I'd put it back in the kid's yard -- under darkness, of course, to add appropriate mystery. Not only would it be cool to have it reappear overnight, I've found that kids who set something free impulsively like that sometimes get liberator remorse.  If he really did want it to go, he could just drop it all over again.

When you drop it off, you could write a little first-person travelogue for it and leave it with the ball, so the kid knows where it went.

Kids sometimes do the same thing with a bowling ball. Because that's more dangerous, it's also more fun ... in a world without consequences.

One of the many unique skills that you learn growing up in the hillside is how to retrieve a baseball rolling away from you down the hill.  The key is to get at least one stride in front of the ball and then stick your foot in the path to block progress.

Potential disaster and ridicule came to those who would either 1) make the stop attempt too early, 2) try to pick it up with your hand, or 3) attempt to stop the ball by stepping ON the rolling ball.

I only saw #3 once, but it resulted in the most devastating rolled ankle, road rash, tumble down the avenue falls I have ever seen.  To make matters worse, the ball continued down the hill in mockery of the attempt.


You don't see nine year old boys sprinting down the hillside after a ball any more - that used to be a pretty common sight.

I think the kid was trying to put it out to sea.  I say you write your name and address on it and drop kick it off the lift bridge and see if it comes back.

We don't have this problem in the awesome city of Superior.

I don't know if it is urban myth, but I have heard that, in the area below Enger, there is an illegal tire cemetery, and that kids years back would harvest these tires and light them on fire, to watch them roll down hill at night. I lived in much more civilized part of town back then.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2009/05/25/nat.uk.cheese.rolling.itn

I saw this happen once, very accidentally, from a ball that made it out of the courts at lake and third that Barrett mentioned.  One thing that impressed me was that although I had to wait for a light or two, we actually got to Superior street about the same time, it must have gotten stuck on something ... or something.  

--

Paddle to the Sea was one of my favorite educational movies as a kid.  I still love that story and once took a trip out to Toronto to see a friend and planned it in such a way that I would collect water from each of the great lakes on my way.  I still have the water, haven't figured out what to do with it yet, actually.  

I wonder if someone could ever re-make that book into a movie today with the updates to the environment, etc fit into it?  A lot has changed, some better, some worse, but much the same.  This would be perfect year for it too, being the 50th anniversary of the seaway and all.  Fat chance though, I bet Disney has those rights locked up tighter than a (insert metaphor/simile here)

I once skiied down Lake Avenue.

Peace