Ransom

^ None. This was my first, and is still my only < There are days when I think time is flying by me at mock speed, and there are still so many things I want to do or see. I'm afraid I'm going to be in the middle of something really kewl, and then this voice is going come out of no where and say, "Oops, times up!" V Every feel like time is slipping through your fingers, no matter how much you cram into a day?

^ Favorite of all time - Acres of Books, in Long Beach. Don't even know if it's still there. Local, it would be Barnes & Noble or a small used book store called "Two Dollar Books." ^ Anything that catches my interest. < I loved Acres of Books. All used books. The back rooms were so dark, and the stacks so high, I needed to take a pen light to read the titles of the books. Came home with bags of books. V Buy used or new?

^ To a certain extent. Mostly by subject. < When we moved to Oregon, the Rider rental truck was thousands of pounds over weight when we came across the border. My husband told me it was because of all my boxes of books. V Can you spend hours in a bookstore or library?

^ You don't say whether it's one you've seen (o) or read. Read would be The Tempest by Shakespeare. < I have collected books since high school. Then I worked for five years at B Dalton Booksellers. Needless to say, I have a LOT of books - fiction, non-fiction, historical, research, art, costume, etc. V Got a good collection of books, or a couple of mouldy paperbacks stuffed in the back of your closet?

^ Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson. It's over 900 pages long. Historical fiction, with a twist. < I am currently reading three books. I rotate. If I get bored with one, I switch to another. Depends on my mood. V Pass the question on.

Tree tops

"Nitey night."

^ Lymond of Crawford series by Dorothy Dunnett - that's six. All of Jane Austen. Then I just discovered a murder mystery writer that I like a lot, Minette Walters. All of Sherlock Holmes. Oh, hell, there is no way I can name just ten. I have hundreds! < I'm an omniverous reader. If it's good, I'll read it. If it's junk, I don't care what genre it is, I'll give it away or toss it. V What are your reading habits?

I can't look at a picture of Bush, or see his name in print, without having a strong desire to bang my head against a wall...really, really hard. The man is a nightmare. That's all I can say, without getting nauseous. Or violent.

Yeah, my Grandfather used to take me to a store like that and buy me a cream soda. The intoxicating aroma of a used book store, or an old library.

^ Hell no! That would scare the bejesses out of me. < However, I'd love to see the videos taken by someone who decides to go! LOL V Pass the question on

^ Likes to tease his friends.

Rain...and more rain....and...more...rain....

^ Good to have around if someone falls overboard.

My herb garden after a quick summer shower. Sheets that have been hung in the sun to dry, not put in a dryer. A freshly cut section of lime - ready to plop into my G&T

^ I'd have a house for a home base, then I'd travel for so many months out of the year, and then, since I'm filthy rich, I'd also have a sailboat I could live on/cruise in, any time I wanted. < I really like the idea of living on a boat for part of the year - hard to do more than a long weekend, what with the McDonald's Farm I live on now. V Pass the question on.

"Yes, the now is quite nice." I snuggled closer, and eventually the two of us fell asleep.

The sound of the male Canadian geese on our pond, fighting and yelling at each other. It's Spring, ya know.

Hey, I'm married to a truck driver. When we met, he told me he had "400 mile kidneys" and that when we take car trips he doesn't stop very often. I have now developed "300 mile kidneys", so hey, bring that 3 hr AWE on - I can handle it!!

I cocked a brow and gave him an amused smile. "Risk? After what I've just told you of my life? I believe, ma pearl, that the degree of risk is not something you need worry about. Nor is the fact that you would not be leaving alone. Things might get a little cramped, as the Rakehell is not a huge ship, but there is more than enough room for you and twenty or so others. It is but for you to decide where you wish to go." Settling back within the circle of his arm, I said, "Tomorrow the Rakehell is due to be careened. Between having her bottom scraped and cleaned, and the loading of provisions, you will have about three days. Three days, ma pearl, to decide where you want to go. Or, three days in which to change your mind and stay." I paused, then said aloud what I was sure he already realised. "But regardless of what you decide, in three days the Rakehell will leave Port Royal. Eventually she may come back, but I can not promise it, nor do I know how long that time might be."

"Where's Goose with that blasted spar?" I snapped, to no one in particular. Like most storms, as fast as it had come on us, it fled. The wind was now no more than a good stiff breeze. The repairs to the mast and sail could be made and then the Rakehell would attempt to catch up to the Relentless. "He still down in the hold," Africa replied. "Tryin' to hide, so he don have to do no work." "Well go down and drag his skinny hide up here and get that squares'l rigged up. We need to find the Relentless." Africa rolled his eyes "Why? Dey don care bout us. Dey leave us to da storm." I poked the big black man in the chest. "Jacky wouldn't leave us. Something's happened on board that ship and I need to find out what it is. So you go below and get that worthless cook of ours and get that sail up. And be quick about it." He smiled. "Aye, I'll be bout it. No need to go pokin' this po man." With a chuckle, I watched the "po man" head below to retrieve Goose. But as I turned to look toward the horizon my smile died. What had happened aboard the Relentles, I wondered? Was Jacky in some danger, or worse, injured or dead? I had to know.

I gave a small, whispered laugh. "And you are the only reason, despite the wish of my crew, that I have not left this cursed island." Raising up on one elbow, I kissed him gently. "I have a ship. Where would you like to go?"

Securing damask blind, he drew her close once settled within soft linen shrouding. Dauphin spoke of Paris in whistful tones; hushed as if the Place were some temple of worship and sacred to the Faithful. He spoke haltingly of the Crossing and all was given with a disjointed manner; pieces here and missing there. Now and then, long pause would occure and hearing pitched to catch any stirring of chamber; and continuence gained drowsy hues... Like the petals from a tighly closed flower, the tale was plucked from his memory and presented in whispered voice. I listened, marveling at cruelty, and at endurance. I now understood his fear of ships, of confidences given too freely, and of family's unraveling. I understood it, for had I not suffered catastrophic changes in my own life? "It is a sad tale, ma pearl, but not a hopeless one. For you, Jamaica is a new world, much as Columbus discovered. For your brother, it is merely a continuation of an old world, of what went before. I hope you can reconcile with Andre, for all your sakes. As for Sterling and your sister, I can not say. It is too complicated. But in my heart, I feel the choice is for them to make, not you or your family's." I curled within the embrace of his arm, my head on his chest, and returned the confidence he had given me. My tale of betrayed love, family antagonism, banishment to Italy, and the final betrayal by my father in his refusal to pay my ransom. I told of years on the sea, of beatings, stabbings, and worse, and of survival. I confessed my own misdeeds and killings, and finally, the message from my brother and ex-lover, relayed through my Aunt Violet. And last of all, in an act of complete trust, I told him my real name.

A war partly won, I thought, another step in our strange relationship taken. I then proceeded to discard boots, weapon, and clothes, and joined him at the edge of the bed. "If warmth is what you desire, I offer it." Then I kissed him lightly on the lips, and turned to the bed.

May have to borrow Silie's sponge. We've had rain for two days, and due for two more days. Naturally, this is the time one of my horses gets sick, and the vet is due out this afternoon. I just love walking out to the barn in the pouring rain - NOT