Chapter 12

Anthony Strallan was up, shaved, showered, dressed and ready to go by 6:30 Saturday morning. Today after his morning rounds he was going to go over to Edith Crawley's house and invite her out for the day. He knew that showing up on the spur of the moment wasn't the most polite thing to do, but in all the logistics of sending her the flowers, he had forgotten to ask Mazie to get her phone number. But the more he thought on that, the more he realized that the last thing he needed right now was Mazie knowing what he was doing.

He didn't have many casual clothes. Most of the time he wore suits or slacks with sports jackets. But he didn't want to look too stuffy today. While talking to the parents of the children in the hospital, he took note on how California men dressed. He noticed that most of them wore jeans or cotton slacks with casual shirts. Well he didn't have any jeans, but he did have a pair of dark brown cotton slacks. He paired them with a small blue checked cotton shirt and put a light beige shawled collared cashmere sweater over it. The forecast said no rain and the temperature was going to be in the low 60's, so he felt that wearing the sweater would be enough. As he finished brushing his hair he thought that the person staring back at him from his dresser mirror didn't look too bad for an old 48 year old man.


Edith was up early as well. She usually went for a ½ hour run each morning but today she wanted to go down to the flea market at the old Alameda Naval Air Station. But one thing she had to finish before she went was cleaning up her garden and getting her gardening tools put away for the winter. She, Charles and Elsie had spent most of the last week pulling the spent vegetables, deadheading the flowers, and trimming the shrubs. While the garden was small, the three of them had managed to make use of every available space. Two years ago Charles had espaiiered an apple tree and this year they had an abundant crop. Keeping them picked was a full time job, but she and Elsie had managed to freeze 15 quarts of applesauce – more than enough to get them through the winter.

So she threw on her old gardening jeans, an old tee shirt and flannel shirt that she used as a jacket when working in the yard and wrapped a scarf around her head . She made herself some oatmeal and ate it while preparing her dinner. She browned a roast and then put it in her slow cooker with a chopped up onion. When she got back later today, her dinner would be done and all she would have to do would be fix a vegetable and probably some smashed potatoes. Walking out onto her back porch she grabbed her gardening hat, pulled on her black rubber boots and headed down the back stairs toward her gardening shed.


Anthony looked at his watch as he pulled up in front of Edith's home; it said 9:30 am. He smiled to himself as he looked at the house. He hardly knew her but somehow this house looked like something she would live in. It was grey with white trim, with a small neatly trimmed lawn in front. The shrubs along the foundation were well groomed and the house seemed to nestle into the landscape.

Taking a deep breath he walked up the stairs to the front door and rang the bell. Getting no answer he rang it again, but still no answer. He noticed a car in her driveway and a gate at the back of the house which he imagined might lead to a back yard. Walking to the gate he opened it and smiled. He was standing in an English garden. The man and woman who he remembered had helped Edith on that Friday night noticed him as he walked into the yard.

"May I help you sir, Charles Carson said moving toward Anthony.

"Ah. . . .yes, I. . . . .ah was looking for Miss. Crawley. I rang her front doorbell but no one answered. I thought maybe she might be back here," Anthony replied trying to look as if it was perfectly natural for him to be there.

"Is she expecting you?" Charles asked and suddenly he recognized Anthony as the man who had brought Edith home.

"Uh. . . . . . . .no . . . . . . . I was just passing and thought I would stop," and even as Anthony spoke the words, he thought they sounded lame.

"Wait here a moment sir, and I will find her for you," Charles smiled and winked at Elsie as he turned and walked toward a small shed in the back corner of the yard.

Anthony heard Charles say, "Lady Edith, you have a visitor."

"What?. . . . . Who?" Anthony heard Edith say and then saw her walk out of the shed. Charles swept his arm in front of him and pointed it toward Anthony.

Edith was flabbergasted, not to mention embarrassed to have Anthony Strallan see her dressed like this.

Pulling her gloves off along with her hat and scarf she ran her hand through her curly hair as she walked toward him trying to think of something clever or witty to say, but all that came out was, "Dr. Strallan, what a surprise," and the only thought that was racing through her head was, My God, he looks good.

"I was driving home from the hospital and thought that I might stop by and make sure that you received the flowers, and . . . . . . I. . . . . .uh . . . . . . was hoping that you might . . . . . .uh. . . . . .consider showing me around town today." There he said it. If she turned him down it wasn't because he hadn't tried.

Before she had a chance to answer she heard Charles clear his throat

"Oh, forgive me, Dr. Charles Carson, PhD and Mrs. Carson may I present Dr. Anthony Strallan, the new head of pediatrics at the hospital.

Charles put out his hand and said, "It is a pleasure to meet you sir. We didn't have much time the other night for introductions."

"No, I'm afraid we didn't. Too much going on," Anthony responded shaking both Charles and Elsie hands.

Edith just rolled her eyes. She knew 'the too much going on' referred to her.

"Well, Elsie and I have to get going. Saturday is shopping day for us," Charles said tilting his head and giving Edith a little wink. "Have a nice time today," and with that he and Elsie walked toward their part of the duplex.

