Sodium acetate crystals.
But I suppose everyone's more interested in an explanation of the picture of me that L posted...
L was closest with his guess about it being in Egypt. I'd gone to see Laura and she was out at some event for the museum, so I was wandering around Al Azhar park. Met this guy who worked at the US Embassy, we had dinner, met up with some of his friends, played poker. Played some more poker. Played more poker than was advisable, especially after I ran out of money, which didn't take long.
I lost the watch my parents gave me when I graduated from medical school, and that was about it for things of any value I had on me. It wasn't too bad though, considering one of the other guys lost his fancy gold cuff links, and the third lost his car. I still think our host was cheating, but at least he was a good sport about it. He said he'd let us bet our clothes against what we'd lost...and gave us dresses out of his wife's wardrobe to wear so we could ante up. I suppose the entertainment value made up for the lack of monetary value. Maybe? It seemed logical at three in the morning. I won my watch back, the other guy won his car back, but the cuff links stayed with our host.
And then we watched videotapes of old American football matches while they tried to explain the rules to me...until I fell asleep. It didn't take long.
The picture is from the next morning when Laura came to fetch me. I was only slightly hungover and still triumphant about getting my watch back. I put my own clothes back on shortly thereafter, but not in time to avoid being seen the owner of the dress. Luckily for me (and her husband) she had a good sense of humour. Laughed so hard her orange juice came out her nose.
But I suppose everyone's more interested in an explanation of the picture of me that L posted...
L was closest with his guess about it being in Egypt. I'd gone to see Laura and she was out at some event for the museum, so I was wandering around Al Azhar park. Met this guy who worked at the US Embassy, we had dinner, met up with some of his friends, played poker. Played some more poker. Played more poker than was advisable, especially after I ran out of money, which didn't take long.
I lost the watch my parents gave me when I graduated from medical school, and that was about it for things of any value I had on me. It wasn't too bad though, considering one of the other guys lost his fancy gold cuff links, and the third lost his car. I still think our host was cheating, but at least he was a good sport about it. He said he'd let us bet our clothes against what we'd lost...and gave us dresses out of his wife's wardrobe to wear so we could ante up. I suppose the entertainment value made up for the lack of monetary value. Maybe? It seemed logical at three in the morning. I won my watch back, the other guy won his car back, but the cuff links stayed with our host.
And then we watched videotapes of old American football matches while they tried to explain the rules to me...until I fell asleep. It didn't take long.
The picture is from the next morning when Laura came to fetch me. I was only slightly hungover and still triumphant about getting my watch back. I put my own clothes back on shortly thereafter, but not in time to avoid being seen the owner of the dress. Luckily for me (and her husband) she had a good sense of humour. Laughed so hard her orange juice came out her nose.
73 comments:
brilliant! you're a good sport for sharing your stories with us John :-)
Sometimes I feel like I don't know you at all...
Glad you got your watch back, though. And your clothes...although I'm worried about the sorts of guys you've been picked up by!
That video is mesmerizing...and your story is wonderful, especially since you got your watch back. Whew! (Although, a blouson is still not flattering... :D)
L - I used to gamble more than was probably good for me. Long time ago. Those guys were fine though, except for the enforced watching of American football.
She got rid of the dress. Said she didn't know how bad it was until she saw it on me...
So you actually did a good deed!!
Thanks for sharing! And, well, poker... Dangerous game, seems like. Good you've got your things back, and good Laura picked you up!
Tina
Can we do betting next time we play cards? I don't want to see Lestrade in a dress though because he looked scary in that picture but we could bet money or bed times or biscuits or you could be my slave for a day or bike rides or things like that.
No, I don't think so, Sherlock.
I notice a lot of those are things you could win, not things we could win from you...
We wouldn't do it more than was good for you!
And what would we get if we won, just out of curiosity?
Those guys were fine though
Well, to be fair to him, he met you, had dinner and got you out of your clothes in the space of a few hours. Took me weeks...
I liked the end result with you much better though.
You don't need things you can get anything you want because you're grown ups and it's not fair.
And someday you will be too, but not quite yet.
Ah, Sherlock, if only being a grown up really did mean you could get anything you want...
John - Like the story. Fair play though, meeting a stranger in a park, going for dinner then playing strip poker with him and his mates? It's certainly an interesting approach to life :-)
I'm glad Laura saw sense about the dress :-p
Argh, not Laura, the owner of the dress. D'oh.
Sherlock is now bemoaning the unfairness of youth. Forgetting no one else got extra pudding today
Nameless - it wasn't strip poker! It was... All right there's no good way to finish that sentence actually. But I have also played strip poker and the two are completely different.
But I have also played strip poker
ORly? Do tell! :)
Oh, it was the other kind of poker where you lose badly and end up having to take your clothes off. Not strip poker at all... Makes perfect sense now :-p
Exactly. Strip poker you agree to before hand.
That is ... an interesting distinction. So there are already two kinds of poker where you can loose your clothes? Frightening game ;-)
And yes, very brave to play it with strangers, I'd say. Well, very something.
Tina
I suppose technically J didn't lose his clothes, but exchanged them.
Very stupid, probably. It's certainly not behaviour I'd recommend to Sherlock or Mycroft.
But was it fun? :)
nah. it's part of growing up. And as long as there's a security team - no problem.
Tina
Different topic: Sodium acetat - the explanation for alien cristal entities growing out of the sink in an old black-and-white B movie? Forgotten the title (and pretty much else) but it was by some guy famous for so-called horror B movies. (they were featured on telly an awfully long time back, when I was still young and impressionable and the dark cristals somehow stayed with me)
Tina
Lestrade, have you read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance?
