I got some flowers at work today. I forgot to take a picture before I left, but here is one I've stolen from the internet to give you an idea of the general scale...
And then I checked I checked his blog on the way to pick up Sherlock and found his post... Well. I can't think of a better gift than that.
Bloody enormous, in other words. Pink and red, mainly roses. They smell lovely. L denies sending them, but the poem that came with them gave him away. He can share it with you if he wants to. I'll just say...I can't believe he dictated that over the phone to a stranger. Good lord. I wonder if florists get a lot of that sort of thing on Valentine's Day.
And then I checked I checked his blog on the way to pick up Sherlock and found his post... Well. I can't think of a better gift than that.
42 comments:
The card is lovely. Really lovely. And I am sure your flowers are even bigger, John :-)
(But as I spotted in one comment - 70 years old receptionist reading the card out loud? You've got me intrigued!)
Whoever sent the roses (*ahemLahem*) - how did you find roses that look lovely and smell lovely? For some reason nearly all our florists get roses grown for having long stems and big blossoms and they don't smell at all! Which is totally wrong - roses smell divine and without that smell I consider the flowers incomplete...
Gosh, they are big.
I think you'll find whoever sent them went to a lovely florist's shop and dictated the poem to a very obliging young woman.
I love you.
Ah, of course. So he could make sure they smelled good at the same time. Or she, of course.
I love you too.
Mrs T said on Valentine's Day that people would send secret cards and gifts to people and they wouldn't know who they were so it was like a secret admirer and you know who each other are so I think I shouldn't need to go and spend the evening with Mrs Hudson because she said we could watch a romantic film and that's BORING.
Hey, Sherlock, I'm sure you can do something else whilst the film is on. Maybe draw us a picture? But let Mrs Hudson watch it, huh? And I'm sure she won't mind if you ask questions about it, either.
And Valentine's can be about secret admirers, but if you're lucky enough to have found someone special and not need to be a secret admirer anymore then you want to celebrate that, too.
Hey Sherlock,
If you're bored with the romantic stuff, try this one for size whilst everyone else is being all mushy. It's what I'm going over with my forensic science classes today. Because I'm odd like that.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Valentine%27s_Day_massacre
Enjoy! And Happy Valentine's Day to the more mushy among you!
Bronwyn
Thank you! Also I listened to your mummy podcast and I want to know what did they use to dissolve brains?? Also why did they seal the whole face up with wax?
Sherlock--Valentine's Day used to be more about giving secret cards and gifts to people, and I think that was a lovely and fun and kind of exciting custom. Over the years, however, it got to be much more about celebrating romantic relationships that people were already in. There a lot of reasons for that, but in the end that's what it mostly is today.
Maybe it will be a funny and romantic film? You never know. And you can always do something else, like Lestrade said--if you don't feel like drawing a picture you could read a book. Did you already finish that book on mummies you got at the conference?
Sherlock, when Egyptians removed the brains, usually it was with a wire hook. They would insert the hook through the nasal cavity, scramble the brain, and then pull it out as well as letting drain. I know that in some cases, natron was used to help dissolve the brain, but I think Brownyn may know a bit more than I do about the specifics.
As for why the mummies were sealed with wax, this was partly done to keep those cavities free of fluid, and also to help preserve the features. The nasal cavity was stuffed with wads of linen and wax to give the appearance of the nose and such.
That's quite the secret admirer you have there. winkwinknudgenudge
Have a wonderful Valentine's evening!
Valentine's day - of course, a lot of people celebrate it here, but there are voices that say it's not an original Czech custom and so we should let it be and celebrate May Day instead (because one Czech poet wrote actually pretty dark poem called May and called the beginning of May a time of love - link to English translation: http://www.lupomesky.cz/maj/may.html - Sherlock, please get John or Lestrade check it before you read it). Like Santa vs. Baby Jesus and Easter bunny vs. Whipping Monday (just a symbolic stuff, mind you - link: http://www.myczechrepublic.com/czech_culture/czech_holidays/easter/ - safe link :-)).
All the holidays and customs have something about them and actually all those centuries ago somebody made them up or saw them somewhere and liked them. It's a pity though that the "new" customs often take the place of the "original" ones - on the other hand, if we really celebrated anything and everything, we couldn't work at all :-)
So Valentine's? You don't have to like it or celebrate it, Sherlock. It's not an obligation. On the other hand other people can like it and celebrate it, like your DI and John. Or get romantic about it like Mrs Hudson (I guess from the comments). It's all okay. You can choose and people can choose and so on, yada yada yada, I am writing for too long here :-) I guess it's time for me to go to sleep...
Nighty night, all!
CR - no, it's good you lot are giving him things to look up/read. Mrs Hudson will thank you! We thank you :)
Sorry, the curry may not be hot, but my boyfriend really, really is ;) rather taking my attention...
