Its tough, it will get better and guess what its freezing brrrrr!

stiltwalker

Hi,

I have an overabundance of crab apples too from my MIL's tree and googled crab apples to see what else I can make. Found several recipes for spiced whole crab apples and a blog of recipes by an Estonian which included the most amazing coloured crab apple marmalade. Can't tell you what they'll be like as the crab apples are still sitting in the bucket - must get my rear into gear tomorrow!

happyin_devon

Pitlanepiglet wrote: »

[Big sigh & feeling sorry for myself mode] Is it just me that sometimes feels that I'm doing all of this on my own and that nobody else is pulling their weight at home? [/feeling sorry for myself]

no,its not just you!
i have a hubby thinking meal planning is boring,and that he'd rather die than be seen in lidl,and the kids leaving all the doors(including the exterior ones) open letting out any precious heat and leaving all the lights on in the house.........
whilst i am nearly killing myself trying to reduce our food bills,avidly following the preparing for winter thread ,doing my(albeit very part time)job and trying to keep house in order.......

arrrrggghhh.still on the bright side everything would probably worse if i wasnt trying!!
hey ho,keep hanging in there!

Hippeechiq

charlies-aunt wrote: »

Hippeechiq - I don't think you wll have much of a problem with the smell - if you have a some old carpeting to cover it, it will help it break down much quickly ...and hrm-m-m- if you sprinkle human urine on the heap every now and then - it really helps the decomposition (gross but true) You can add other things like dried swept-up leaves, used teabags and smallish amounts of shredded paper.

I would be really tempted to hack/saw the buddleia down from the base - it will come again! Lovely plants but a bit of a nuisance as they tend to be overpowering for a little garden...and it will get bigger by the year if left to its own devices!

It's a tree though - not a bush. It's huge, so you'd be talking about a serious amount of branches and I live in a town and have no transport to dispose of it if I cut it down, not that I have a hacksaw. Hiring one of those tree munching machines isn't an option as since losing my job we're skint all the time.

We have no gardening tools at all. When I left my ex husband, I left with nothing, and when I moved in with my OH, he'd had to sell his house in his divorce, and he had been living in a flat for 8 years when we met, so no need of tools. We're now in a house, but it's paved front and back, so still no need of tools. I only have secateurs in an attempt to control the buddliea

All OH's family/friends live 50 miles away and all mine 200 miles away, and we don't really know anyone well enough to ask favours of.

Makes us sound a bit billy-no-mates, which I guess we are really. I have neighbours who call their children c*nts to one side of me and to the other one who makes a point of finding out everyones business and doesn't mind sharing it with anyone who will listen, and so we pretty much keep ourselves to ourselves.

OH laughed when I said a bit of urine was good for the compost. I gave up smoking 4 years ago, but he still smokes, but goes outside to do so. I just told him that now when he's having his ciggie outside, he can have a pee at the same time - I think he was quite impressed :rotfl:

Awww Pitlanepiglet :grouphug:

BB1984

Bit behind the times I know but just wanted to say ((hugs)) to Sammy Kaye. We're about the same age and I've always so admired her for how she copes with everything - puts me to shame! Things will all work out - one way or another they always do!

Annoying at lunchtime today - I'd made ham sandwiches, but when I came to eat them, the bread was stale and the ham was off! :rotfl: Had to buy lunch instead, gar.

I've just come back from my friend's house. Three of us have an arrangement where once a fortnight, we meet for dinner at one of our houses, taking it in turns. Whoever's house it is does main course, and the other two sort out a starter and pudding between them. As it's mid-week, we never drink alcohol or stay out particularly late, but it's really nice to have a "girly catch up" and have a nice dinner. We don't stand on ceremony, so rarely have anything fancy, therefore it's a fairly cheap night out, just a few quid for the ingredients of whatever we choose to cook.

