The Bane of My Existence

This is my first, and last, rant on Silly Bandz.

From the very beginning, I thought the idea was a little silly - colored, shaped, rubber bands that kids would wear on their wrists? But the phenomenon obviously took off, and every where I went, there were Silly Bandz. I even bought into the craze and started wearing three. I always knew that they were very popular among younger kids, but I don't think I realized just how popular they were until the first day that I walked into Saint Stephen's on the first day of camp. Every single kid on my group was wearing multiple Silly Bandz - and not just one or two. Every kid had at least 15-20 Silly Bandz on their wrist. Crazy. And while I originally didn't have a problem with this, it took me a very short amount of time to realize what a distraction they are. Kids are constantly taking them off their wrists to show the other kids what different Silly Bandz they have (and become completely engaged in this, ignoring any counselors/ teachers who may be talking to them). They also love to trade Silly Bandz, which is distracting enough, but what's worse is twenty minutes later when they change their mind and decide that they didn't actually want to trade and now want their original Silly Bandz back. Of course, the new owner never wants to give them up, which leads to temper tantrums and tears, and obviously, no learning being done.

So my new rule is: If your Silly Bandz leave your wrist, they become mine! It's worked out pretty well so far.