Monday 28 March 2016

Nearing recovery

After 2 weeks of viral flu, 6 packets of paracetamol, 2 bottles of cough medicine and 3 boxes of tissues my husband suggested a change of scene. He went round the garden centre I went for the best hot choc recovery food ever for £2.85.


Hope to be back to fitting fit in a few more days; just need one decent nights unbroken sleep!



Wednesday 23 March 2016

Fuel poverty

Still under the weather.  If only I could stop coughing long enough to sleep.

While sofa surfing yesterday I caught up with the Panorama special on Poverty and Fuel. Hated the production values (perhaps I was not in the mood for the patronising tone) but I learnt three things (new to me).
1. If you buy £10 for a prepaid meter, they take £3 off the value immediately to your debt and the remaining £7 buys fuel at the top unit price.  Can't choose to pay the debt as well as can't choose value. How does that help?
2. If you get in so much trouble with an Energy company they WANT you to have a prepaid meter they can go to court, get a warrant, break into your house, supported by police, and put it in. They do this in batches of a hundred warrants at a time with no real checks on vulnerable or disabled status. Not fair.
3. The committee/working party on Fuel poverty is made up of energy company big wigs, any voluntary consumer representative or academic expert on poverty has been excluded.

Its been many years where fuel poverty stared us in the face that badly (and it has in the past), but I am acutely aware as my children struggle with problems. One of the reasons we got a wood burner and LPS stove was that we could get off the energy grid if things went drastically wrong for us on a state pension.

A truly tragic situation for people in the UK.

My fond memories of Brussels, flying in and out of that airport, using the metro and enjoying the beautiful city and the wonderful friends I made in Belgium.  Sad.

OK. trying to be more cheerful; I am going to try Honey for the cough, make a quick soup and retire back to the sofa to watch "Follow the Money" on BBC 4 where this cheating Energy company boss is likely to get his money grabbing investments exposed.   Husband is gamely keeping out of way (500 yards away) planting parsnip and carrot seeds in the veg garden.


Sunday 20 March 2016

OMG

This picture sums it up!

Friday 18 March 2016

Back from big Smoke but sick

Well that was fun.

Went to help son in London who was not doing well after surgery, Grandson had come home from Nursery with virus and we did 4 visits to urgent NHS care in 4 days (or not care, but too tired to relate the horror).

Now I have it.
So no blogging until
a. I stop coughing,
b. I can see straight,
 c. I actual get to sit up for more than 10 mins before collapsing back in bed.

JJ is now officially my least favourite sweetie grandson ......


Back to bed so husband can make more tea and spray disinfectant around.


Saturday 12 March 2016

AWOL in London

Abandoning frugality (and the husband) to spend weekend in London. Youngest son not recovering from minor surgery at all well and has sent out desperate cry "I want my Mum!" Bless.

No blogging for next week. Back soonest.


Thursday 10 March 2016

26mm of rain

Thank goodness Wednesday is over. Bleak day with 26mm of rain filling every hollow and ditch. Even the dyke at the end of the field is full - first time in the 18 months since we moved here.
And today is a beautiful spring day with that lovely smell to the air!

It was lovely to be able to walk about, in wellies as the grass squelched. We need two or three days for the ground to dry out now.  But I did plant more seeds - some early courgettes, dwarf beans and sweetcorn. Last year's seeds, so I have time to re do seeds if these turn out to be duds.

Groceries came yesterday from on line shop just to top up the fridge and stores, but I am avoiding the expensive shop at the butchers till end of week by tackling all those little last bits of meat in the bottom freezer drawer. So easy to ignore them and promise to use up another week and go and get some more tasty and desirable food!  So for lunch today we had salad and grilled mackerel fillets.  Its the last 4oz of mince for tea tonight.

I was bored yesterday, then I found a nice project in my Sew magazine (last one, I had cancelled the subscription) which I am adapting. I can't afford Cath Kidson canvas - but I have some cheeky monkey cotton print which I will quilt into an equally nice toy storage  bag for one of the younger grandchildren!


I cancelled the magazine as I was a bit fed up with the free patterns being almost the same every month and the toy patterns not quite being good enough to make. Plus it backs the Sewing Bee ex contestants all the time and needs some new writers.  I am not sure I am going to enjoy this years TV crafting highlight (for me) now that May Martin has left. The new lady has a lot to live up to!  Also the facebook updates are so frequent that it virtually gives you all the articles - really don't get that as a marketing strategy for making you buy the magazine!

I found Craft Beggars in the House way down the TV listing on the Community channel last week and despite its low budget some interesting things have come up. Least they have given up the competition format they had last year and gone for a straight interest show!


Welcome to new followers! Delighted to have you.



Wednesday 9 March 2016

Recycled bricks

So wet here today there are puddles in every depression in the lawn!

My husband has recently made this path from some bricks saved from the garage demolition.

The area to the right was originally a sand ménage (previous owners), so he dug down through the thin grass area to get some sand to lay the bricks on. We searched around and found a couple of slabs to put at each end and one day some decorative gravel will cover the ballast bits and join the path to the concrete areas.