Anthony wasn't going to let any grass grow under his feet so he looked at Edith and said, "So, how about it. Do you have time today to keep that promise you made to your father to show me around?"

Why is it that somehow I just know that he won't take no for an answer, she laughingly thought to herself.

"Well I was just going to go inside, clean up and then go down to the big flea market at The Alameda. Have you ever been to a flea market before? Believe me if you want to see the real San Francisco, that's the place to do it."

"I would like that very much," he said as he followed Edith up the back stairs, watched her take off her rubber boots, and then followed her into her kitchen.

The first thing that caught his eye was the bouquet in the center of her kitchen table. Noticing that he saw it she said,

"Thank you for such a beautiful bouquet and the card. I hope you don't mind that I have it here in the kitchen, but I wanted to put it someplace where I would see it. Believe it or not I spend a lot of time in here. I also want to say that the bowl it is in is so lovely. When the flowers are spent, I will make sure that you get it back."

"No, please, I would be honored if you would keep it. It is a family piece but I don't use that sort of thing and I thought that maybe it would get some use belonging to you."

Edith was suddenly flustered. This blue eyed handsome man made her knees go weak. What's wrong with me, she thought, but then said,

"Well, if we are going to go to The Alameda I need to clean up. If you would like some coffee there are cups in the cupboard above the dishwasher and the coffee is still fresh. Also, feel free to wander around. I should be ready in about twenty minutes," she said as she went down the hall into her room and closed the door.

She never moved so fast in her life. Turning on the shower, she stripped down and jumped in and took, what was for her, the fastest shower on record. Toweling off the water she put on her favorite body lotion – gardenia, followed by the matching perfume. She flicked out her hair and pulled it back off her face with a headband. Then she put on jeans, a white shirt and her multi-colored 49er Pendleton jacket. She was going to put on her high heeled boots but suddenly smiled to herself and put on a pair of good walking shoes with a 1" heel. Looking at herself in the mirror she smiled. She looked pretty good for a 31 year old woman.

While waiting for Edith to clean up, Anthony did walk around her house. Her front living room was connected to her small, bright little library by a lovely arch. Two big over-stuffed club chairs faced each other in front of a small fireplace. Two of the walls had shelving for books. He noticed that she didn't have many books on her shelves, instead she had them stacked on tables with something decorative sitting on top. He noticed the family pictures and the little details that made this house a home. Interesting, he thought, we have much the same taste.

"This is why I like to go to flea markets, Edith said as she entered the library. "I like to decorate with old books, but I do have a book buyer in Salt Lake City, of all places, who lets me know if he runs across any good ones that he thinks I should have for my library collection."

"Perhaps I could help you add to your collection. I have been collecting for quite a long time. I brought most of my library with me," Anthony said as he stooped down and looked at some of her titles.

Standing up straight he really looked at her long and hard. "That's quite a jacket," he said as he looked at her red, yellow, green, and blue plaid jacket.

"This is a vintage Pendleton. People tend to get lost at a huge flea market like The Alameda. If we get separated you will be able to spot me because of my jacket," and she widened her eyes and looked at him to make sure he was understanding what she was saying. She also lifted her foot out in front of her and pointed to her shoes. "As an orthopedic surgeon do you approve of these shoes? You should, they are Clarks. Anthony started to laugh and looking at her eyes instead of her feet said, " Yes, they are perfect."

That little exchange made Edith blush. Anthony Strallan was flirting with her.

"Well, times a wasting. If you need to use the restroom, there is one next to the kitchen. The only available facilities from now on are the portables down there," she said walking back into the hall and toward the kitchen.

Within five minutes they were out the door. As Anthony headed toward his car Edith stopped him and said,

"We can't go down to the market in your car. Someone will vandalize it for sure. Beautiful cars like yours are a beacon for mischief. We will go in Subaru Sally. Besides it has all my stuff in the back. Don't look so alarmed. You have to drive a car like this to flea markets and farmer's markets. You can't worry about your car getting a bump or a ding while you are shopping. Come on, this will be good for you to live on the wild side."

And with that Edith slid behind the wheel and Anthony curled his legs and body into the passenger seat. He was inwardly smiling to himself. He knew that this was going to be a good day, but little did he realize that it was going to change his lonely, stuffy life forever.


A/N: In 1863, Thomas Kay, an English weaver, sailed down the Atlantic Ocean to the Isthmus of Panama. He traveled by burro across the Isthmus to the Pacific Ocean where he caught a ship and sailed north to the state of Oregon. He worked at existing mills and then started his own. He married, had a family and his grandsons knowing that some of the finest wool in the region came from the high plains in Eastern Oregon moved the family mill to Pendleton, Oregon a small wheat and cattle town. The mill was re-named Pendleton Woolen Mills and from there the legend grew. The mill first wove Native American Blankets which were traded with the tribes up and down the Pacific coast and the southwest. They later expanded into men's wool shirts and by the 1940's had woman's clothes as well. The 49er jacket that Edith is wearing is an icon. The company re-issues it from time to time and can never keep up with the demand. It is one of the most highly sought after pieces of vintage clothing. Just wanted to let you know that one of the most highly successful privately owned companies in the U.S., was started by an Englishman.