A few upcoming reminders

[alt_sinistra]

2nd years: I’m seeing some persistent difficulties and confusions in the chartwork the Gryffindors and Slytherins turned in on Monday. Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws: please do the best you can with the assignment due Friday, but come to the midnight session Thursday night prepared to discuss your questions and turn your work in (since there’s no real time for you to any more work on it before our lecture Friday morning.)

I won’t count this assignment toward your end of term marks as long as you make a good faith effort at it. We’ll sort the confusion out and try again with the next one.

Meteors: The Orionids peak this Saturday for those who need to do observing. I’ll have the tower open Thursday evening until midnight class, Sunday evening until curfew and Monday evening until midnight class. If you’d like to be on the permission lists to be out after curfew, please let me know which day as soon as possible.

I have other commitments between supper and class on Friday night, and on Saturday, but several of my 7th years have kindly offered to open up the top of the tower until curfew if the weather’s clear. They’ll post a note in the usual places if it isn’t.

One schedule change: Due to the quarterly Astronomy guild meeting, I will not have office hours on Monday, the 29th. I will instead be available Tuesday afternoon (the 30th) from 1-3, and again from 7-9.

6th, and 7th years: Related to the above, this meeting is an excellent time for me to start talking to other astronomers about summer internships and upcoming positions. If you’re potentially interested, do talk to me by the 28th so I’m up to date on your likely availability and interests, and can remind myself of your other NEWT subjects.

Comments

Private message to Raz

[alt_sinistra]

Love - running through my accounts to prep for holiday expenses reminds me to ask you about a few things. You needn’t answer now, this is just in hopes I remember them when we do have a chance to talk. Money. Complicated, really. (For me, anyway. I know, I know.)

1) Do you want to go in with me and the rest of my siblings on our present to Dad, or would that feel too odd? Truly your choice: either would be fine by the rest of us. Storm’s working on a new desk and filing cabinet for his study: the rest of us are chipping in for materials, a comfortable desk chair, maybe a new side chair, and a few other things.

Mum insists he isn’t expecting presents, but, well. Dad. And we love him and want to remind him of that fact.

2) I had a very brief conversation yesterday with Tamsin Overby - she runs the Archetype - about whether I would consider buying into a share of the owning collective. It’d be out of my savings and I’m all right with the number she named, but I sort of feel like I want to talk it through with you. Obviously, not going to make any sort of decision without looking at the details thoroughly. (I am Dad’s daughter.)

3) Toshenka nudged me a few weeks ago to consider licensing the projection process: I haven’t followed up, but I keep coming back to thinking about it.

Otherwise - you thought about what you want to do Saturday night and Sunday? Much more pleasant subject, that! (Mostly, I care about what robes I should pack - whatever we do together will be lovely.) We’re all set for the actual appointments Saturday, too.

Won't be at lunch, but I'll see you at supper and the staff meeting. I’m going to need to peel off up here after, though - the 2nd years have gotten totally turned around, and I want to spread the charts out and see if I can track down all the seeds of the problem. You’re welcome to come up if you want, though.

Private message to Poppy Pomfrey

[alt_sinistra]

Poppy -

I’ve had another note from the Wizarding Repopulation Office, urging me to come in - do you think we’d have time to go through their intake form together before next Tuesday? (I can’t schedule them the week after, and I’m afraid if I put if off too much longer, they’ll take to bothering Raz too. No reason to give them the excuse. Plus, I start running into other necessary appointments and errands for the holidays.)

Raz and I are gone Saturday into Sunday, but I could come by and see you Friday between 3 and supper again. Or Monday, same time.

The form’s a rather ghastly 15 pages, and I’d love your help being as unhelpful with details as I can manage. Looking through, I think I've got everything I need to answer it.

On a mostly more cheerful note, I’d like to talk through more of what Irma found, too - still thinking about bits of it. Curious, really, the history of married couples in the castle. (And that long string of women leaving once they got married. Almost makes me understand why people assume I will.)

Also curious how few actually raised children here, though clearly it’s possible - and maybe even desireable, given that couple in the 18th century. Did she mention if she’d tracked down information on any of the odder rumours? I’ve not had a chance to catch up with her in private this week. I’ve a few questions for Tosha about the theory, but we didn’t get to that last week: it’s on my list for this Friday.

Won't be at lunch - I'm trying to sort through my mail and some other necessary things - but will be at supper.

Private message to Cedric Diggory

[alt_sinistra]

Cedric -

Just wanted to check in. (I do hear gossip, you know.) You all right there?

I know your question about budget for the feast decorations made it into the staff agenda for tonight, though really, no idea how the conversation will go. Professor Vector’s been very cautious with funding decisions this year.

And thanks for volunteering for Friday and Saturday - but seriously, if you need the time elsewhere, we’ll cover it other ways. Not that I expect there to be problems: it’s really just opening things up, closing down at curfew, and letting people count meteors.

Friday, I’ll be in the castle, just have some research and related topics to talk through with Professor Dolohov, but if there’s a real problem, I’ll come up. Saturday, Professor Vector’s said she’d be available, if you need a staff member for some reason.

Private message to Tallie Powell

[alt_sinistra]

Tallie -

Just confirming that we’re all set for Saturday. We’ll meet you at 1 at the Guildhall, and Temp’s confirmed she’ll meet us at 2 at the Festal Board, and we’ll go from there. Thanks again for arranging the second visit to the Guildhall - I just know Raz will feel more comfortable if he’s looked at the security implications for himself. And it’s by far my favourite of the lot.

We’re still thinking about your idea of Spence for the actual ceremony: there are some practical concerns (security on the day, but also having people coming and going to prepare.) And you’re right we could always use one of the Guildhall spaces if we decided we’d rather, though the Great Hall seems far too big, and one of the Crypts would mean resetting it for the evening. We can talk more about that on Saturday, anyway.

And while we’ve got all three of us handy, we should talk through the contract notes for vendors one more time - Raz had a couple of thoughts on the privacy clauses in particular.