Somehow I have managed to bruise my chin, and I can’t pinpoint exactly how I achieved this. I just know that Wednesday morning I woke to discover a lovely purple mark that I mistook for newsprint or dirt at first. The thing is, I don’t remember knocking my chin against any thing, and usually when I hit my jaw I flinch in pain … but I never bruise. Even when I busted my chin open on the concrete when I was ten, I didn’t bruise. I gushed blood everywhere, ruined my clothes, broke a tooth and had to go to the minor emergency room for stitches, but there were no bruises.

So far the only theory I have about the mysterious mark on my chin is that I never actually fell asleep Tuesday night. Instead, someone must have knocked me unconscious with an uppercut to my jaw.

I personally find this theory a little unbelievable.

I see a lot of strange things at the library, and one of the highlights of working there is sharing the stories of the oddities that happen on almost a daily basis. My favorite stories are usually the ones that involve our “regulars.” These are the people that come in practically every day and essentially treat the library as their second home. Once a person becomes a “regular” they usually acquire a nickname among the staff (sometimes we never know their real names, because they never actually apply for a card. Those who we do know the names of we try to refer to them by it.) Some of the things that happen are pretty unbelievable, and they aren’t the kind of things you can make up.

And at the library I really do learn something new everyday. I was going to post something here about an event that occurred last night, but I’ve decided against it since some of my elders and betters read this. (Grandma) And, really, this one is probably best told in person.

On a completely different tangent, after watching all the Miyazaki films that aired last month on TCM I have pretty much come to the conclusion that the Japanese are certifiably insane. I understand they have a rich and unique culture and a vast and equally unique mythology, but after watching Pom Poko it’s remarkably clear to me that they’re total nutters.