As The Workhouse Approaches....How To Do Everything To Avoid It, the Old Style Way

Mrs_Veg_Plot

The car failed its MOT today in a big way and it will cost £1200 to put it right. The car is an old P reg and is not worth anywhere near that . We have not worked out what we are going to do about it yet. It's not worth spending this amount of money on but we are not in a position to buy a new one or to do without a cat altogether.

On a more positive note the veg are all comming on really well, there are flowers on some of the beans and flower buds on some of the tomato plants :j.
Went shopping at lunch time and got 5 loaves reduced to 9p. Will use one to make a bread and butter pudding tomorrow when MIL comes for tea. Also got the last 3 packets of value sultanas in Morrisons. Home and Bargin are still doing plum or chopped toms for 25p a tin so got 8. Hope they are still doing that on pay day because I will bulk buy then. You do need to check the tins as quite a few of then are dented.

bluebag

mardatha wrote: »

My tomatoes are covered in green ones and just need some (hahaha) sun to turn them red.
Had to turn the tv up to cover the noise of rain battering the windows tonight. Is like a December night

Just been out for a smoke in the garden ,(bad I know!) my word the wind is getting up, few spots of rain too, looks quite stormy.

I have ripened tomatoes in a brown paper bag in a warm place before. Apparantly, it's the warmth that turns them red, not the light, don't know how true that is mind you.

bluebag

westcoastscot wrote: »

Thanks for the info Ginnyknit, shall def visit Bury market - sounds fab. Shall have a ponder about taking food back, which I hadn't thought about - I shall have the car, and with prices so high up here I wonder if it would be worth taking stuff back to fill the freezer?

Yes, I go to Bury market very often and it has an amazing fish and fresh meat market also any kind of cheese you care to think of. A good selection of charity shops and some great discount stores and two huge poundshops,a primani and some stalls on the market that sell discounted chainstore seconds... so get saving , get a list and get yer walking shoes on.

The market days at Bury are Wed, Fri and Sat btw.

charlies-aunt

ChocClare wrote: »

I agree, ceridwen, that lots of kids aren't taught things these days, but, unlike you, I was taught LOADS of stuff by my mum, so maybe it depends on the family rather than being a generational thing?

The best thing they ever did for me though, was that they brought me up to believe that there was absolutely NOTHING I couldn't do, with a bit of effort. if I don't know how to do something, I get a book out of the library!

This is not to blow my own trumpet, I hasten to add - my point is just that you can get books on just about ANYTHING, and as long as you're prepared to follow instructions and give it a go, you can save yourself a lot of money by doing it yourself.

:rotfl: :rotfl: This sounds so like my upbringing - nothing that could be made at home was ever bought

We lived miles from the nearest shops so being able to make do & mend, turn your hand to anything and being a good neighbour was essential - we were lucky to have a doctor living nearby and many informal minor treatments were performed on his kitchen table . . . in return we would help round up his horses when they got out to frolic in the tattie fields :rotfl:

One bargain I did get today was a tube of frozen sausagement from Sainbugs - reduced down to 65p + onions + basics stuffing + hm shortcrust = 8 large potions of sausage meat pie for approx £1.50

Winged_one

It has been quite wet and windy here this evening, so I expect it will hit the UK heavily overnight.

I managed to find "essentials" lasagne and tinned tomatoes today (almost never have them in my local store), and DD and the au pair have been eating 2 types of esstials biscuits this week and liking them (they both chose them from the shelf, I didn't force the choice).

The broad beans have been really really flying in the back garden - my compost must be good for them! I'm hoping to get some beans from them in about 3 weeks!! Yippeee! I need to cut a cabbage soon too even if it hasn't hearted up, I need to put in some calabrese, and get some more radishes squashed in too.

Hippeechiq

Jediteacher Sorry to hear you have a water infection - not nice I really hope your baby arrives soon hun, you must be very fed up with it all now.

MrsVP Sorry also to read that your car failed it's MOT and that it would cost more to repair than it's worth. Had the same thing happen to me, and it's not a nice position to be in, so I hope you can find a way out of it.

