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it started just after sunrise walkers
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along the coast noticed a strange yellow
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dot bobbing in the waves then another
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then dozens more within minutes the
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shoreline shimmerred with hundreds of
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identical yellow balls bouncing
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playfully in the surf but before we
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start our story smash the like button
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notifications bell so you won't miss any
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new story children rushed to investigate
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giggling as the waves rolled the
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lightweight orbs up the sand tourists
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began snapping photos no one knew where
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they'd come from but no one seemed too
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alarmed it was like the beach had been
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decorated by 10:00 a.m local news had
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picked up the story mysterious yellow
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balls blanket shoreline read one
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headline reporters arrived in droves
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filming beachgoers marveling at the
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surreal sunny scene no one had ever seen
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anything like it the Coast Guard was
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notified out of protocol a team was
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dispatched to investigate just in case
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the balls posed an environmental or
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safety risk could be from a cargo spill
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one officer guest already prepping the
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cleanup crew commander Ruiz and her team
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arrived by noon surprised not by a
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disaster scene but by a peaceful
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carnivallike atmosphere not exactly an
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oil spill she joked watching kids build
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ball towers and dig trenches filled with
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yellow spheres she bent down scooping
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one up it was lightweight rubbery and
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had a tiny imprint of a smiling sun
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stamped on it "weird," she muttered
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"looks intentional." A few of the balls
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had barcodes but no clear origin local
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shop owner Clara approached holding a
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few of the balls "they don't smell like
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plastic they smell like citrus she said
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ruiz raised an eyebrow she gave one a
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snifflemon fresh even stranger by
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afternoon a drone had captured stunning
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aerial footage hundreds maybe over a
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thousand yellow balls scattered across
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the beach like giant lemon drops online
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speculation exploded guesses ranged from
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performance art to alien communication
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to viral marketing meanwhile Ruiz's team
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scanned the barcodes finally one ping
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project Solaris Shipment 42 a quick
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database check traced it back to an eco
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startup called Sunjoy Labs headquartered
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two towns over ruiz made the call the
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founder Amelio Chen picked up
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immediately "oh no," he said half
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laughing half panicked "you found them
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didn't you we didn't think they'd travel
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that far." Ruiz grinned "you want to
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explain what project Solaris' is?" Emlio
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arrived within an hour looking both
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relieved and amused it was a trial he
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said biodegradable ocean markers solar
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sensitive scentreleasing completely safe
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they were supposed to stay in one harbor
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but the wind had other plans he bent
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down and showed Ruiz the internal
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mechanism they're designed to drift in
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clusters respond to sunlight and release
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calming scents a therapy tool believe it
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or not we tested them near hospitals but
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I guess they wanted a beach day the
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Coast Guard laughed so no toxins no
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hazards just runaway relaxation balls
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emlio nodded sheepishly pretty much
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though this was not part of the plan
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ruiz looked around honestly it's the
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happiest beach scene I've ever seen
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rather than confiscate them Ruiz made a
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call we'll help collect and return the
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batch but let's make today fun the team
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handed out bags joined in the game it
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turned into an impromptu beach festival
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sunjoy Labs agreed to host a ballback
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bash the following weekend free
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refreshments beach cleanup and demos of
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their other sensory therapy tech the
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community loved it attendance soared
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tourists came back just for the event
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the beach was spotless by evening alio
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thanked Ruiz "you turned a near PR
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nightmare into the best day of my year,"
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Ruiz replied "you gave us joy in a ball
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next time just label the shipment better
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the story made national headlines lemon
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balls of joy read one headline another
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wrote a spill we didn't know we needed
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social media was flooded with clips of
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bouncing yellow orbs and dancing kids in
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Seafoam alio's inbox overflowed with
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interest from schools hospitals even
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amusement parks he quickly patented the
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product now officially called Soul Balls
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and hired locals to help expand
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production the coast town earned a
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quirky but lovable reputation overnight
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and every year since on that same
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weekend the town holds the Solstice ball
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drop releasing hundreds of safe citrus
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scented balls into the surf not because
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they have toe but because of how one
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strange morning brought joy to everyone
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in the end the Coast Guard didn't just
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solve a mystery they helped start a
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tradition and Commander Ruiz she still
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keeps one soul ball on her desk a yellow
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reminder that not all beach calls are
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emergency some are just sunshine in
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disguise and just like that what started
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as a strange morning turned into a
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heartwarming tradition those little
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yellow ballants a source of confusion
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became symbols of joy unity and
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unexpected wonder what could have been a
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PR disaster for an eco startup ended up
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breathing new life into a sleepy coastal
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town bringing together kids families
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tourists and even the Coast Guard in a
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moment of pure unfiltered happiness it
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wasn't just about the balls it was about
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how something so simple and unexpected
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could remind people of the power of
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community curiosity and play emilio's
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invention became more than a product
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became a tradition the annual solstice
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ball drop now brings in visitors from
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all over the country drawn not by ads or
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influencers but by a story that started
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with a sunrise and a single yellow dot
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in the waves as for Commander Ruiz she
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still keeps a soul ball on her desk not
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because of duty but as a quiet reminder
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not every call is a crisis and not every
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mystery needs solving sometimes life
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throws you sunshine when you least
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expect it wrapped in lemon scent and
