I watched the faeries chase each other around the garden with delight until I noticed the gnomes frowning at them."I've really got to boogie if I'm going to get everything done before dark! I've got to get the new brussel sprouts planted, get the lettuce in, weed the onion patch and get the clinatro in the ground.""I can't believe we're back here again!"The tiny seedlings lifted their delicate first pairs of leaves toward the warming spring sun. They shuddered slightly as the droplets from the sprinkler pattered down on and around them, moistening the earth. I couldn't wait to see what flowers bloomed from the mixed bag of seeds I had scattered in the freshly turned earth. 
What Jessica did not realize, and indeed Andrews had never admitted to himself, was that the Duke’s butler was a romantic at heart. He responded eagerly, “Anything, m’lady!”
Here was a damsel in distress. Moreover she was the daughter of his much beloved and lamented mistress. Rescuing her would be an unconscious dream come true.
"O' Captain! My Captain! the singers chanted into the microphones while the guitar ground in the background. The lead singer swung his microphone around in his characteristic arc at the end of its cable which usually ended in him catching it again. Tonight, however, he zigged when he should have zagged and wanged himself in the head.
Would it offend you
if I said you look very
human in this shot?
Photo by: Osquer
It was beyond my strength to resist when Mother Nature started to seduce me. Her green luxury and colorful floral finery are like the blushing maiden. Soon she will ripen into motherhood and bear the fruit that nourishes us so deliciously. Mmmmm zucchini . . . tomatoes . . . brussel sprouts!Can you tell I'm delighted to be blogging from my garden? Hooray for wireless networks!
I can't really call my garden a partnership. I do help the plants and encourage them to grow, and I benefit from their nutrition, but as I'm only growing them to eat them, they don't benefit for long. I guess I have a partnership with my perennial plants, but the annuals are definitely getting the shaft."I hate to ask this of you, but I didn't know where else to turn," she stood in the doorway dripping wet and holding a box with holes in it. That could only mean one thing.
My gnome has found a
new home as guardian to
rescued violets.
Photo by: Osquer
The only thing that accidentally locking my keys in my car really did to me was make me a little late in starting the gardening. I had to call my man for the spare because the tiny plants were locked in the hatch back. Once they'd been rescued, the baby herbs, vegetables and flowers went into the soil with a minimum of fuss. I was even able to finish before dark.She wanted desperately to take her father up in a hot air balloon for his birthday, but her indigence prevented anything so extravagant. So, she got a helium balloon at the dollar store and made a little paper basket to hang underneath it. Then she made two paper dolls that looked remarkably like herself and her father. She floated the whole thing over his desk while he was working late into the night and the laughter it caused did him no end of good.I tried to move with some grace through the yard but the combination of wet grass and the effort to balance a tray of tiny plants was nearly my undoing. It was only luck and quick reaction that kept me from landing on my butt. As is my wobbling efforts to remain upright must have looked less than ladylike. Only a slight elevation of Andrews’ left eyebrow gave any indication of his surprise at Lady Jessica’s request, “How may I be of service, your ladyship?”
“That’s just it. It’s not as my father’s servant I beg your assistance but as a man of honor and charity to a woman in need of your help.”
The sweat seemed to pool in my temples before running into my eyes. I wiped my face on my shoulder as my hands and arms were too muddy to do any good. I thrust the garden claw into the soil once more and gave it a clockwise heave. The tines tore through the earth, uprooting weeds and worms. I shook the mud from the roots, dislodging the worms back into the garden. I had to be quick. I had only so much time before the next rainstorm.When I went out there I didn’t intend to leave my heart unprotected. I planned on meeting lots of people and getting to know several before trusting anyone. Then you spoke to me and my heart proved itself to be not only unprotected from your charms but perfectly willing to fall under them. I sat on the floor surrounded by a vast tangle of yarn. I was frustrated but resigned to slowly and methodically sorting it out. The worst part was that in order to sort out a fairly small knot properly I had to spread the yarn into an almost unimaginable mess. It seems like anything looks worse halfway through getting it cleaned up."Well, you could have been more circumspect in your choice of roomates.""And now, ladies and gentlemen, a legendary performer who needs no introduction..." With that the M.C. walked off the stage leaving the confused audience murmuring to each other.I stood with one hand shielding my eyes and surveyed the damage. The engine steamed and sputtered but would not run properly ever again. I was stranded. Suddenly I heard a motor approacing. It was him. "Damn!" I hissed, "the last person I wanted to be indebted to..."I pushed the engine until it began to vibrate and groan, then I backed it off just a little. I had to make up as much time as possible if I wanted to have a chance of even finishing the race alive let alone winning. I needed to find water and soon, not for myself but for my justly complaining engine. Jessica sat across from Andrews on the drive back to the manor house. She had little time to make up her mind about who to trust in her father’s household. She realized that the butler would be a goldmine of information. “Mr. Andrews,” she began, “I wonder if I could ask a favor of you…”
I watched the motes of dust dance through the air and slowly settle to the floor before being swept up again as the Max, under the influence of catnip, tumbled through the room once more. I really don't think we should keep catnip in the house when we're doing home improvement projects. It tends to turn the newspaper covered floor into an amusement park for kitties!I pinched my cheeks to bring out the roses in them like they used to do in the olden days. I remember Scarlet O'Hara doing it to impress Rhett. I remember my grandmother suggesting rubbing my cheeks with a stiff brush to color them up. 
