Balloons

It’s amazing how much fun can be had with simple things.


For his birthday, Sue sent John three bunches of helium-filled balloons - some mylar and some traditional rubber. The rubber ones stopped floating within a couple of days. But now, a month later, most of the mylar ones are still flying high.


Two of the balloons have lost some or almost all of their buoyancy. John took the first one, and gradually shortened its tether, maintaining neutral buoyancy. We enjoyed watching it wander about the house, floating on the various air currents. And then it disappeared - totally vanished. Even the cleaning lady couldn’t find it. Oh, well - it’ll show up sometime.


And then the second one started to sink with the weight of its tether. John freed this one, and for several days, it has been happily wandering from room to room. And then, voila!, while searching for #2, he found the first one. It was on top of the shelves in the dining room. We love solving mysteries.



Even #1 still has a little lift, but rests comfortably on the floor in the living room. And while #2 floats happily, visiting different rooms, the other dozen balloons are straining at their leashes, awaiting their turns to be free.