Past and Present...No, Just Past

            I recently "joined" a website that pays very little money for very small articles.  They asked for a writing sample, so, I prepared two.  I had my wife pick the better one, which I cannot share, because having submitted it, it is now the property of that website.  Let's just say it had something to do with the wonderful sights, conversations and aromas of a cheese shop that once was in Granville, Ohio.

            Here is the other one:

From the shop’s front door, beyond the pink-and-green ladies’ department, a narrow hallway leads to the men’s department of The James Store.  Here, the well-dressed customer may buy any sort of sport coat – as long as it is a navy blazer or a Harris Tweed.  Blazer buttons may be brass or silver, at the customer’s request.   To complement the jacket, certainly a pair of slacks in gray-flannel wool or khaki will be found.  All that is now required are a pair of oxblood Bass Weejuns penny loafers, a Gant button-down Oxford shirt, in Tattersall, white or blue, and a cordovan braided-leather belt.  A tie is optional, as are socks.  The customer who seeks more casual attire will want to add a pair of Levi’s blue jeans.  No further purchases are necessary, as these are to be worn with the Gant shirt, the braided belt and the Weejuns.

The proprietor of The James Store is Jim Bone.  Mr. Bone, as customers of my generation call him, treats every customer exactly like his best customer.  If the customer needs only a pair of socks – presumably in late fall – he will leave the store, socks on feet, feeling like he is Mr. Bone’s best customer.  I know I always do.