February 19, 2022 a thought for today, The drums of war are the drums of hunger. South African Proverb

I love Saturdays! I guess it’s a long, long hold over from when I was in school and had Saturdays and Sundays at home or free for other things. That’s kind of stuck-in-the-past-thinking. I am retired so I have every day, more or less, for being home and free for other things as long as I want. 

The photo challenge for yesterday was “r is for....”. This one gave me some cause for thought, most of them do but this one a little more than most others. This is one of my mother’s old cook books. I chose showing one of the recipes from the book. 

I finished some of the work I was getting done early on the church newsletter. The deadline for newsletter entries is not until Sunday evening but I like having a jump on things. 

In searching for an archived photo for one of the photo a day assignments I got lost in finding forgotten photos and the memories they sparked. It’s like looking at an old photo album.

The second theme for yesterday was “building ruins”. This one is from my archives. I took the photo on a leisurely drive on a sunny summer day. It is along one of the country roads going toward Deer Creek.

Last night I finished a book, Whiteout, more quickly than I usually do. It was good. I just downloaded another one by the same author as the last book,  Ken Follett, World Without End. Whiteout was more a story of modern times. This one is more in the period of late middle ages. Mr. Follett is awesome with his use of words and of history. Even though the books are considered fictional for me they hold some truths and facts as well as characters that become “real” for a time. 

The first photo theme for today is “s is for....”. These last couple of days it was hard for me to chose a photo to fit the letter of the alphabet. For this one I chose my sunglasses. It seemed like such a plain object even with the shadow of the stem through the tinted class to give it a boost. It still needed “dressed up”. So I used a couple of filters to pull out the subtlety hidden hues in the original color of the background.

The word today is purpose.  The purpose of all wars, is peace. Saint Augustine. We should not look back unless it is to derive useful lessons from past errors, and for the purpose of profiting by dearly bought experience. George Washington. Existence is a strange bargain. Life owes us little; we owe it everything. The only true happiness comes from squandering ourselves for a purpose. William Cowper. I am a most noteworthy sinner, but I have cried out to the Lord for grace and mercy, and they have covered me completely. I have found the sweetest consolation since I made it my whole purpose to enjoy His marvelous Presence. Christopher Columbus. The soul which has no fixed purpose in life is lost; to be everywhere, is to be nowhere. Michel de Montaigne. Three conditions are necessary for Penance: contrition, which is sorrow for sin, together with a purpose of amendment; confession of sins without any omission; and satisfaction by means of good works. Thomas Aquinas. A portion of mankind take pride in their vices and pursue their purpose; many more waver between doing what is right and complying with what is wrong. Horace. Justice is the set and constant purpose which gives every man his due. Marcus Tullius Cicero. The purpose creates the machine. Arthur Young. Great minds have purposes, others have wishes, Washington Irving.  Those who have failed to work toward the truth have missed the purpose of living, Gautama Buddha.  

The second photo for today is “old dirt road”. This is another from my archives. It was taken on another sunny summer’s day drive in the country side near Columbus.

I chose this article for several reasons...1) I like history of things from the past that carry on some how today, 2) this business is located in my neighborhood, 3) I like books, and 4) years ago I taught myself to paper marble which was in history a book binders craft. There is a book binding store a few blocks from my home. It’s not like a big name store in a mall where crowds are going in and out all day long. It has a quiet unimposing presence. Many times I have passed by and thought it had closed. I can image though, the renewal and crafting that goes on inside. Like the article mentioned visiting there would be like stepping back in time. There are old machines, tools, and photos that pull thinking and feelings to days of the past. The business is 134 years old. In a description of one of the rooms there are.....workbenches with papers to be bound and “bookcases overflow with old jobs that were never picked up or paid for”. The business started downtown in 1888, near the corner of State Street and Third Street, where the Ohio Theatre sits today. They are now on West Broad Street and have been for many years. They “specialize” mostly in thesis binding, foil stamping and embossing and restoring antique books. This occupation is labor intensive and Beck & Orr don’t try to compete with “large scale” binderies. In their shop nothing is automated, it is operated by hand and every project is “rooted in tradition”. In the rebinding process the procedure is a little more involved. The old cover has to be removed and pages have to be re-stitched. Most of the time people want the old and worn original covers kept. According to the article Beck & Orr do between 250 and 400 books a month. At the front of the shop there is a long wooden table where some of their oldest work can be seen. One of the owners said that the oldest book they restored is a Bible from 1437. Some of the work they do now are magazines, board meetings, church bulletins and medical journals. Some of their memorable works were rebounding books for the White House and foil stamped certificates for the Vatican. There is a lot of history for this business and it’s former employees and the present owners. In 1983 lightening struck the shop and damaged the building along with many of the books inside. They found a new store and continued the business. 

I am testing a new recipe for chicken Tetrazzini for dinner. 

Joy

find the way home ... seems like someone thought the cart could get back to its original owner on it’s own?