“恨谁给谁买”：火爆圣诞礼物 逼疯孩子家长

Each year as Christmas rolls around, there always seems to be one toy that appears on every child's list to Santa.
每年圣诞节来临的时候，总有那么一款每个孩子都想要的圣诞礼物。

But this year, that toy is quickly becoming the cause of despair amongst parents - many sick of spending hours removing the small spiky balls from their child's long hair.
但今年的这款“热门”玩具可谓是家长们的噩梦，这种缠在孩子长发上的扎人小球让很多家长都崩溃了。

Social media has been flooded with images of tangled tresses and warnings from parents about the popular Bunchems pack, which is made up of over 400 sticky, squishy marble-sized building balls - each adorned with tiny hooks.
社交媒体上铺天盖地的都是各种缠瞎了的头发照片和家长们建议不要购买这款玩具的热心忠告。这款火爆的拼装玩具名叫“Bunchems”，内含400多个又黏又软的小球，每个只有弹珠那么大，上面带着小小的“倒刺”。

The description alone was a red flag for many, but those who didn't foresee the potential of the colourful balls to become wedged in hair found out the hard way.
虽然只看玩具描述就能让很多家长望而却步，但有些人完全没料到这些彩色小球缠头发的功力，因此吃了不少苦头。

'A toy spawned from the darkest depths of hell,' one disgruntled customer wrote.
一位顾客愤愤地写道：“这个玩具是从地狱最黑暗的底层蹦出来的！”

'Horrible, horrible, horrible toy for kids. I just spent the last TWO AND A HALF hours (absolutely, 100 percent not an exaggeration) attempting to remove 14 of these b*****d balls out of my daughter's hair.'
“真是个特别特别特别可怕的儿童玩具。我刚花了两个半小时（绝对毫无夸张）从我闺女的头发上解下来14个该死的小球。”

'Buy this toy for someone if you hate them or their child. They are the most incredible choking hazards on the planet. They bring pain and misery, tears, fighting, broken and ripped hair, and questions of one's sanity in handling life in general.'
“恨谁就给谁家孩子买这个玩具吧！它们是这个世界上最不可思议、最令人窒息的祸害。它带来的只有痛苦、悲哀、眼泪、纠结以及断掉的、撕扯下来的头发，再也无法理智地面对生活了。”

'Great if you want to pay $200 to have them professionally removed from the hair,' another wrote.
还有人写道：“你最好花上200美元找专业人士帮你把这些球解下来。”

'I am a hairstylist and spent a total of 4 hours removing these from a little girls hair today! She had 45 of them matted into her hair! 4 hours of pain and $200 later ..... Not really worth it.'
“我是个发型师，今天我花了整整四个小时从一个小姑娘头上解这些球！她头发上居然缠了45个球！她遭了整整四个小时的罪还得给我200美元……只能说真的不值！”

But considering Target Australia has already sold out of the Bunchems Mega Pack, the reviews appear to be making little impact on parents shopping for Christmas and many stand by the controversial toy.
虽然这款玩具引发这么多争议，但在澳大利亚的“塔吉特”百货商场，就连超大包的“Bunchems”都卖光了。看来上面这些评价对圣诞采购的父母以及这款玩具的支持者来说几乎没任何影响。

'These are awesome. Reading these reviews are ridiculous. These are such a good toy,' a frustrated Dad wrote.
一位没买到玩具的沮丧父亲写道：“这玩具多好啊！大家的评价都太可笑了。这款玩具真的不错。”

'Hair tangles? The warnings are both on the instructions and box. How do these possibly get SO ENTANGLED in hair, when they are "brushed against"? No, your kids are obviously doing something they shouldn't be doing.'
“缠头发上了？玩具说明书和包装盒上都有注意事项啊，怎么可能碰一下头发就缠得这么死？肯定是你家孩子瞎玩弄的。”

'Let's say you have a Honda, and got into an accident. Would you call the dealership or manufacturer? No. Blame yourself, or the at-fault person...this infuriates me. This is such a creative toy. Builds motor skills, and enhances creativity.'
“这么说吧，比如你开着辆本田撞车了，你会给经销商或者制造商打电话投诉吗？肯定不会啊！只能怪自己或责任方……这些瞎评论的人真是气死我了。这款玩具多有创意啊，培养动手能力，还提高了孩子的创造力。”

Vocabulary
spawn：产卵；大量生产
disgruntled：不满的；不高兴的
sanity：明智，理智
tangle：缠结；乱作一团

英文来源：每日邮报
译者：许楠楠
审校&编辑：杜娟