4 October 2011

Now there's a look in your eyes, like black holes in the sky

Still at work. Now been here, with a short break to dump a couple of fish on John, for...over 25 hours. Am in that place where you're so tired you couldn't possibly sleep.

Just waiting for one more report, then to see the DCI, then home.

Talked to Sherlock on the phone a few minutes ago, to try to persuade him Mrs T probably doesn't want a fish skeleton in her classroom all day.

This case is...well, it'll be another one where no one wants to talk to us. The victim who's still alive - just - is in no condition to talk to anyone. No one in the area saw or heard anything. The flat was clearly set up for drugs deals, so it might be a turf war, which means gangs, which means retaliation, which means we need to work fast or the bodies could start piling up.

Danger, I'll probably get home while you're taking Sherlock to school. You'll no doubt find me wherever I land...sofa, bed, floor...

224 comments:

1 – 200 of 224   Newer›   Newest»
Small Hobbit said...

L - just to say "thinking of you" and hope you get some sleep soon. *hugs*

Sherlock - maybe if you drew the fish skeleton Mrs T could put the picture up.

Greg Lestrade said...

Thanks. Just got in. Danger is making me toast and sending me to bed. I'm doing my best to get him to join me. He didn't exactly sleep soundly himself.

Ria said...

Oh goodness, enjoy your toast and then sleep for as long as circumstances and excitable children will permit. I hope tomorrow is better. Go and snuggle your Spider and your boyfriend.

Greg Lestrade said...

Yeah, due back in this afternoon, so might drop Danger off at the school, see Sherlock for a few minutes and head back to the yard to do the briefing.

REReader said...

Um...I guess the conversation just continued over on John's blog instead of moving here. Hope you hurt less soon!

Greg Lestrade said...

No, we're here. Well, Danger is attempting to feed me and make me have a bath. Sherlock is telling me what smoker's lungs look like...thanks S.

REReader said...

Wait, in a minute he'll be pulling up internet images to SHOW you what smokers' lungs look like. Won't that be fun?

Desert Wanderer said...

Is Spider made with those microwavable/freezable beeds people use for muscle aches?

Sounds like a perfect compress for chest aches/congestion. That, and a cute doctor. :)

John H. D. Watson said...

She isn't sadly, but it'd be a nice addition.

Greg Lestrade said...

RR - I actually think his descriptions are worse.

DW - don't think so. I currently have a lap full of warm Sherlock. The cute doctor is definitely the best thing.

Desert Wanderer said...

Alas. Guess you're the nearest substitute. :) You'll just have to "resign" yourself to cuddles with your favorite DI.


..and that was supposed to be "beads." Sorry.

Greg Lestrade said...

I read it as 'beads' anyway.

REReader said...

Is Sherlock also providing hugs? Sherlock, I think Lestrade could use a few hugs to go along with the descriptions.

Greg Lestrade said...

he's pestering John for a stethoscope now, to listen to my lungs and see if they're full of 'black stuff'.

John H. D. Watson said...

He can listen for black stuff after dinner.

REReader said...

I'm sure it will sound very interesting. :)

(And maybe it will help dissuade him from starting smoking in later life. Even assuming your current illness is not actually related to your past smoking.)

Greg Lestrade said...

I'd hope it would. At the moment he thinks it's a stupid habit, so we'll just encourage him to keep that view.

REReader said...

Nice to be useful, isn't it?

Hope you're feeling a bit better. You probably could really use a day in tomorrow.

Greg Lestrade said...

I live to serve.

Think it's normal to feel worse in the evenings, isnt it?

John H. D. Watson said...

Yes. But you should still think about staying home tomorrow if you feel worse when you wake up.

Small Hobbit said...

Yes, I assume John hasn't given you your bath yet. That should help.

Greg Lestrade said...

he's not giving me a bath! if I decide to have a bath I'm entirely capable of doing so on my own.

John H. D. Watson said...

Heh.

REReader said...

You don't WANT John's help? Goodness, you are feeling off.

Greg Lestrade said...

I don't want a bath at all. but if it'll help I'll do it.

Having a bath with John is fine. But impractical, with Sherlock around. Having 'help' is unnecessary.

REReader said...

Well, a shower would work, too. Or a pot of steamy water and a towel. Or a pot of water on a radiator. Anything to add humidity to the air you're breathing.

(Sorry, badly timed pleasantry.)

Greg Lestrade said...

Sorry I didn't mean to... be an arsehole.

Just another completely irrational dislike of something. Mainly being in any way ill.

REReader said...

That seems perfectly rational to me. (((hugs)))

Small Hobbit said...

You're not an arsehole. Just bad-tempered because you're feeling grotty. I presume you realised the "help" was for your breathing, not the bath.

Greg Lestrade said...

Yeah, sorry, massive over reaction to you all being kind and helpful.

i should probably just remove myself from being anywhere near anyone until I'm in a better frame of mind.

REReader said...

No, an understandable reaction to hurting, which is never fun. An early night would be a good idea, if you can sleep. Feel better!

John H. D. Watson said...

L - you all right in there? Can I come in?

Anon Without A Name said...

Hope you're feeling better soon, Lestrade.

Greg Lestrade said...

Yeah.

John H. D. Watson said...

Sorry you feel like crap, love.

Greg Lestrade said...

Sorry I'm not better at being looked after.

i really do appreciate it, more than you know.

John H. D. Watson said...

You're fine. I've had much worse patients than you, don't worry.

Greg Lestrade said...

Mmm. You probably didn't have t try and sleep with them coughing though.

unless you took your bedside manner a bit further than most.

John H. D. Watson said...

Well, not in the same bed with them, no. But in the same tent often enough. And I like you better.

Greg Lestrade said...

you say the sweetest things.

Did you get a look at the top secret pond plans yet? Is Sherlock planning to put a rocket launcher under the retractable pond?

John H. D. Watson said...

He's looking seriously into carnivorous plants and is convinced he'll find some that will grow here. I guess it's all right as long as they only eat bugs and not children?

Desert Wanderer said...

...was that a Thunderbirds reference, Lestrade?!

Greg Lestrade said...

thin end of the wedge. then he'll need a way of breeding flies to feed them. then we'll end up with something for flies to breed on - like a cow's head.

before you know it our flat's a Damian Hirst installation.

Greg Lestrade said...

DW - James Bond! Not Thunderbirds!

