Running from empty.
Not cutting it for summer fun. (1930.Germany.Bunds archiv, Bild102-09651/Commons.wikimedia.org)
Not exactly the free time and road trips that most envision with summer’s arrival. Kids, those delightful inventive darlings, always manage to come up with some new form of entertainment – a new fad to post on social media.
Only for the fleet of foot, those who have some weird skill to become invisible as needed, or ones who will turn anything into a social commentary.
Fast food restaurants are livid and complaining they never submitted an application to become the performance venue.
This summer’s trendy competition: “Snatch and Dash” or “Snatch and Grab”.
It’s perfect. You got feet? Hands? You’re set.
- No special equipment needed for the runner. (Good running shoes, helmets, face bandanas or masks optional)
- A team member with a car. (But you can always “draft” an unsuspecting driver. They’ll be really excited at being chosen to participate!)
- A friend with cell phone or GoPro camera required to record the event.
- Any fast food restaurant with a drive through window will work.
Pretty, but not the best outfit for game success.(Powerhouse Museum/Lennon.Australia/US PD/Commons.wikimedia.org)
The game plan:
The vehicle driver/team member moves into fast food lane normally so as not to attract attention. Orders a bunch of food, then pulls around to the pick-up window.
Only the driver makes sure to pull up leaving a wide space between the vehicle and the food pass through window.
The chosen one/the runner, having exited the car before ordering takes place, lurks either behind the car or flat against the wall of the building out of view.
As the restaurant employee leans and stretches his/her arm in an attempt to pass the bag of food to the driver in the vehicle, the runner leaps into action, speeds along side the car, grabs the bag of food, and runs forward past the car, the employee’s arm, and the restaurant.
Free food! No tipping or tripping allowed.
The thrill of achievement. And a post for all to see!
And of course it’s all street drama to protest poverty/ income inequality/ the evils of big corporations/ a plot to feed the masses unhealthy food.
Social commentary.
Nothing to do with self promotion.
Ah, the games of summer. Time to fill up.
Don’t let this one pass you by.
Phil, the Philosopher Mouse of the Hedge.
Read more? (or watch some event videos?) ““Snatch and Grab trend shakes up Houston fast food workers”
Fast food pick-up widow security? Don’t laugh. It’s Texas. You know how they are.(1905 “Hopalong Takes Command”/Outing Magazine/Delaware Museum/Commons.wikimedia.org)
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Philosopher Mouse of the Hedge 
It’s only a matter of time before a window cashier injures his or her arm when someone yanks a bag from it. Or faints from fright!
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This whole thing is pretty dangerous. If caught, the fast food places are promising to prosecute. Or someone catches motion from behind their car moving towards them and clobbers them, runs over someone, or shoots them out of fear. Planking was less dangerous! Thanks for grabbing a comment to dine on.
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that’s crazy… where are the times the Kids played harmless games like Mailbox Baseball or created a Mentos Bomb?
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Maybe the kids will calm down after finals are over and they are thinking more sanely. All those late night studying sessions and sleep deprivation must be causing a lack of logic and reasoning.(Snort) Trying to be nice here.
I always wondered. Is it called Mailbox golf or hockey if the kid is in the back of a pickup truck using a stick? (guess it depends if the mailbox is just dented or launched?)
Don’t go out chasing any cars, Easy! Not worth the risk. Snooze on the couch like Molly. Thanks for trotting over to chat
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They have way too much time on their hands….
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And far too little thinking going on in their minds? Sigh. Always something. Don’t know how wide spread the fad is, but hope something else comes along quickly. Thanks for running a comment over.
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This is the first I’ve heard of it. Of course that doesn’t mean it’s not here. Just that sometimes I am oblivious.
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Oh, the badness young’uns get up to. We didn’t steal anything( we borrowed it occasionally) when I was young but we got up to just as much badness- and I was low key. Sigh. When I was a freshman at university (average ages 17-20) the students had a treasure hunt sponsored by the student union. The first prize was a high end stereo with big speakers, and all the bells and whistles – this was before you could hold Carnegie Hall in the palm of your hand. The special part of this was that there was NO treasure to find – the rules said that whoever brought back the most unusual treasure won. They really did not think that through. There were teams from the fraternities and teams of friends and teams representing various programs – i.e the engineers, the pre-meds, the business team, etc. Any group could register as a team as long as all members were undergrads. Oh my Phil, it wasn’t good. The police were not pleased. One group picked up a whole bus shelter by unbolting it from the ground and carried it to the student union bldng. One group “borrowed” an ambulance that was off duty; one group brought in the Zamboni from a nearby rink; one group took over the university radio station and declared it held hostage for the prize; one group actually claimed a local historic fort (the Citadel) and raised their group’s home-made flag over the battlements; and so on. None of these were “borrowed” with permission. Once the police figured out what was going on, they sent officers to the student union bldng and arrested each group as they came in with stolen or “borrowed”goods. The university got heck and the student union was put on notice – one more prank and they would be sanctioned by the university (which meant cutting off funding). You will never guess which group won the first prize: the winning group snuck into the student union bldng , stole the first prize and then brought it around to the judges as their entry. Bwahahaha!
Anyway, there weren’t guns around at that time and place so there wasn’t much chance of anyone getting shot or any injuries happening (although the city hall was livid over the ambulance saying it could have cost lives, but that wasn’t true – who dispatches an off duty ambulance?) The risk is much higher for your hamburglers as we have become a less kind society – even though what they are stealing is food – which I am sure they eat – and with a total of less than $20 per hit. I can certainly see someone getting shot for $20 worth of fast food in today’s climate. Sigh
Good post Phil Thank You.
