Jam, jam, and more jam
Aug. 24th, 2010 08:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alt_sally_anneThe Strettons have been trying to take orders by journal private message instead of just owl post and since I know how to use the journals, they've been having me go through to look for orders people are placing. Except of course people are mostly writing these private messages to Mr or Mrs Stretton so they've been having me read THEIR journals to try to keep up, which means I'm reading all the time but of course I can't write anything since it will show up at Mrs Stretton or Mr Stretton and not me.
Jeremy's been laughing. He knows how to use the journals too, of course, but he never writes in his so he can pretend to his mum and dad that he doesn't and I got stuck with it. Of course I'm going back to school in less than two weeks now so they're going to have to work out some other system.
Mr Stretton had this idea that involves giving journals to the goblins at Gringott's so let's say someone wanted to order jam from the Strettons, they could write a private message that would be to Stretton Jam Ordering and to Gringott's and say, 'I would like to place an order for ten holiday jam parcels at four galleons each, please owl them to the following addresses and I authorise the transfer of forty galleons from my Gringott's bank vault to the Stretton vault.' And the goblins could move the gold from one vault to the other, and the Strettons could send an owl with the jam and it would be very fast because they wouldn't have to wait for payment to arrive.
I don't know whether the goblins would go along with it or not -- journals are a bit new and of course there's the problem of stolen diaries. Is there anything in the magic to keep you from writing in someone else's diary? I can read the Strettons' but they ASKED me to so that might be different. Mr Stretton's been owling people at the Ministry to set up a meeting; of course this wouldn't be JUST for the Strettons they'd do this, but everyone who sells things by owl.
Anyway, I think it's an interesting idea.
I can't wait to go back to school.
Jeremy's been laughing. He knows how to use the journals too, of course, but he never writes in his so he can pretend to his mum and dad that he doesn't and I got stuck with it. Of course I'm going back to school in less than two weeks now so they're going to have to work out some other system.
Mr Stretton had this idea that involves giving journals to the goblins at Gringott's so let's say someone wanted to order jam from the Strettons, they could write a private message that would be to Stretton Jam Ordering and to Gringott's and say, 'I would like to place an order for ten holiday jam parcels at four galleons each, please owl them to the following addresses and I authorise the transfer of forty galleons from my Gringott's bank vault to the Stretton vault.' And the goblins could move the gold from one vault to the other, and the Strettons could send an owl with the jam and it would be very fast because they wouldn't have to wait for payment to arrive.
I don't know whether the goblins would go along with it or not -- journals are a bit new and of course there's the problem of stolen diaries. Is there anything in the magic to keep you from writing in someone else's diary? I can read the Strettons' but they ASKED me to so that might be different. Mr Stretton's been owling people at the Ministry to set up a meeting; of course this wouldn't be JUST for the Strettons they'd do this, but everyone who sells things by owl.
Anyway, I think it's an interesting idea.
I can't wait to go back to school.
Private message to Draco
Date: 2010-08-25 02:16 am (UTC)Mrs Stretton has been after me to try to persuade YOU that this scheme about the goblins is a good idea. Because she thinks you'll persuade your father. So I'm writing you a private message so she'll think that's what I'm up to.
I had a very nice visit with Pansy and it was lovely having Hydra over that day. I am SO ready to go back to school. Are you looking forward to your electives? I don't even have my books yet because the Strettons have been too busy to take us shopping. We may have to do it all by owl post.
Re: Private message to Draco
Date: 2010-08-25 03:55 am (UTC)I'm looking forward to Dark Arts more than anything. I've already read the whole book, and there's a section I want to ask Vince about on the train.
Re: Private message to Draco
Date: 2010-08-25 04:01 am (UTC)And thank you, you can bring it to your Father's attention if you want to but I certainly don't want to impose. Honestly, it seems like an interesting idea but I can think of a lot of things that could go wrong. It would've been awfully handy last winter during the quarantine, though. (Not so much for us, since we couldn't get owls at ALL. But for the people who were stuck at home for one reason or another.)
Re: Private message to Draco
Date: 2010-08-25 04:07 am (UTC)Start with the beginning. There are sections on theory that seem fairly important. An interesting section on psychological mindset, too, which I hadn't thought much about before. That's that section I wanted to ask Vince about, actually. I don't know if you know, but he's already very good at Dark Arts. Greg's not bad at all, either.
I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good
Date: 2010-08-25 02:31 am (UTC)Jeremy said he wasn't going back to school. All the Ravenclaws treat him like he has some nasty contagious disease and he's fed up with it and wants to quit.
His parents were furious, of course.
Afterwards he came and found me and asked me to go flying with him, which I probably shouldn't have but I am SO tired of transcribing jam orders! So we sneaked out and flew to this spot that overlooks one of the really big estates, the one where they make cloth. Jeremy said, 'Do you think you'll come work for my parents after you finish school? They'll probably hire you.'
I said that I didn't know, even OWLS are so far away, for me.
He said that they're expecting him to work for them, but he really doesn't want to do it. He said he doesn't want to work with muggles. And then he got all quiet and looked at me the way people look when they're trying to guess what you think before they say something they're not supposed to say.
I said, 'what is it you don't like about working with muggles?' and then gave him the look that says, 'I already know what you're going to say, and I sympathise, so you can say it.'
So he told me a story. Last year, or maybe the year before, while he was flying over one of the estates he saw one of the overseers beat a man. The overseers are muggles, too, who've agreed to be bosses of the other muggles, so they don't use magic, they actually use -- well, the man was all covered in blood, after, Jeremy said he was nearly sick and you wouldn't treat an animal that way so how come you can do that to muggles?
He said he doesn't want to be a slave driver. He wants to do something that has nothing to do with muggles.
But he doesn't know what else he can do but work for his parents. I said he should go back to school and try talking to friends in other houses. Work hard and get good marks. You know, there were people who were impressed when he stood up to Sandoval last year -- he needs to work out who, and talk to them and see if they've got any prospects for him.
Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good
Date: 2010-08-25 02:54 am (UTC)It is an awful place, and they do not deserve you.
Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good
Date: 2010-08-25 03:44 am (UTC)I won't ever work for the Strettons. Though to be honest I'd always rather thought their muggles were the lucky ones, at least compared to the ones in the camps.
Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good
Date: 2010-08-25 01:32 pm (UTC)Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good
Date: 2010-08-25 07:11 pm (UTC)(Listen to me, trying to give advice to a Slytherin on being crafty. I know, I know, it's ridiculous.)
Re: I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good
Date: 2010-08-25 07:19 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-08-25 02:57 am (UTC)And that's interesting to think on about the journals and using them like that. I mean, there'd be a paper record, and a history you could double-check, but I'd bet there'd be all sorts of clever ways people would figure out to get around it and get things for free, which wouldn't do at all. But it would make things much simpler, especially for people that don't have their own owls.
(no subject)
Date: 2010-08-25 03:47 am (UTC)Private message to Pansy
Date: 2010-08-25 03:51 am (UTC)Anyway they're reading my entries (what they can see, anyway!) so I have to be tactful about what I say in public. Honestly I think it's a bit daft, who'd trust their money being moved around based on what they wrote in the journals?
Re: Private message to Pansy
Date: 2010-08-25 01:09 pm (UTC)And if they make a mistake or something, it's not like the goblins are going to say, "Oh, okay, here's your money back!"