Retro Moment: Goodbye, Polaroid and Hello, Colorforms!

A couple weeks ago I dug out my 1990s Polaroid camera and film. It turns out Ranger is a huge fan of the technology. He LOVES snatching the photo from the camera and watching it develop (genetics, I think).

So I was soooo sad to get the news (from Jeremiah) that Polaroid film is being discontinued. In the face of an oncoming winter storm Ranger and I piled in the car to buy a small stockpile. While others crowded grocery stores for bread and milk, we hit the desolate film aisle of a warehouse store (before picking up some milk and forgetting bread entirely).

Meanwhile, a great item from the same era is having a comeback- Colorforms. And not the licensed-character driven ones, but the dignified geometric originals. Plus, they're currently [update: sale has ended and they're now only $5 off] $20 off list price at Amazon (Thanks, WantNot.net!).

Now I'm crossing my fingers for a Polaroid film comeback- soon!

***This is the unsolicited, independent opinion of the geek parents at Baby Toolkit. We have no financial interest in Polaroid, University Games, or Colorforms.

All Shook Up: Win HABA's (discountinued) Dice Tumbler

Although we made a cheap imitation of this great product in 2006, our substitute fell short of the glorious original (which may actually be one of Plato's ideal types).

HABA, for reasons we cannot even venture to guess, discontinued the brilliant $5 Dice Tumbler last year.

I was practically giddy (thinking them re-issued) to see them stocked at my fabulous local toy store. Sadly, they are no longer being made, but the owner bought a lot of them when she heard they were going off the market. And she sells them for $4.98, their original price (again, the store is truly fabulous).

The bottom of the dome unscrews very easily with a coin and it can hold quite a few dice (though maybe not enough for Descent).

It also works as a stand-alone toddler amusement. Ranger likes to play with it with a few random objects inside (currently it houses two fuzzy craft pompoms).

WANT TO WIN ONE?
We bought an extra for a lucky Baby Toolkit reader. CONTEST ENDED February 29, 2008 (leap year day!). We welcome international entries in this contest- though it'll probably be shipped by the most economical (aka slowest possible) conveyance.

General disclaimers regarding contests on Baby Toolkit: we'll do our best but we can't guarantee the same efforts from the postal system. If a prize item were to be lost in the lost in the mail, we would take it as a message from a higher power that the situation was simply not meant to be (no compensation or replacement will be issued). We will use a random integer generator at random.org to determine a winner. Jim, Adrienne, their parents, and Ranger are not eligible for this contest. We respect your privacy and will not use your personal information for any purpose beyond determining a winner.

And, if you don't feel lucky today- or simply want to buy one- you can call the great people at my favorite local toy store [Toys To Treasure, (812) 477-2720] who still have some in stock. They don't have a web site, but they can ship credit card orders at reasonable rates.

***This is the independent, unsolicited, unprofessional, and sometimes random opinion of the geek parents at Baby Toolkit. While we love the HABA dice tumbler and our local toy store, we're shoppers and fans- not affiliates, partners, or beneficiaries. Baby Toolkit, (c) 2008.

Weather Alert: Midwest faces Super Ugly Super Tuesday

[This is not a political post.]

This morning I leapt from bed to the sound of a tornado alert siren. Jim and I know from experience that it beats the hell out of awaking to an actual tornado.

I was already awake when the sirens began wailing. I've been sleeping fitfully since the storms arrived around midnight. Our regional radar has been on my screen many times throughout the night.

So, half asleep, with my stomach in my throat, I lurch into a long day of hazardous weather forecasts.

Anyway, it seemed a good time to remind our fellow Midwesterners (and everyone else) of some of our daily habits concerning emergency preparedness.

And here are some good tornado safety tips from NOAA.

Take care. I'm off to dig out some helmets and flashlights in case things get bad this afternoon and evening. Plus, I think the helmets spur your will to live. Who really wants to be caught dead in a helmet?

***Baby Toolkit is the independent, unsolicited opinion of geek parents presently operating on limited sleep and uneasy watchfulness. We're definitely not professionals at this.

Putting the Heart Back in Valentine's Day... and Chocolate

We're on the cusp of another gigantic choco-holiday: Valentine's. As child slavery and other despicable labor practices plague the chocolate industry- I ask that you avoid the purchase of commodities (non-Fair Trade) chocolates. (See our November post explaining the issue in more detail.)

Here at Baby Toolkit central, we're celebrating with homemade sugar cookies and cupcakes. We're even having a decorating party with friends on the 13th. That gives us a bonus party!

But chocolate abstention isn't necessary. There's a third path: Certified Fair Trade chocolate. Fair Trade costs noticeably more out of our wallets, but it doesn't deprive children of homes, education, families, food, safety, freedom, love, and, well, childhood. In essence, non-FT chocolate is heavily subsidized at the expense of kids and communities in Africa. Fair Trade Certification confirms that the labeled product is produced in a manner that is legal and just.

So, if you want to invest in a better future for chocolate, Africa, and the world buy Fair Trade.

***

My brother and I were discussing fiction the other day, and he said "The people in fiction are the only ones who give me hope for the future."

Well, not to be a total sap, the real people on these fabulous interwebs play a similar role for me.

When Jim and I gave up chocolate in 2001, we encountered universal resistance. People would say "Why resist? You alone can't change this." And when we said, "So, join us..." they gave us incredulous looks like we were proposing splitting the atom with salad tongs and silly putty.

And I would wonder how our culture could shrug off CHILD SLAVERY (is there much more odious?). People in fiction were looking pretty amazing by comparison.

But you, Internet, brought me new hope. Here are some friends who've also quit commodities chocolate:

• Chief Family Officer- a great finance-conscious family blog. Her comments have already inspired others causing a truly awesome ripple effect.
  
• Z Recommends- Jeremiah would appreciate a few more FT chocolate suppliers in his piece of Texas
• Gaming geek & friend Ronin Kakuhito
  
• superblogger mod*mom has also taken up the banner though she hasn't had chocolate or coffee in years and she organized a HUGE Fair Trade chocolate GIVEAWAY in honor of Valentine's day. So go enter!

Beyond mod*mom's awesome contest- how else can I get Fair Trade products. Some churches have Fair Trade chocolate & coffee partnership programs: Lutheran (inter-synod via Lutheran World Relief), United Church of Christ, and Catholic. Not all congregations are aware of these programs... yet (you can change this).

Manufacturers like Global Exchange, Equal Exchange, Divine Chocolate, Dagoba, and Dean's Beans have online stores and listings of local retailers.

Happy Valentine's, everyone!

***Baby Toolkit is the independent, unsolicited opinion of some random geek parents. We're definitely not experts at this. We have no relationships with any of the chocolate companies represented within this post. Baby Toolkit, (c) 2008.