A Matter of Equilibrium

Balancing three spent wooden matchsticks on the rim of an empty teacup sounded like a decent way to spend a quiet evening. I rested the first one across the porcelain edge, then used the tip of an index finger to wedge the second beneath it at an acute angle, letting counterweights do the heavy lifting. The third stick slid right into the tiny apex, locking the entire scaffold into a suspended cantilever over thin air. A single tap of my boot on the wooden tabletop sent a subtle vibration through the grain, but the miniature bridge didn't budge an inch. Flawless structure, as expected.