John H. D. Watson said...

Or whatsit, with the sculptures that looked like raw meat.

Anyway, Mrs T can worry about cow heads and breeding flies. I wonder if she gets hazard pay. She really should.

Greg Lestrade said...

(You Only Live Twice - for those of you wondering. Admittedly it was a volcano, not a school pond...but still. Blofeld's lair had pools filled with piranha, so...)

Greg Lestrade said...

(no one buy Sherlock a white cat.)

Greg Lestrade said...

I reckon she does, Danger, yes. Or at least the bill for her therapist paid off.

John H. D. Watson said...

I've never seen You Only Live Twice.

REReader said...

Possibly it might be worth pointing out to Sherlock that if they plant carnivorous plants around a frog pond, the frogs and plants are going to be in competition for flies. Seeing as frogs move and plants don't, the plants will likely starve. Darwinian survival in action!

Anon Without A Name said...

John - really? Wow. I had you pegged as a Bond fan.

Having said that, the book is better, I think. The dreadful casual racism feels like a (hideously outdated) product of it's time in the book, but feels they-ought-to-know-better cringe-inducing in the film.

Desert Wanderer said...

Uh huh. Sure. James Bond.

And nothing at all like this, which actually is a retractable body of water:

http://tinyurl.com/6ervvbv

Maybe that should be your next poll? Best (or worst) James Bond movie.

John H. D. Watson said...

I've seen a lot of them, but not all. Missed that one somehow.

Greg Lestrade said...

Hang on...you have had time in your life to watch firefly - a film about glittery vampires, and not every Bond film? I could let you off some...but this is a Connery film. He was my first crush! how can you have home this long without seeing them all at least 5 times?

You even look quite a lot like Daniel Craig. Except more handsome.

(I agree , nameless. the casual isms are not something to be proud of. my phone changed isms to anal... not something to be casual about either.)

John H. D. Watson said...

Are you sure you don't have a fever? I look nothing like Daniel Craig!

And I did not watch a film about glittery vampires! Did you just confuse Firefly with Twilight? Oh my god. Unacceptable. If you don't watch out, I'm bringing Firefly along on our trip.

Greg Lestrade said...

Do. Blond, muscular, handsome, rugged, lots of things in common.

I thought Firefly was glittery vampires? It's called Firefly! It makes sense! What's Firefly about then??

That's a grade one. I'm going to bed before it turns into a 1aaa.

Amy said...

Daniel Craig kinda looks like a fish, so yes, Danger is obviously more handsome! :)

As for the glittery vampires... I think you deserved that Look...

John H. D. Watson said...

But Daniel Craig's hot!

Right, if you're home from work tomorrow we're watching Firefly. And if not, then at the weekend.

Greg Lestrade said...

Daniel Craig is...warm. you are hot. I rest my case.

I'm certain I'll be well enough to go in and work the weekend...

Anonymous said...

I love the Thunderbirds so much. I used to hope we'd get in an accident so that the Tracy boys would have to come rescue us. I even, kind of, almost, sorta liked the live action one.

Daniel Craig's eyes are strangely spaced.

Anon Without A Name said...

Bloody hell, Lestrade, did you really think John's been trying to get you to watch glittery vampire teen angst all this time? Did you think that's what we were suggesting you watch? I agree with Amy, you deserve that look :-p

This is what you've been missing: http://static.tvguide.com/MediaBin/Galleries/Imported/Editorial/R-S/sexy_sci_fi_0808/sexy-nathan-fillion.jpg

http://images.fanpop.com/images/image_uploads/Nathan-as-Capt--Mal-nathan-fillion-377600_800_600.jpg

John H. D. Watson said...

He can't really think that. He's got to be winding me up.

And there's nothing wrong with Daniel Craig's eyes! Nothing at all.

Anon Without A Name said...

I just spent ten minutes googling pictures of Daniel Craig... and I agree with John :-)

Azure Mello said...

There's something seriously off about his face, John, I'm pretty sure it's his eyes. He's definitely an attractive FLK. I'm not saying he's ugly; I'm saying he's put together incorrectly.

Livejournal won't let me in but it's still me.

mazarin221b said...

Feel better soon, Lestrade! Be glad John takes care of you - my husband just tries to stay as far away from me as humanly possible.

I'm getting a bit of a weird cough, myself. I'm bracing myself and waiting - I'm sure it's just going to get worse. Better lay in a supply of lemons.

REReader said...

Oh, boy. I dozed off watching tv (just got a flu shot yesterday), and obviously my subconscious has more faith in Sherlock's tenacity than in my logic, because I dreamed of carnivorous kudzu covering the UK. (Kudzu)

Eek!

Azure Mello said...

I got my flu shot today, my arm hurts but I don't feel weird. Feel better everyone!




I think LJ is down.

REReader said...

I think you're right about LJ--I tried to get on to post an RIP for Steve Jobs, and it won't connect. Again.

Greg Lestrade said...

I think I need to remove my lungs, give them a good clean and put them back in. Whatever I do at the moment, it hurts.

Azure Mello said...

Oh, Greg, I'm sorry. Take a deep breath and have a good cough. You never know, it could be a gold watch.

innie said...

LJ's down for another hour. L, the lovely man Nameless linked for you plays the captain of the ship, the one we all agreed you were most like of anyone on Firefly (John was Zoe, Sherlock was River, and Mycroft got the shaft and ended up as Simon, if I'm remembering correctly). Did you honestly think that we were calling you a sparkly vampire? That alone is enough to make me think you should be hospitalized.

John, you're much better looking than Daniel Craig, even with spaghetti hanging out of your mouth. (Isn't it about time for more pictures to be posted? L in his leathers?) And while I would never suggest reducing L's Firefly time, I wonder if Greg the Florist and his John aren't waiting to come out and play?

John H. D. Watson said...

going to get you something warm to put on your chest, stay put.

REReader said...

You could try boiling some water in a pot, turning off the fire, and hooding your head and the pot with a bath towel and breathing that way. Just be careful not to scald yourself--give it some distance.

(John would not mind if you woke him up, I am positive. He'd probably have better ideas than I--I had a horrible cough for a couple of months two years ago, he's a doctor, after all.)

REReader said...

Ah, I see that I am redundant. Sorry. Ignore me.

Greg Lestrade said...

