We live in a very walkable neighborhood, which means that people tend to walk past our house. We also live on a corner lot, about a block away from a school, which means that lots of people walk past our house on a daily basis. One of the unfortunate realities of high-pedestrian-traffic areas is litter. We don’t receive an overwhelming amount on our property, but it’s not uncommon to find something in the grass. We deal with it – it’s fine.
Yesterday we found a very strange thing. It was a big blue and white ball that little kids often play with. Most surprisingly, it was inside our fence.
Where did it come from? Why was it here? This seems like something people might notice is missing.
Our only theory is that someone thought it was ours and left it here on purpose. We have a very similar blue and white ball in plain sight on our front porch, which Ellen will sometimes play with in the yard. She actually took the new ball in stride, calmly declaring that there were now two balls; one, two. She didn’t want to play with them yesterday – it was a chalk coloring day – but I have no doubt they’ll get some use in the future.
The mystery ball is not the strangest litter we have found in the yard. Earlier this summer I found a glass of what appeared to be soda sitting on the curb. It was a normal looking dining glass like you would use when you had company, mostly full, and still bubbling. That one mystified me. Again, it was something that people would presumably miss. I put it up high to advertise its location and it disappeared within a day. Perhaps a neighbor came out to chat with someone who was parked on the side of the street? I just don’t know.
