EEK! Are Two-Dimensional Dolls Infiltrating Our Town?

The Flat Stanley Project seemed harmless enough when a reader told Patch about this effort to encourage 3rd to 6th graders to connect with kids of similar age throughout the world.

Flat Stanley is a paper cutout figure based on a 1964 children's book about Stanley Lambchop, a boy who makes the most out of being accidentally flattened (never fear, he is re-inflated with a bicycle pump).

So about how this reader, GrAnnie, got Flat Stanley mailed to her San Leandro home.

But we did not understand the extent of the phenomenon until getting an email from Martin Benik at FlatStanley.com. He said there were Flat Stellas in circulation along with a host of two dimensional dolls with a variety of names as people took the concepts and adapted it to their own tastes.

Benik did not have a count of how many flat creatures were present in San Leandro but a photo gallery site allowed Patch to search for people who had posted images of their flat friends.

Plugging "San Leandro" into the search space disclosed the Flat Stella above and seven other images of a Flat Isabella, Krystal and Kaitlyn.

So they are already found among us.

The question is how far and wide the flat fun will spread.

To encourage participation in this flattening effort, the project has created a new app and a video link.

Teachers and parents are particular targets but this movement welcomes anyone who wants to have fun in a flat world.

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