Mylar Balloon

I don't know why, but I found this fascinating.

As I started out this morning, it's clear, a few high light clouds, sun's not up yet, and it's dead calm. I turn and start running just loops around the track, and I'm quickly caught off-guard by a blue mylar helium balloon that's sort of drifting very slowly across the sidewalk. It's not heavy enough to land, not light enough to rise up, just at that proper weight where's it's bang on the same density as the air. So it drifts about, bobs up, bobs down, but mostly just moves along with whatever slight air currents abound.

In the first pace, it's just a bit higher than I am tall, it has no string attached. It drifts under a tree and just lightly nudges the bottom branches. From there it moves slowly northward into the main field of the park, which is surrounded by baseball diamonds and a club house. As I run my loops I just watch it drifting about, seeming exploring the field.

Along the back of the park I see it's moved down to ground level and the bottom 'plug' skips along the ground, nudging it up when it strikes something, then back. It's moving towards the clubhouse, which has a large covered area like a veranda, and I figure if it goes in there, it'll get stuck and stop.

A lap later it's changed direction, now drifting from north to south. It heads into the back part of one of the larger baseball diamonds, drifts under the foul ball netted and bumps up along the tall chainlink fence that surrounds it. There's just enough moving air to keep it bumped against the fence in a sort of 'stuck' position, and it sits there for a lap.

At this point, the sun is peeking over the horizon, although the field is still in shadow, but there becomes enough radiant energy from the lighted sky to just warm the balloons interior a tiny bit, and it moves upwards into the netting of the batting area.

Another lap, I check the fence and the balloons not there. Seems the air had shifted a little bit again, moving from south to north again. The sun is now above the buildings and balloon has now warmed up more than enough to escape it's earthly grip and is soaring high into the air. When I first spot it, it's moved to the north end of the park and about 70 feet off the ground. With each passing lap and the warming sun, it travels higher and higher and further and further north. By my 6th lap, it's out of sight and disappears into the blue sky.

I was thinking all the time what a cool video it would have made.