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#Throwback: Miracle Fish

By Catherine Toth Fox • November 9, 2013 • Musings, The Daily Dish

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A while back I stumbled across something I hadn’t seen in years.

OK, decades.

The Fortune Teller Miracle Fish. Remember those?

And I couldn’t even tell you where we used to get these red plastic fish from, either, or whether we believed in them or not. But I do remember them.

Here’s how it works:

You place this paper-thin fish in the palm of your hand and its movements will indicate your mental state. Jealousy, indifferent, romantic — the fish knows.

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Supposedly, the fish is made from sodium polyacrylate that will grab onto whatever water molecules it touches, thereby changing its shape.

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I don’t know if this means I’m in love or passionate — or crazy to believe either! At the every least, it was a fun trip down memory lane.

Now all I need is a set of Chinese jacks and I’m good to go!

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About the Author

Catherine Toth Fox

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16 Comments

  • Reply Teri K November 9, 2013 at 10:17 pm

    I do remember them from small kid time. I really believed that it was telling me my fortune. I didn’t play Chinese jacks, but I played bean bags. Thanks for bringing back some great memories.

    • Reply Catherine Toth November 11, 2013 at 9:50 am

      You’re welcome! I was thinking about ordering a bunch of these for a Christmas party. Wonder if there’s a site with all sorts of old games and tricks…

  • Reply Eric November 9, 2013 at 11:19 pm

    How weirdly coincidental…a friend at work just gave me one of these a couple of weeks ago. I had never seen these growing up. My friend said she got them from Amazon of all places….

    • Reply Catherine Toth November 11, 2013 at 9:49 am

      Yep, for $6!

  • Reply Annoddah Dave November 10, 2013 at 7:11 am

    CAT: Haven’t seen one of those since I was a kid…that was when Dairyman’s delivered milk to the house.

    • Reply Catherine Toth November 11, 2013 at 9:49 am

      OK, that’s oooooooooold. LOL

  • Reply Dennis November 10, 2013 at 9:37 am

    This is really old. Older than me. Still looking for mate at 70! Curling sides.

    • Reply Catherine Toth November 11, 2013 at 9:49 am

      Is it? I couldn’t figure out how old these were…

  • Reply Glenn D November 11, 2013 at 5:56 am

    Hi Cat, growing up overseas, I’ve never seen these before. That is cool. When kid time, we played the Japanese version of pogs called “menko”, marbles “bee-dama”, and flat marbles called “ohajiki”. And what are Chinese Jacks? How are they different from regular jacks?

    • Reply Catherine Toth November 11, 2013 at 9:49 am

      Menko? I gotta look that up! I remember ohajiki. I had some but never knew how to play with them. Chinese jacks are very different — the whole game is different and there’s no bouncing ball!

  • Reply matt November 11, 2013 at 7:30 am

    i think there was a magic/novelty store around ft. street mall where we used to get these. maybe it was an item at king fort magazine shop. kinda hazy right now, but i def. remember ft. street mall and these fish connected somehow.

    • Reply Catherine Toth November 11, 2013 at 9:48 am

      Was that the name of the magic shop at Alakea??

  • Reply Steve November 11, 2013 at 1:14 pm

    Hi Cat:

    I believe the name of the magic shop on Alakea Street was called “The Magic And Novelty Center”. I may be wrong because it was so long ago, but I think it was originally owned by Jimmy “Tengu The Magician” Yoshida and later by Ruth Hirokawa, the mother of illusionist John Hirokawa.

    • Reply Catherine Toth November 12, 2013 at 4:00 pm

      OooooOOoOo! Thanks for writing back! I haven’t thought of that place in EONS! I went there as a kid. Bought things like “Morning Glory” — stink cologne — and gum that turned your tongue black. Ah, the memories!

  • Reply A.T. November 12, 2013 at 12:03 pm

    That fish is accurate as my 8 ball fortune teller and ouija board.

    • Reply Catherine Toth November 12, 2013 at 4:00 pm

      LOL, true that!

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About Me

About Me
Born and raised on O‘ahu, Hawaiʻi, Catherine Toth Fox has been chronicling her adventures in her blog, The Cat Dish, for more than a decade. She worked as a newspaper reporter in Hawai‘i for 10 years and continues to freelance—in between teaching journalism, hitting the surf and eating everything in sight—for national and local print and online publications. She’s currently the editor of HAWAIʻI Magazine.

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