FRUGAL LIVING CHALLENGE part 3, July - Dec 2010

mama67

Hi frugal, I know I'm a bit late replying but I do an apple and blackberry jam that leaves the seeds in; not so intense on the seeds iyswim.

I have bottled up my second lot of rhubarb fizz and now have a half batch of elderberry brewing, birds beat me to the berries:mad:.

Dh also came back from a walk on the marshes on Sunday with a bag full of samphire so that was dealt with and pickled yesterday.

I also think i read on here somewhere yesterday that you can make a version of cyder vinegar which I believe is used for chickens by putting spent apple cores and peelings into a large jar and covering with water then leave for a few weeks.

slowlyfading

I am so tired today - I think settling into a new school is going to take a while yet.

Another NSD though, so all is good

grandma247

Hi all. I have been reading but not posting for a while now. Everyone seems to be doing ok and hanging in there.
Life has been hectic with ds1 and ddil moving in with us. They will possibly be moving out again at the end of the month if they get the house to rent they are after.
I am still hard at work keeping expenses down but not done any paperwork yet.I keep all reciepts so should be easy when I get time.
I have been picking blackberries etc.and freezing them for now.Also been making different relishes and sauces (still at it). next will be jams and then canning fruit,veg and meats. I am trying to get even more stocks in so I can heat the house if the fuel prices rise and we get a bad winter again.

Kiwisaver_2

Hi all, just checking in, in case anyone was worried about me. :rotfl:

If you haven't heard much in the UK media we had an earthquake in Christchurch during the early hours of Saturday morning of the same magnitude as the one in Haiti earlier this year. We're just so lucky that it was at this time and not during a busy working day in the City or the scenes would have been horrific.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11224081

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/building-construction/news/article.cfm?c_id=24&objectid=10671904

I have no idea how this is being reported, if at all internationally, but it's been the most unsettling experience and so hard to comprehend and express what it feels like being so close to a State of Emergency. We are a long way from Christchurch, however the effect on this country and everyone is just enormous and so many sad tales of so much loss and seemingly no let-up on the aftershocks that are causing further damage and distress. If you are that way inclined please say a prayer to get these people off of this terrifying roller-coaster ride, they've had enough now and want to get off.

It's certainly given me more food for thought on how ill-prepared we would be if there were to be some similar natural disaster; with continued loss of power for several days, no water and sewage systems and it's something I aim to address in whatever way I can over the next few days. Those 'Off-Grid' events mentioned earlier could be most useful.

Some while ago I did have a half-hearted attempt at putting together a survival kit of essentials, matches, candles, torches, batteries etc and now my intention to invest some of my spare grocery budget to expand upon this significantly. I'm thinking first aid supplies, basic medication, antiseptic, bottled water and anything else I can think of.

Anyway all thoughts of living frugally will be abandoned briefly whilst I compile a list of things that might save my life, enable us to help others who may be in need or to cope for an extended period without any power. Any suggestions and ideas are most welcome!!

First thing on my list is one or two of those solar camping showers. This of course requires that one has some sun to heat or water to waste on a shower. But I'm working on the premise of 'You never know.......'.

NualaBuala

Hi folks :wave:

Glad you're ok Kiwi, I heard about the earthquake but didn't know how bad it was! It must be terrifying to be there in the thick of it. I know it's not the same thing, but you might find the Preparing for Winter thread handy as people mention putting various kits together - emergency boxes for if they can't leave the house for a good while and ways of having heat and cooking food.

Jayne, I love your garden - especially the chimney pot, I have a thing about them. You've done so much with the space you've got!:T And the Off The Grid looks great too - at first I thought they were pics of your garden! BTW - my problem trying to minimialist is that I too hate throwing stuff away and think it might come in handy. Sometimes stuff DOES come in useful - but I hate clutter so I think I will have to ruthlessly freecycle it. Hope your DS settles in, it can take time I guess.

Hey Erme, hope you are getting some sleep these days. The hoover was a great find. Are you going to keep it or maybe sell it? That was lovely having a chat with the girl on the bus - what's lovely is that it probably helped her a lot too.

Great to hear everything's going well Frugaldom!:T And glad you don't mind folks like me tagging along for the ride in as frugal a manner as we can. I just remembered .... was it you (it may not have been, my memory is rubbish these days) whose aim was to have animals earn their keep? Just wondering what tasks your wee lop eared bunny is charged with? Apart from being ridiculously cute! Good luck with the male chicks, wish everyone was as compassionate towards animals as you. BTW, I asked the lady who supplies eggs at the market I go to about her hens - she said she has about 500 outdoors on 2.5 acres. I have no concept of space - does that sound enough to you?

Hi to everyone else, readers and posters alike. Hope everyone is ok.

