Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

englishangel wrote:My hubby used to live in a place like that and they used to wake up with frost on the top of the bed and the water in the loo frozen.

Your husband was in Col A? Otherwise a perfect description. At least we were allowed one owned blanket - in the spring term - to keep us warm. I can tell you from bitter experience that a snow hole with -25º outside is warmer than a CH dormitory in winter.

Midget wrote: crying in despair:


Getting up at 7.20 at CH? I hadn't realised that Horsham was such a do-as -you-like holiday camp!

Yes - I know you ladies like to get up late. The invasion was the downfall of 6.55am rising at Horsham.

sejintenej wrote:

englishangel wrote:My hubby used to live in a place like that and they used to wake up with frost on the top of the bed and the water in the loo frozen.

Your husband was in Col A? Otherwise a perfect description. At least we were allowed one owned blanket - in the spring term - to keep us warm. I can tell you from bitter experience that a snow hole with -25º outside is warmer than a CH dormitory in winter.

Midget wrote: crying in despair:


Getting up at 7.20 at CH? I hadn't realised that Horsham was such a do-as -you-like holiday camp!

Yes - I know you ladies like to get up late. The invasion was the downfall of 6.55am rising at Horsham.

6:55, Mondays to Saturdays. Aluxurious extra hour on Sundays, if memory serves, David !

i was up at 6:45 at CH to make it to breakfast! I thnk wake up is 7:05

blondie95 wrote:i was up at 6:45 at CH to make it to breakfast! I thnk wake up is 7:05

It's good for the soul (or something!).

A nice bright morning and I can sit on the patio with a cuppa looking across the valley at nothing in particular, being buzzed by Great Tits (down JR - I know they're birds) and Blue Tits (calm down, JR) as they enjoy their breakfast. Gets me ready to start work just after 7am.

BTW, JR - 8am rise on Sundays? I thought chapel was at 9.15 on Sunday morning so an extra hour doesn't sound right. However, I was usually so knackered that I wouldn't have noticed.

Hmm... perhaps 7.20 was the wrong time. I think we were roughly awoken at 7.05 to be out on the Avenue by 7.15 to "march" (slouch/stumble) to Dining Hall by 7.20.
I thoroughly disagree that it's good for the soul to get up during precious dream time! Or when it's dark!
Research in the last few years has indicated that many people simply can't fit in with the early to bed, early to rise convention/tyranny that many accept as "the way it's always been" (and it really is a fairly recent thing). I've always been more awake and alive between the hours of 9.30pm and 2.00am, even at CH, with more effective brain activity (ALL essays for which I gained top marks were written after midnight). At CH I'd be like a zombie until about 10am, and I still find myself the last man standing at late nights out or all night parties.
For an informative and erudite alternative to the modern work-obsessed treadmill that is modern life, and to free you from the guilt of getting up when you want to, I heartily recommend Tom Hodgkinson's books How To Be Idle and How To Be Free. Amusing, liberating, well reasearched, and hopefully revolutionary.

Having said that Crippen, I am always much better in the morning - I used to get up every morning around 6.30 when I was at CH...

Blimey, Why? What would you do at that time? Do you still do that now?

i used to be really good at getting up in the morning, now not so hot at it!

I get up at 7 but i have to be asleep my 10:30 to make that possible

Crippen wrote:Hmm... perhaps 7.20 was the wrong time. I think we were roughly awoken at 7.05 to be out on the Avenue by 7.15 to "march" (slouch/stumble) to Dining Hall by 7.20.
I thoroughly disagree that it's good for the soul to get up during precious dream time! Or when it's dark!
Research in the last few years has indicated that many people simply can't fit in with the early to bed, early to rise convention/tyranny that many accept as "the way it's always been" (and it really is a fairly recent thing). I've always been more awake and alive between the hours of 9.30pm and 2.00am, even at CH, with more effective brain activity (ALL essays for which I gained top marks were written after midnight). At CH I'd be like a zombie until about 10am, and I still find myself the last man standing at late nights out or all night parties.
For an informative and erudite alternative to the modern work-obsessed treadmill that is modern life, and to free you from the guilt of getting up when you want to, I heartily recommend Tom Hodgkinson's books How To Be Idle and How To Be Free. Amusing, liberating, well reasearched, and hopefully revolutionary.

