The Big Book of Girl Stuff

by Bart King

  Guatemalan Worry Dolls

  In the mystical mountains of Guatemala, girls have magical dolls. They are called Worry Dolls (or muñecas de la preocupación) and they have the power to take away all of a girl’s worries! Before a girl goes to bed, she tells her worry to one of these small, colorful dolls. Then she puts it underneath her pillow. When the girl awakens, the doll has taken the worry and hidden it somewhere far away. No worries! Ningún se preocupa!

  Hello Kitty

  Although she’s innocent and pure compared to the Bratz, Hello Kitty doesn’t seem that impressive at first. She’s so darned plain. Heck, that cat doesn’t have a mouth! How could this creature have so many fans? She likes to have tea parties and make friends, but is that it? After a while, this mystery began to bother us, and we had to learn more about this plain little cat from Japan.

  Hello Kitty Facts

  Birthplace: London (Even though a Japanese company named Sanrio created her.)

  Birthdate: November 1, 1974

  Weight: The same as three apples

  Hobbies: Practicing the piano, baking, playing in the forest

  The Japanese love “cute” things so much, they have a name for their cute culture: kawaii bunka. Of course, Hello Kitty is cute for a reason; she is supposed to make money. Besides dolls, she has also been marketed on over 20,000 different product types. There are Hello Kitty clothes, purses, pencils, lunch boxes, guitars, candy, surfboards, cell phones, a car, and even Hello Kitty diamond watches (for between $3,000 and $30,000).

  *As far as we know, there is no Hello Kitty Litter for cats. Why not?

  Hello Kitty may be the only doll that has ever started a riot. In 2000, the 113 McDonald’s restaurants in Singapore did a Hello Kitty doll promotion. Over 300,000 people showed up and the dolls quickly sold out, leading to crowd control problems and broken windows. And Hello Kitty is so popular in Taiwan, she was voted the island’s third most popular “person” one year!

  As we got sucked into learning more about Hello Kitty, we became acquainted with her friends: Mimmy (Kitty’s sister), Robowan (the robot dog), Pippo (the pig), Tuxedo Sam (the penguin), Pekkle (the duck), and so on. Sanrio, Hello Kitty’s parent company, has made 450 different characters. Most are disgustingly cute.

  These are our favorite Hello Kitty characters: Chococat (another kitty with no mouth), and Keroppi (the frog). Keroppi is cool. He has a mouth!

  So you can see what happened. We were very suspicious of Hello Kitty, but as we learned more about her and her world, we got interested. Hello Kitty taught us something about life! Sometimes we think something is stupid or lame, when actually we just don’t understand it all that well. Once we do, we might like it!

  Now if you will excuse us, we need to go pack our Keroppi lunchboxes.

  Cabbage Patch Dolls

  Designed for three- to six-year-old girls, Cabbage Patch dolls were unusual because the logo had a doll’s head wrapped in cabbage leaves. Since many children hate vegetables, you might think that the dolls would have failed, but instead they sold very well. Go figure!

  The neat thing about Cabbage Patch dolls was that since each doll had its own name and identity, a girl could feel like the doll was special and all hers. Cabbage Patch dolls also raised many interesting questions for parents to answer: Do all babies come out of the dirt? If we plant cabbage, will we find dolls or babies under the leaves? Is Mr. Potato Head out in the garden also? And so forth. You can see the problem.

  *In 1952, a new toy came out. It had different plastic “face” parts (ears, eyes, mouth, etc.) that were supposed to be stuck into a real potato. After a while, the company making “Mr. Potato Head” started including a plastic potato.

  Fulla

  In the Middle East, most girls are Muslim. Although Barbie and other dolls are available there, many Muslim girls prefer to play with a doll named Fulla. (She is named after a jasmine plant.) Although Fulla looks similar to Barbie, she comes with black hair (with auburn streaks) and some different accessories. For example, Muslims kneel and pray five times a day, so Fulla comes with her own prayer mat to kneel on. And since some Muslims think a woman’s hair should be covered when she’s out in public, Fulla has a traditional head covering called a hijab. But despite her differences with Barbie, Fulla does have something in common with her. Both dolls are made in China!

  Free Advice! If a kid won’t play with her own dolls because they are “always too sticky,” don’t lend her any of yours.

  Doll Day (Hina matsuri)

  In Japan, March 3rd is sometimes known as Doll Day or the Girl’s Festival. Families with daughters give the girl really nice dolls as well as a special feast. These special dolls become part of the family’s collection and are displayed in the house decorated with peach blossoms.

  This comes from an old custom in which everyone in the family made paper dolls of themselves. Then each person’s bad luck and little white lies would be transferred to their doll. The dolls were then put in a river so that everyone’s bad fortunes and sins could be washed away.

  Computer Chip Dollbots

  There are now dolls that can talk and even make faces. Sort of scary, huh? We don’t know at what point a doll becomes a robot, but we’re getting pretty close to it. Maybe we should call them dollbots.

  A dollbot comes with a robotically controlled face, memory chips, scanners, and an artificial voice box, among other electronic gizmos. They know what time it is and can remind their “mommies” about their calendar schedules.