I'm in bed already, tucked up warm with the laptop DH is out at the pub with a couple of friends - he's a good hour away in another town, so won't be home til late. I'll def be asleep! (assuming my two cats stop chasing each other at some point....!)

Night night all, sweet dreams

BB

Souk08

Hugs to Sammy kaye, sounds like you had a good chat. Just keep yourself right love X

Madartha, there's not much life throws at me that doesn't look better after a cider!

bluebag

You are not alone, I too fight the fine fight of re-sorting the recycling, arranging the dishwasher into a state that things will come out clean, turning off the lights, shutting doors, comparison shopping, bargain seeking ( the holy grail) and general dogsboddying.

My loins are girded by the fellowship of the MSE OS crusaders and I fear not the utility companies. I walk proud in the faith of frugality and have sanity all my debt free days. For mine are the savings, the bargains, and the watching of the purse, forever and ever.
Amen.

greengoblin

The first lot of home fruit flavoured gin is now on its way to being a tasty drink (blackberry and blackcurrant respectively).
I have a job, albeit a voluntary one, with the National Trust. Flat and bills paid for as part of the deal. I have a p/t job where I am now which is just about commutable for the time being for my food/fag/amazon money. Hopefully organize something a bit nearer when i'm settled. I will also be alot nearer one of my best friends so we might actually see each other at somepoint haha as he has also recently got a full time job for the first time. Interview at 9.30am and they had rung me up by 4.20pm!
Actually that is a good interview tip for people Be the first or the last person they interview and you are more likely to be remembered. Something to do with psychology apparently.
Had another interview on monday too but didn't particularly like the people interviewing and the work (although paid f/t job) was not what I wanted really. I'm still young and foolish enough (with no ties or commitments like partners/kids etc.) to get away with doing crazy stuff like this! I'm so pleased, it's taken about 24 hours to stop bouncing off the walls
When i'm packing to move out I can have an inadvertant de-clutter. 'King watch out world I'm coming lol !

ChocClare

((((hugs)))) to you, pitlanepiglet, I do know just how you feel. Don't know if you've ever seen that episode of the Simpsons where Homer takes the kids shopping? The kids come up outrageous stuff, saying "my teacher says I have to have" to which Homer replies "in the cart". They get home and there's no food but plenty of beer and candy cell phones. Yep, my DH is like that when he goes shopping. In fact, the first week of the school holidays, he always takes the kids to Tesco's for precisely that purpose *sigh*

hippeechiq, just to reiterate what others have said about your pond - it sounds IDEAL. If you ever grow runner beans, then you'll know the best way is to dig a runner bean trench. What you do is, at this time of year, dig out a trench, leave it empty, and just chuck all your potato peelings, bits of veg, dead plants, teabags, coffee grounds, crushed egg shells, shredded paper and cardboard etc. into it. When it's full you put a layer of soil over the top and leave it - and you'll get the best ever runner beans. If you do the same with your pond you'll have an ideal "instant" vegetable garden. You can always do it a bit at a time if the whole lot is too daunting. Good luck!

bluebag

Katiegizmo,
Google BBC people's war, has quite a bit of stuff for free. I have Marguerite Patten(OBE) victory cookbook which is quite good.

Pitlanepiglet

Morning all, it's good to know that I'm not alone...(although not good that so many of us feel this way). It definitely feels like rowing upstream. The frustration of discovering that I spent my lunchtimes walking to Asda because something is cheaper there to discover that hubby did his bit of the shopping in the farm shop as he "doesn't like Tesco" is enough to tip me over the edge at the best of times and things are soooo not at their best generally at the moment. Lots of work problems, can't really post much at the moment as it's likely to "go legal" at some point and there are no other jobs in my line of work nor likely to be inside the next 12 months.

Just getting to the point where it all feels a bit much. Still I'm sitting here with my SAD lamp on and my life is still not as bad as my friend who is still awaiting confirmation of where the primary source of his cancer is and has to have a biopsy today, so really I ought to stop whining!

Hope everyone has a good day