I'm off out for a walk with my sister - hope we miss the showers, we have just had a downpour and there are set to be more. I am bringing a flask and some sandwiches and fruit. And something to carry blackberries in just in case we find any - they weren't ripe last time I went.

Hugs,
N x

grandma247

Kiwisaver I am glad that you are all ok. I thought of you when I heard the first news that morning. How far away from it are you?
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FoodStorageTheBasicsandBeyond/
This group has a lot of emergency info and a lot of the people are very knowledgable about preparing for disasters as they live with them all the time.

JayneC

Kiwi - I hadn't heard anything about it (don't watch TV or read newspapers so am a bit rubbish at keeping up with world events!). Glad you're ok and it wasn't as bad as it could've been. It's really scary to realise just how vulnerable we all are really isn't it? You take care x

Nuala - thanks for your comments about my garden, the chimney pot came of my roof (think the roofer was a bit miffed when I said I wanted to keep them, he had plans to re-use them!). I have ambitions taht my 'other' garden will eventually look like the off grid permaculture garden, but it's going to be a very long job.

SF - Are you ok? Sounds like you're a bit down. Hope you feel better soon.

DS seems to be settling more at school. It's actually 2 schools that have joined together as a'federation' and this year all the new starters have gone into one school but spend one day a week at the other school where they have more 'creative' workspaces!! Anyway they are literally 500 yards apart and he told me taht they go ON THE BUS!!!! between sites, couldn't believe it. I've got a good mind to ring up school and give them a blasting - can't beleive the absolute waste of resources, the world has definately gone mad!

Have got The Moneyless Man book and am finding it really interesting, definately recommended. Even if you don't want to be moneyless it gives lots of info on cheaper living and plenty of food for thought about the choices we make both as individuals and as a society.

Anyway must go - have got to do some work (boo:()have a presentation tomorrow and haven't finished it yet. I have to give a talk to the County Council members corporate parenting group about accommodation provision for Care Leavers - which is pants and I think I'm going to tell them that. Might get the sack, so advice about moneyless living will come in useful;)

Kiwisaver_2

grandma247 wrote: »

Kiwisaver I am glad that you are all ok. I thought of you when I heard the first news that morning. How far away from it are you?
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FoodStorageTheBasicsandBeyond/
This group has a lot of emergency info and a lot of the people are very knowledgable about preparing for disasters as they live with them all the time.

Thanks Grandma, I'll have a read of that, we are probably similar distance as London is to Scotland but still too close to home for my liking. It seems to be never ending with more continued violent shakes being triggered off all over the place and today in some places closer to us. We're not in a known high risk area (neither was Christchurch) and I have no scientific clue how these things work, but it's like always when Mother Nature gets angry, the initial disturbance filters out in waves with knock on effects elsewhere.

Blairweech

Hello everyone :wave:

Kiwi, I'm so glad to hear you and your family are safe. We did get a brief mention of the earthquake on the news when it happened but nothing since!

Everything is going as always here, not much has been happening. Regards uni, I applied for catered halls on campus but because of my Dads refusal to discuss it, my application was put in pretty late so I am now in self-catered halls half an hour away from uni :mad: Although, my accomodation officer has STILL not sent my contract yet - 3 weeks until I start and technically I don't have a place to live yet. May not be a bad thing being in s/c but I know what I am like and I will always choose spending an hour making dinner instead of studying. Will have to be VERY strict with myself.

Anyway, other than that am being very frugal. My current spend at the start of September was £4207.27. So, currently £207.27 over my original budget of 4k, but considering it includes everything and its now September I'm pleased :T Could have been less but have been trying to pay my parents a bit of rent while I'm here. My spreadsheet is so revealing - I have spent almost £500 on eating out already this year :eek: and the car costs are just astronomical. Speaking of the car, have been trying to sort my insurance out, went through gocompare for the best quote which says it includes personal accident cover. When I click through, it actually doesn't. Grrr!

This weekend OH is coming over - was our 18 month anniversary this week - and we will be exploring the local english heritage properties, as it is their open days again so FREE entry. Was going to do a carboot on Sunday but am reluctant to do one whist OH is here, don't want to neglect him! It's also FREE listing on Ebay this weekend too so will stick yet more stuff on there.

Hope everyone is well - now the weather is turning cooler I guess we will all be jamming and stocking up for winter

Frugaldom

Hi fruguys and gals

Kiwi, I hope things are improving in the wake of the earthquake. I've hardly seen anything about it here, as we seldom have TV or radio on, so I'm well behind the times.

Glad there are still a few posters here, although it's a little sad to have lost so many since the thread moved. Perhaps we'll need to get back to concentrating on the debt free side of things rather than worrying about how much money we can save. We're still all frugaling, but it's the way we live, so no changes there. Still managing to remain clear of debt but savinhs not growing by much. No increse in the interest rates again BUT I did read the egg card HUGE increases. Hope none of you have been caught out by them.