None of the birds from the mining community, David ? Coal Tits ?

Crippen wrote:Research in the last few years has indicated that many people simply can't fit in with the early to bed, early to rise convention/tyranny that many accept as "the way it's always been" (and it really is a fairly recent thing).

"Research" has proven a lot of things and often research has proven that things proven by research are incorrect. IMHO it is often glory seekers who are trying to get their 10 seconds of glory

Crippen wrote:I've always been more awake and alive between the hours of 9.30pm and 2.00am, even at CH, with more effective brain activity (ALL essays for which I gained top marks were written after midnight). At CH I'd be like a zombie until about 10am, and I still find myself the last man standing at late nights out or all night parties.

The answer to that is unsuitable for younger (ie under 55 years of age) eyes.

J.R. wrote:None of the birds from the mining community, David ? Coal Tits ?

Sure - Goldcrests - I even have a lump of gold ore from the local mine in the "museum". We are saved from certain nasty flying objects by the Pied Flycatchers, we are startled by Redstarts, we can't get much honey due to the hunger-allaying activities of bee-eaters and the King fishe(r)s in the river reduce the trout population. We got the A380 over at low altitude - that is until the kites appeared over the pool, the Kingfisher is overshadowed by the Fish Eagle (aka Osprey) and someone else did the risky foot measurements to confirm that the other family is of short-toed eagles. The Golden Eagles are not Golden and the Honey Buzzards are dark brown and I don't know how they taste.
Do you want me to go through the entire 90 species recognised in just 12 days last month? The Wallcreepers, for example, stay a little way up the road because our walls are not high enough so we didn't see any

Taken from Housey (1952 edition)

Daily Time-Table Michaelmas Term, 1952

Bell............ 6.55
Trades........ 7.15
Breakfast.... 7.25
Chapel........ 8.35


Trades 12.45
Dinner 1.00

Trades 5.50
Tea 6.00

1st Prep 7.35 (7.15 on half days)

Duty & Bed for Juniors 8.05 (8.15 on half days)
Bed for Seniors 9.00

Mon Tues Thurs. Fri

1st Period 8.55 - 9.35
2nd 9.35 - 10.15

Break & PT 10.15 - 10.55
milk 10.45

3rd Period 10.55 - 11.35
4th 11.35 - 12.15

Games 2.15

5th Period 4.30 - 5.10
6th 5.10 - 5.50

Wednesdays

1st Period 8.55 - 9.35
2nd 9.35 - 10.15
3rd Period 10.15 - 10.55

Break & PT 10.55 - 11.20
milk 11.00 (I think they have that wrong)

4th 11.20 - 12.00
5th 12.00 - 12.40

Saturday was as per weekdays except 15 minutes later for periods 1 & 2 and no PT

It was the same timetable in 1959 but somewhere before 1966 I think we dropped PT

I would imagine the timetable is pretty similar nowadays except for bedtime.

It's a known medical fact that different people have different 24 hour life clocks.

Some people function better in the early hours - Others in the twilight hours.

I'm definitely a twilight person. (No comments, perleeez, girls !)

Crippen wrote:Blimey, Why? What would you do at that time? Do you still do that now?

Well, from my squits to my deps, I lived at my parents' house on sight so normally I would get up and do flute practice or learn verbs or something...

I'd always be in breakfast for 7.15...

Great Plum wrote:

Crippen wrote:Blimey, Why? What would you do at that time? Do you still do that now?

Well, from my squits to my deps, I lived at my parents' house on sight so normally I would get up and do flute practice or learn verbs or something...

I'd always be in breakfast for 7.15...

Reminds me; when doing A levels we had to also do 2 periods a week of a language we hadn't done before. I didn't fancy German so persuaded my Junior Housemaster (ex professor at Seville University) to give me some Spanish instead (I did it at the back of German classes). I tried to learn 100 new words per day - mainly before and during breakfast trades (I was Trades Mon). Very successful at the O level oral despite the fact it was supposed to be for relaxation

There was always plenty to do at odd times - prep in the lav-ends after the official bedtime for example.

i literally had enough time to shower dry hair into a 'straight' (before hairstraightners-how i got it straight i have no idea) state and get to breakfast!