I just got the names confused. I do remember vaguely you talking about captains, not vampires. But honestly, twilight sounds more space-y and firefly sounds more glittery.

Mazarin - he is amazing and I'm deeply thankful. I'm just not very good at being looked after.

Ria said...

Not early my behind. Why in Heaven's name are you awake at 6:00 in the morning? I do hope that you're either a) feeling substantially better, or b) worse enough that you won't go to work and hack at your coworkers like a Victorian heroine with consumption, but not so bad that you're absolutely miserable.

Get well soon.

Greg Lestrade said...

I was up for work. I'm now at work. I feel...roughly the same. Everything's fine if I don't breathe...

Desert Wanderer said...

If you get Sally sick, what grade Look do you imagine you're going to get?

Hope you feel better soon. :)

Greg Lestrade said...

Hah, true.

I've been reliably informed that chest infections aren't particularly easy to catch - not as bad as colds or flu - as long as I don't cough on people. I'm not even coughing much yet. It's all just sitting in my chest like a baby elephant.

Small Hobbit said...

I suppose it's too much to hope for that Sally will come in, give you a look and tell you and the baby elephant to go home and get some rest?

Greg Lestrade said...

During a murder investigation? Yeah, too much to hope. She has enough to do without picking up half of my tasks too.

She did bring me coffee though.

REReader said...

At work, huh? Perhaps you might go home a bit early? You can't have gotten much sleep.

Pere said...

This may be construed as herbalist silliness, but...there's a massive food shop in London's Chinatown where you can get something called Nin Jiom Pei Pa Koa. It's basically a honey-eucalyptus mixture with ginseng and other (harmless) things. I had asthma and bronchitis growing up, and still get chest infections fairly often, and that was the only thing that gave instant relief while I waited for the actual pharmaceuticals to kick in.

You mix a brimming, very sticky tablespoon with one cup of water as hot as you can stand, and drink it down. It DOES feel like someone's taken your lungs, cleaned them and put them back. Very good for a throat gone raw with coughing, too.

Sorry for the super long comment--feel better!

Greg Lestrade said...

RR - yeah, will knock off a bit early again. Don't actually feel too bad right now. But I think I may just be getting used to it...

Mahala - thanks. I'll run it by my personal physician, see what he says.

Piplover said...

I had the pig flu last year that, due to my asthma, went right to my lungs. I sounded like a mad walrus whenever I coughed.

I went into work and was there for five minutes before my boss pointed her finger and said, I quote, "Get thee gone, plague bearer!"

So, in other words, I hope you feel better soon, and you don't sound like a mad walrus, and no one is pointing you out the door.

Have you tried something with an expectorant in it? That might break the stuff up in your lungs and let you cough it out.

REReader said...

Good. I hope it clears up--or clears out--soon!

John, would it make sense to get a humidifier for the bedroom?

Greg Lestrade said...

There's no need to get anything! It's just a cough - one that will make me suffer for 30 odd years of smoking, undoubtedly, but still just a cough.

Piplover - Sal says I sound like a seal or something. And I have no idea where one finds an expectorant, but it sounds like a good idea.

REReader said...

Yes, yes, you don't want fuss. I'm actually not fussing. A humidifier is a small thing, it's not expensive, it just sits in a corner and makes a little steam. I use one all winter so I don't get nosebleeds and the furniture doesn't crack. And so when I get a cough my chest doesn't hurt as much and I can sleep. *mock glare*

And an expectorant is a good idea; you want to make sure the cough syrup is alcohol-free, as you are riding a bike and had trouble sleeping, not to mention a nice sleep-defiict built up. Now, THAT may be fussing because it's not a lot of alcohol, but I'm hyper-aware as I'm allergic to alcohol.

(Your captcha says "swayedn", so maybe that was convincing? :) )

Greg Lestrade said...

I don't think I've ever taken cough medicine in my life. Had no idea it had alcohol in it.

I'm still not sure it ever gets dry enough here to warrant a humidifyer. I'm honestly not feeling that bad.

John H. D. Watson said...

I got you an expectorant, and that herbal stuff - can't hurt. And this Chinese chicken soup with garlic and ginger, assuming you get home before I eat it all.

Greg Lestrade said...

I'll be home soon ish. Sal keeps trying to make me drink herbal tea Crap.

John H. D. Watson said...

Count yourself lucky I didn't bring you home more herbal tea crap. There was loads at the shop.

Sally said...

He refused coffee. I was worried. And then, since he only drinks coffee, I thought he might get dehydrated.

(he didn't refuse coffee all day, just this afternoon. He drank a few pints earlier, or I really would have worried).

John H. D. Watson said...

Refused coffee...

You're sure he's actually still alive, right? And conscious?

Bronwyn said...

Mentholated chest rub. Like Vicks. It's wonderful stuff. Take a hot, steamy shower, rub it on your chest and take your meds and you'll feel miles better.

And don't whinge, Greg. You'd make John/Sherlock/Mycroft do it, if there was a chance of them feeling better, so suck it up and do it for yourself. It'll make them feel better.

Hope you improve sharpish.
Bronwyn

Sally said...

Think so. Of course, the super could have had his brain and life force removed and implanted in an Android. I'll let you find out if he's still in full working order.

He's glaring. Did he tell you his bad mood about getting ill yesterday led to two confessions? That was a grade a* glare then.

John H. D. Watson said...

Ha. Maybe you could take a picture and then he could practise it for future occasions?

Greg Lestrade said...

I am here, you know. Can't you run me down behind my back, at least?

Bronwyn - vicks is fine. no protests. I like the smell of it.

As for the coffee - I was trying (I am just about capable) to be a sensible adult and not drink loads of coffee when I wanted to sleep tonight. Plus I do manage to go whole hours without it anyway, sometimes. I just didn't feel like it. Nor did I feel like a cup of herbal 'broken promises and disappointment flavour' tea.

Danger, leaving now.

John H. D. Watson said...

Good. You'll like the soup better. It has noodles and doesn't taste like disappointment.

REReader said...

I have no idea how dry it is in London, that's why I made it a question. (Manhattan is not at all dry, but Manhattan apartments are hugely overheated and so are positively Saharan in winter.)

Less caffeine is excellent! Hopefully, with everything together (and especially John's TLC) you'll shake this off pronto.

Sherlock, how is your hunt for carnivorous kudzu...er, I mean carnivorous plants that can survive in London...going?

