Annalyse and the car of confusion

Hello all! I have recently returned from our latest preview for Judah Ben Hur in VA. It was a wonderful and promising time (and, sadly enough for you, fairly uneventful). However, there was one incident......

We join our favorite maiden once again in the midst of a grand adventure. As a great honor, she had been included in the king and queen of ywamtampaville's entourage for a great and exciting journey - the quest for the Up Front Money (that legendary treasure that so many on Broadway have sought in vain). Rising before the sun, they set out to travel many miles; heedless of their exhaustion until they had reached their destination - the beautiful land of Lael. The lord and lady of that enchanting land were generous and renouned for their hospitality - and our favorite little maiden found that their reputation had in no way been exaggerated. After several hours of repose in a delightfully situated private little apartment, the rest of the evening was spent merrily chatting and singing songs which were to be performed for the royalty of the region on the morrow.
The next day dawned bright and sunshiny, and our maiden skipped happily to the brand-new carriage where the Lady of Lael and Prince David (the son of the king and queen of ywamtampaville) awaited to convey them all to the chapel. Prince David delivered a rousing speech to the local gentry; so many desired an audience with the charming Prince that conversation lasted well into the afternoon. Seeing how the sun had begun its downward descent from its zenith, the rector of the parsonage graciously invited the Prince and the maiden to join him and his for a noonday meal. Being visitors in the land, they accepted; however, there was a slight issue. The Lady of Lael desired to return to her realm to prepare for the arrival of the royals that evening - alas, she was forced by duty to decline the invitation. However, there was no need for the Prince and maiden to forego the meal...and she generously offered the use of her brand-new, state-of-the-art carriage. There was a catch, however. The car was protected by a rather new method - that of technology. (If you don't recall how our maiden fares with technology, please refer to "Annalyse and her educational adventure".) Just the word caused the maiden's blood to run cold; she recoiled, thinking to herself, "I'm doomed".
Luckily for our maiden, the Prince was more confident when facing a technological obstacle and watched intelligently as the Lady of Lael instructed our Prince in accomplishing the feat of starting the car - you see, this carriage was protected by that which is referred to as Keyless Ignition. The Lady of Lael spoke confidently and reassuringly of its ease and simplicity, and once Prince David fully grasped this new method, she entrusted the Keyless into the hands of our entrepid Prince. The maiden, having full confidence in his ability to navigate this confusing world of technology better than herself, entrusted her life and lunch into the hands of the Keyless Ignition driven by the trustworthy Prince David.
After acclimating to this strange and intriguing piece of technology, the Prince and maiden set forth, accompanied by the firm but patient voice of the GPS (something that reminded our maiden of the feared and reviled 'Net) which informed the two that they were, in fact, proceeding in the wrong direction. However, by following the rector to the place he had chosen - the very tasteful Cici's Pizza - our Prince and maiden arrived safely, ready to enjoy the bounty that is an all-you-can-eat buffet.
The meal was almost as delightful as the company, and after a few hours of merriment, it came to be that the Prince and maiden had to retire to the land of Lael in order to prepare for that event of events....the presentation to the royalty of the region. Confidently the pair approached the car guarded faithfully by Keyless Ignition. Our maiden was thinking to herself of the darling black dress that she was to don for that evening's festivities and how she should accessorize such a delightful raiment when she realized - Prince David was having difficulties bypassing Keyless Ignition. Together they turned their attention to all the knobs and glowing buttons on the console of this state-of-the-art terror, wondering out loud which should be pushed to commence. After several attempts, the air conditioning and all flashing lights turned on to their fullest, and while wondering at the quietness of the engine, Prince David reversed into the roadway. Having safely manuevered away from the resting place of the carriage, he eased into drive and cautiously pressed the gas.
And yet, no forward motion was achieved.
Puzzled, the two stared at each other then at the console in confusion. "Perhaps if we try...." ventured the maiden, pressing two or three buttons. The second attempt was no different than the first, except that the carriage was now precariously positioned in the middle of the roadway, blocking all possible passage for other cars.
This confused pressing of buttons and trying in vain to fire up the engine continued for quite some time. Realizing the peril and confusion of our Prince and maiden, the rector of the parish returned to help. The first adjustment made was the position of the carriage. Dressed in all her Sunday finery, the little maiden came to assist the rector in pushing this car of confusion back to its resting place - out of the way of harm and inconvenience. When Prince David had removed the parking brake and with the generous help of some passerbys, the carriage was restored to its former spot. Now, all that was left was to conquer the villian technology and return in time to attend their own event.
The search for a resolution was extensive and time-consuming - the maiden reckoned it to be about 45 minutes. After much searching and deliberation, they were finally able to contact the lady of this beast to learn the secret of her successfully in driving it - alas, the secret is......one must plant one's foot firmly on the brake pedal while pressing the Keyless Ignition button.
So simple, so obvious was this answer that the Prince and maiden laughed all the way back to the land of Lael, consistently ignoring the firm but insistent voice of GPS and opting instead to follow the man-given directions of the rector.

And so concludes the adventure of Annalyse and the car of confusion! I am happy to report that the Prince and maiden returned in time to present their quest for the Up Front Money to the royalty of the land, and were met with interest and support! Don't you just love happy endings?