Cassette

Caleb and Mia found a book on tape today in the bag of toy parts that had been gathered for departure. They had no idea what the small rectangular cartridge was, so they brought it to Hannah. She tried to explain it to them, and then she asked Russ if we had a cassette player.

“I’m pretty sure there’s one on the boom box in Caleb’s room,” he said.

“Boom box?” Mia repeated, perplexed but tickled by the term.
“Oh, I think I know what he's talking about,” Caleb announced. “C’mon!”

The two tromped up the stairs.

They returned within thirty seconds.

“Done already?” Russ asked.

“Well, we put it in and it made a screechy noise and then all this stringy stuff popped out."

Before they went outside to play, they turned and gave us one last glance. The expressions on their faces said it all:
You really expected us to believe that there were words on that string?