Greg Lestrade said...

Soup is fantastic.

Sorry to you all - you're all giving sound advice and I'm being idiotic and stubborn and whinging because I have issues when I feel like people are treating me like a kid. I have been looking after myself - with varying levels of success - for over 40 years. And when I'm a bit down then I probably fight twice as hard against it. So...sorry. ignore me. The advice is very kind of all of you.

Tink said...

I need to move to London then. It's horridly dry here, which is odd since I'm relatively near water and swampland. I think it might be the air systems over-extracting the water from the air... Ugh. My humidifier is so old I think I'm going to buy a new one this winter. Maybe one shaped like a frog! :D

Greg: At least you have someone who will kiss you to take care of you! And you have a small person to help warm your chest with hugs. My brother (despite his tendency to crawl into the hospital bed with me) does not give kisses, which is good, because that would be weird. That said, hope you get better faster than I did! <3 (Also, good work with the confessions! Hopefully that will make at least -some- of the workload lighter!)

John: Make sure you get lots of rest and hugs too! Maybe you should talk with Mrs H about Ms T's hazard pay when it comes to this pond project? I agree that she deserves it.

Sherlock: Did you get to listen to Greg's lungs? Have you decided on a shape for the pond? What have your classmates been suggesting?

Greg Lestrade said...

I was only basing that on the fact it always rains...no idea if it's true.

Tink - I have been thinking of you, and thinking I really have nothing to complain about!

And yes, the confessions did make life a bit easier.

REReader said...

I'm sorry, Lestrade--I didn't stop to think that "mothering" on one end could feel like "treating like a kid" on the other. (Although, while I'm older than you are it's only by a few years, so perhaps mothering isn't the appropriate term anyway...big sistering, perhaps?) I truly did not mean to sound condescending, but I can see how it might come across that way, especially when you aren't feeling well.

mazarin221b said...

Hey, L. I'm down on the couch with chills, nausea, cough, and....other things. *weak sick people fistbump* I'm feeling your pain, because I'm fretting over something I was supposed to do this afternoon and it's now still sitting there, undone, waiting for me whenever I get back to the office. Wooo! (crap.)

Tink said...

RR: It's good to see someone else sees themselves in an internet-sister sort of role XD Though I'm that little sister who means well but... Yeah. :D Hey Greg! You've been adopted!

Greg: Yeah, though if John says you have to go to the hospital, please go? It saved my life. Again. My getting pneumonia that early in the year was a bit scary for me (okay, being hooked up to that much machinery was even scarier, but at least I don't really remember the worst bits!), but I am probably looking forward to another bout or three before winter ends. However, I'll try and let y'all know if I'm headed to the hospital -before- I go next time :P My brother has flat out told me that if I start sounding funny on the phone he's packing a back and encamping himself at my flat once more. So hopefully we can get a handle on it so I don't have to go. Just like John is doing for you! :D We're lucky people we are.

Personally, I think if you've got to stay late because of an interrogation, you should let John join you in the interrogation room. Not to say a thing, just to glare at them for daring to keep you from coming home. I imagine the results would be similar!

How are you doing anyway? Did the herbal mix help? I'm going to have to see if I can find a market here that sells that stuff so I can try it next time I fall ill. Hope you get better with each hour that passes.

Tink said...

Mazarin: I hope you feel better too! *sends love and get well vibes your way*

Greg Lestrade said...

Mazarin - hope you get better soon! Take some of the advice being banded around here. I'll share with you.

Mahala - that stuff is quite nice. Not mediciney at all. Sort of...like herby honey. Thanks for the recommendation.

Tink - I promise. but I'm nowhere near needing hospital yet. Don't worry. And sadly, however useful Danger's glares would be in interrogation, he's not allowed in.

RR - I think I fought so hard against being treated like a kid when I was a kid, given the responsibilities I had, that I over-react a lot now. I didn't intend to make you feel bad. Just trying to explain myself a bit. One day I might get used to letting down the defences and taking people's help in the spirit it's offered. but I don't know when.

Tink said...

Greg: Thank you. Maybe you could get him in as a consultant somehow? Does the UK use consultants in law enforcement like we do over here? I've no idea the laws governing these things. 'Interrogation Consultant' has such a nice ring to it! Duties: Glaring. :D Have you started watching Firefly yet? It really is amazing, and so many men in wonderful outfits (and lots of great bum shots). Mmmm. Oh yeah, and the plot and the characterisation, and everything else! Holy cow it's awesome. (Also, never ever mistake Firefly for Twilight again okay? Firefly is the name of the ship they fly on (the butt of the ship lights up like one, wait and see!), Twilight is when the stars sparkle like the vampires contained within.)

I have this urge to want to pack a care package for you, but I'll have to leave that up to Sherlock I suppose! Sherlock, think you're up to making a care package for Greg? Get John to okay everything you put in though all right?

John, how are you doing? Holding together okay? Think of the 'Captain Tightpants' movement. Mmmmm. So many lovely pictures. Also, you and Daniel Craig do have some similarities, but I think you're more attractive in a subjective sort of way. He's one of those people who's pretty to look at, but you're one of those people who's handsome and looks like you give fantastic hugs, which is much more important in my mind. (And, since we now know who Greg's first film star crush was, who was yours? Both male and female if applicable.)

Greg Lestrade said...

I've certainly never heard of an Interrogation Consultant. We use expert witnesses, and we consult various professionals in that capacity, and to assist with cases. Just like most forensic work now isn't done by the police - it's all private companies.

I haven't watched Firefly, no. I will try to find time, I promise.

The idea of a care package from Sherlock scares me somewhat.

John H. D. Watson said...

Interrogation Consultant sounds...really sinister actually. Like someone from a Bond film.

Everyone - he's really not ready for the hospital, promise, though he may be home tomorrow if his fever doesn't go down. (And he's going to give me one of his own Looks for that, I'm sure.)

Tink - Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart. I've watched The African Queen an embarrassing number of times. Which is not to say I didn't like Sean Connery too.

Greg Lestrade said...

You can be a Professional Glarer instead. Qualified to Look, Scowl and Glare in any situation.

I don't have a fever. It's just hot in here.

I only really liked Sean Connery as Bond. So really, my first crush was Bond. And then Lazenby and Moore ruined it all.

Most of my boyhood obsessions were rockstars though. I can't even remember half of them. Changed week on week.

