No invention is better than a kid's invention

Sydney's class hosted a science fair today, in which the children put on display their awesome inventions. Parents were invited to attend the fair for an hour this morning, and Brian and I were happy to visit. The kids themselves were fantastic. Every one of them was super articulate about their invention, they were very creative, and every invention was ... somewhat ... practical.
But let's take a moment and talk about kids today and what they feel they need inventions for.
Most of the inventions were pet-related. One young man in a wheelchair had built a contraption that would hoist his small dog from the floor onto his lap when he's in his chair, which was brilliant. Another kid fashioned a protective cover for your stuff when you leave the house so your dog won't chew on anything. Another invention was a fish feeder.
A good number of inventions were built specifically for the lazy child. Including Sydney's shoe-shaking, sand-removal device, there were a significant number of easy fixes. One girl just drilled holes through the bottom of her shoes to get the sand out of them, so they're like a colander. One kid fashioned a small plate on wheels to be dragged behind her Barbie remote-controlled car so she can have snacks brought to her. Another kid had the same kind of idea, but it was for taking trash away. One girl had a toy-scooping creation.
There were some practical inventions, like an umbrella with plastic draping that went to the ground, so the carrier would not get any part of them wet from the rain. A kid came up with an idea for a parking-spot saver that was actually pretty ingenious, and with a few modifications, would have been awesome when I was living in Boston. One boy attached a room deodorizer to his remote-controlled helicopter, so he can freshen up a room from anywhere. Another girl had a garden hose splitter so you could water up to three garden plots at a time.
Our favorite inventions though, were those brought on by sibling issues. One girl had created a privacy zone, wherein you climb into a playground tube, and close up the ends with bean bags, so you have privacy. The invention that had us cracking up though, was a boy's sister repellent. It was a scented "spray" that would scare or repel one's sister from being near them. The spray's ingredient list had Brian and I in frickin' hysterics: blood, spider venom, boogers, sweaty gym socks, pickle juice and worms, among other things. Honestly, BOOGERS?!? Classic.