30 July 2011

School Daze

Well. Wow. I can honestly say I've never been anywhere like Harrow before. Especially not a school. It was...grand.

We were shown around by a master, and saw loads of classrooms, dining rooms, boarding houses, sports halls - you name it.

I was mainly there, it seems, as Sherlock's trusty steed. Well, there's a massive advantage to having him on my shoulders - it's far harder for him to run off! Although now I have to hold onto his ankles all the time. He's developed a system of dismount otherwise, which involves (with no warning) unhooking his legs from my shoulders, grabbing my collar/shirt and sliding down my back very fast. Resulting in me being strangled and him escaping. And to think it wasn't long ago when he'd only sit up there if John held his hand.

Mycroft and his mum asked a lot of questions. John asked some questions. I tried to stop Sherlock asking questions, and not look like a fish, with my mouth hanging open all the time. Or laugh as Sherlock tried to wriggle free of John's grip in the science labs. He was like an eel on a line, twisting and turning and struggling, and John was just standing, calm as you like, completely focussed on what was being said as his arm was almost removed.

I did almost spit coffee across the room when fees were discussed, though...

So, obviously it's up to Mycroft if he wants to tell you his impressions, but they got as far as starting to discuss which house he might join...which I assume is a good sign?

45 comments:

Lupe said...

Well, I'd be very interested to read Mycroft's observations, if he would like to share them. :)

And, houses? I'm going to sound very stupid and ignorant, but... as in Harry Potter?

Amy said...

Lupe, that was my first thought! Ravenclaw, I presume?

Sorry Mycroft, I've gathered you're not keen on Harry Potter. Please do tell us what you thought of it all!

L, I laughed at your description of Sherlock's speedy dismount move, and John being calm and collected while having his arm twisted half off! I hope Sherlock gets to investigate some real science labs before long (with teachers/tutors, of course).

Greg Lestrade said...

Lupe - never read Harry Potter, but probably? There are...a lot of houses. I don't remember how many. The boys live in a house for boarding, and play in teams for it, all that. They can choose a house or get assigned one. I presume they are all subtly different.

Amy - the first time Sherlock decided on his speedy descent method I thought he was falling off and nearly had a heart attack! I hadn't appreciated his method of halting his fall, so had a brief moment of panic, then a period of strangulation.

And John seems in control of the Sherlock and science thing. I wish his new tutor the very best, given Sherlock's interrogation techniques.

Victoria said...

Lupe--if it's like my school, the House system is where the pupils live giving them a bit more of a family feel, with "houseparents" who look after them, and they play in teams for their House, but unlike Harry Potter we had lessons with all our yearmates, not divided by houses. Also they usually like to spread the evil children around, rather than putting them all in the same house ;) At my school the houseparents were much more hands-on, and there are also teachers assigned to the house as well who may not live there but support the head of house and are available most hours to the pupils, and a resident matron. I always thought the Hogwarts system was extremely lax--one teacher for 60-70 students who spent most of their time without any supervision at all, and a single trained medical staff member for the whole school.

innie said...

I know nothing about Harrow (except to be amazed at the connotations of the name) but I'll give a big cheer for whatever house is lucky enough to land Mycroft, as long as he's happy.

And the image of Sherlock as a storm and John as the eye of it is priceless.

(Look how good I'm being, not saying giddyup to the most delicious DI/trusty steed around!)

Greg Lestrade said...

Not sure about delicious. Or trusty steed.

Old workhorse, I think.

Desert Wanderer said...

You can lead a DI to a compliment...

Greg Lestrade said...

You can lead a copper to culture, but you can't make him think?

Desert Wanderer said...

I dunno. Depends on what type of culture you're talking about. I would lay good money you can talk intelligently about rock culture (The Who, The Clash, etc.) or underground culture or street culture. "Regular" culture of classical music and ancient languages has always seemed to be an excuse for some people to look down their noses at people who don't share their interests and not to do what a culture is supposed to--unite society. Sort of a completely arbitrary stratification system. Besides, I'll take practicality over "culture" any day of the week and twice on Sundays.

Sorry, bit too much for a Saturday, no? I'll go back to appreciating sub-30 degree weather, clouds, and the sound of trees in the wind.