Small Hobbit said...

The African Queen was (and still is) brilliant. Although if I had to chose one Humphrey Bogart film it would have to be Casablanca. Every time I watch it I worry that it will all go wrong at the end.

L - "I don't have a fever. It's just hot in here" Yeah, yeah, right.

John H. D. Watson said...

Pretty sure the thermometer would say differently, and I'll use it if I have to.

Moore was awful, agreed. What about the new Bonds?

SH - Casablanca's good of course, but I like The Maltese Falcon better.

Greg Lestrade said...

I won't ask which orifice. (I just typed Oriofice.)

I didn't mind Dalton - not for looks, but he recaptured some of the gritty cruelty of Connery's Bond. Plus a bit of dark humour. Like Craig does, but he's better looking. Brosnan was a bit too slick and wisecracking again for me.

I've no doubt my temp is up now because you've fed me hot tea, wrapped me up and given me a hot water bottle for my chest. Anyone would be hot!

John H. D. Watson said...

Mmhmm. You said you were freezing to death not an hour ago.

Brosnan was a bit too slick and wisecracking again for me.

Yeah, a bit. Still better than Moore though. I assume Connery's still your favourite?

REReader said...

Not to worry, Lestrade, it's all good.

I think Sherlock would put together a very original-but-caring Care Package--after all, he did make you a Spider!

John, you clearly have your work cut out for you, and you clearly have it well in hand. ... (That doesn't sound quite right, somehow... ;D)

Have you heard from Mycroft lately? How's he doing?

Greg Lestrade said...

He did. Original is...one word for him.

I'm powerless against the force of Danger, don't worry. One lone DI vs. the best of the British Army...

Am I allowed to play my guitar?

Mycroft seems okay. I think we're taking the lack of phonecalls as a good thing - because it means he's busy. And last time he Skyped he greeted us in Mandarin - because his room mate is fluent (he's from Hong Kong). And by the sounds of it he might be soon.

John H. D. Watson said...

Of course, I'll get it for you.

Greg Lestrade said...

And my headphones? Although I'm perfectly capable of getting them myself...I know you won't let me.

I don't want to annoy you.

REReader said...

Lovely! Mycroft couldn't have picked a more likely-to-be-useful-lingual roommate if he had planned it out ahead of time.

John H. D. Watson said...

L - you're not, and you won't. Don't worry.

Greg Lestrade said...

RR - he probably did plan it out...

Danger - you won't say that the 100th time I try to play it to get it right.

John H. D. Watson said...

heh. I'll get you the headphones as well, I just meant in general.

Dottie said...

Well, reading all the symptoms on here certainly put my period pains in perspective... 0_0

Hope you all feel better soon. My dad recommends hot whisky for everything but with different ingredients depending on the illness. Whisky and ginger is a cold, whisky and honey is the flu, whisky and lemon is for 'aches and pains'. It's all basically an excuse to drink whisky!

If you fancy learing a few mandarin phrases to surprise Mycroft , the BBC has a good languages site: http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/chinese/real_chinese/

Tink said...

Yay for Mycroft learning another language! Tell him not to neglect his Italian though. Very important. :D

I did say that Sherlock should get his care package approved by John. Remember that!

My favourite bond is Daniel Craig, because he got back to the fact that James Bond is an -assassin-. He kills people for the good of Queen and Country and his love for his mum, M. He's the best they have, even though his methods are rather unorthodox, and M understands this even if it makes her want to headdesk a lot. He does what he has to do, didn't expect to fall in love or be betrayed by it, and that's why he never has a serious relationship afterwards. Hence all the Bond girls! It's gritty and awesome. Also, parkour. Mmmm.

Greg: You have a fever. I can tell from here. Snuggle with your hot water bottle and Spider and just enjoy John coddling you a bit. You could watch Firefly in bed! Or rather, tucked up on the sofa.

John: Yeah, those are some sexy people right there. John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara were some of the first people I can remember wanting to marry. The Quiet Man is still one of my favourite films. Now, I have to say Viggo Mortensen, Karl Urban, and Amanda Seyfried are my current crushes. *sighs happily*

Greg Lestrade said...

I'll try not to sing. I imagine getting the same few bars over and over without the music would be even more annoying...

kick me if you want me, given I'll be in a cocoon of blankets, headphones, eyes closed, musical wonder. Until my phone vibrates because someone's commented. heh.

Greg Lestrade said...

Tink - you must have a very long thermometer.

REReader said...

I shall refrain from comment. Or further comment.

(HA! My captcha was "fleud". :D)

Desert Wanderer said...

Buzzzzzzzzzzzz.


Sorry, couldn't resist. :)

Lazenby. Ugh. *shudders* Terrible Bond. I have a soft spot for Brosnan because he was the first Bond I ever saw.

Anon Without A Name said...

Lestrade, I imagine it must quite disconcerting, after a lifetime of relative and enforced self-sufficiency, to find yourself worried about and fussed over by a bunch of strangers on the Internet... enjoy the guitar, and I hope you feel better soon :-)

Greg Lestrade said...

DW - I agree. the worst.

nameless - It is, very. And thanks. Although the guitar isn't going so well. fingers and brain not quite co-operating.

John H. D. Watson said...

DW - how was Brosnan the first Bond you saw! Are you that young?

Tink said...

Greg: We fret because we care. Or in my case because chest infections scare me and I'm projecting :P (while fretting because I care of course) Anyway, I find chest infections are cause for a lot of brainless entertainment. All those guilty pleasures that you can excuse because you're ill. I remember watching a Myth Busters marathon, though I slept through bunches of it in pieces.

John: My brother called earlier and I told him about Greg's chest infection. He says good luck and hopefully you wont have to drag him to the hospital, as Greg weighs more than me. :D

Greg Lestrade said...

Danger! It's rude to ask people their ages!

Think I should go to bed before I get annoyed at not being able to play such a simple song.

John H. D. Watson said...

I didn't! Quite. I'm just appalled at the idea of Connery not being everyone's first Bond.

REReader said...

Although the guitar isn't going so well. fingers and brain not quite co-operating.

So, stop working at it and just doodle.

At the risk of being deemed irrelevant, I don't think I've seen any of the Bond movies all the way through. I have seen an inordinate number of old Hollywood musicals, though--and Casablanca (multiple times), The African Queen, The Maltese Falcon...I was a devotee of the Late Late Early Show in high school and college.

