Nighttime Balance Check

Stretching out across the summit of the armchair seemed much more entertaining than staring at a dark ceiling. I scrambled up the corduroy fabric, finding instant traction with my bare toes, and balanced right along the narrow ridge of the backrest. A silver metal television remote was resting flat across the cushion below, glowing faintly with a tiny red standby light. I hopped down, landed one foot squarely on the rubber volume-down key, and watched the red blinker twitch in response. Not quite an explosion, sure, but definitely responsive enough to keep my midnight stroll lively.