Bridgette’s Blog
“May your cup runneth over” whatever that means. I was jogged into consciousness by Pastor Dickie’s last words of his sermon. I was suddenly transported back to reality. Students who did not return home at the weekend were expected to attend the Sunday morning service. Pastor Dickie continued, “hymn number 633, He Who Would True Valour See”. This by the way was Tamsin’s favourite hymn.
As we left the chapel Phaedra Gascoigne was full of herself again telling the other girls at the weekend her riding instructor had fallen off her horse and broken her arm giving the impression it was the culmination of some sort of a circus act, but we were more interested in the romantic adventures of our teacher Miss Taylor.
A message from Miss Sefton had been passed on the Miss Green, our new maths teacher who you will remember took over from the duties from Miss Frenzi who moved up the assistant headmistress position after Miss Pringle left to get married, to ask Jessica, that’s Jessica Wyndham, and me to go to her study.
Oh by the way, its Jessica’s birthday tomorrow. She will be fifteen. I am a fair bit older being fifteen and a couple of months. Phaedra suggested we buy her a book about horses. Tamsin suggested seeing she has Irish ancestry somewhere along the line let’s buy her a collection of say 100 hours of non-stop Irish dancing, you know River Dance stuff with Flattery, or is it Slattery?
Jessica’s parents had bought her a camera for her fifteenth birthday and it was running non-stop to top up her Instagram library. If it moved or even if it didn’t she was going to take a photo of it. It was a yellow one; the camera I mean. I asked if her parents could have bought her a more colourful one.
We knocked on Miss Sefton’s door but there was no reply. We knocked again still no reply. We gingerly entered the empty room..
Jessica said “Look Bridge, quick sit in Miss Sefton’s chair and put her glasses on. Pretend you are Miss Sefton, oh and look stern and that, and I will take your pitchure”.
As I settled myself and put on Miss Sefton’s glasses in walked Miss Sefton. I knew this would happen; I knew it.
Miss Sefton walked up the table stood in front of the desk and said straight-faced “I believe you wish to see me Miss Campbell?”
I liked Miss Sefton. She is not the battle-axe she is made out to be.
“No Miss, no. Jessica just wanted to take my pitchure with her new camera”.
“Right, you can take my glasses off now Bridgette then I want you both to go down to the teachers common room and meet Mr and Mrs De Crécy and their daughter Margaret. They will be joining our family in the New Year. I want you to show them around the college and then bring them to my office by 5pm. I am waiting on an important phone call”.
We took the De Crecy’s to the classrooms, the gymnasium, concert hall, the library and the Swimming pool. Margaret is going to be boarded in the Victoria Dorm, our dorm Boadicea was full. We also showed Margaret’s parents where the uniform shop was and then on to the canteen. As the uniform shop was only open two days a week Margaret will be issued with her uniforms and stuff after the Christmas break.
I believe her father was an important person; I did not want to ask him if he was an important person because if he said he was I would tell Margaret as a matter of fact my father owns a castle.
So that was the end of the tourist run.
It was a new dawn and the cue for the first teacher-student exchange of the morning.
Zanthe put up her hand. “Miss, miss suffinx ‘appened to me maffs book”.
A look of consternation clouded Miss Green’s face. You see Zanthe was a child of the East End and I am not sure what version of the English language she is currently using.
I translated for Miss Green.
“Miss, Zanthe said something’s happened to her maths book”.
“Thank you Bridgette".
"Parodying Zanthe Miss Green said," nuffinx 'appened to yer maffs book. It is where you left it, wherever that might be”
Zanthe replied “Miss, I fink I may have left it in the dining ‘all”.
I again started to translate “Miss. she said she thinks she may have …..”
Irritated Miss Green snapped sharply “Alright, alright Miss Campbell I can translate for myself thank you very much”.
I again started to translate “Miss. she said she thinks she may have …..”
Irritated Miss Green snapped sharply “Alright, alright Miss Campbell I can translate for myself thank you very much”.
Miss Green was getting annoyed.
“Yes Miss Perkins that is exactly where you left it and it has been handed in”
I am not sure what triggered Zanthe; maths was not the first lesson of the morning anyways.