(My captcha was "misal". I'm not THAT old!)

REReader said...

(And I'm 50. Or I will be in 13 days.)

Greg Lestrade said...

Me too. But not quite as appalled as I am that Sherlock was born in this millenium, which...well, I literally can't believe anyone is allowed ot have a birth year beginning 20--

Speaking of him, if I don't sleep I won't be in any fit state to cope with him early tomorrow morning. And as the sleeping hasn't exactly been going to plan...

John H. D. Watson said...

You should definitely sleep. And I doubt you'll need to get up tomorrow. You can stay in bed while I take Sherlock to school.

Desert Wanderer said...

"GoldenEye," 1995. I was 11, so not that young. :)

Greg Lestrade said...

RR - was only trying to play 'bad moon rising' they don't come much simpler...but you're right. Non co-operation between brain and each hand mean I should give in and go and use Danger as a hot water bottle.

Danger - I'm fine! Work will be fine.

John H. D. Watson said...

...How was 1995 that long ago. It seems impossible. Sorry if I was rude! It was the shock.

L - not if your fever's this high in the morning.

Greg Lestrade said...

Don't make me hide your thermometer. (that sounds...wrong.)

Desert Wanderer said...

I didn't think you were rude. I wouldn't have told you how old I was otherwise. Not much offends me. :)

Anon Without A Name said...

Connery/Craig, Bronsan, Dalton, Moore, Lazenby. Obviously.

Each Bond's early films are better than their later ones (except Lazenby, of course).

John H. D. Watson said...

L - ...yeah, really wrong.

DW - good. Wouldn't have thought so, but you never know. (And young enough, compared to me. Whippersnapper.)

Greg Lestrade said...

If you didn't wear quite so much pyjama, I'd get your lovely cool skin against me... (i can see how that isn't quite such a good deal from your end... I could warm you up?)

Desert Wanderer said...

Oh, Lord. Am I about to get one of those "Back in the days before sound was invented and I hadn't quite decided what colo(u)r grass should be" stories?

I mean...yes, sir. Whatever you say, sir.

:P

Rider said...

I'd never have thought there'd be any objection to playing "hide the thermometer". Lestrade must be sick.

Greg Lestrade said...

Danger had to walk to school in four foot of snow, uphill both ways... not that anyone would see him, in 4 ft of snow...

Rider - I was suggesting it. Danger didn't say no... but thermometers are a bit...thin?

John H. D. Watson said...

I'm not quite that old. There was sound back then, but they hadn't invented a speed limit for it yet.

No more dirty thermometer jokes! I mean it, this is my serious face.

L - mmhmm, not feverish at all. Right.

Greg Lestrade said...

Only grade 3 serious face.

Ok, I'll admit I'm not entirely well. And lying down makes me cough like a bastard and I'm sorry you have to share a bed with something that sounds like an angry sea lion. I can go and sleep on the sofa.

REReader said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
John H. D. Watson said...

You're not going anywhere. We can prop you up with pillows, might help a bit.

Tink said...

Try propping your upper body up with pillows? I have a big wedge pillow I use when I have to. Helps me sleep SO much. Though I will admit that when it gets really bad I sleep in a recliner because the angle is higher up.

Anyway, that was a long winded way of saying 'try and sleep well Greg!'

You too John <3

innie said...

ReReader, I think we share a birthday! John, before you ask, I'll be 35. And I went to a summer camp that played wildly inappropriate movies for us impressionable ten- and eleven-year-olds when we had to stay inside when it rained. So I've seen View to a Kill several times, but not since that long-ago summer. No other Bonds since then, but I retained enough that the first Austin Powers made sense. Though I have to confess I don't remember who played Bond in that one - all I can recall is the Duran Duran theme song (mmmmm, Roger Taylor!)

Ria said...

Right, public shaming time...

I've never seen a Bogart film. Or Hepburn. I've seen a grand total of 2 Bond films-- the first one with Daniel Craig and a really cheesy one from the 80's (no idea which one-- my mental description of "there are some bad guys, with a big elaborate castle-like lair, and some attractive and ambiguously evil women who shag James Bond" describes pretty much every Bond film ever made. Someone might have been eaten by a shark?) I don't recall its name, I was a bit drunk at the time. I'm not any better with newer films-- I've been reliably informed by friends that I would probably lose a movie trivia contest with an Amish person.

If we're confessing ages, I'm 20, 21 at the end of the month (I know! I'm practically a zygote!).

L, hopefully you'll sleep through the night and see this in the morning, by which time the baby elephant on your chest may have found better ways to occupy its time.

Night, all. I have piles of homework and a bit of audio transcription to do before I sleep.

Anonymous said...

Ria, thank you. I've been reliably informed by friends that I would probably lose a movie trivia contest with an Amish person. That made me laugh to the point of making the dog bark. I've been having a crazy busy day/week and needed a good laugh.

John H. D. Watson said...

I've never seen a Bogart film. Or Hepburn.

At that age, you've got an excuse. If you wanted to start somewhere, you could try Desk Set.

kholly - was it you having to watch eyes being sliced up? Sherlock would find it fascinating, you're right (I probably would too), but you have my sympathy all the same.

REReader said...

Ohh, The Desk Set is so much fun! Or there's Bringing Up Baby.

Is it possible to transmit germs via the internet (leaving out computer viruses)? Because I've begun coughing.

John H. D. Watson said...

He hasn't given it to me yet, so I'd hope he's not infecting the entire internet. Tea with honey maybe?

REReader said...

I'm sipping tea this very minute. Honey, yes, I should add that, thanks!

I expect it's most likely just something going around, rather than (in)direct transmission. Please don't get it yourself!

All I can say is that my version had better be gone tomorrow--tomorrow night is the start of Yom Kippur, and that means 25 hours of no food or water. Which means no medicine, either. Aggressive steps are necessary!

kholly said...

Yup, that was me. You can see why I needed the laugh. It is kind of fascinating if you can detach, but every time I think , oh my god that's somebody's eyelashes it makes my whole face ache in sympathy.

John H. D. Watson said...

No water when you're ill sounds fairly dreadful. I hope the cough dissipates before then.

I expect I'll be fine, I usually am. And L's asleep propped up against my chest to stop the coughing, so if he can sleep all night he might be a bit better in the morning as well.

