Through My Eyes: 10 Stories for the Spectacles
If you’re not familiar with Snapchat Spectacles, here is a quick overview — they are sunglasses that record first-person videos which can be uploaded to your Snapchat Stories. Spectacles are in “limited supply” and can be purchased from a Snapbot, a pop-up vending machine. The Snapbot’s location is unknown until it is unveiled through a locator tool on Snapchat’s website.
The Snapbot found itself at Torchy’s Tacos on South 1st in Austin, Texas on December 14th. I was 12th in line when the bot sold out. After waiting 2 hours, all I got were the following stories…
❤️ The Red Heart ❤️
There was a guy, let’s call him Red. He waited in line but left early, mainly for work reasons. He only wanted them so he could make a little extra cash. Red didn’t regret waiting and leaving because he rather have a “die-hard” person get their hands on some Spectacles instead. Little did he know (or maybe he did) that the majority of the line had similar intentions.
💕 The Pink Hearts 💕
There was a girl, let’s call her Pinky. Pinky was the lead Snapchat worker who would answer questions, tell us there were no guarantees, inform us about potential credit card issues, etc. Pinky hadn’t ate at Torchy’s before but was looking forward to it, especially since they had been so accommodating to Snapchat and its customers. She asked we review and rate Torchy’s highly for their efforts. It was like she had never heard of Torchy’s and treated them as if they were a random hole-in-the-wall food truck.
I later found out that Pinky is from Miami.
😊 The Smiling Face 😊
There was a much older lady in line and more than likely was the oldest person there. She didn’t look like Snapchat’s target demographic but she waited the whole time. Unfortunately, she didn’t get any Spectacles. I just hope she wasn’t waiting to get them as a Christmas gift for a grandkid. Please let her be an avid Snapchat user.
😏 The Smirking Face 😏
There was a guy, let’s call him Smirk. He was a few spots behind me. We had brief conversations about the line and the wait. He ordered a taco, ate it while in line and after waiting 45 minutes, he decided it was time to go back to work. As Smirk was leaving, he offered up his spot in line to the highest bidder. A younger guy, who was at the end of the line, Venmo’d Smirk $40 for the spot in line. More on the younger guy, The Baby, next.
👶 The Baby 👶
The Baby is the younger guy who bought his spot in line. He eventually had to leave, probably for class. He had his mom (assuming) come take his spot in line. This lady proceeded to make phone calls, take business calls, make appointments and update her planner. She didn’t end up getting any Spectacles.
⌛ The Hourglass ⌛
When the Snapbot sold out and people dispersed, I overhead Pinky, the Snapchat worker, tell a story about a guy who has made attempts in various cities to buy the Spectacles. He happened to be in Austin this week visiting his dad, and today was his 4th attempt. He still has no Spectacles.
😬 The Grimacing Face 😬
Anyone who was lucky enough to buy Spectacles was limited to purchasing only two. Most people bought 2, likely to sell both for a profit. I’d bet there were very few people who kept it for themselves and/or bought the second for a friend.
There wasn’t someone always monitoring the 2 per customer limit, it was more of an honor system. From my account, everyone abided by the unwritten rule; however, as I got closer, a few of us witnessed a guy, who looked pretty well off, purchase 3 Spectacles. On the flip side, there was a guy who only bought 1, so I guess it balanced out.
The other rule, actually enforced, was you could not get back in line once you made your initial purchase. There was a father & son combo that managed to break that rule. First, the son bought 2 and then they went back in line, but not to the very end of the line. Somehow, they only went back a few spots in line. The dad then proceeded to buy 2 more Spectacles.
🔥 The Fire 🔥
The girl who stood directly in front of me is the real winner of anyone who didn’t buy Spectacles. I overheard some of her phone conversations — trying to seek out others to come take or wait in her spot, telling her friends she didn’t even use Snapchat that much and expressing her frustration about how slowly the line was moving. At one point, she asked me if I thought the bot would be around tomorrow (doubtful). I estimated she waited a solid 45 minutes, compared to my near 2 hour wait, before leaving. She likely doesn’t know this but she made the right call for herself.
🌟 The Gold Star 🌟
Torchy’s Tacos handed out their amazing green chili queso and chips to people waiting in line. Initially, many people declined it (WHY?!) and I ended up as one of the early takers. About 30 people said “no” before I took the first basket from the tray. During the second round of free queso, me and the 2 guys behind me basically pressured the group in front of us to take some queso. You’re welcome!
…
Once the bot sold out of Spectacles, people started to disperse and at that point a Torchy’s employee yelled, “don’t leave, get tacos!”
💯 The Hundred 💯
An older gentleman approaches the Conscious Cravings (CC) food truck to order some lunch.
Customer: “what is the line for?”
(CC employee explains it’s for the Snapchat Spectacles and how CC received no heads up about it)
CC employee: “do you know what Snapchat is?”
Customer: “yes” [with a confident smile that implies I’m old but still hip]
CC employee: “it’s just a general question to a general person” [laughingly]
…
Shortly after serving the older gentleman, the Conscious Cravings employee pops out of his truck holding “spectacles” made out of straws and masking tape and shouts “$1.99”. He later put them on display with a sign (below). You sir, are keeping it one-hundid.
