#they're scared of humans and theoretically dangerous if startled/cornered and they also look... seriously cuddly up close

[falderaletcetera]

found something cool on the beach yesterday. I like to go for night-time walks to clear my head and get a look at the stars, and I'm lucky enough that there's a beach within walking distance (and that it's a pretty safe neighbourhood). so picture four in the morning, less than half a moon but bright for it, high-ish tide, and I've stepped down onto this pebbly seaweedy beach to nudge at what I assumed was a toy pumpkin.

it was reddish orange, about the right size. something odd about the shape though.

and it was metal. bowling-ball sized, with a hole clean through it (no sharp edges, it must have been shaped that way) and impressive scratches that had clearly been painted over. and it was light enough to lift as well as having probably washed up there, so, hollow.

I ended up staring at it for maybe five minutes trying to decide whether to move it, where to (tripping hazard), and whether I wanted to keep it. "things salvaged from ships" is an entire genre of decoration here (pubs are one of the biggest offenders) ((I fucking love it)) and it could look pretty cool with... a rope through it? some sort of knot? a doorstop or a garden decoration?

(to be honest it appealed to my sense of humour that what I normally take home from beaches is stones with holes through them. we get a lot of them, and they're meant to be lucky. and they're easier to store when I'm still dithering over how to use 'em. they make nice gifts sometimes.)

I didn't keep it. but the internet's a cool enough place sometimes that I could search "hollow metal ball washed up on beach" and get an answer - it's a trawler net weight, and I read elsewhere that they do come in different sizes.

and wreck and salvage law is apparently this whole messy thing that may or may not apply - technically yes, but this is probably way too small to bother with, which I think might be an actual legal thing - so if I find one again...

it's not like this happens often, anyway. and I'm just delighted to have been surprised.