Simplifying Life - Mark II

ceridwen

Thanks Aril - no need to apologise for owt - we loves ya gal here on this thread.

Re the small person - well if macrame makes a comeback - he'll be ahead of the game:D Sympathies that you are embroiled in this Icelandic Banks fiasco - it sounds like yer "ordinary person in the street" will be okay I think. Its the "bigger fish" - like our Councils - that are worryingly exposed here. I dont think they will be seeing our money "coming back home" for some time - I did note the bit in the Sunday Mail about grabbing any Icelandic assets that are on our soil - hopefully that will be enough to cover what we are owed.

Basically Iceland is bankrupt - and that is worrying to see a normal modern country in that position (well - any country obviously - but it feels more "threatening" when its a country similar to ourselves - as it makes us feel more vulnerable as a country).

As you say - I guess its get on and make cakes (mine's a virtual apple cake please:D ) or get out into countryside for a walk. 'Twas ever thus throughout human history - a stream of "alarums and excursions" going on around the head of "yer ordinary person in the street". There is nothing new under the sun as the phrase goes - its just the shape and form it comes in in this society in this century that differs (but well - we know that we've been through all sorts before now - if we could remember exactly what we've been through in previous centuries I expect our hair would not just go grey - it would fall out with shock - as I know you and I both believe in reincarnation.) So - personally - I tell myself "I've almost certainly had worse".

mary43

Hello all !

Had a bit of a hectic time with our youngest lad of late........fair wore me out !
MIL hopefully will be home this weekend and has asked that OH doesn't go and see her till she's home as he'll be more use - cook and bottle washer he says...............lol So, is all goes to plan he'll be away and so will our young lad..........I've asked for respite so I can have a bit of 'me' time and catch up with things while OH is away. Older lad is staying here -he's working all day so I can plan my time around what I actually want to do for myself instead of other people. Oh what bliss that will be !
Big Bruv is back on 16th Oct for 3 weeks - I'll keep out of his way I think due to last visit coinciding with his and almost major fall out - yet again ! Best avoided I think.
Bit worrying all this money situation at the moment - makes me almost relieved we haven't got any..........well to speak of anyway. I do feel for those who are affected though. I don't fully understand it all really - numbers/maths never been my strongest point - I just know that everything seems to be costing more !
Aril - lovely little tale that and a super quote as always. Your little sounds an absolute delight...................lol

Take care all x

Aril

A short post from me for a change[:D] A simple and cheap thing I'm going to be doing this coming weekend [weather permitting] is to go up to the woods with my friend and have a crack at identifying some types of fungi. We won't be picking or eating but the sheer number of colours and forms out there give me great pleasure.
Aril

ceridwen

An article very appropriate to this thread methinks on "Money versus kindness".

The direct link doesnt work for some reason - so access it by clicking on:

http://timesonline.typepad.com/environment

and then look for "Latest posts" column and click on "money versus kindness". Its the 2 October article by John-Paul Flintoff

(NB: I saw a trackback thing at end of this article and tried for a direct link that way and didnt understand the message that came up - so if anyone does and can put a direct link - 'twould be gratefully accepted please.)

ceridwen

...and whilst I'm googling around looking to see whats happening out theres in the World - I've seen one or two references going round recently to the concept of a Living Wage hourly rate. Not at all in opposition to my previous post - as I believe it is profoundly "unkind" of any employers who can afford to pay a Living Wage to pay less than this. I couldnt personally live a "luxury" lifestyle whilst any employees I had were being paid less than a Living Wage - I would not want to think of myself as being an unkind person.

http://www.universallivingwage.org/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Living_wage

It is an idea which originated in America it seems - but there is a London living wage group - which has established that a London Living Wage is £7.45 per hour. I was unable to work out what a living wage is deemed to be for my area yet - as, at the moment, the only calculator I could find online is an American one - but I guess that a British one will come.

We can see that one of the things that has been happening recently is for employers to impose "paycuts" by giving cost-of-living rises that bear little relation to inflation or maybe not even giving the annual cost-of-living rise at all - and I have the horrible feeling that this is a trend that is likely to accelerate.

Charis

ceridwen wrote: »

An article very appropriate to this thread methinks on "Money versus kindness".

The direct link doesnt work for some reason - so access it by clicking on:

(NB: I saw a trackback thing at end of this article and tried for a direct link that way and didnt understand the message that came up - so if anyone does and can put a direct link - 'twould be gratefully accepted please.)

http://timesonline.typepad.com/environment/2008/10/money-versus-ki.html

There ye go
It takes a few seconds to load once the header comes up.

mary43

Thanks for the link - I'll have a look at that later.

Just got back from the doctors with a box of antibiotics that'll hopefully shift the cough our youngest lad decided to share with me. Being younger he never warranted anything except a quick check over by the doctor who pronounced him fit apart from general cold/cough which he promptly passed to me..............'thankyou' says I too myself and I hack away down to the surgery...................am now waiting for miraculous recovery.................lol

OH is off to see his mum on Sunday She's home from hospital and managing on a pair of sticks but can't do much so he's spending a few days there to help out a bit. He's not looking forward to it to be honest...........old folk being as old folk can be (my mum much the same) I get the feeling she'll be wearing her 'bossy' hat....................I know my Mum did and suddenly I felt I was about seven years old........................lol

Mind you some of the things I'm concocting for christmas are somewhat 'childlike'................not meant to be, just how they seem to turn out.................lol:rotfl:

Charis

Rhonda, at Down to Earth has a link on her site to a new blog, Simple Green Frugal Co-op. http://simple-green-frugal-co-op.blogspot.com/

It's a compilation of favourite posts by a number of established frugal bloggers, including Rhonda, and an introduction to some I had never heard of. Well worth a look. You may be on there longer than you anticipate, following all the articles to the blog of their source.

mary43

Hello all !
Well OH has just come back from seeing his Mum. She went home from hospital last Wednesday so he went on Sunday for a few days. She's on two sticks but seems to be managing ok. A carer calls in the morning to make sure she gets herself up and sorts her breakfast out etc. I suppose a lot of people after an operation like that would take to staying in bed if things became an effort to do. Not MIL..........she likes to be independant as much as possible.
Seems the whole accident was the result of workmen leaving a lot of debris outside the kitchen door after she had a new boiler fitted. She tripped over it hence to hip break ! BIL is trying to sort out some sort of compensation from the company. He took photographs of the mess outside - there's also work to be finished off inside, plastering etc. ! As a result of the hip op. MIL needs a walk in shower as she can't get her leg over the bath so that has to be sorted out too. Honestly if only some workers took more care, particularly when its elderly people concerned. Not saying they're all like that, I;m sure they're not but all this need never have happened and if we're honest, we could have lost MIL when her heart played up after the hip op.

Apart from that and me having a stinking cough that's lingering longer than I'd like (think another lot of antibiotics might be needed at this rate!) I've been ploughing through christmas stuff and can see the end in sight !!
All I have to do now are little finishing off touches to my little 'creations' and wrap them all up. Oh it''ll be bliss !!

Take care all:o

ceridwen

Hi Mary

Hope you have some joy with the workmen - that was careless of them leaving that debris around - but sadly all too typical.

Sounds like you've got yourself sorted for Christmas pretty much - errr...I havent even thought of it yet...though, in my case, there isnt much to it and the whole "kit and caboodle" comes in under £100. But then - I'm not a "Christmas" sorta person - I can take it or leave it - its just handy to have a couple of days off work:D