That look of consternation I write of by Miss Green I suspect was going to be translated into remedial speech lessons for our Zanthe. Denham Hall could not allow her to leave college with the command of English of that of a costermonger’s daughter.....it would look bad. Well Denham Hall has about two years or so to work on her.
There were a number of us down the folk centre that evening. I remember Nathan telling Tamsin his group ‘The Sheriff’s Men’ had learned a new chord. Can’t think what it was, but it will come to me before the evening is out.
It was Gordon… er thingy, the chappie who collects the money at the door. He used to play in a rock and roll band who showed Nathan this chord. He has the hots for Tamsin. Oh yes I remember what the chord was, it was D7. Heaven knows what the chord was they were playing before.
While on the subject of boys it’s not that Tamsin avoids boys per se. No, she says they are just a bit of a nuisance. She also refers to them as a different species and she could be right. I personally think boys are attracted to Tamsin in the same way flies are attracted to jam tarts or flypaper if that makes any sense and not realising the dangers, the dangers here being the flypaper not the boys, do you know what I mean?
Rhonda, that’s Rhonda Appleton, was asked if she would sing a couple of numbers. She sings for free; well they give her free coffees in return. Most of Boadicea Dorm was in the folk club this evening as were some of the girls from the other dorms. I noticed Madeline Brown talking to Chloe Higgins. They are both troublemakers. They are from the Pankhurst Dorm.
I don’t know what The Sheriff’s Men were playing at, starting their break with a number called ‘Anchors Away’. It was Phaedra that said she suspects one or more of the band has been on - her words ‘the turps’.
I told Tamsin to tell Nathan when they came off the stage that it is NOT a recognized folk number and we as paying customers are being short-changed. I hope he took on this piece of advice.
Now what are we going to do with the rest of our lives?
In the evening I rang mother. She told me father is visiting the Carter-Browns and she cannot gossip too long on the phone as she is busy putting Mrs Dalrymple under hypnosis. Oh God not again; I hope it is not genetic.
Oh, I reminded mother, the piano needs tuning and pedals adjusting.
“Yes Miss Perkins that is exactly where you left it and it has been handed in”
I am not sure what triggered Zanthe; maths was not the first lesson of the morning anyways.
That look of consternation I write of by Miss Green I suspect was going to be translated into remedial speech lessons for our Zanthe. Denham Hall could not allow her to leave college with the command of English of that of a costermonger’s daughter.....it would look bad. Well Denham Hall has about two years or so to work on her.
There were a number of us down the folk centre that evening. I remember Nathan telling Tamsin his group ‘The Sheriff’s Men’ had learned a new chord. Can’t think what it was, but it will come to me before the evening is out.
It was Gordon… er thingy, the chappie who collects the money at the door. He used to play in a rock and roll band who showed Nathan this chord. He has the hots for Tamsin. Oh yes I remember what the chord was, it was D7. Heaven knows what the chord was they were playing before.
While on the subject of boys it’s not that Tamsin avoids boys per se. No, she says they are just a bit of a nuisance. She also refers to them as a different species and she could be right. I personally think boys are attracted to Tamsin in the same way flies are attracted to jam tarts or flypaper if that makes any sense and not realising the dangers, the dangers here being the flypaper not the boys, do you know what I mean?
Rhonda, that’s Rhonda Appleton, was asked if she would sing a couple of numbers. She sings for free; well they give her free coffees in return. Most of Boadicea Dorm was in the folk club this evening as were some of the girls from the other dorms. I noticed Madeline Brown talking to Chloe Higgins. They are both troublemakers. They are from the Pankhurst Dorm.
I don’t know what The Sheriff’s Men were playing at, starting their break with a number called ‘Anchors Away’. It was Phaedra that said she suspects one or more of the band has been on - her words ‘the turps’.
I told Tamsin to tell Nathan when they came off the stage that it is NOT a recognized folk number and we as paying customers are being short-changed. I hope he took on this piece of advice.
Now what are we going to do with the rest of our lives?
In the evening I rang mother. She told me father is visiting the Carter-Browns and she cannot gossip too long on the phone as she is busy putting Mrs Dalrymple under hypnosis. Oh God not again; I hope it is not genetic.
Oh, I reminded mother, the piano needs tuning and pedals adjusting.
Oh
