Cyril O

PANGEA, The International Cafe

This afternoon I was having a double Expresso in Pangea on Fort Harrison in Clearwater Florida while speaking to Geri, one of the owners. I struck up a conversation with another patron. She mentioned that she’d spent most of her adult life in India. Well, my father lived in India for 30+ years, so I asked her where she’d been. She told me that she’d lived in Vrindavan – the exact same town where my father had lived. Not only that she had visited the hospital where my father had worked. My father Doctor Glyn Jones, was a doctor at that hospital and a member of the Vedanta – a Hindu sect. I had been to Vridavan 20 years ago and it was wonderful hearing about it again from someone who had lived there more recently. Also, interesting were some of the changes occurring within India. She plans on writing a book – hopefully, she does so – I’ll certainly read it. Here you can see a picture that I took – this was just outside the gates of the hospital.

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New Coffee Shop in Clearwater Florida – PANGEA

Update: this coffee shop is long gone. 

Check out this great new coffee shop in downtown Clearwater. Reminds me of Queen St West in Toronto. And the coffee is excellent! They are open from 7 am to 2 am so it feels even more like Queen Street. I’ve included one picture but you really have to go there to get the feel of it. It’s just north of Cleveland on Fort Harrison. Check it out:) and give them your feedback – they want to know what the community needs and wants.

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Dr Seuss


A friend of mine sent me this
absolutely great quote from
Dr Seuss:

“Be who you are and
Say what you feel,

because those who
mind
don’t matter
and those
who
matter don’t mind.”
– Dr Seuss

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Sun Tzu

I love reading Sun Tzu – The Art of War

So many applications to many areas of life. Here’s a great quote:

“Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death.”
Chapter 10 – Terrain

Have a great day.
Martin

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Brandon Vermont and my Cousin/Aunt Edna Jones

The coolest thing happened yesterday. I do sales calls as one of my jobs and get calls from all over the country. Yesterday I got a call from a woman and I needed to ask her where she was from. She told me Brandon, Vermont. I said that I had a cousin that had lived there – that she had died last year in August. It is a small town, so she asked me her name. I said Edna Jones. “Oh! I loved Edna!!” was her immediate reply. She went on to tell me several stories about how playful Edna was. Edna was about 87 when she died. My new friend told me that she taught exercise classes and did so for the elderly, one of which was Edna. Well, they had a young man there fresh out of college. Both of the women told this young man, very seriously, that Edna’s dog – a miniature pit bull – needed exercise. Well, next class, sure enough, Edna brings in the dog and the young trainer has him on the treadmill – what a hoot!

Well, if you want to see one of the prettiest towns in America, visit this beautiful place. For some reason I didn’t take any photos while I was there. I always thought I’d get back to see Edna. I was there about 3 summers ago and we were having lunch in an outdoor restaurant on the main street. Some of Edna’s elderly lady friends came by and Edna introduced me to them mentioning that I was a photographer. Well, we almost had a whole calendar planned by the end of lunch! (Remember ‘Calendar Girls’?)

Make sure that you visit some of the Galleries when you are in Brandon and ask about Edna Jones.

Have a good one.
– Martin

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