VLVL(4)(ee) Etch-A-Sketch

[Vincent A. Maeder]

"Sheez, all that shit you smoke, your brain must be like a
Etch-A-Sketch."  (VL, Ch. 4, p. 45)  Shit here havin' the connotation of
marijuana or hashish
http://www.macquariedictionary.com.au/p/dictionary/slang-s.html while
the Etch-A-Sketch is a great simile http://www.etch-a-sketch.com/ that
will bring a smile to all readers.  Interesting how the Etch-A-Sketch
could be seen as a metaphor for TV with its plastic case the size of a
small 9" TV, all in black and white (or, sort of) with images traced
across the surface only to be wiped out by the next image.  Oh, well,
here's a little Ohio Arts' propaganda before we go. 

"The first Etch A SketchR toys were produced on July 12, 1960.  Here's
the story.In the late 1950's, a man by the name of Arthur Granjean
invented something he called ``L'Ecran Magique", the magic screen, in
his garage.  In 1959, he took his drawing toy to the International Toy
Fair in Nuremburg, Germany.  The Ohio Art Company saw it but had no
interest in the toy.  When Ohio Art saw the toy a second time, they
decided to take a chance on the product.  The L'Ecran Magique was soon
renamed the Etch A SketchR and became the most popular drawing toy in
the business.  In the 1960, Ohio Art used television to advertise the
Etch A SketchR.  The response was so incredible that the company decided
to continue manufacturing them until noon Christmas Eve 1960.  The Etch
A SketchesR were then immediately shipped to the West Coast so people in
California could buy Etch A SketchR on Christmas Eve and have them for
Christmas."