A Free Ride Down the Chute

Toting that neon green bouncy ball and my clattering key bundle around the prize counter was getting slightly mundane, so I eyed the cavernous prize drop chute of a giant claw machine sitting nearby. The clear flap was hanging wide open, practically begging for some unauthorized inventory control. I rolled my bouncy ball right up the rubber ramp, wedged my shoulder against the flap, and gave the ball a solid kick. It bounced wildly off the metal chute walls, dropped into the prize bin, and triggered a burst of flashing neon lights and a triumphant digital fanfare. Sitting on the rubber threshold with my feet dangling, listening to that absurd electronic racket, felt like a very well-earned victory.