On Horseback

Chapter 24: The Country Life Advanced

I must admit that moving out of the Green Ranch felt strange. I had lived there my whole life, but now I was married, and moving into Jack's farm. The day after the wedding, Gray, Popuri and Dad brought all of my things, including the music box, over to Jack's place, and we started furnishing it with my mist.

Jack and I would wake up every morning at the same time: 6:00 a.m. It was tradition with farmers (and ranchers). We would eat breakfast, then he would go out to water the plants and feed the chickens. I fed the barn animals and cleaned the pens. Jack had only been doing that for a year now, but I'd been doing it my whole life, so hey, why not?

I woke up the 1st of Summer and peeked out the window. The plants were gone. It was a new season. My second season with my new husband. It sounded charming at first, but I quickly reconsidered it, trying not to sound too sappy.

"Good morning," Jack said, getting out of bed.

I turned away from the window and looked at Jack. He quickly threw a pair of clothes over his boxers and put on his cap. It looked like another great day for farming.

"Did you buy the seeds yet?" he asked me, while getting a glass of water.

"Yes, I did that last night. Why else would I run to the Florist shop at five to five?" I replied, giggling at the end.

Smiling, Jack took a sip of water. "At least it's not raining. I'd hate for the fireworks to be washed out. Fireworks are like a mysterious array of sparkling colours shining in the moonlight, falling to the grounds of the earth, sweeping people off their feet in oohs and aahs. Don't you agree, Ann?"

I nodded. Jack was always very descriptive of everything, but he rarely showed it.

"Now, if I'm not mistaken, which I'm so sure that I'm not, Ann, you won't be cooking this morning, will you be?" Jack asked me, grinning a stupid grin on his face.

I immaturely stuck my tongue out at him. One thing that Jack did know, was that I could not cook. I couldn't cook, I couldn't cook, I couldn't cook. It was a plain and simple fact. Gray and Dad had always cooked my meals when I was younger, and insisted that I just continue with my knitting. I had agreed, but I really wish that I never did.

"We had eggs, bacon and toast yesterday for breakfast," I began, "so today, I think that we should have...oh! I know! We should have some eggs, bacon and toast! Doesn't that sound a delicious idea, Jack?"

Laughing, Jack replied, "Okay, okay. We can have some again. Unfortunately, we don't have enough eggs -yes, I remember how many from yesterday- so you're going to have to go get one from the chicken coop. Don't drop it, please."

I fetched an egg for Jack, and while he cooked breakfast, I decided to do my chores. It'd be better to get them out of the way now then later. Shrugging, I walked out to the barn and opened the door. A familiar scent blew up my nose. The smell of fodder and cow waste. It was a smell that no one would ever be able to take away from my nostrils.

I brushed Jack's two cows, Reese and May, and his sheep, Wonder. Then, I took out the sheers, and sheered Wonder. I loved wool. I could knit a million things with wool. Jack didn't mind if I took the wool sometimes, but if it became a habit, he would flip out at why he wasn't making the extra 900G with his daily pay.

After milking the cows, and placing the cold drinks into the shipping bin, I raced to the house, where breakfast was on the table. "Ooo, what a tasty looking meal my wonderful husband has made me!" I cried with glee. Jack gave me a quick peck on the lips, and we began consuming our food.

"So, Karen and Popuri's babies are due on the 16th," I said, while chewing on some bacon.

Jack took a sip of milk, and then said, "Both of their children? On the same day? Well that's a problem for you, Ann. Who are you going to visit? Popuri, your sister-in-law? Or Karen, your best friend?"

Shaking my head, I leaned closer to Jack and whispered, "Jack, the children aren't going to come out on the same day. That's what the midwife predicts. You just watch: They won't. It's a given fact. A shiny, crystal clean given fact."

We continued conversing, and got onto the topic about visiting the restaurant, since it had re-opened. The bridge had been completed a long time ago, but like I said before, we didn't know of that news, which was actually quite confusing, considering the fact that we're just a small village. But we let the matter slip away, and put our plates in the dishwasher. That would be my job later on.

Jack gave me another peck on the lips, and he headed out to plant the corn and tomato seeds.

"Well," I said to myself. "It looks like I'll have to be doing some household chores today. This place has been a mess since I moved in, and it's time to make it as pretty as it was before, like I had always been living here."

The sink was filled with plates and forks and knives from our previous meals. That didn't surprise me, as we only got our dishwasher two days ago. I took the dirty dishes out of the sink and placed them in the dishwasher.

...

If that was all a housewife did, then I was going to end up moving back to my Dad's place.

I walked back into our living room backslash bedroom, and found a whole pile of clothes under the bed. Is that what Jack did everyday? He took his clothes and threw them under the bed? Some of it looked like it hadn't been washed since he arrived in the village.

The bathroom was small, but the tub we had would be perfect for washing Jack's messy attire. I turned the knobs to the left, and fresh, ocean water came rushing out the two taps. I filled the tub to the half point, and threw in some soap. Unfortunately, soap wasn't sold in Flower Bud Village, so we always had to order from Silver Sapphire. What else was new?

Who the heck heard of a place that sold a lawn mower for more than a greenhouse? No where but Flower Bud Village...

Throwing some of my clothes in too, I began cleaning our clothes. It did take me awhile to finish the entire load, but once it was completed, I took them outside to the log terrace to dry. Jack had built a line that was attached to the horse stable and house. That's where I could hang the laundry to dry. The entire line was filled too, by the time that I finished.

When I went back inside, I looked around. The dusting would have to be done, as the television was covered with dust. Everywhere. I meant that literally. Most of the tables were also covered in dust.

I got the duster out of the cabinet, and spent at least a half hour dusting the entire house. Jack really didn't take care of his house too well. I didn't seem to enjoy that at all. This place would be spotless, if I was living here.

At around 5 p.m., Jack came into the house, his hair filled with mud.

"JACK! What on earth have you been doing out there? You are an absolute mess and I cannot stand to look at you like this a second longer! Get into that bathtub and scrub yourself until you sparkle head to toe!" I yelled at my husband.

Ignoring me, Jack asked, "Where do you want to go watch the fireworks tonight? How about right here on the farm? I think that would be nice. What about you, Ann?"

The next thing Jack realized was that he was sitting in the bathtub, the bathroom door locked from the outside. I certainly was evil. But I couldn't stand dirty people, even with farmers and ranchers! We may have different lifestyles, but that doesn't mean we always walk around as dirty as the mud on the ground. Well, some do.

I decided to get some Sapphian (a Silver Sapphire cuisine, via Elli's Bakery) for dinner. Jack was still locked in the bathroom, so I unlocked the door, and he looked at me like he was going to kill me.

"I swear if you ever do that again-" he began, but I cut him off by saying, "There's no time to argue! It is 6:50 and the fireworks will be starting any minute now! Let's go out onto the terrace! Oh yes, I bought some Sapphian from the bakery. That's why you were locked in there longer than you should have been. My apologies."

A large peck was plastered all over Jack's cheek. My lipstick was a dark as Jack's brown eyes. I giggled, and we walked out onto the terrace.

The fireworks started a second later. The exploding art shone in the sky and I put my head on Jack's shoulder while watching. It was a beautiful sight to see. I oohed and aahed every so often, and had to punch Jack in the ribs to make him ooh and aah too.

"I told you that it would be a nice view from here, Ann," Jack told me.

I smiled.

"You were right, honey. This is beautiful. It's absolutely beautiful."