Bored? Here's a Bucket!

Occam's Razor (roughly phrased and blatantly simplified for my own purposes): 
When faced with multiple hypotheses, all other aspects being equal, the simplest explanation is generally correct. 

It's a rather straightforward concept and a great principle to keep in mind: don't confuse the issue with elaborate explanations, though they may sound more impressive.  For instance, the other day I couldn't find my car keys.  After two minutes of desperate and distracted searching, my fecund mind began to picture my innocent wife snatching said keys from the counter, thrusting them into her purse, and taking them with her to the hospital via bus.  Obviously she had done this intentionally.  Perhaps because I had told her in no uncertain terms the night before that I needed the car.  She wanted to punish me.  But for what?  It was while considering the 34th vindictive possibility for her "rude personal transgression against me" that I discovered the keys hiding in my pocket.  "Ah yes," I thought, "that certainly makes more sense."  Sorry, hon.   

As a new parent, I've found that sometimes I am similarly over elaborate when it comes to entertaining my child.  In a previous post I had mentioned that a barren back yard is hard to play in.  It needs equipment.  Thus, I went out and bought some.  Several days of play, though, has taught me that I was perhaps over-thinking the problem.  Before I bought that first ball the yard was already equipped with a hose and a bucket.  Mix in a sunny day and you have endless possibilities for play. 

To be fair, this wasn't any ordinary bucket.  It was an ordinary watering bucket.  And, for reasons I still can't explain but kind of understand, Mimi loved it.  She wanted to water everything.  Except the plants.  Completely filled it would weigh well more than Mimi, so I was kept rather busy refilling that jug every 2-3 minutes as Mimi scampered about the back yard bringing refreshment to cement and dead wood. 

Eventually, of course, she tired of the bucket.  This meant it was time to bring rain on a sunny day.  Take that, Credence Clearwater Revival!

The nozzled hose became my weapon of choice.  The spigot turned to full power, I would take my aim as Mimi walked unsuspectingly along the garden square. 

My own child ruthlessly in sight, I would fire a two to three second burst high into the air. 

A second or two later the rain would come crashing down, oddly localized right over Mimi's head.  This was generally followed by manic giggling (from Mimi, not me). 

Thanks to the can and the hose, we turned what could've been 10 to 15 minutes of outside boredom into over an hour of enjoyable, and cheap, adventures.  I can't wait till she gets a bit older so I can turn that hose on her full force.  Just like my parents did to me.  I understand it now.  It's all about gentle payback!