Gettung ready

No, not for Christmas.  Getting ready to start planting seeds! First delivery of onion seeds, spring broad beans, etc and the hot mat brought in and set up in the conservatory. 

All ready for getting going when we return from our holiday. Handed all the Xmas arrangements to sons - Mother's revenge. At last.

To relax today we went down to the River Ouse and took our boat out for a short trip to the River Wisey. Dead flat and a bit misty on the fields and very very quiet.  Then we went for a nice hot snack at the Windmill Cafe in Denver village.

I hope you all have a nice Christmas break.

Next bit of kitchen

Kitchen was disrupted again for 2 days while the husband fitted the kitchen hood. Luckily I was able to switch the menu to meals that needed little prep or cooking - risotto which is all cooked in one pan and fresh fish fillets quickly rolled in golden breadcrumbs with a few chips.

More trailing wires and plug swapping until the electrician comes in the New Year.

The water meter and the bill

The water meter was fitted under the sink at the beginning of the week so the husband has been monitoring what makes it tick round most. As there are no cupboard doors you can hear it clearly whenever water is used.  I have not helped his calculations by my antics with the dishwasher.

I can only hope that it will work out cheaper than the non-meter bill of £550 per year. Going through the bills I see that the water costs have increased by £42 over the last 3 years.  The water supplier says on a meter we should pay around £350 a year.  The difference has been ear-marked to install 2 more water butts for garden watering.

They sent a letter on Wednesday saying they had changed our monthly direct debit to £30 per month for the next 2 months.  On Thursday they sent a statement saying because we had changed mid year we were £58.92 in credit with them.  We expected another letter on Friday to explain one cancelled the other - nothing happened.  Suppose we will have to chase, and chase, and chase for clarity.  Hate direct debits it feels like you have no control of your bank account.

Apologies for keep changing the layout - I am looking for something exciting for the new year.

Branded product mistakes

Frugal in Essex/Retireewannabe's post today on eschewing branded products especially household ones made me smile today.  I have had a torrid week having brought a well known brand which simple did nothing it was supposed to.
Regular readers will know a few weeks ago I got a dishwasher. After using up the free tablets, I purchased a branded set of products as indicated (think race and the word for the end of a race - to avoid libel).  Imagine the horror of opening the machine to find everything inside covered in a gritty, grey marks.

Checked everything, salt, settings, rinse.  Tried to rewash several times - cutlery, saucepans, mixing bowl, plates and cups).  Took it all out and tried to wash it by hand.  Everything cloudy, gritty, scoured.  Ran it empty. Scrubbed the drain and filter. Panic.

Husband double checked everything and suggested this and that. I checked the internet and product reviews and found others had the same problem but no solutions.

Tried the product website - the customer contact help form did not work but there was a link to Facebook. Tried that and sent a message. What do I do? Is the machine ruined?

Their reply was to wash everything with vinegar to remove the gritty residue. I did this for about an hour today (90% success) and then had to go out in the freezing rain for fresh air. It smelt like an explosion in Nellie Pledge's pickling factory (you have to be a certain age to remember Nearest and Dearest).  Hardly a Christmas smell.

I also purchased a cleaner and ran the machine on a hot wash as the baskets felt gritty. Purchased eco brand tablets and tried another wash - SUCCESS!  I think I wasted loads of water and electricity and washing up liquid, and half a bottle of vinegar, trying to resolve this.

The manufacturer is offering me coupons for their products - I am not sure I can accept those as I have had no explanation as to why the product did not work. I would I trust them anyway?  I have no reassurances the product had not caused long term damage. My nerves are shredded!! I am still emailing them to resolve my issues!!!

I shall be double checking reviews of products before trusting main brands again.

Nutty supermarket pricing

All the media especially TV have these supersavy spending advice things but how are mere mortals suppose to cope?
I was doing my on line shop the other day and came across these anomalies.  These were not even offers - just the supermarket "normal" pricing strategies.

Cornflakes
Buy 1 kg and pay 30p a gram
Buy 790g and pay 26p a gram - putting up with Santa on the packet?

Stock gel packs
Buy in packs of 8 for £5
Buy in packs of 4 at £1 each and you pay £2 for 8!

Lasagna ready sauces
Buy 2 individual sauces at £1 each
Buy the same 2 sauces wrapped together and you pay £3.

How on earth do you cope when standing in the supermarket with a muttering husband, screaming kids and people shoving you if you pause to think?  I shop on line to avoid a 12 mile round trip so have time to check and avoid.

I do think consumer protection people should be working harder to resolve some of these weird pricing practices - it really feels like the supermarkets are deliberating trying to cheat the shopper.

Not a great Friday

Its cold, but dry and sunny so I should not have had a rotten day compared to all those suffering in the snow. But the deep back filling done on 31 October had popped off.  I have suffered through terrible dentists in the 1960/70s  and absolutely hate the whole process. Not even the young Italian dentist who is very gentle can make up for having to go again so soon.

Make it worse.  After a run of very poor cake making (read inedible) I finally got my Bake-off mojo back  and there was a lovely carrot cake languishing in the tin as my tooth went ouch with every sweet thing.

I use the Mary Berry recipe from BBC Good Food and I can recommend this.  I have learnt the first step of combing the oil, sugar and eggs really well until it thickens is essential.  Here cream filling/topping with this  recipe is lovely.

Just say NO!

Just say NO was a anti drugs slogan way back when. This week I have been screaming it at the TV. There was a report saying people could not handle the Christmas debt and got up to £2000 on credit cards.

For goodness sake people. Say NO. You don't need ALL the trimmings. Be sensible.


If you can't afford presents, explain to that wider circle of relatives and friends that you love them any way and when your "ship comes in" they will be invited on board. Concentrate on the kids.

If you can't afford the office/works lunch out, bake a cake one afternoon or  offer to make coffee when they eventually stagger back.

Debt is not worth the 5 mins pleasure on one day of the year. 

Country house weekend

Just returned from a super weekend on the Isle of Wight celebrating our friends 70th birthday. Stayed at Kingston Manor which was "faded" but grand and baronial.

And had several large meals with the large family who decorated the main dining room beautifully to sit 14 people and produced large meals between us all.

Visited Steephill cove, Ventnor and Bembridge by car

  but also got in a long walk across the downs (mostly to wear off the food!) when the sun came out for a while.

Bit of a trek home, especially the underground where there were far too many stairs for me when you have bags, but we were so glad to see our neighbour at the local railway station for the last few miles in the warmth of his car.

Oh dear. Feeling very flat today after so much fun and company.