John H. D. Watson said...

You can lead a copper to culture, but you can't make him think?

You're the one who knows all about dessert wine and things.

Anonymous said...

I'm glad to hear that the school visit sounds like it went incredibly well (and that you are all in one piece, and [mostly] unstrangled). And there is absolutely nothing wrong with being a trusty steed. I think it's wonderful how much both Sherlock and Mycroft trust you with their happiness and safety.

I should also point out that you are also incredibly well-versed in the culture of good food. Half the reason I read this blog is to find out what you're making, googling it and then decide if I could/should attempt it at home.

I hope you're having a nice weekend!
-A from NW

Anon Without A Name said...

You can lead a copper to culture, but you can't make him think?

Says the man who's bilingual.

Greg Lestrade said...

I was joking! The real saying is "you can lead a where to culture, but you can't make them think". Terribly un-PC I know. It was just a joke. I don't truly think I'm an uncultured oaf.

Greg Lestrade said...

Whore...my phone rejects my non politically correct joke.

Desert Wanderer said...

I'm glad to hear that. I thought I'd offended you by insinuating that you were uncultured.

Also "lead a where"? Are you actually a werewolf? In London? :D

Greg Lestrade said...

You can't offend me. Being a rozzer gives you a thick skin.

Might be a werewolf though...

Delay due to me trying to avoid work as much as possible - without being negligent - so not checking my phone too much.

LadyMaya said...

I'm glad Mycroft enjoyed Harrow.

As an Aussie who went to school with the general populace (apparently there might be a mix up with private/public, I know that the type is different somewhere) I had no idea that the House system in Harry Potter was even accurate. To find out that its not only a real system, but a badly represented one is hilarious.

And you can't say anyone here is uncultured, the amount of stuff I've learnt just from reading everyone's comments is amazing, XD

timberwolfoz said...

LadyMaya - public schools in the UK are what we'd call private schools here; I've seen them in both private and state schools, though AFAIK it seems to be assigned by alphabetical order, i.e. if you're first alphabetically you go in House 1, second in House 2, etc, etc.

Also, I remember catching a doco on HP with an interview with the headmaster of one of the public schools - I forget which - where he said, unlike HP, they make a point of having a mix of personality types in houses, rather than all the one type. Which makes more sense IMHO.

Anon Without A Name said...

Hah, well, in my defence, 1) you do frequently refer to your lack of extended formal education as if it does imply something negative about you; 2) I'd happily not heard that joke before, and 3) I was pretty much drunk :-)

Greg Lestrade said...

Yeah, you're right. I like to get in before anyone else does, I suppose. And it's not something I'm proud of, wasting my chance at education when I was given it.

Anyway, no offence meant, and none taken? Drunk or not, that seems a good outcome.

Anon Without A Name said...

Yep, that works for me :-)

Even better, no hangover! I'm stunned, this never happens; not since I hit middle age, anyway :-p

Greg Lestrade said...

Ha! What a result. I don't get hangovers...mainly because I don't get drunk. But even when I do, I know a good doctor now! It's all water a painkillers before sleep as preventative measures.

Anon Without A Name said...

A round of applause for whoever invented ibuprofen, is all I can say :-)

Anonymous said...

Greg, I haven't read your blog, or John's, in ages because I got a new job which is kicking my arse. But I do have job in the American economy so I can't complain. I have been laid up with a stomach thing this weekend and couldn't leave the flat as I keep sicking up.

So I thought, "I wonder if the gents have gone to Harrow yet?" I am so glad that it went so well! Hopefully now when he has the visits with the other future students he won't be as nervous as he knows the place a little better.

Greg Lestrade said...

Azure-k-mello - congratulations on the job, but I hope it lets up a bit! I fully understand how a job can take over your life. And I hope you get well soon!

Mycroft did look like he belonged there. Hopefully he'll feel like blogging about it, when he's thought it all through. I think he felt a little calmer after the visit. I think it made John and I feel a bit better, anyway!

Anonymous said...

The job will get easier I'm sure. Right now it's almost a sixty-hour week and that's not right, I'm just learning so it takes a long time. I just got my paycheck and it was irritating. Why is it that whenever payroll messes up it's never in your favour?

