Thought for Today:

"I like living. I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable, racked with sorrow, but through it all I still know quite certainly that just to be alive is a grand thing."

~ Agatha Christie (1890 - 1976) English crime writer

The Blacksmith Shop

Have you seen the blacksmith shop? Thank you Jim Gibson, owner of Towpath-on-the-Grand Antiques, for bringing it back to its earlier grandeur and beyond!

The blacksmith shop is on the corner of Talbot Road (Hwy #3) and Ottawa St. ~ just around the corner from the bookshop. We can't wait until it is open to the public.

Photos: by Lorna

Thank You Faye

Loyal friends Faye and Gizmo kept the store open yesterday.

Neat Little Bookshop customers know Faye and Gizmo well. Where would we be without them! Thank you, Faye.

We lost someone dear today ~ someone who was our "Rock" ~ Uncle Earl. Our father's brother was 87 years old. He never married; He lived next door, on the farm adjacent to ours, with our grandparents.

Our Uncle has been a constant in our lives, working with us, playing with us and lavishing upon us the attention that he would have on his own children, had he had them.

He encouraged us, praised us and continually reminded us of our heritage with stories, photographs and family heirlooms ~ always expressing his gratitude for the small things that we did for him.

The homestead is still there. We still go home where he always welcomed us.

Thank you Uncle Earl, we will miss you.

Photo: Uncle Earl in the bookshop. For larger image, click on photo.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could.
Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can."
~
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882) American philosopher, essayist and poet.

Photo: Lorna. For larger image, click on photo.

Speaking of mind and body, the dogs and cats of Louisiana are in the news today. Up for adoption are the many surrendered pets that out-of-work folks cannot afford to keep.

Caroline Knapp describes in her book, PACK of TWO The Intricate Bond Between People and Dogs, the extraordinary value of the family pet.

"My human relationships are unpredictable, sometimes volatile, always subject to complication and flux. But my dog stays the same, her reactions to me constant. In a sea of changeable emotions and circumstances, she is a small anchor, a steady presence who bears witness to the most private details, the monumental shifts and incremental changes, who remains right there.
"Dogs represent the one relationship in life where consistency is never questioned, never doubted, never compromised by the vicissitudes of human moods and circumstances and priorities. And so we get to experience something else that's rare in human affairs: trust.
"This is the only nonpolitical relationship I have ever had..."

~

It is extremely unfortunate that at a time when people most need their pets, they are losing them.

Photo: by Lorna, "Sharon & Mr. Bean." For larger image, click on photo.

Mind and Body

Personal trainer Janice Jacobs will be at The Neat Little Bookshop on Thursday, July 22 at 1:30 p.m.

Janice will answer questions on fitness, with an introductory level of exercises and therapy. (May we say beginners, "easy" but effective exercises?!) Janice's classes held at the T.C. Gym in Cayuga are work-at-your-own pace with the ultimate goal of a healthy lifestyle.

Graphics: Acclaim Images.com Rosie Piter