YPL service project

[alt_sally_anne]

My group visited a school where recent Hogwarts graduate Shivani Johns teaches.

She took over fairly recently, I think, and her predecessor was old and had some difficulty keeping up with the work. The whole school needed to be painted and also we patched a hole in the roof. Also, some places where the furniture hadn't been moved in about a century that needed a good cleaning -- we noticed those when we moved the furniture to paint.

It was good to feel really useful. We certainly appreciated Miss Johns coming in on her day off to work with us, and we hope that she finds the fresh paint and no-longer-leaking roof make it worthwhile!

I wonder if anyone wound up at the school I used to attend? The teacher when I went there was Miss Dixton. (She might have retired, however. I'm not sure.)

What sorts of work did the other groups find was needed?

Comments

I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_sally_anne]

Shivani Johns likes half-bloods nearly as much as her old mate, Lana Sandoval does.

She acted like anything we cleaned was likely going to be contaminated when we were done with it, was furious that she had to come in on her day off, and didn't say thank you.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_ron]

Ugh. Sandoval has a friend who went into teaching? Wonder why she's not doing something, y'know. Easier.

The place we went needed books repaired and a few things fixed, but mostly just a lot of cleaning up. We had fun looking at some of books. I'd forgotten all about 'A is for Accio! B is for Boggart'. Funnily enough, Goyle knew a song for that, and we all got going. That's why I told Umbridge he should have a 'Works Hard' badge. Not that he was much help when we went outside to see if we could fix the steps. And he was hopeless at the window washing charm.


It's lucky you lot have Quidditch now. Think how long Umbridge might have kept us sitting around 'debriefing' otherwise?

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_sally_anne]

I don't know. Maybe she likes very young children? She certainly didn't like us.

It sounds like your work was easier than ours. We had to fix something on the roof but we didn't have a ladder. We wound up stacking desks and then I climbed up on top to get at the hole.

And yeah, thank goodness for Quidditch. I'll see you at dinner.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_susan]

I remember you saying something once about how your village school was fairly horrid, and now that I've met Miss Dixton, well, I can just about imagine.

She worked us really hard, lots of really mucky jobs outdoors, with this kind of sniffy look on our face while she watched us so we didn't miss a spot. And she glared every time one of us had to go to the loo!

It sounds like your lot had some rough jobs too-- though that's sort of funny that you got sent to Johns' school. I think I'd feel a bit odd having to treat someone like a adult when you can remember seeing them eating dinner in the Great Hall.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_sally_anne]

Yeah, that part was weird.

I'm just glad I didn't have to go back to see Miss Dixton. Either she'd have been horrid to me like she was when I was little, OR she'd have been all fake-friendly (which would have almost have been worse).

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_pansy]

We just shelved books and did some dusting.

I'm sorry you lot had it rough. I wonder who made sure of that.

[alt_ron]

Yeah. We had a good time, my group.

The teacher where we went was a nice ol witch, who'd made biscuits and brought along pumpkin juice for us, and thanked us for what we were doing.

Celia Thompson got talking with her and found out that the floo in her office didn't open properly so the fire was always smoky and mostly she just tried to make do with warming charms, so we got together and figured out how to fix that for her. And she was so happy about that. It was nice.

[alt_susan]

Miss Dixton? Yeah, she's still there, because that's where our group went.

We worked pretty hard, and definitely got a lot done.

I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_sally_anne]

I hope she was decent to you.

She was a horrible teacher back when I was in primary.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_susan]

It's funny, she was being pretty awful to us overall, but all of a sudden she started being quite pleasant--but only to me.

It was dead odd. She even offered me some tea, and a couple of dry little biscuits. I did my best to do a polite dodge, but I'm not sure she bought it. And honestly, it was hard to pass it up, since we didn't have anything else all day.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_pansy]

Why do you think she changed?

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_susan]

You know, I wasn't sure at the time; all I noticed was how odd it was.

But now that I think about it, a few of us had been talking Quidditch, just to pass the time, and I mentioned Dad had got a deal on my broom because one of the Cannons' players didn't want it any more.

She let us have a break not too long after that, and that's when she mentioned the tea.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_sally_anne]

Hembridge probably told her you were a bunch of half-blood nobodies.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_susan]

This is awk I sometimes forget that people think that way, that not having been in fostering makes me a little more pure or whatnot.

It's still weird, though. I mean every once in a while someone will make a big fuss over me because of Dad's job specifically, but usually it's old-man Cannons fans who want to offer me a toffee as if I'm five and have a gab about how much the team means to them, not pinched old-lady schoolteachers. That's probably why I didn't twig to it right away.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_pansy]

And no lunch! Ugh.

Hembridge really is the worst.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_susan]

Do you think she specifically told them not to feed us? Or just assigned us to the sort of people who could be counted on not to?

I don't suppose it really matters, since we'd turn out hungry and worn to bits either way.

YPL wasn't like this before. I know I'm stating the obvious, but...

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_ron]

They didn't give you anything to eat all day?

Oi!

That'd've been bad with our group. We had Jimmy Peakes and Stratus Cuthbert, who are stringy but eat like they've got suction charms on their gullets. And that's me saying that! Plus we had Goyle. If there hadn't been any food, just think what he'd have been like by half-twelve! As it was, I had to head him off after he'd finished his, because I swear he was on his way to scare a couple of the littler girls into giving him theirs.

Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good

[alt_susan]

Congratulations! You escaped the dreadful fate of a lunchless Goyle!

It's a good thing the girls had you around to protect them.

But yeah, the food situation was just generally not on at all.

[alt_padma]

Bones, we were at your mum's school. It was in really good repair, actually. We just had to clean and reorganise all the books and art supplies and things.

[alt_susan]

She's always been very proud of her school, and I'm sure she appreciated the help!