"Gabey8" <gabey8*ANTI-SPAM*@aol.com> had some very interesting things
to say about Re: OT: a helmet day:

One of the things I *love* about living in a city with a Fry's (HUGE
electronics store) is the $5 keyboards. I've already had to replace
one when I discovered that keyboards really don't care for ginger ale.

When I was choosing new glasses today, a major criterion was "how
tough is this"? :-)

I always seem to have minor scratches and bruises on my legs,
frequently without being aware of when the accident happened.  Being
nearsighted, I don't always judge the clearance between my shins and
table legs, branches, etc., correctly.

Margaret Fine <mefine@mindspring.com> had some very interesting things
to say about Re: OT: a helmet day:

This one doesn't seem to have a definable shape. :-)

I've had the occasional pawprint, but fortunately not such an
embarrassing time/place. ;-)

[[> I found a bruise on my right hip and have no memory of how it got

Is it in the shape of a paw print?  A couple of years ago I was having a
physical and the Dr. wanted to know why I had a bruise in the perfect
shape of a paw print on my breast.  My response was that she must not
have any pets or she wouldn't have to ask that.  :-) ]]

LOL!

My two most memorable "mystery bruise" episodes stemmed from interaction
with animals, as it happens.

The first one happened when I was about 12 years old. I was surprised to
discover a GOOD-SIZED bruise on the front of my thigh. It was at least as
long, from top to bottom, as the palm of my hand.

And it was a truly odd shape, too. I kept looking at it to try and figure
out where it came from. One wouldn't expect to see a black-and-blue mark
as large as that, without being able to recall what caused it.

Finally, I realized what it was. The previous day, I'd gone with my family
to the Philadelphia Zoo, including a visit to the petting zoo there. They
used to let people purchase some animal feed and go in the pen to feed the
sheep, goats, etc. One of the sheep actually stood up and planted its
front hooves on me, like a dog, trying to get at the feed I was carrying.

I thought nothing of it at the time, but darn if the encounter didn't
leave its mark. The mystery bruise was a PERFECT sheep's hoofprint.

I think they make people with animal feed stand OUTSIDE the fence to feed
the sheep and goats now. There were probably a few too many people who
discovered hoof imprints on themselves the following day, back when people
were permitted to carry feed into the pen. (Not to mention, I was big
enough to remain standing when the sheep stood up on me, but a small child
would have been bowled over for sure.)

The other odd episode happened in 1993. I'd volunteered as an
interpreter/guide at a convention for the American Association of the
Deaf-Blind. The convention was in Northridge, CA, and a group of PA, NJ,
and Delaware-based deaf-blind delegates and volunteers all travelled
together to get there.

On the flight back home, a guide-dog-using friend wanted to use the rest
room. So she and one of our other guides headed to the bathroom. But
first, they asked me if I would sit with the guide dog until they
returned.

I was glad to. (I loved that dog. :o) ) So I moved over to their vacated
seats to keep the dog company.

Megan, the dog, stood up when her human got up. She thought they were
going somewhere. But once I came over and sat, and Megan realized that she
was staying put with me till her human came back, she shook herself and
lay back down.

Fast-forward to the next morning, when I was QUITE surprised to see not
one little bruise on my shin, but three or four of them all grouped
together... and I had no immediate recollection of how they got there.

Now, one bruise, I could see. Especially the day after coming home from an
AADB convention. Checkout day is a sort of controlled chaos, with hundreds
of people all departing at once for locations around the US and other
countries. There are INFINITE opportunities to bump into people, luggage,
shuttle bus steps, airport seats, etc.

But a *cluster* of bruises? Even *I* couldn't imagine a situation where
I'd bump into something multiple times, with the contact points all within
a fraction of an inch from one another, and not REMEMBER doing it.

And then I recalled sitting with Megan, when the dog shook herself before
lying back down. The guide dog harness handle hit me in the leg a few
times when she shook herself. LOL! Even for ME, that was a creative way to
get bruised. ;o)

I think I should probably try to find out where to apply to get nine
lives. The way my luck runs, I may well need them. ;o)

Donna

Lynda's compatriots in her role as an emergency  counselor for
post-traumatic stress and domestic violence have asked her very
pointed questions about domestic violence in her own household.  She's
very prone to bruising and with the odd scratches and bruises from the
six cats and bruises from her working as the family handyman since
I've been disabled, she frequently raises questioning looks among
those who are trained to look for such things.

"Tell us, Mr. Gritmon, have you stopped beating your wife?  Answer yes
or no."

Regards and Purrs,
O J

I get bruises I can't remember getting, usually on my legs or hips right
about the height of various pieces of furniture. I read a lot of mystery
novels, and I sometimes wonder what would happen if some pathologist
suspected foul play on the grounds that the body was bruised from bashing
into the furniture!

When Mandy was a kitten, she liked to play rough, and a co-worker advised
me (I think, jokingly) that I should send my cat to obedience school after
she noticed and commented on all the scratches.

--
Cheryl