No cost path achieved!  House bricks are not really robust as surfaces and this will probably wear down but by that time our proposed 10 year active retirement will be up and we will trundle off to our inactive final days.

Depressed? - yes!  Hate long rainy days and have finished all the interesting library books and my sewing projects.

Monday 7 March 2016

Retro fit conservatory

Despite the slight pasting of snow the men came to replace the conservatory windows and alter the door.
From this:
To this:
We have lost the silly inset doorway which made you do a jig every time you came in and out trying to open one door, slide round, close it and open the other one.

We watch a lot of house improvement programmes (and done a lot in the past, but this time in retirement we went for simple and sturdy. This house will never be "pretty" so there is an upper limit to its value and doing anything fancy will never be worthwhile.

Still got to sort the ceiling and floors adding more insulating.  I do like tidy workmen, and these were very, very good not just taking all the debris, but sweeping and taking care not to harm anything.

Will be interesting to see if it helps with heating bills as it was a cold damp area before.  I was a bit tempted this afternoon in the one glimpse of blue sky to move my sewing and craft activities in!

Just listening to the new health campaign to get healthy in middle age - I think the best advert today has been Dave whatsit, the Hairy Biker Chef on Breakfast TV. He really looks well now and his transformation over last 2 years (?) is truly a remarkable.

Weather forecast says warmer here at end of week - cant wait.  Can't say I saw the aurea bora thing last night, but when I did look out about 11 pm the sky/clouds had a funny colour over The Wash, was that it?


Sunday 6 March 2016

Bright green caterpillars in March?

Anyone else having these little visitors?




Polyphemus moth caterpillar

 or is it
Caterpillars of the Cabbage Looper

2441 Siver Y (Autographa gamma) cabbage looper moth caterpillar © Steve Ogden
The caterpillars of the Silver Y, Autographa gamma and the similar Ni moth, Trichoplusia ni, cause extensive damage to vegetable crops worldwide

Everyday we find two or three in different parts of the garden, on over wintering veg or weeds, even in the compost bin. It has been -4C some times this last week so they are not getting killed off by the cold.

I have not been able to identify them, as my main concern is to get rid of them.  I've tried flicking them towards the blackbirds, but at this rate our blackbirds will be bigger than eagles!

Grr... always something wants to have your fruit and veg before you......

Meanwhile all the very tender seeds in the conservatory on the heated propagating mat have to be moved after tea as the men are coming to retrofit the conservatory window.  They are promising to do it without distrubing the roof or the half walls - I await with baited breath!

I have just taken up most of the old lino and found it was laid, extremely neatly, on brown paper potato sacks! I've seen newspaper under carpets but never paper potato sacks. They must have been there for some time as they had disintegrated in the damp areas and were very brittle where dry. Indentations of the uneven concrete floor  were stamped well into them where you stepped in and out of the doors. Even though I had gloves on within a short time my  dermatitis,  which reacts badly to concrete dust, flared up on my hands. I shall be glad to have this area renovated and cleaned.

Welcome to new follower - will do some exploring on your blog later!









Friday 4 March 2016

Price Comparisons on shopping

As my back is sore today I thought I would do some shopping research before compiling next week's fortnightly grocery shopping list. I don't know how we cope in this country with our retailers!

Cornflakes. (we are on  wheat avoidance at breakfast at the moment for dietary reasons)
It comes in packets.
If you are stickler for your Kellogg brand then the only question should be what size do I need.

Sainsbury's offer
250g packet at 56p per 100g
500g                39p
750g                27p
1kg                  26p

So at recommended 30g servings the 1000g packet will last 33 days - or say 2 weeks for 2 of us?  Or  a month if breakfast is varied with porridge and eggs sometimes.

Could I get a better price? By comparing all 4 sizes in 2 more supermarkets I could get
20p per 100g if buy 2 packets of 750g at Morrisons on offer  (1.5kg too much for a month)
23p per 100g if I buy 500g packets at Tesco  (not enough for a month, I would have to buy 2 packets or another packet next shop)  But both these options mean I have to deal with twice as much packaging too! But their offers don't reflect they had to pay for two lots of packaging either.

Who would be the most expensive supermarket for the single big packet?  ASDA
30p per 100g in the biggest size

Then there were the peas. 
They come in packets and you stuff them in the freezer and dip in over weeks and weeks.  I leave a container in the bag so I can measure out the servings otherwise the plate looks like there is a pea invasion.
If you are a stickler for your Birds Eye you could be tempted by Sainsbury's offer.
400g of £1
but the normal price on 800g is £2 (the same £2.50 per kg? Where is the offer?)
The only real reduction is if you buy 1.58kg and the price goes down to £2.09 per kilogram.
So I compared ASDA
for 400g bags you are paying £3.63 per kg and for 1.37kg you are paying £2.19kg

Do supermarkets think we are ALL compulsive brainless basket fillers? Or do they just price by random choice?

