ORDERED THE INSTA-DAUGHTER the Digital Blue kids’ video camera. Frankly, I would rather have spent more and gotten her a real one, but this is what she’s been on about for weeks. The good news is that it’s not terribly expensive (by the standards of today’s kids’ toys) so when she outgrows it it won’t be a total loss.

It’s a far cry from this kids’ toy from an earlier age, isn’t it? But the Johnny Astro was a great toy, actually. (Three cheers for the Bernoulli effect!) Er, and a lot cheaper, even allowing for inflation.