As an aside, Phil, I just guest posted a three part post (all published now) on a new blog that starts at https://julienoblog.wordpress.com/2015/05/18/melanie-part-1/ If you have time, I would be honored for you to drop by. Thank You.
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Now that was a creative contest. Open ended challenges are always risky at colleges. (College towns really do have their patience pushed sometimes.) Clever to haul in the trophy itself. Stuffing people inside of VW Bugs was always a big thing where we were (27 was pretty average total) or picking up a VW and placing it between pillars of some administration building…or upstairs in a dorm.
You are right, atmosphere and risk is very different now…much less fun and too many too quick to find offense and take violent action in retaliation. Far too much anger.
I can see someone getting run over after being stupid, then filing a lawsuit against everyone within 20 miles. Great.
Speaking of great – what an interesting blog over there. Hope you manage to slip in more words over there! Thanks for driving by here
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That’s a dumb thing to do with so little reward for the effort. Like Carrie said, I wonder how long until someone gets hurts. Dumb, dumb, dumb…
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Wonder if it’s just here. If it’s on YouTube and social media, watch out. (Didn’t their moms yell at them to not play in the street or around cars?) Don’t think this activity counts as outdoor play which everyone is encouraging. (Quick, someone hand them a new video game.)
Thanks for driving along
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It’s always something, isn’t it?
Nancy
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Hula hooping. Just too tame for now. (giggles)
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Not impressed! Just waiting for someone to get hurt. I wish these kids would do something more useful with there time. Plenty of opportunities, says this old fogey. 🙂 SO glad no one ever put my VW in a weird place, although a bunch of guys did move it once while I was downtown.
janet
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Those old VW inspired so much. And they floated so well just needed a little paddling to move along down the flooded streets – engines high and dry afterwards, too. Had to love them.
Kids need to listen up. Your fad is fattening. Go find some VWs and get in shape! Thanks for driving in with some commonsense suggestions
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Wow I am loving this game… “Snatch and Dash”… I could even join the players! wink
All the best to you. Happy weekend ahead! Aquileana 😀
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Get your friend Mercury to loan you his winged boots? Now that would be a real hoot. Can just see the headlines: “Flies with fries.” Thanks for ketchup-ing with a comment!
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Hadn’t heard of this. Sounds like runners up for the Darwin Award!
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Oh, maybe that’s the real game. How astute of you to notice. Thanks for giving us the heads-up on this one
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This one won’t be too hard to handle, once the franchisees get up to speed. Notify the cops what you’re going to do, add one plain clothes officer around the corner, and voila! Someone is going to get what they deserve, and it won’t be a burger. Do you want fries with that arrest? 🙂
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You weren’t here when the 7-11 stores were in the state. Thugs started robbing them too frequently. The company did a big media announcement: “We have armed guards behind one way glass at our stores. If you come in and attempt to rob them you will be shot.” And they build a security guard room with a window in each store. The trained, licensed guards rotated around the cit so no one knew when/where they were. Big signs were on the entrances about the policy. After a couple of robbers got blown away, the convenience store robberies mysteriously stopped – for years. The fast food robberies are a bit worrisome as they look like a training ground – a JV version of rob the drive-up people at the ATMs that are so common now (they even know to cover/destroy the security cams). They need to stop saying “Oh, stop, it’s dangerous and go back to stop stealing.” Hope the kids find another way to entertain themselves – and to get to hits on social media ( which is what is driving this thing. It’s not hunger). Waiting for the first one to get run over – and the lawsuits that will follow (It’s not the kid’s fault – just a childish prank….)
I like your idea. Put it on the menu boards/signs out front “Want fries with that arrest?” Great slogan! Thanks for tossing that on the grill!
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I want to be your new best friend, Linda.
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You’ll have to do teak. (giggles)
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I can supervise, Phil. I’m good at giving direction….
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If you can hold an umbrella and fan while you supervise, you’re probably extra good and welcomed!
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When we were kids, the game was called “Chew and Screw” and involved bolting out of the restaurant before the check was paid. Naturally I was never party to such mischief — it fell into the category of “boys will be bad boys.”
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Bolting actual sit down restaurants was the stuff of movies and poor graduate students. Everyone nervously mentioned it, and knew a friend of a friend who did it, but never actually met anyone who ate and ran.
Oh, darn, they say everything’s been done before – does this mean the “new” fad is simply an update? Participants will be crushed.(hopefully not) Let the summer games begin! (and watch before driving out that drive-thru?) Thanks for carefully rolling a comment down this way
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I always enjoy the way you present current events (even if I don’t appreciate the events themselves). That last image is perfect, and made me laugh (I don’t follow “don’t laugh” instructions very well). Crazy stuff.
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Glad you got a grin. Might as well laugh along with life – (Is there some creative writer’s room somewhere that keeps coming up with all this whacky stuff?) Enjoy the weekend!
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The reward here is just not worth the risk. But I’m guessing they do it for the thrill. But it just doesn’t seem worth it.
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Chances are all these kids have enough money to actually order and pay for food – but that doesn’t play well on Facebook and social media. End of the year always brings new fads, but best put the brakes on this one before someone gets hurt. Thanks for rolling in with a comment.
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