L - the hell are you doing here? :-) Go and get... distracted thoroughly ;-)
(thanks)
Valentine's is my least-favo(u)rite holiday of them all, Sherlock. That's the beauty of being a person: you're entitled to your own opinion. Hope your night is a good one.
Hey Sherlock!
It's terribly late (early) there now, but I just got back to my computer. I'm so glad you liked the podcast! I certainly enjoyed recording it.
Brain removal wasn't an absolute in Egyptian mummy-making. Early kingdoms tended to remove the brain, but later ones didn't bother as much. Like Pip said, it was sometimes undertaken by sliding a sharp, metal pick into the nose and then using a hammer to jam it through the bone into the brain. Then a long hook was inserted, swirled around and the brain pulled out. The problem with this method, however, is that much of the brain was often left behind. The brain is roughly the texture of string gelatin and as such, not terribly hook-friendly.
More common was the use of natron - a naturally occurring mineral composed of hydrated sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate and sodium sulfate. It was highly corrosive and highly basic. If not natron, a combination of other bases (usually lye) was used. Like all strong bases, natron eats away at organic tissue, rendering it more liquid. The Egyptians would pour a strong solution into the brain via the eye socket or nasal cavity. It would be allowed to sit for hours or days and then the body would be turned, allowing the mostly liquid brain to drain out.
Natron also tended to inhibit bacterial growth because it created a highly alkaline environment in which most of the bacteria involved in decomposition can't survive.
Whether the brain was removed or not, the major bacteria-bearing organs would be (the digestive tract, the liver, the kidneys). This removed most of the internal colonies of decomposition-causing bacteria. Then the body was sealed. By plugging all the major orifices with wax, the mummy-makers prevented air from entering and leaving the body. The body was also sealed in an air-tight or near-air-tight casket. Without oxygen, the remaining bacteria couldn't undergo their usual aerobic (oxygen-using) processes that cause normal decomposition. Instead, the bacteria would be forced into anaerobic processes. These anaerobic processes would slowly turn the fats in the body to a hard, waxy substance called adipocere, while simultaneously robbing the other tissues of what little moisture was left after the initial drying process. This adipocere helped the body retain its humanoid shape by preventing the drying tissues from shrinking past a certain point. The packing and stuffing that was inserted into the body helped to bulk up areas were adipocere was unlikely to form (low-fat areas of the body).
The entire point of the exercise was to leave the body as durable and human-like as possible. Since a major component of the ancient Egyptian belief system was that your body accompanied you to the afterlife, they naturally wanted it to be in as good a condition as was feasible. By forcing the bacteria to form adipocere where the fat used to be and packing the body with stuffing in place of the organs that accelerate normal decomposition, the Egyptians created an environment where the skin would shrink down around the body and leave a remarkably human looking corpse. It was actually an incredible feat of medical science.
Any other questions? I do enjoy answering them. I hope you enjoyed the St. Valentine's Day Massacre information!
Toodle-oo,
Bronwyn
Lovely flowers ! And you two are being disgustingly sweet, poor Sherlock ;-)
As for the new poll, I voted heart because it's an amazing piece of machinery, and liver, because it's the only internal organ that I like eating (not human ones, obviously). There.
I see that the poor intestines don't get any love though.
Anon from Paris
I was so sad last year when hubs and I went to the site of the St. Valentine's Day Massacre and there was nothing there but a parking lot.
I don't know what we expected to see (bullet riddled walls? Bloodstained concrete?), but that wasn't it. It seems the garage had been torn down many years ago. There wasn't even a marker, that I saw, for the victims, who's grandkids surely are still around.
Anyway. Glad you guys had a lovely Valentine's Day, and hope there are many more in your future!
Looooong and sleeeepy day - overcast, lightly snowing the whole day, strong wind...
I vote for liver - raw liver is really funny stuff.
I voted liver and lungs, because they're the organs I've treated worst over my life, and they're both still working for me. So they deserved a vote.
Sherlock, remember what I said this morning, about being very, very well behaved, like we know you can? Make sure you're good to John. He probably won't want to carry you, even a little bit, and he might just want to go home, not to the park or anything. So just be good to him, let him decide what you're going to be doing, and just do it without arguing, okay? It'll show both me and John just how much you love him if you're good and understanding, and it'll make us very happy. You can send me a message on here for what you and he agree on for dinner. But baked alaska and eggs benedict are on the menu for half term, not for now.
I voted heart and lungs, because the brain can't survive at all without oxygenated blood.
(I can't imagine Sherlock being anything but wonderful for post-PT John. For one thing, think of all the interesting things about muscles he can learn from it! Bet he'd make a really good coach, too. :))
RR - having had a chat with Sherlock earlier which included him trying to convince me that physio was making John better, and that he'd be able to pick him up and carry him more, I fear that might not be entirely true. He is very impatient, and does seem to believe that doctors/medical types have magic powers to cure things immediately, if not sooner. It's hard to convince him that sometimes things get worse before they get better.