REReader said...

Yeah, not looking forward to that. So I'm trying the "drown them out" method of dealing with germs--gallons of (decaf) tea and saline gargles. It's worked in the past. Sometimes.

I hope you both get some solid sleep time in tonight...

kholly said...

Wait a second, is it really 2:50 over there? I think it's too late for that solid night's sleep. I don't know how you do it John. I've bee working 2 jobs this week and feel cranky and tired because I "only" have time for 7 hours a night.

John H. D. Watson said...

It really is. I was asleep until a bit ago though, and I probably will be again shortly. Don't worry about me.

REReader said...

Easier said than done, but I'll try. :)

I just want to say--I've been reading back from the beginning (to get all caught up), and you lot are very special. Thanks for sharing!

Tink said...

John, I do hope you get enough sleep. It's not even 11pm here and I'm already tired so I'll probably be off to bed soon. Your chest is a brilliant way to keep him propped up, I must say! You get snuggles and he gets to sleep! Winning for all!

Greg, I hope it's morning for you before you read this, and I hope you're feeling at least a little better. But if not, don't fight it. You need to get better for next week and fighting it and being in denial is what put me in the hospital this last time. Bleh. Also it gives you more time with John! Yaaaay!

Sherlock: Good night and good morning to you too!

Mycroft: I'm so proud of you. Just so you know.

Greg Lestrade said...

I'm awake because my alarm's gone off. But I imagine you'll all be made up to know John has forbidden me from leaving the flat. So.... I'm just going to lie here and take the opportunity to have a nice lie in and try to encourage my body to sort itself out in plenty of time for our trip.

Lucky I've got the best doctor in the world on hand, right?

Desert Wanderer said...

Awww. Sorry you're still not feeling brilliant, Lestrade. Snuggles with your doctor sound like a treat though.

Bonus time to work on your hand-hand-eye coordination, though. :)

Greg Lestrade said...

Well, as John points out, better to take a day now and hopefully be better by Monday than risk not being well for our trip.

And I can't pretend that spending the day with him is a bad thing.

GOOD MORNING INTERNET PEOPLE.

(that was Sherlock. He's currently in bed too, explaining how frogs and piranhas can co exist in some futuristic glass-walled pond design...)

Ria said...

I can think of only one solution for the herbivore/carnivore pond dilemma:

TWO PONDS! One will teach you about the miracle of life and the other will teach you about Darwinism.

kholly: I'm glad I made you giggle-- sounds like you needed it after a week of watching eyeball surgery, a concept which engenders in me a visceral shudder of disgust and horror.

I'll take your recommendations on good films to start with, J and REReader. I'm told that I do not count as a cultured member of our species until I also watch Breakfast at Tiffany's and Casablanca (word to the wise: if you liked the film Casablanca, don't go to the city-- it's a bit grungy and industrial, and the people who work at Rick's are pretentious little nincompoops).

Desert Wanderer said...

Well, you'll stay out of the weather at least. Cold and windy here. D:

Good morning, Sherlock-type-people. Have a great day at school!

Greg Lestrade said...

I've been given very strict parameters on my movement. Bed, sofa, toilet. Anywhere else I have to have written permission from Matron (who's currently nose-deep inside a cook book, finding soup recipes. Frowning in a very cute way.)

REReader said...

And good afternoon to you, Sherlock person (since I assume you probably won't see this until you get home)! Glass walls might well keep tadpoles and frogs safe from the piranhas, but then what will the piranhas eat? I understand they eat quite a lot. Also, will they stay warm enough? Small ponds get cold pretty fast in winter. Some more research is clearly called for. Perhaps your class can make a field trip to an aquarium that has piranhas for that purpose some day? (Assuming that there is a suitable aquarium in London.)

Sorry you're still ill, Lestrade, but I'm sure Doctor Watson will fix you up ASAP!

Greg Lestrade said...

We could just drop the whole piranha plan. (he wanted to keep goats to feed them with. And criminals. Although obviously wouldn't keep criminals, just use prisons as feed warehouses)

The good doc is giving me lots of tlc. Which is lovely. Feel like I'm breathing through treacle

Tink said...

Sherlock: Good afternoon Internet Nephew Type Person! I hope you had a good day at school today! Have you listened to Greg's chest lately?

Greg: Good afternoon to you too! I have just woken up and am waiting for the coffee to finish brewing so I apologise for possible incoherence. I'm glad you're staying home and getting time with John while getting well. Give him squishy hugs for me? Anyway, hopefully you'll start feeling better soon, but sometimes chest stuff takes a bit. You're taking good care of yourself (ie: John is taking good care of you :P ) so you should be up and about soon! Tried the expectorant yet?

John: Soup scares me. Making it from scratch I mean. I congratulate you! Also, make him watch Firefly :P

RR: Morning sweetheart! I think you and Bronwyn would get along well. She too is made of awesome and logic. :D

REReader said...

I usually resist text talk, but since I actually did...LOL! Sherlock's frog pond plans are starting to sound like the old lady who swallowed a fly! (Sherlock, if you haven't run across her before--I suspect you may have skipped all that sort of thing--try YouTube. It's a song.)

What I'm trying to say (the long way round) is that you really can't recreate the ecosystem of the Amazon River Basin in your school's yard. Why don't you just try to design a pond that will be the best possible habitat for tadpoles and frogs? Best size and shape, best depth(s), best sort of plants for inside and around it...that is complicated enough for one project!

Breathing through treacle sounds completely horrid. I hope you are managing to get some dozing time in despite it. And also managing to enjoy the tlc!

John, homemade soup is the best! The recipes I've seen generally start with stock, but you can buy canned stock, and truthfully I've found that the soups we make taste just as good without it (heresy, I know). The main thing to remember is that carrots and potatoes soak up spices, especially salt. So if you use either, you need to use a LOT more spices--and conversely, if you've accidentally oversalted, throw in a chopped carrot or two and let it simmer a while longer. And the longer you cook a soup with chicken or meat in it, the better it tastes--my mom lets her chicken soup simmer overnight--but it's good after a few hours, too.

Aw, thanks, Tink!

[Oh, for...my captcha was "dozingl"! I swear that thing reads my posts. And I hope that means you're asleep, Lestrade--and maybe you, too, John. :) )

Greg Lestrade said...

There's a big jump from looking up recipes to making soup...he looked appalled by some of them
But Mrs H is threatening beef tea...

