I think we need a new law.

Now, I'm not one who wants to regulate everything, but this has been irritating me for some time, and I think one simple law would take all the aggravation away.

I want a law that requires people to put their name and address on all balloons.

Or, at least, all helium balloons.

We had just finished checking the Red Creek strutting ground on Sunday morning, preparing to go here, when I spotted something white in the sage, about 100 meters down the slope.

Just a few hundred meters west of the whitening skeleton of the feral horse that didn't make it through last winter. Just 50 meters from the mountain plover that scolded us as we left, presumably because his mate was guarding eggs nearby.

I raced the heeler sisters to it, but they of course won. Thought at first it might be a weather balloon (have found a dozen or so of those... even once watched one come down under its flourescent orange parachute), but it wasn't.

Two white latex balloons, and one purple. Tied together with white and lavender ribbon. One white balloon was shredded, but the other and the purple were intact and still slightly inflated (remarkable, considering it was ~35^o out there).

The lavender ribbon is the most remarkable part of this find. I admit, I don't spend much time in this part of the store, but the colour is such a delicate purple, and irridescent. (Although less remarkable here in the house, but quite striking out there in the desert with nothing but browns, tans, reds and incoming greens. Out there I had to run my fingers along its colour.)

But these balloon have been tormenting me, forcing my mind to wander everytime the white balloon drifted into sight in the rearview mirror on the ninety-some mile drive home.

Where did these balloons come from? And more importantly, what did these balloons come from? Are they remnants from an early graduation? These are the colours of my Jr. High School. But it's too early for most graduations. A Prom?

Likely wedding colours. Were these tied to the antenna of the wedding car, torn loose as the young couple sped off to their honeymoon and future? Or did they fly from the hands of the flower girl as she stood waving good-bye from the church steps?

Were these from a christening party? Some affair held in an enclosed courtyard filled with spring flowers? Or just someone's birthday, who loves purple and white?

A baby shower? Someone celebrating the arrival of new life, but unsure as the the gender of the new arrival?

Or just some business affair? Someone's promotion, or the dedication of a new wing to the building? Are these just trash from someone's car sales promotion?

These things really bother me. The folks at Lake Havasu were at least kind enough to label their balloons, and the weekend of their celebration. I knew what those balloons were for, and how far they had come.

I think we need a new law.