  Dollbots can memorize voices, so they know which human they are talking to, and call them by name. The dollbot will act like it is the child’s friend. The inventor of Amazing Amanda says that, “This doll acts like she loves you.” But remember, the dollbot is only acting!

  Cinderella

  The most famous version of the Cinderella fairy tale is probably the Disney film. It came out in 1950, and has only grown in popularity over time. Its dolls have been huge sellers. Experts note that the peak popularity for girls adoring Cinderella has decreased in age, so that now two year olds really love her! By the time the girls are six, they’re moving on to new heroes.

  This might be because princesses have an almost magical appeal to little girls. Parents worry that this is because princesses have so many possessions that it seems glamorous to own stuff. (“I want a gown, and a coach, and a royal ball, and a fairy godmother, etc.”) Disney came up with the idea of turning princesses into a brand: The Disney Princess line, which includes Ariel (The Little Mermaid), Belle (Beauty and the Beast), Jasmine (Aladdin), Pocahontas, Mulan, Cinderella, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty. The Disney Princess line covers everything from DVDs to home decoration to clothing.

  A director for Disney Consumer Products explained: “[We look at the Princess] brand as a lifestyle, filling out all the other things girls need in life.” So little girls need the Princess Fairy Tale Cruiser ($199)? That kindergartener lifestyle is tough to keep up!

  But if ALL the little girls are dreaming of being princesses, will they grow up to be disappointed that they are not actually royal millionaires? We don’t know. But next Halloween, count how many little princesses you see; we bet there are a lot!

  *For $2,500 at a Disney park, a woman can have a Cinderella theme wedding complete with the glass coach being pulled by four ponies.

  Stuffed Animals

  Sock monkeys and teddy bears are so darned cute, it’s no surprise that girls everywhere love them.

  But maybe the most famous animals ever to get stuffed are the Beanie Babies. These squishy stuffed animals came out in 1993. According to experts, the Babies got their name because they are stuffed with beans. This allows the Baby to be put into different cute poses!

  At first, there were only nine Beanie Babies, but soon there would be hundreds, and each Beanie Baby came with a short poem about itself. For example, here is the poem (written by a meanie) that came with Cubbie the Bear:

  Cubbie used to eat crackers and honey

>   And what happened to him was funny

  He was stung by fourteen bees

  Now Cubbie eats broccoli and cheese

  The weird thing about Beanie Babies was that adults started buying them as collector items for themselves, instead of giving them to, uh, babies. The company that made Beanie Babies would only make a certain number of a Baby type before “retiring” it. And the harder a Baby was to get, the more people seemed to want it! A retired Baby could be resold for thousands of dollars in some cases. (Pretty amazing, since they are just fabric stuffed with beans!)

  Adults got so crazy about this, in 1998, a group of women in England tried to hijack a truck loaded with new Beanie Babies. Luckily, the Babies were saved from these savage criminals.

  Even though the Beanie Baby company said that all Babies might be “retired” in 1999—they even put out a black bear Baby named “The End”—Beanie Babies are still being made. And now that they’re not such huge collector items, kids can actually play with them.

  Some of the strangest Beanie Babies:

  Bali the Komodo Dragon

  Buzzy the Buzzard

  Cheeks the Baboon

  Crunch the Shark

  Giganto the Wooly Mammoth

  Goochy the Jellyfish

  Huggins the Pitbull

  Pellet the Hamster

  Slayer the Dragon

  Squidward Tentacles the Octopus

  Stinger the Scorpion

  Stuffings the Turkey

  Etiquette and Manners

  “Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter what fork you use.”

  —Emily Post

  Etiquette is a fancy word for “good manners” But it isn’t enough to say “please” and “excuse me” and “thank you.” The thing is, if you care about other people, you want them to feel comfortable around you. And if you care about yourself, having good social skills will make you feel more confident.

  So etiquette is all about being considerate and having self-confidence. You have to admit, that sounds good! By the way, people with good manners are not snobs. A snob is someone who makes other people uncomfortable by acting like she is too good for them. Someone with good manners would never be snobby.

  Here’s an Etiquette Test for you. Imagine that you are talking with a friend you know pretty well, and you notice that she has something on the tip of her nose. You don’t know if it’s a booger or what, because you’re afraid that if you look too closely, it will gross you out. What do you do?

  A. Look away and try to leave as soon as possible.

  B. Point and say loudly, “Blimey! You’ve got snot on your beak!”

  C. Look slightly away and say, “You have something on your nose.”

  D. Rub your own nose with a meaningful look and hope she gets the hint.

  See scoring![8]

  Your Home

  A good place to start with etiquette is to try raising the level of politeness around your own home. Do you smile and listen to what others have to say? Do your part to make your family better!

  One way to improve your family’s etiquette level is to speak to people as if they are important. (Which, of course, they are!) People who feel they are important will (hopefully) act in a dignified way that will make you proud.

