Guatemala: "heartbreak device" spotted in mercado
In last week's edition of the Boing Boing Boing podcast (Link, episode #8), Mark Frauenfelder talked about a string of incidents (Link) in which children found themselves happily imprisoned inside these machines where you try to grab fuzzy toys with a mechanical claw. Our guest that week, John Hodgman, calls them "heartbreak devices" because "they are not particularly responsive to the poor reflexes and ill coordinated movements of a 5 year old, so very little comes of it except for tears -- and the enjoyment of watching a claw."Anyway, I saw one of these things in a mercado in Antigua, Guatemala today, but lacked a child to cram inside.
As Flickr user timmycorkery points out, "Possibly the best part of this photo is the counterpoint of the Hodgman quote with the sign in the back of the machine asking that the user not smack the glass with the claw, i.e. precisely what the poor reflexes and ill-coordinated movements of a five year old will cause to happen."
Labels: Guatemala
3 Comments:
Xeni: In Antigua, check out "La Fonda de la Calle Real". Excellent food! Ask to see the chair Bill Clinton sat in.
Street kids get the technique to get the prices and sometimes offer their services to grab prices out of the machine.
@ anonymous, yes, La Fonda is an awesome place to eat! I think they're one of the best if not the best restaurant in Antigua. They do great breakfasts, too!
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