Down the Curb

I bumped my way past the side gate and rolled down the sloped driveway onto the street gutter. Lodged against the concrete curb was a loose, heavy steel ball bearing, dull with street dust. Leaning all my bulk forward, I gave the solid metal sphere a firm shove with my brow. It broke free and rattled down the smooth incline, gathering speed along the curb seam. I rolled heavily right behind it, keeping pace until the sphere struck the cast-iron storm drain with a sharp, ringing clonk and lodged between two iron bars. I braked firmly against the curb beside it, utterly satisfied.