But you did have that talk, so hopefully that helped, although I'm sure he's had lots of questions for John.
And he seems to be pretty patient with training the degus. Living proof, they are, that some things can't be rushed, no?
L - I don't think Sherlock's alone in thinking doctors etc should make things better instantly and that the body has miraculous powers of healing.
Yeah, you're right. I'm just worrying. I'm sure he'll be very good really.
Maybe Sherlock could chart John's progress? Perhaps having something to do, even if it's just charting simple things like range of motion or pain level, will help Sherlock understand that it isn't an instant process.
Also, there could be glitter and stars.
John, leaving early, I'll bring some paperwork home. The degus can help me do it, or something.
Anything you need?
No, I'm all right, thanks.
Oh, I like the idea of a chart, Pip! (What I don't know is how John will feel about being awarded stars--or not being awarded stars--by Sherlock. :) )
John, you know that the more you say that without expanding, the less you are believed? It's unfair but there it is.
(It's particularly unfair of me, because I've only even had PT on my right hand after surgery, and that really didn't hurt, it was just annoying. Or, more likely, it hurt but I totally wiped that out of my memory because I am strongly right-handed and needed that hand working immediately if not sooner. *shakes head at self*)
Not sure I want Sherlock trying to assess John, if I'm honest. Different if he'll just take John's word for it, but he generally wants to be more hands-on. But it's up to John.
And he can say as much or as little as he wants. Not saying much tells me as much as writing reams, really.
Is "degus eating paperwork" included in your risk assessments, Lestrade? Because I imagine the fireworks would be intense if you tried that excuse on your DCI, true or not.
DW - Considering that Lestrade's DCI was more amused than shocked by Sherlock's phone calls, that time at the station, so on, I think the DCI would probably start laughing than yelling.
Greg - However, I do not suggest to ever say to your DCI that the degus ate your paperwork.
John - I hope you truly are fine, and are amused by how fussy we are over you. :)
~A from NW
Thing is, DW, to save precious police time, we don't have to do risk assessments any more...
Problem is, if something goes wrong, you have to be able to prove you did everything in your power to prevent that happening. Only way you can do that is...yes, you've guessed it, a risk assessment. Brilliant policy, that. So now we're not given any time to do them, because we don't do them, except we have to do them, or we have no proof of our planning process.
happily, degus are easily distracted with a few oats or a bit of carrot, and tend to be as disinterested in them as the rest of the population :)
And anyway, John currently has a lapful of degus, as Sherlock decided they'd help him feel better and 'they're really light, so you can hold them!'.
Danger, is that a carrot in your lap, or are you just happy to see me?
John currently has a lapful of degus, as Sherlock decided they'd help him feel better
That's really quite sweet.
A - my Super's the one with the soft spot for Sherlock. My DCI is...ah, well, public forum and all that.
"But sir, degus ate my report!"
"What, no dogs?"
"No, they're at school, sir..."
Sherlock is reading all that anatomy stuff. Is there some book about physiotherapy and how long it takes for human body to heal? About different injuries, scar tissues, all those related muscles and tendons and stuff...
John, I hope the therapy helps. And that it doesn't exhaust you too much.
My DCI is...
...particular? ;) Maybe they're just longing for a couple of Degus themselves.
The captcha says "share". That's just creepy...
Greg - Oops. I don't know how the police ranks work in the UK. For some reason, I thought your Super meant your direct supervisor and ... *trails off into the realm of mistaken assumptions*...
No need to elaborate, this being a public forum and all. I'm sure your DCI is a very nice man. :)
John - Are you soundly asleep yet?
~A from NW
A - no worries. It goes (for CID, hence the 'detective' in front of the rank), Det Constable, Det Sergeant, Det Inspector, Det Chief Inspector, Superintendent, Chief Superintendent, and then, for the Met, Commander, Deputy Assistant Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner, Commissioner.
See, I am a very lowly rung on a big ladder. :) And is different for other forces, once you get the chief officer ranks - and those aren't split into CID/uniform.
Wouldn't you hate to be a higher rung,.though? P
Where your.biggest risk would be a papercut or a metaphorical spear at a press.conference? Lower rings are definitely better if not more fun and rewarding!
And you'd probably have to wear ties for all those press conferences and meetings...
Thank you for the easy-to-understand explanation (without the need for flow charts!) And you're not a lowly rung on a big ladder; you're on a nice middle rung. :)
~A from NW
Yeah, both correct, I would hate to be a higher rung. Sometimes I wish I was still a sergeant, to be honest.
DW - I still have to do press conferences, though! I shouldn't, but...I do.
A - Yeah, ties for court are bad enough. And no problem.
Isn't that Sally's job, though? To deflect spears? Being a Sergeant would be great, but Sergeants need role models and people to teach them how to glower/interrogate/care about witnesses, etc. Also, how to drink coffee properly. Sounds like a job for DI Danger-lover.
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