His Blasdell shop showcases his fossil finds

The sign outside says Past & Present but you can tell that owner Glen LaPlaca has a special thing for the past. He says "the whole reason I opened the store was an excuse for me to tell my wife I need more fossils." Not just a fan of fossils, dinosaur bones and other Jurassic Jewels, Glen actually, physically dug up a lot of this stuff himself. "I got to admit finding it is definitely fun." The place is packed with rocks, crystals and fossils from around the world and right here in Western New York. According to Glen "some of the fossils we have are ten thousand years old and others are five hundred million years old and I actually have some that are a billion years or more." The store also features games, toys, books and jewelry. In back is the museum and it showcases Glen's private collection which includes an eight foot dinosaur leg. Glen says he has about 90% of that dinosaur skeleton but doesn't have room to put it up in the museum. Past & Present Store & Museum is at 3767 South Park Ave, Blasdell, NY 14219  More information is available at their website