{This is a response, to a prompt from Friday Fictioneers. It is a weekly challenge, to write 100 words, inspired by the photo given.
I refer to the Citroen 2CV, as a duck. When I was in Germany in the 80’s, I frequently heard people call this vehicle “die Ente,” or “the duck.”
I have, myself, recently binge-watched Monty Don’s French Gardens, a three-program series which I highly recommend, if you want a lovely bit of escapism, art and inspiration. Sadly, some of us are better at watching gardening shows, than at creating actual gardens.}
After binge-watching Monty Don’s “French Gardens,” Ethan yearned for a Citroen 2CV, derisively known, as “The Duck.”
He also longed, through landscape lapidary, to transform his own humble grassy patch into a geometric jewel, befitting an Enlightenment philosopher.
First, the ornament. Such gardens required paths to radiate from a gloriously Baroque fountain, or some other central magnificence.
But Ethan’s budget did not stretch to fountains.
He settled upon crafting, of chicken-wire and plaster, a large gazing ball, inlaid, with a mosaic of mirror.
Soon, his garden, derisively known, as “The Disco Ball Garden,” would be the talk of the town.
He’s an artist! (of sorts)
Indeed.
A disco ball garden… i think that’s excellent. It will be unique… beats the neighbor’s plastic flamingo pond for sure.
We do see more than our share of plastic flamingos around here.:)
I admire his determination and ingenuity. At least his garden will be unique.
Indubitably.
Dear Andrea,
I’ll bet his garden was something to behold. Fun story.
Shalom,
Rochelle
No doubt.
I’d always go for the creative twist instead of following what the Jone’s & Smith’s are doing. Disco Garden for the win!
Ethan will look forward to your visit.
He was inspired and he tried his best so I liked him very much.
Im so glad he came off as likable. It was very naughty of me to make fun of such a pure-hearted soul.
I would love to have a disco ball garden. Sounds like a big party. Nicely done.
I can hear the soundtrack to Saturday Night Live. I came of age when disco was on its way out and the subject of much ridicule and buffoonery. I hope I have not stepped on too many toes in this crude attempt at dancing with words, so to speak. 🙂
LOL not at all. A garden party is always fun and if there is dancing so much the better. ?
Ha! This is fun. Sometimes DIY projects don’t get the results one wants.
In my experience that is very true. Glad you recognized the tongue in cheek.
Good for Ethan!
Yup, he is putting forth the effort!
An entertaining tale. I liked ‘landscape lapidary’!
Thank you. Could not resist the alliteration!
I’ve owned 4 2CV’s over the years. I prefer to call them Deux Chevaux’s rather than ducks!
In the garden show, the host drives a blue one throughout France from garden to garden. The “two horses under steam” is what the 2CV stands for, more or less. I assume thats like 2 horsepower? Not my area of expertise.
Gardening equally so.
Glad you enjoyed these quirky cars. They are quite adorable. Like most things and people that stand out from the pack, they have earned themselves a nickname or two. 🙂
Ideas and efforts to bring them to life matter. At least he tried to live his dream…
Yes. That is a laudable goal.
Ethan has dream but not much fund. Good that he is doing with what he has at his disposal.
True, Abhijit!
I hate to admit it but the first thing I saw when I saw the prompt was a disco ball!! Maybe it’s just fate.. for your Ethan and for me…
Great minds…
it would be nice if it became the talk of the town in a positive way. 🙂
Perhaps it will, in time.
Well there’s no denying his creativity…
Quite.
To each his own and good for Ethan. Lovely piece!
We must go where our inspiration takes us, come hell or highwater!
Well, his garden is a spectacle all right, so mission accomplished 🙂
Yes, you could say it was, in the most literal sense, spectacular, as in, attracting attention. Or perhaps, in the sense, of making a spectacle of onesself.:)
One man’s trash is another man’s garden!
That’s true, Dale, and far be it from me to judge.:) I was trying to convey his own, heightened opinion of the fine garden he was creating, and contrast it with what other people in town might think.
And hey, as long as he loves it…who cares what others think?
That is a very democratic sentiment.:)
Well… I think we have to stop worrying what others think (unless he is creating an eyesore for all to endure!!)
I agree with that statement as an aphorism for life, but fortunately,our characters are not required to act wisely, to act in their own best interests, or even to possess common sense.
At the risk of sounding like a snob, I think that, even though a sense of not caring what other people think is fundamental, to the process of creativity, in the end, we and our “work” are eventually and inevitably judged, based on rigid aesthetic and other principles, prevailing at the time and in years to come. So sure, Ethan should feel great about his accomplishment, but that does not justify his opinion that it is high art.
Creativity always gets a round of applause from me 🙂
Yes granonine. I was trying in my descriptions to make his efforts sound much more elegant than they actually are, since he was doing his best to copy French gardens like Versailles. But yes, A+ for effort!
The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about, as Oscar Wilde said
True. Neil. Wilde did have a way with words!
Good on Ethan for ingenuity. I do love a 2CV – mainly thanks to one being used in a James Bond film years ago! 🙂
Don’t know how common these expressions are, outside the US, but I was playing with the parallel ideas of the car being lampooned as a duck and the garden being mocked as a turkey.
“Let’s talk turkey,” the title, means, let’s get serious, let’s get to the meat of the matter. A ‘turkey” here, in the US, often means a dud, or “something that is extremely or completely unsuccessful…”
Of course, if his garden is the talk of the town, and they are talking about his garden as a turkey…
The insertion of a disco ball in a formal garden might also be looked upon, by purists, as a bit tacky.
In this roundabout way, I meant to imply, that his highfalutin dreams may not have been as successfully realized, as he thought. 🙂