There's very little in there about motorcycle maintenance and what there is, is not much good.
I was very disappointed when I read it!
I haven't read it, no. I heard it wasn't too hot on bikees.
(John is refusing to play Strip Snap)
The spoilsport.
I know, what's wrong with me?
scared I'll get over-eager slapping my hand down and catch something else?
You're assuming I've already done quite badly in that scenario...
Growing in my family, you had to have fast hands or you didn't get food at the table ;)
Actually, I think you're making assumptions about what I may end up slapping!
What were you thinking of slapping?
oh, y'know, knee? Forearm? Wrist?
Mmhmm...
HmmmMmmm.
C'mon, Sock 'ed, let's drag ourselves to bed before we fall asleep here and wake up being licked by the dogs.
You have me paranoid now, groping my head for socks every five minutes...
Yeah, all right.
Haha! Brilliant :)
Sherlock wants bacon and eggs for breakfast tomorrow, by the way.
Might be a little quiet here this morning - we're biking to Nicky's to see them, so I can see Mum... Sherlock's longest ride by far.
Hope the ride went well for you all - at least the weather looks good. And best wishes to you L when you see your mother.
We're still going! Well - we're stopped right now. Sherlock gets a bit tired, I think, although he won't admit it. So we're stopping off at services for a break every so often. Not too far to go now though!
Did you pick up... what was it called, a restraining strap?, in case he falls asleep on the way home? Sounds like quite an expedition for a new rider. Even one who likes to sing along the way.
rsf
Why do you think he won't ask to stop? When he's in a car I assume he lets you know when he needs to go to the bathroom? Is he afraid that if he asks for a break, you'll stuff him in a car for the rest of the way to Nicky's?
-ella
Rsf - yeah, John and the boys picked up a harness the other day. Sherlock isn't exactly happy about it, but he wears it.
Ella - I just don't think he wants to be the one to stop us. So we stop anyway. That way it's not just for him, but for all of us.
You all back safe and sound now then?
Hope you all had a good time seeing Nicky and her lot, and that your visit to your Mum went OK, Lestrade.
Home now.
John came with me to see Mum. Although he spent a bit of the time wandering the corridors.
She's a bit more her old self now. Which isn't all good. But she's a bit mobile, was sitting in a chair today, apparently can get herself to the bathroom and things, as long as someone's there to walk with her just in case she has a wobble.
They think she may get moved to a home where she'll have a bit more to do soon.
It was more tiring than I had anticipated too. We've never been so far before.
Its a long time to concentrate I would have thought Mycroft, hopefully sleep will come easily for you all tonight :-)
I'm glad your mum seems more herself Greg, even though that means not all good things, hopefully she'll get better and better from here :-)
Cheers. When I say she can move about, I should say that's with a zimmer frame right now. But it's still good progress. Think she's bored of the hospital, wants to get a bit more independent. Hopefully if there's a place in a home somewhere she can get the best of both worlds - bit more privacy and independence, but still with plenty of care and rehab.
I'd also prefer it if she was still somewhere where people will watch out for her, restrict her ability to get booze or cigs.
She did seem a lot better this time - physically, obviously, but mentally as well.
You mean she could direct her look like she was chewing a wasp right at you, instead of a general attempt to ignore you?
But yeah, she was a lot more alert.
More than can be said for Sherlock at the end of the ride home tonight. He was definitely struggling to stay awake at the end there.
Heh. Yeah, something like that.
Not that I want him to fall asleep back there, but it does almost seem like a miracle to have found something that actually wears him out. Mycroft was pretty tired too by the end.
I think he thought it was more a case of just sitting on the back and enjoying life, and didn't think quite so much about the whole holding on/tensing your legs aspect of it. Plus, of course, he talks at a million miles an hour, and looks at everything and everyone we pass.
And, of course, yellow car.
Ha, yeah.
I also think he'll quickly get used to it and be back to his usual wide-awake self, if we do it often enough.
It is brilliant being able to take them both out on the bikes. I'm really enjoying it.
It's great, yeah. I felt bad leaving him behind.
Exactly.
And now, tomorrow, a day of packing and checking everything's ready for school again...and then all four of us biking to drop Mycroft off.
No wheelies, Danger. Although Sherlock has already asked if we can...
I've learned my lesson. No wheelies...at Mycroft's school.
or on the roads! Don't make me arrest you...
can you do a wheelie with a pillion?
I would never...
Ella - I can't really do one anyway. Don't know about L.
You can, yeah - in some ways it's easier, because there's much more weight over the back wheel.
But you shouldn't, unless your pillion and you both know exactly what you're doing and are both prepared for it. I've heard plenty of stories of people being killed because their (sad to say usually male) rider thinks they'll show off and pop a huge wheelie, causing the pillion to fall off the back.
well that's just completely horrifying.
I expect you didn't have any trouble getting Sherlock to go to bed tonight. And I'll confess cheerfully to being glad you have the harness, because the best intentions in the world can't change "novice" to "expert" overnight. But it's great that you can all travel together now.
Is John going to practice riding with Sherlock a few times before attempting London traffic with him?
Sleep well, everyone.
rsf
Yeah, it is horrifying. But some people are...idiots, for want of better word.
RSF - No, he was pretty tired out. I think John will start off one some quieter roads. Sherlock does wriggle about a lot, and you have to be ready for him to shift his weight about. He's definitely more of a handful than John or Mycroft on the back.
have you read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance?
I know you were asking Lestrade, Mycroft, but I read it. It was a number of years ago, and my memory of it is a bit shaky, but as I recall it didn't have much in it about either motorcycle maintenance or Zen, but it was interesting as a personal exploration/meditation. Have you read it?
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