REReader said...

There's a big jump from looking up recipes to making soup...

Ha! Yes, I guess there is. If you're interested, John, my mom makes a wonderful homemade vegetable "dump" soup, which is mostly a soup of whatever frozen and canned vegetables she has on hand. It goes like this:

In a large pot (not a pot for heating a can of soup, a REALLY big pot), lightly saute one or two onions--don't overdo on the oil. Then add water to the pot--fill it about 2/3 the way up, you have to leave room for the veggies. Dice carrots and celery (if you have them) and add them together with a handful of whatever dried beans you have in the house. If you have them, add a leek and a parsnip (you'll fish them out later), and salt and a little pepper. Let it go a long time. ("A long time" is a direct quote. I'm guessing a couple of hours.)

About 45 minutes before you want to eat, add whatever canned, fresh, or frozen vegetables you have on hand or that sounds good to you--mushrooms, corn, cauliflower, broccoli, etc.

About 25 minutes after that, add (if you want) spinach, diced potatoes, barley (for thickening, it's optional) and spice to taste.
_________

Sorry for the so exact measurements, but that is how she cooks. And it comes out really delicious!

Anon Without A Name said...

The closest I get to making soup is adding stuff to a tin of Heinz :-p

Lestrade, I hope the treacle eases off soon. Taking a sick day won't cause you problems taking time off next week, will it?

John, I hope you're doing OK too?

Tink said...

Nonny! Good morning/afternoon to you too! :D And that's what I do for soup too. So much easier!

Greg: Beef tea is good for you :D But yeah, soup would be better if your throat isn't too sore. Are your fingers working in concert with your brain any better today?

Greg Lestrade said...

Nameless - no. The amount of extra time I put into work, it won't be a problem.

Danger's off fetching Sherlock. I wasn't allowed to go. Despite it being sunny...

Tink - I like beef tea! Danger isn't convinced. And my throat isn't at all sore. Just my lungs. Fingers/brain slightly more co operative, yes.

Hope you lot are having nice Fridays, enjoying yourselves.

Desert Wanderer said...

It's rainy, cloudy, and windy here. I just discovered I missed a whole tub of stuff while the movers were here, and this is officially my last weekend in England, so I have to get it shifted before 1700 today.

All in all, it's a bit....melancholy and bittersweet, I guess.

Tink said...

DW: I'm sorry you have to leave, but I'm excited that you'll be moving near me! *HUGS*

Greg: Walking would just make your lungs work too hard. Be prepared for a Sherlock tackle though! They're so adorable at that age. Does he still wear his fairy wings? Next time you have Mycroft and the Dogs of War, you should get Mrs H to join all of you for a 'family' picture. It would be made of awesome and then you'll have something to put in your wallet and awww about when you need it.

REReader said...

I'm sure it's better for you and your treacly lungs to rest a bit, even if it's sunny! Hope you're feeling a bit better, at least.

It's sunny and bright in NY, but still quite cold--it was down in the 40s last night (that's Fahrenheit, I dunno what that converts to). Busy getting ready for our pre-Yom Kippur meal here!

Did John surrender on the soup-making front?

John H. D. Watson said...

I think I'm just going to buy more of that soup from yesterday and leave the soup making to Mrs Hudson. Back soonish.

Greg Lestrade said...

That soup yesterday was very very nice.

DW - we'll still be here for you. In both the virtual sense, and the sense that if you need a parcel of pg tips, jaffa cakes and marmite, we could send you one. Just try to stop Danger doing so...

John H. D. Watson said...

Absolutely. Except for the marmite.

Tink said...

DW: And if you need real food, there's bunches of places around here that cater to expats from the UK. :D It's great.

Greg Lestrade said...

That is all real food!

RR - have a good Yom Kippur, if that's an appropriate thing to say? My phone says have a good yum hippo...

Desert Wanderer said...

Thanks, guys. I appreciate it. :) I MUCH prefer Jammy Dodgers to Jaffa Cakes, though. Something about that fake orange taste doesn't sit right with me. And I don't think the US allows biological weapons (ie. Marmite) through the mail. :)

Great news, Tink. My parents live near Richmond, so on the plus side I'll be home for Thanksgiving for the first time in five years.

Tzom Khal, RR. (Is there an h in that? Transliteration was never my strong suit).

Pere said...

There's an unexpected soup ingredient...

Am very glad you liked the Pei Pa Koa, Lestrade; anything that makes getting better slightly less of a chore is a bonus! Nothing beats chicken soup with ginger, garlic and rice either, and that's what John's soup reminded me of...mmm, soup.

Sorry about the mothering. I just pictured us all as a ruffling, clucking batch of hens perched on your headboard watching you eat soup. Will go and stuff my face in a pillow to keep from giggling now.

Greg Lestrade said...

Jammy dodgers are also available in care packages. (my phone insists jimmy podgers.)

But I insist on sending marmite anyway - you can give it to unsuspecting guests.

Danger, you nearly done with soup buying and Snoopy walking? My neck's sore...could do with a massage. (if I'm forced to have a sick day, I shall make the most of it)

John H. D. Watson said...

But I insist on sending marmite anyway - you can give it to unsuspecting guests.

Just don't take it for Thanksgiving, or they won't want you back for another five years...

L - yeah, be back any second now.

REReader said...

AHA! It seems that it was not a computer-borne virus responsible for my cough (you're absolved, Lestrade!) but one of my mother's students. She teaches first grade, and judging by her cough she brought it home and passed it to me. (Yes, I live with my parents. My dad has Parkinson's and heart issues, and my mother has high blood pressure ad other health problems of her own, and as my siblings are all married-with-children...well. We take care of each other.)

RR - have a good Yom Kippur, if that's an appropriate thing to say?

Thank you! Yes, that's quite appropriate, or as DW said "have an easy fast." (Tzom Khal is Hebrew for that. Thank you, DW! I have no idea what the "proper" transliteration is--I'd spell or more likely misspell it in Hebrew, myself. :D)

And I would like to wish you all a g'mar chatima tova--
May you all be inscribed and sealed in the Book of Life for a good year!

Small Hobbit said...

DW Hope the rest of your move goes smoothly. And take back several packets of jammy dodgers to remember us all by.

REReader said...

L--I don't THINK hippos would be very tasty, but then, who am I to argue with your phone?

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