In March 2021, social media users shared widely what appeared to be promotional materials for a new Fisher-Price product for kids that evidently struck a chord with many observers — a remote-working kit called "My Home Office."
On March 1, Melody Joy Kramer tweeted out what appeared to be a screenshot of a listing for the item, complete with a miniaturized toy versions of a laptop, coffee cup, headset, and cellphone. She added "This is real. I guess we're all living in hell now":
In recent years, Fisher-Price toys have formed the basis of popular online parodies and pastiches, such as "Tiny Toker," which included toy marijuana paraphernalia, "My First Vape," and a "Happy Hour Playset," complete with toy stools, tiny beer bottles, and a kid-sized bar.
None of those was a real product, and one could be forgiven for assuming that "My Home Office" — a rather on-the-nose nod to the worldwide boom in remote working brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 — was equally fake.
However, "My Home Office" was indeed a real Fisher-Price product, as the screenshot below demonstrates. It can be found listed on the Fisher-Price and Amazon websites, and is intended for children aged three years and older.
On the company's website, the product is described as follows:
Better grab a latte to go, that report is due this morning and there’s a call with the dog across the street after naptime. With the Fisher-Price® My Home Office set, your preschooler is the boss of their own workstation at home, the local coffee shop, or the moon. This 8-piece pretend play set includes a pretend laptop, 4 fabric apps to attach to the computer screen, a wood smartphone and headset for all those important business calls, and a to-go cup for kids to sip their favorite beverage. Urgent call from the cat: the busy business requires immediate attention.