Had a former mayor of Bend come in yesterday. I've known her since I was six years old and best friends with her son, Glenn. (Makes it sound like I know people, huh, but I've lived here for 55 years, so I know people, especially through my family just by being here).

She volunteers at the library, and was talking about something called "A graphic novel? A book called Persepolis? We picked it as Book of the Year." She sounded amazed. And then she said, "Do you have any graphic novels?"

Like I said, I know her, but I don't think she's been paying a whole lot of attention to what I've been doing.

"Uh, that's what I do, Ruth. That's what my store is about....and I have thousands of volumes of graphic novels...."

"Gee, I had never heard of them....."

So...my impression is, even when a graphic novel is picked as 'Book of the Year', graphic novels as a whole STILL make no impression.

I also couldn't help but ask her of what she thought of the current city doings. She shrugged her shoulders, "I can't figure out what they're doing."


I also met "Sally Heatherton" yesterday. I asked him if he had any idea of the impact 'her' adventure was going to make.

"I kind of thought it would," he said. "I had some neighbors who were like that. They've come down to earth since then."

"It was a real creative effort," I said. "Did you think of keeping it going?"

"No, I pretty much had the whole arc worked out in advance."

Sally wanted to help me do a web page, with my blog included, and a twitter attachment; Smart guy. I never turn down help, maybe soon.


Finally, I had a Culver farmer who's been a customer for years, and for the first time I started asking him about his work. I had written a blog a few days ago about how ranchers were the salt of the earth, and I wanted to know what he was doing and how he was going about it.

He confirmed that it has gotten a bit better over the last few years. He was real reticent about saying much.


Anyway, I find it interesting that someone like me who really does very little social activity, can still manage to learn all kinds of interesting things simply by standing in my store and asking questions. For an information gathering INTJ and #5 (personality types), it's perfect. I am also amazed that when I visit other stores, even bookstores and comic stores, they don't ask me a single question.

It seems to me that such curiosity is the hallmark of a survivor.