  Try giving everybody a title that you use when addressing them. Here are some examples:

  Present Title New Title

  Mom Your Most Beautiful Majesty Whom I Love

  Dad Your Royal and Wise Highness

  Sister Your Esteemed Highness

  Brother Your Most Disrespected Lowness (wait, not helpful!)

  Pets Your Grace

  Visiting Friends, Relatives My Lady, My Lord, Good Sir, Good Madam

  How to Curtsy!

  A curtsy can be used to show respect to your household royalty.

  1. Place one foot gracefully behind the other.

  2. Quickly bend slightly at the knees. #No need to bow!

  3. If you have a dress on, hold the edges of it and pull it slightly out as your knees bend. This looks extra-refined and graceful, unless you lose your balance and stagger around. (Warning: Don’t do this with a miniskirt.)

  “Saving Face”

  “Saving face” means not getting embarrassed. Polite girls are careful not to put people into embarrassing situations, and they also help people get out of them. This is a very important value in many Asian countries. The Japanese even have special agencies that hire out actors and actresses to help people save face. For example, if a woman’s family does not approve of her marriage, the bride-to-be can hire actors to play the parts of her family members at the wedding. That way she won’t have to worry about being embarrassed by their behavior!

  *Young Japanese men going out on a date sometimes hire fake “street punks” from these agencies. The actor playing the “punk” is paid to hassle the couple and then run away when the tough young man (who hired the punk) confronts him!

  All of the following situations involve you trying to help somebody save face. Remember to be cool; your tone of voice is very important. Speak in a low, casual tone, like it’s no big deal. In other words, you would say, “There’s toilet paper stuck to the bottom of your shoe” the exact same way you’d say “Pass the salt, please.”

  A Girl’s Bra-Strap Is Showing and She Doesn’t Know!

  A girl told us her system she uses with her girlfriends. She makes eye contact with her friend and then meaningfully touches her own shoulder. This means her friend should quickly adjust the strap herself. This will also work with a girl you don’t know if she has a clue.

  If you are friendly with the person, you can always just reach out and adjust the strap yourself (just like you would if the tag on her shirt was sticking out).

  A “Friend” Invites You Over . . .

  Okay, so maybe she’s more of a frienemy! Whatever. Anyway, you do NOT want to go over to her house. Our suggestion is to decline politely. The old line of “Sorry, I have plans. Thanks so much for asking me, though,” may work. (Don’t offer to do it another time if you really aren’t interested, though.)

  If the girl asks for more details, just blame it on your parents. “Yeah, tonight is a family night” or “My parents want me to do my homework then.” (You probably should ask your parents if they mind that you’re doing this!)

  A Boy’s Fly Is Down!

  This is tricky, but if you’re going to be polite, he really should know. However, if you tell him in a public way, both of you lose face.

  There are the usual things you can privately say to him: “XYZ” (eXamine Your Zipper), “XYZ PDQ” (eXamine Your Zipper Pretty Darned Quick!), or “Hey, your barn door’s open.” But if you don’t want to risk it, pull aside a friend who is a boy and tell him to tell the “offender.”

  A Boy You Don’t Want to Dance With Asks You to Dance

  Hey, if you went to a dance, you’re there to dance, right? If a guy puts himself out there to ask you, then the least you can do is dance with him at least once. If he asks you more than once and you’re not interested, then let him know. Obviously you don’t need to dance with someone if you don’t feel safe around him, but turning someone down just because he isn’t cute enough or popular enough is not good etiquette.

  A Boy You Don’t Want to Go Out with Asks You Out

  It takes a lot of courage for a boy to walk up to a girl and ask her to go out, especially if his friends are watching. As you know from the “Boys” chapter, boys are just as sensitive as girls. If you really don’t want to go out, just say, “No, thank you.” It’s gentle, yet firm. This is the BEST solution. You don’t need to lie or be nervous. Just be honest. Don’t make excuses, even if he wants them. Your feelings are reason enough. Try to be very direct and clear, so he doesn’t get confused. Definitely do not say, “Not right now” or “Maybe later.” That will just delay the problem and make it worse.

  He may not get the message at
first because he is distracted by your beauty. Other solutions are to talk about who you’re in love with (make sure it’s someone imaginary or from another school so that he can’t check) or just blame it on your parents. (“My parents won’t let me go out.”)

  Special Alert: You know how movies and books have villains that you can’t stand, and you sort of hope something bad happens to them? If you make fun of a boy who asks you to dance (or asks you out), then you are that villain.

  Bad Language! Japan is a place where good manners are an art, and women are supposed to be queens of etiquette. But at a New Year’s Eve festival on a mountain north of Tokyo, they can let it all hang out. When the sun goes down, people walk to a temple in darkness together and they can yell out anything that has been bothering them . . . and even use bad words! “My teacher is an idiot!” “I hate my little brother!” “I have a rock in my shoe!” “!@$%$!”

  Meeting Somebody

  If someone gets a good (or bad!) first impression of you, it will often stick with the person, even if it shouldn’t. So always stand up to meet someone, look the person in the eye, smile, and say, “Hi, I’m [insert your name here].” That way you have done your best to make a good impression.