Category — The Wiggles

I was reflecting yesterday on my babysitting days, and how I was once subjected to back-to-back viewings of Spice World because of the threat of tantrums. Both of those kids are now in high school, listen to Rage Against the Machine, and adamantly deny any memory of the Spice Girl assault they launched on me. In fact, they deny ever having been radically fanatical for the Spice Girls, even though I remember the begging, pleading and crying over that stupid movie. Yet more than a decade later, I still have the pop/samba-ish chorus of Spice Up YourLife tattooed in my memory, and it’s not because I ever wanted it there.

But the incident got me thinking. These teenagers were obviously uncomfortable at the mere mention of the Spice Girls and wanted to quickly change the subject. Will the same thing happen in a few years with The Wiggles? I mean, I think the Wiggles as a child trend will persist for a while, simply because a) they are totally innocuous, and b) they aren’t fighting a losing battle against the terrifically short shelf life of a pop tart. But will the kids who go bonkers for The Wiggles now someday deny ever having obsessive passion for Hot Potato?

On a completely unrelated note, has anyone ever noticed that The Wiggles look like the could be on the crew of the Starship Enterprise?

The Wiggles are basically a group of dudes who sing pretty lame songs that for some reason, children love. The Wiggles apparently tour the US, Canada and Australia pretty frequently, so there is a good chance the child in your life may cajole you into taking them to a Wiggles concert. Unless you love Pop-y classics like “Toot Toot Chugga Chugga Big Red Car”, “Do the Monkey”, or the eponymously titled “Get Ready to Wiggle”, I recommend ear plugs (and if you have a designated driver, plenty of alcohol. I don’t know how a concert of this magnitude could be tolerable without a decent buzz.) I would recommend trying to steer the toddler in question away from the concert and towards many of The Wiggles toys and items that don’t actually play music. There are plenty of Wiggles books, backpacks and kids’ clothing options to satisfy any Wiggle-loving individual. And if the kid really, REALLY wants to sing along, Wiggles DVDs are a lot less grueling to endure than an actual concert.