Evolution of the Hamster Ball/Mind of Bonnie

If you saw the closing ceremonies of the Olympics last night, you may have caught these wondrous globes during the Russian portion:(Picture from MSN.)

People rolling around in human hamster balls. I squealed in delight. And this is why.

I have a seriously obsessive personality when it comes to just about everything. I can't just start watching a TV show, I have to see every episode and research it until I know its history and purpose. I don't just read a book, I look up the author's life story and visit their web site/blog/twitter. If I see a grammatical error somewhere, I can't focus until I've fixed it or left the area. I missed the bulk of a lecture in college once because the end of the professor's tie was flipped up and it's all I could focus on. And if something catches my interest, I file it away and it pretty much never goes away. Thus I present: For the Love of the Giant Human Hamster Ball.

It began with this, on American Gladiators, circa 1990:

Next I took the concept and applied it to one of two rainy day inventions, after a particularly awful rainy day junior year, circa 2005:

Then I learned that you can apparently buy your own from, somewhere, like the guy from the Flaming Lips:

Then I heard about this, the Zorb, which gave me hope such as I have never known:

And finally, I saw this, which made me realize we really are never alone in this world, and that I'm not the only crazy one:

And there you have it, one of my Bucket List items: take a ride in a giant hamster ball. If you're still my friend after this, God love you, and feel free to take a ride once I get my hands on one.

Also, I've had this post in drafts for a year trying to make it just right. I wonder if there is an anti-obsession pill I could take. Like a chill pill! (Or is that what Prozac is for?)