Charlie chuckled and he put out his arms to Nia who was carrying the daisies carefully. "A vertical village just about sums it up," he said, "only a lt less so than it was. People don't gossip nearly as much as they used to I've noticed. That can be a bad thing as well as a good one. On the one hand people aren't poking their nose into your business. On the other if someone's in trouble and being brave about it, how are you supposed to know to help them?"