Not to have realised until now that Joey Maynard’s ‘displaced organ’ was a prolapse?

[QuaterMiss]

I know there is or was an enormous Chalet School thread but I can’t spend six weeks trawling through that.

Fascinated to note (because I’ve been reading the complete synopses how all the CS women taken seriously ill either went straight to the San or journeyed - over days - for a consultation with Sir James Talbot. It was he who diagnosed said ‘displaced organ’. At which point Joey had iirc nine children. May be wrong, lost count.

(I read and reread the entire series over my first three decades.)

I’m not! I utterly refuse to collect any more possessions to fall in love with and inevitably, eventually lose. And, even now, I’m dipping into Althea (much sparkier than Two Sams, perhaps EBD was at a low point with the latter) when I ought to be doing something serious. I’ll be glad when I reach the end and can reclaim my life!

They are strangely addictive though.
I’ve almost finished Mystery but it is very short. Quite good though.

I have decided that the books which do not contain people falling off precipices or into lakes or out of cable cars are v. dull.

I have also decided that Thekla was unfairly chucked out of the CS.

She only stated that she hated Jo Bettany.

Nothing wrong with that. But all the mistresses were so outraged that not only did Thekla hate Jo Bettany but had also got out of bed during the night which is against the school rules that there was nothing else for it.

Thekla had to go. The nasty little Prussian. She should not have aspired to the Chalet School anyway. Girls who cannot stay in their beds all night long without getting out in order to tell other girls that they hate Jo Bettany should have gone to St. Scholastika's.

I have decided that the books which do not contain people falling off precipices or into lakes or out of cable cars are v. dull.

So true

I have also decided that Thekla was unfairly chucked out of the CS. She only stated that she hated Jo

She also ate raw bacon. I’m undecided which is a worse sin in the eyes of the school.

I have decided that the books which do not contain people falling off precipices or into lakes or out of cable cars are v. dull.

Where do you stand on books in which someone falls backwards into a box and has to be sedated?

I headcanon Eustacia as autistic. That might be me projecting onto her though. I always thought she got a raw deal.

I’ve just read that very scene, DoubleRaspberry!

Are you shaking with sheer emotion?

Shaking with hysteria certainly. I mean, who gets themselves trapped in a trunk? And is then in such a state of shock their doctor husband has to drug them...
Where’s your backbone, woman?!
Luckily Jack manages to both free her from the packing case and carry her to the bed, as Jo, tall, and admitting her dress has got tight, says she is no lightweight.

They do seem to get through a lot of rolls don't they?

Would that be bread rolls to feed their enormous family or rolls in the hay to add to it?

Having stayed at a few continental hotels, the piles of rolls at breakfast are always fairly impressive. The cheese/ham/pate breakfast demands rolls really.

Thekla got expelled? That was a bit drastic!

Continental breakfasts are lovely.

Breakfasts in Europe bare no relationship to 'continental' breakfasts served in the UK. They very a lot between areas as well.

Except the bacon... British bacon is better... ;)

My breakfasts have been eaten on the actual continent! ‘Continental’ was a tongue in cheek reference though. I remain unconvinced by the prevalence of liverwurst and peppers in the early morning in certain places.

My comment might have come out wrong... I was agreeing the rolls, meat etc were better than what British hotels like to call Continental. I quite like breakfast salad...

In Germany there is pizza on a breakfast buffet...
But I think the Danish breakfast may be my favourite.

In Joey Goes to the Oberland, she refers repeatedly to her eight kids as “the brats.”
Ok it’s not on a par with fucking little shits or something but given how they preach no slang etc at the Chalet School it’s a bit surprising. Tbh, I’d be a bit these days if someone said it as often as Joey did. I’m only a third of the way through though - maybe it’s the stress of getting trapped in the packing case and then moving her brood halfway across Europe with only Primula and the faithful Anna to help her.

And everyone is delighted Robin is off to Canada to be a nun - maybe they’re just glad to be rid of her.

I am clearly a slow reader.

I'm still on Princess, partway through the strangely ardent Guide ceremony, and brought up short on 'a demonstration by the Cock patrol'.

Erm. Right...

Quite a few people on the CBB hate the 'brats' thing, as do I. It got really annoying, and it was only for that book. EBD had a habit of getting certain words and overusing them. Here is a drinking game to play with 'Three Go':

1. Take a shot every time a character uses the word 'moke'.
2. Die of alcohol poisoning.

I also remember 'Joey Goes' was the first time I saw the n-word in a CS book, and I know it was a different time and all that but it always grosses me out when I see it. Like Frieda finding it really funny that Joey calls her dark-haired daughter 'n baby' and when Con mentions little Cecil has black hair, Josette says 'she's going to be a little n' even though Cecil is WHITE. Wtf.

@IsFuzzyBeagMise Thekla got expelled for getting Joyce Linton into trouble and almost getting her expelled, which would have caused Joyce's mum loads of stress and possibly killed her, plus she wasn't remorseful about it. YMMV about whether she deserved it. Betty Wynne-Davies totally had it coming though, and Miss Annersley was also partly doing it for Betty's own safety as she nearly sold the McDonalds out to the Nazis, and that wouldn't have made her very popular.

@PhilSwagielka, ah...yes, I remember Joyce Linton who was a right little trouble-maker, or was she just easily led astray, and her saintly sister, Gillian. Joyce used to look up to Thekla, if I remember correctly.

I'm still reading the early books. The use of 'brats' is very surprising as it seems that they can't open their mouths and they are being given out to about using slang The old double standards, eh.

I think all the usage of 'brats' was supposed to show us that Joey hadn't become a mild, maternal Doris Trelawney type from having a bazillion children, she was still all breezy and casual and slangy about them, with her kerrazy earphones, famous author status and uncontrollable St Bernard.

I always fantasise a scene where Hilda Annersley pulls her aside and tells her Margot is a psychopath, Con's dreaminess is not her writerly genius making itself felt but mild narcolepsy, and that Len is already a dull, middle-aged drudge aged fifteen and should be sent off somewhere to behave badly and be silly for a few months.

@Inches

Con is Best Triplet, but I feel sorry for Len because she gets everything dumped on her, she's raised to be the responsible one from birth even though her sisters are the same age as her, Jack and Joey are constantly expecting her to take charge of her siblings and then Mary-Lou has a go at her for worrying too much about her siblings. What is Len supposed to do? It's not her fault, she's spent her entire life being told she's got to be responsible for the kids and now Mary-Lou's telling her she's going to be an interfering old hag or something, which is a bit rich coming from her.

I hated that bit in Theodora. Con did nothing wrong except making a comment. Len also did nothing wrong. Margot was the only one at fault. And Mary-Lou was out of order to drag up Ted's past and talk about what a moron she'd been as a kid when the whole point of Ted starting at the CS was to make a fresh start.