My head has now exploded and I think I will wander off for more tea and more pain killers.

Disclaimer
Other supermarkets and their weird pricing policies are available on other web sites. 


Wednesday 2 March 2016

February Budget

Well frugal Feb turned into a disaster.

 I have just totalled up the spending for the month on FOOD alone which I have been tracking very carefully.  £207.53 was spent and I thought I was being good. Somehow gone from £5.28 per day to £7.16 per day.

Rushed back to the kitchen for a review.  There is enough meat and fish in the freezer for 20 meals. There is enough flour, rice, pasta, tins and sugars etc in the cupboard for at least the first 2 weeks of March. But the "fridge items" are practical zero.  So what I am I going to do? as we know the man is coming to mend the conservatory windows on Monday and it will empty our bank accounts right out. Though we are well within our overall annual budget of £3000 total for food in 2016 next month will be a squeeze.

Setting off to the kitchen to see what I desperately need for the beginning of the month until the pensions come in. A strict meal plan may be needed here!

Today Weds
Lunch: beans on toast and last of lemon cake made on Friday.
Dinner -
Leek and potato soup (leeks from garden) with enough left for lunch Thursday.
Cauli cheese and sausages (from freezer). Brought an enormous cauli on the market yesterday for £1. Last of parsnips from garden to fill out plates if needed.
I may make some sort of scones or cake as there are definitely no biscuits or nibbles to have left!
Rice pudding

Tomorrow Thur
Porridge for breakfast
Lunch - soup. Spinach and pea risotto - spinach from poly-tunnel and rice etc from store.
Dinner
Slow cooked casserole with beans to fill it out with the last of the swede from the veg patch. The meat is in freezer and casserole will last 2 or 3 days.  Semolina if needed for pud.

Friday:  I will pay out for a sack of potatoes and a tray of eggs and a large milk: total £11 which should keep us going till the following week when I can think about a supermarket delivery and using some points to reduce the costs.









Tuesday 1 March 2016

Frugal with clothes

Welcome to new follower.  When I can get to grips with back end of blogger I will set up some more links. I struggle with the techniques needed and can't remember what I did before!  Also Blogger does not let me more from one blog to another easily after the first 2 or 3. Just does not load some sites. Or is it the laptop?

I have been thinking a lot about the cost and life of clothes. In my last year of working I refused to buy any more "office" clothes and squeezed the last life out of many a suit.  Since I retired I have not had to dress up more than 6 times in 18 months and I have worn a leisure clothes that have been around for years (having been purchased for holidays) and things I have made.

This last week stuff worn over two winters has suddenly lost all their body. It appears modern fabrics that have been washed twice a week and worn hard don't have much of a long life. The cotton ones are destined to be cleaning rags. This week the council were advertising the recycling of all clothes "all your own worn things"  and I thought there were some of mine that could go there for a very, very final life.

I do buy some things in Charity shops and was lucky to find a very good quality cardigan the other day. My stand by best cardigan for all occasions can now become a gardening one. Strangely for such a good brand this red one has the most boring buttons in the world. I would like to replace them but I suspect  I would pay more than the £3 the cardi cost me!

I have made another cardigan out of an old Christmas
jumper. I has done 3 Xmas seriive so I think a new life is due. I was inspired by reading a sewing blog for this idea. I cut the reindeer out of the front and may use it in a craft project.
I then cut the jumper straight up the front and found the curved shirt ends of an old silk shirt to make an insert and bind the front.
I remember buying that shirt in 1978 in an unexpected flush of money one day. I loved it and kept it for years and years.  Now it is part of a cosy cardi for the spring evenings. 

I found this old sports shirt of my husbands in the "re make" bag the other day.

The collar had got a twist in it and my husband had gone off these shirts. So I remade it for me!
When I cut the collar along the seam it turned into what they use to call a "grandad vest" look. I took off the sleeves and introduced some small darts and then remade the sleeves as cap sleeves and shortened the should seam length. So with these things in hand some of the very, very worn stuff can happily set off to the recycling. Cost of sorting the wardrobe for a few more months? £3 and a couple of afternoons with the sewing machine.




Spring preparations for veg growing

I noted on last year's veg list that we started planting seeds outside on the 6th March. It is considerably colder in the last week so I doubt that we will be that early this year.  the cold nights have cost us £3 extra on electricity for the greenhouse heater (thanks to SMART meter we can keep an eye on this easily).

Nevertheless, preparation is underway! The weekend was pretty noisy with various rotovators and ride on mowers going in our field and the two either side.  Despite the slightly damp soil the veg garden is now roughly turned over and the weeds are being raked out. Bit more work to do as it dries out.


The greenhouse is now full of developing seedlings. The propagating mat in the conservatory is turning over new trays quite quickly as the day light lengthens and the sun is really warm; goes up to 20C in there on a good day.


Really pleased to see gardening is coming back to the TV. Gardeners World this week and Beechgrove next month.  We are desperate for good entertainment - run out of library books so as it is going to rain I will shoot off to get some more.