Browsing through the toy section of a store, a set of cylindrical objects caught my eye. The label that read "Kaleidoscope -- made in China" sent me down memory lane.
When I was a child, kaleidoscopes were one of my favorite toys. They were simply assembled (possibly by the seller himself) -- three mirrors set in a triangle with broken bangle pieces in the center. It was loads of fun trying out various kaleidoscopes before zeroing in on the one that was the most colourful with the most unusually cut bangle pieces.
Today's "made in China" ones don't make the grade by a long shot. They don't seem to have any moving parts (bangle pieces) and the only real change of view is if you change the colour of the light source against which you hold them.
The wonderfully creative, hand-assembled kaleidoscopes of my childhood are nowhere in sight. Has "organized" manufacturing and retail killed the simple creativity of the yesteryear? Taking away with it the small-scale entrepreneurs who are now either unemployed or doing dull low-end jobs devoid of creativity?
I really can't see that this is a change for the better in any way.
When I was a child, kaleidoscopes were one of my favorite toys. They were simply assembled (possibly by the seller himself) -- three mirrors set in a triangle with broken bangle pieces in the center. It was loads of fun trying out various kaleidoscopes before zeroing in on the one that was the most colourful with the most unusually cut bangle pieces.
Today's "made in China" ones don't make the grade by a long shot. They don't seem to have any moving parts (bangle pieces) and the only real change of view is if you change the colour of the light source against which you hold them.
The wonderfully creative, hand-assembled kaleidoscopes of my childhood are nowhere in sight. Has "organized" manufacturing and retail killed the simple creativity of the yesteryear? Taking away with it the small-scale entrepreneurs who are now either unemployed or doing dull low-end jobs devoid of creativity?
I really can't see that this is a change for the better in any way.
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