Oh, I meant to tell you! I got some of those Marmite cashews, they are every bit as delicious as they should be.

Greg Lestrade said...

Sixty hours, is that all? ;)

I'm trying to work healthier hours myself. But it's a hard habit to break (even harder when everyone's so used to you doing it that they feel like you're knocking off early when you don't!) So I hope you manage to cut down soon. It's no good for you!

Pay never, ever works out in your favour, you're right. Sod's law, I suppose?

Finally, the Marmite supporters are speaking up - they're lovely, aren't they? I could eat bags of them. (Especially if it means I get to give Danger a Marmitey kiss afterwards, just to watch him pull horrified faces).

Anonymous said...

Sixty isn't that bad except that it's supposed to be 37 1/2 plus 5 hours a week for lunch so it should be 42 1/2. It's a big difference!

Small Hobbit said...

I know I'm a Marmite supporter and I'm sure I'm lovely, but I'm not keen on being eaten.

Greg Lestrade said...

Small Hobbit - don't worry, I only eat Marmite supporters who are baked in Marmite. So...stay safe, don't bake yourself in Marmite.

Azure - yeah, I hear you. Do you get overtime? In the Met they only pay overtime to Constables and Sergeants. After that I suppose they think we're too old to escape the job, so they screw us over and we do everything over our hours for free. Which for me has been...well, an embarrassingly large amount, in the past. But not so much now. I just find it very hard to run an investigation when I'm not there to see it all. I feel like I'm letting people down. So I've cut down to about 60 hours now, and these past couple of weeks I've been down to 50 or so. But that doesn't include phonecalls I get when I'm off duty...I don't know. I wouldn't do it if I didn't want to, I suppose.

And Danger works 24/7, so I really have nothing to complain about!

John H. D. Watson said...

I play frisbee and make sandwiches, it's not really in the same league. We are very glad to have you around a bit more though.

Greg Lestrade said...

Are you actually kidding me?? Playing frisbee with the boys is frequently the most work I do all week.

John H. D. Watson said...

Ha. The most exercise maybe - not the same thing!

Greg Lestrade said...

Hmm. Well, I still think by the end of the summer holidays you'll be wishing we could swap roles.

I don't want to go to work tomorrow. Can I hide all day?

Anonymous said...

I would love to play frisbee with your awesome boys although I'm sure Sherlock would mock my aim and Mycroft would embarrassingly kind about it. As it is, no, no overtime, and ten holiday days a year plus the bank holidays. At least I like it! Once I'm not new I'm sure I'll be able to get it down to the actual hours I'm supposed to be working.

John H. D. Watson said...

Absolutely. You can hide under the covers with me all day.

Greg Lestrade said...

Azure - we have these brilliant errant-frisbee retrieval systems, called dogs. No matter how wayward the throw, they'll be there.

May your learning curve be short and sharp, so you can settle into better hours!

Danger - damn, now they'll know where to look for me! Plus I don't think Sherlock would let either of us have that much time alone. Not after how he acted up today when Mycroft and I went off.

John H. D. Watson said...

True. Hiding under the covers with a bony five year old isn't quite the same. We could run away to Scotland.

Greg Lestrade said...

Maybe in their holidays the boys could create a clone, or robot, of me. Then I wouldn't feel guilty about missing work, and I could spend my time with all of you.

John H. D. Watson said...

A clone could be extremely useful, yes...

Greg Lestrade said...

Oi! You've already got me and your copper - don't get greedy!

Or did you mean to take the bin bags out, do the washing up and go to work, and nothing vaguely filthy?

John H. D. Watson said...

It might've been vaguely filthy.

Greg Lestrade said...

Utterly filthy. I've blogged about you.

annoyedwabbit said...

John, as soon as you mentioned running away to Scotland, I thought "they could elope to Gretna Green!" which is probably a sign I have read far too many Regency romances in the last month. (My only defense is that I only read Georgette Heyer, who's actually a decent writer.)

Greg Lestrade said...

Yeah...I think even Gretna Green would demand I was divorced first...don't think that bigamy is a feature in most romance novels!

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