Bouncing balls

*

Bouncing balls

I suppose with the increased use of cards fewer of us leave the shop with change and consequently are far less likely to insert coins into these excellent machines to receive, from a metal, shuttered orifice,  our bouncing balls. 

This is a pity as these bouncing balls are superb. They are in a wide range of stunning colours and patterns: striped or marbleized or even weird faces or skulls. Most have a smooth surface, but others are lightly mottled.

 And they have the loveliest smell, a rubber-plastic chemical scent so divine that the first thing I do on getting mine is to hold it against my nostril and inhale. For those moments I feel utterly at peace with the universe.

And...they really do bounce extremely well, reaching phenomenal heights and then bouncing repeatedly with hysterical unpredictability over and over so you have to be careful about bouncing them outside the shop as, for sure, they will bounce onto the road and you`ll feel compelled to run after them, perhaps (alas!) into the bumper of an oncoming car.

*