Time Capsule Clicks: Photos That'll Make You Say 'Those Were the Days!'

5. A Balancing Act We Still Don't Understand

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Did you find the secret of your balancing sparrow from your 90s childhood? Though we still have absolutely no understanding how these things function, we managed to balance the tip of this bird on the tip of our finger - and it still doesn't make sense! But it was this strange and amazing display of gravity that let us spend hours with this item poised on our fingertips. We still not know how this device works even now. We might so simply have to go up to our attic and retrieve it for a little sentimental scientific experiment. Both children and adults were endlessly fascinated by the balancing bird, usually fashioned like a bald eagle or another great bird of prey. Its capacity to land exactly on practically any point seems to go against accepted physics. Usually, the toy comprised a plastic bird with its wings spread out and a long, pointed beak. Its well computed center of gravity—usually attained with weighted wingtips—layered wizardry. Appearing to float in mid-air, this basic but clever design let the bird balance on its beak or perhaps on the tip of your finger. It was a desk decoration, a conversation starter, and a makeshift physics lesson all mixed together—not only a toy. It became a game of skill and patience as people would challenge one another to locate the most unstable or improbable balancing point. Although the scientific basis for it—the center of gravity aligning below the balance point—is really simple—the apparent impossibility of the bird's balance never ceased to astound. In a decade of fast technological development, this classic toy with its simplicity was refreshingly straightforward and still enthralls minds.

6. Time to Blow up Some Chemicals

These days, they are the best thing since sliced bread. Back then Bloonies Magic Plastic Bubbles provided hours of enjoyment, and nothing cooler than blowing the most perfect plastic bubble by hand. And everyone enjoys a friendly rivalry among friends to see who might blow the biggest bubble, right? And although this is inspiring some great nostalgia, we wouldn't use these items now. If our mothers taught us anything, it was not to play about with plastic; why then did we?! It was really enjoyable, of course, but we avoid these toxins today. Looking back, Bloonies were an amazing creation of their day when safety rules weren't nearly as strict as they are today. The tiny tubes housed a mystery chemical element that, when compressed onto the supplied straw and blown, would produce plastic-like bubbles that would harden in the air. Though clearly artificial, our immature brains found some pleasure in the scent. Every child had their own method; some would blow slowly for bigger bubbles and others would like rapid-fire little ones. The actual pros might even build mergers of several bubbles or bubble chains. If you could keep them whole, they would sometimes last for days and serve as temporary decorations for your room. Of course, we now shudder at the idea of directly engaging with such chemicals, but in the 90s it was only another incredible toy that stretched the bounds of our knowledge.