was curious to hear whether pet owners allowed their pets to share their bed with them, as well as the reasons why they do/don't, leading them to ask:
"Do you let your pet sleep in your bed? Why/why not?"
The Tiny Issue Of Water...
"Absolutely not."
"I have fish."- Senior-Meal3649
Everyone Gets Lonely Eventually...
"I adopted an eleven year old cat the day before Halloween."
"She has mostly lived in my closet since I got her, and she hasn’t been too interested in coming out."
"Last night, she came out of my closet and jumped up on my bed, and crawled under my covers and curled up by my feet to sleep."
"I was so happy!"- YellowBeastJeep
The Comforting Reminder That You're Not Alone...
"I recently lost my Greyhound but I used to let him sleep on my bed with me."
"The company was nice and he was no trouble to have on my bed."- HoodedMenace3
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What Do You Mean Allow?
"I have no choice."
"She is a cat, cats do whatever they want."- Small_cat1412
"He lets me sleep in my bed."- Poorly-Drawn-Beagle
Wouldn't Have It Any Other Way
"I carry my old boy upstairs to bed every night."- worst_in_show
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Who Needs An Alarm Clock?
"I let my two cats sleep with me."
"They're so full of love and just want cuddles all the time."
"And so do I."
"We've all developed a lil routine."
"Get to bed, oldest sleeps on my feet to keep them warm, youngest lies in my arm while I lie on my side (she the little spoon), then when I snooze my alarm for work in the morning the youngest paws at my face and meeps loudly to wake me up."- GhostofaFlea_
Whose Bed Is It Anyway?
"Yes."
"They're also kind enough to let me squeeze into whatever space they've left for me."
"Although I do get a few dirty looks off them."- Therealkaylor
"I found this tiny kitten screaming her head off under a car."
"Would not come out."
"Got some food and some water in dishes."
"I stood by the tire so she couldn't see my feet."
"She got curious about the food and water and started gobbling it down."
"I thought she would bolt when I squatted down."
"She was too busy eating."
"I grabbed her by the nape of the neck and all four legs went straight out and she tried to scratch me to death."
"I got her in the door and tossed her toward the couch."
"She ricocheted off the couch as if she was a ping pong off a table and I lost sight of her."
"I put out food and water and a sandbox and did not see that kitten for three days."
"On the third day, I came home and she was on my bed pillow."
"I thought she would bolt when I came near, but she didn't."
"I wanted to sleep so I tried to scoot her little butt off my pillow."
"She would not go."
"I put my head down to sleep and that is the way it was from then on."
"She ran the roost."- Logical_Cherry_7588
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Sleeping Is A Prerequisite...
"No, he's a cat and he cannot keep still during the night."
"He walks across the headboard, opens the closet doors, jumps into the windows and rustles the blinds, etc."
"If he would sleep he could stay, but alas, he's a ramblin' man."- Spong_Durnflungle
Saying No Just Isn't An Option...
"'Let'."
"Lol."
"It's a cat's world and I'm happy to be on her good side."- milaren
Felines Only!
"The cat does, the dog doesn't and the horse certainly does not either."- Xcrowzz
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Is That My Hair On That Pillow?
"My dog is perfect."
"She comes up, cuddles til we start to fall asleep, then gets down to sleep on her bed so she doesn't get too hot."
"Jumps back up in the early morning for wake up cuddles."
"The hair everywhere is the only downside but she is so cozy, what can you do."- HoodieWinchester
It is easy to understand how some people are able to fall asleep more easily knowing their friend and protector is there, in bed, with them.
Though we can't blame others who don't want to run the risk of being scratched or bitten in the middle of the night either...