October 8, 2021

Here’s some free advice.

Never put what you think is a ridiculous idea, to June.

Because she will run with it. And boy does she run. Like Mo Farah.

So when she said, any ideas for our 14 and a half birthday Jude, and I said the only thing I can think of for 14 and a half is being back at school… well it’s my own fault then isn’t it.

From actual school timetable invitations (“oh did you print them off, we just had them online”  says half of Team Mustard, grrr), the penny sweets in the tuck shop, school milk, school dinner and actual lessons, it really was a school day to remember.

For those of you who were lucky/crazy/stupid enough to come along to the My Mustard 14 and a half birthday party, congratulations for being brave/crazy/stupid enough to join in the fun. For those of you who were unlucky/too sensible/too scared to come along, let me fill you in…

The day started promptly at 10am at the fantastic Old Town Hall in Hemel Hempstead and pupils were greeted by our Head Mistress June, Head Girl Kate and Head Boy Hugh, with a (slightly alcoholic) school milk or juice in a proper old style milk bottle and straw. They then joined their team with their relevant school tie, obviously Google coloured either red Jude, green Natalie, yellow Georgia or blue Max and found their party bag with school items for the day.

After the Head Mistress’s assembly talk and a rousing rendition of All Things Bright and Beautiful, the first lesson was Geography. Each team had a set of tasks to carry out in the Old Town High Street and prove with photographic evidence. Easy things like find someone in uniform (where’s a traffic warden when you need one?),  find an animal (well done red team for spotting the random woman walking along the street with her parrot on her shoulder and I’m not joking). All back to the classroom for the awarding of points as My Mustard was donating £1 for each point won during the day to charity.

Next lesson was History, which took the form of a quiz devised by our very own quizzer Hugh, covering the history of the year My Mustard was born in 2007, the number 14 and 1982, when June was 14. Lots of fun, strictly no Googling and filled with Hugh’s words “some of these questions are really hard”, we quizzed our hearts out and the red team came out winners (ahem, thank you). 

THEN THE BAR OPENED and school dinner was served by the fabulous Miss Sally Ilsley. White bread ham, jam, tuna sandwiches, crisps, sausage rolls, penguin and club bars, school cake and jam roly poly. What a treat.

Afternoon lessons consisted of Art and Science. Art brought our inner artists out, cutting, sticking and gluing after a few wines, well there were some interesting creations to say the least. Science involved corn flour, water, food colouring which only comes off your hands a week later, toilet roll and a leaf blower. I’ll leave the rest to your imagination.

For those still hanging on in there, the after school club was held at The Olde Kings Arms, to continue the fun/drinking/cake eating and later on in the evening, tapas was served.

What an amazing way to spend your 14 and a half birthday, thanks to everyone who came along for part/all of the day, you really helped make it one to remember. Your very generous tuck shop donations and team points from the day helped raise a whopping £525 for DENS, our chosen charity who help people in Dacorum who are facing homelessness, poverty and social exclusion. This will really make such a difference, thank you.

So here’s to our next birthday, and I for one am keeping my ideas well and truly to myself.