Desultory Thoughts

I liked seeing the things that people came up with on the new series (the American Idol spinoff…or should I say “ripoff”), American Inventor [abc.go.com]. However, they really milked it. CRYING by three of four judges when they were presented with a one-man sandbag filler was ridiculous. Heather and I thought they must be joking! When they cried over the “EZ-Ex”, we weren’t crying with them either. (Funny thing is, if my Mom watched this show, she was probably choking up with them.)

Here are some things that you shouldn’t try to invent because they already failed:

• Walking Buddy (A wand that wards off bears and attackers)
• An amp plug in the back of the guitar (amp plugs are normally in the front)
• Boot tree (holds boots)
• Pee Buddy (A suit holder that you wear while you pee in public)
• Space Beetle Farm (Spin-off from the ant farm)
• “Clothes” for your car
• Smoking Gun (For flavoring meat & potato chips with hickory smoke)
• Social Training on DVD for 3-5 year olds*
• Fresh End (a soap dispenser for your butt)
• Tizzy Tube (children can “express themselves” in an air-filled tube)
• Beddie Pouch & Beddie Sham (already on the market by a different name)
• Air Conditioner Suit Case (for a dog in a hot car)

Inventions that made it on to the next round:

• One-man Sandbag Filler (mentioned above)*
• A bicycle that pedals in the front for a handlebar rider
• Edible Snow Globe Cookie Kit
• Two-piece Bowl (to conceal your spent olive pits and pistachio shells)
• EZX (travel weight system that you put together)*
• Diaper Bag (they didn’t give us details on this episode)
• Solar Powered Generator
• Hook-n-Pull Branch Cutter

It seemed to me like they (the producers) were worried more about creating the same ingredients as American Idol contains (fighting judges, angry contestants) that they should have called the show “Angry Contestants & Fighting Judges”. Hopefully the next episodes will focus more on good inventions and not the pitch to the judges.

* Indicates that one or more judges cried.