Fingers

I have been in Gifu making many balloons and taking many pictures and selling many pictures and speaking many Japaneses with many Japanese peoples.
May you never be subject to 8 hour days under the hot sun in a clown suit.
The best thing is that after several days of intense searing by the sun, one has been stamped with a convenient red stencil in the shape of clown make-up. Yes, including the circle on the nose.
Another fun thing that I have come away from Gifu with is band-aids on my hands (four, if I really get hardcore and count). One band-aid concealing the sweet gifts that all the friction love-making with my balloon pump left me with, one concealing a very suspicious fingernail wound that I just woke up and had (and was bleeding from), and one concealing a slightly smaller cut. The last one I acquired at a pinnacle of bravado--swiping the top off of a can of tuna. I'm usually quite paranoid about sharp things in the kitchen, but I had a powerful sensation of courage and removed the risky item in one swift motion, subsequently gouging my finger in one swift motion. Isn't it strange how you don't really "feel" the cut, but have a little "check" to look at your finger, and you get to watch as all of the blood suddenly floods to the spot like the Egyptian army and starts pouring out and all over your hand. It's one huge thrill and one huge pile of bloody tissues. Bravado indeed.
And I leave you now.