My tomato plants are outside in their "wine carriers" now, and have been for a week. I have no greenhouse, so have been completely covering them with carrier bags every night to help them to acclimatise to the night temperature. Trouble is, in a couple of days time, the Shirley tomato plants will be too tall for me to do this.

Both the Shirley & the Sweet N Neat are in flower. I live down South where it's relatively mild (still no rain) but am wondering what is the lowest temperature they will withstand? As short of lugging them all indoors every evening and finding something for them to stand on, I wont be able to cover them in a few days time because they'll be too tall (which I will obviously have to do anyway if frost is forecast as they wont fit in our tiny shed)

Also - I received my Sweet & Chilli Pepper plug plants this week. I've potted them on into 5" pots. What size would their ideal final pot size be please?

Hippeechiq

charlies-aunt wrote: »

One bargain I did get today was a tube of frozen sausagement from Sainbugs - reduced down to 65p + onions + basics stuffing + hm shortcrust = 8 large potions of sausage meat pie for approx £1.50

I used to make something like that, and I've been hunting for the recipe the last couple of months, but can't find it. How much stuffing and what quantity of onion do you use hun?

I meant to say in my previous post....we have, in the last couple of weeks, had all our winter bills in (well, they're all on direct debit, but you KWIM) and it's been gratifying to see that all our trying to be more careful with water/electric & gas has paid off. The Gas & Electric in particular were £60-£70 cheaper than for the same 6 month period last year :T

We've taken the (Gas) heating off it's timed program, and so have been in complete control as to when it's been on. Nice to know that all those winter days when I was freezing cold but only put the heating on for an hour in the morning, mid-day, afternoon and evening (+ a bit extra on the truly bitter days/evenings) was worth the discomfort. And that by not having it on a timer "just because it's winter" has obviously made such a difference.

I'm extremely pleased with the Electric bill as I have an electric cooker and, compared to a year ago, am cooking a lot more from scratch than I used to. We've had to really nag the (grown up) kids not to leave the TV & lights on in their rooms while having a shower, or leave their laptops and mobiles plugged in, taking everything off standby and only filling the kettle with as much water as they need, but it's clearly paid off

anna_p86

Hippeechiq wrote: »

Jediteacher
Both the Shirley & the Sweet N Neat are in flower. I live down South where it's relatively mild (still no rain) but am wondering what is the lowest temperature they will withstand? As short of lugging them all indoors every evening and finding something for them to stand on, I wont be able to cover them in a few days time because they'll be too tall (which I will obviously have to do anyway if frost is forecast as they wont fit in our tiny shed)

Also - I received my Sweet & Chilli Pepper plug plants this week. I've potted them on into 5" pots. What size would their ideal final pot size be please?

I'm near London & our last frost date was end of April. I know it's not guaranteed but as you've been hardening them off, they should cope without being covered.

bluebag

Hipeechiq, could you cover them with a bin bag overnight, gives a bit more room than the carrier bag, maybe tuck it in underneath to stop the wind catching it.

ceridwen

ChocClare wrote: »

I agree, ceridwen, that lots of kids aren't taught things these days, but, unlike you, I was taught LOADS of stuff by my mum, so maybe it depends on the family rather than being a generational thing? I have plenty of friends my age who learnt absolutely nothing from their mums mind you!

The best thing they ever did for me though, was that they brought me up to believe that there was absolutely NOTHING I couldn't do, with a bit of effort. DH's parents were the same. Like you, if I don't know how to do something, I get a book out of the library! It always amazes me how people say, "oh, I can't do xyz" because they assume it must be difficult. I'm not saying I could rewire a house (though DH could ) but I've certainly changed taps, mended fuses, sewn dresses and tailored suits, upholstered furniture, French polished a table, planted a vegetable garden, bottled stuff, made tinctures, spliced ropes and so on and so forth.

This is not to blow my own trumpet, I hasten to add - my point is just that you can get books on just about ANYTHING, and as long as you're prepared to follow instructions and give it a go, you can save yourself a lot of money by doing it yourself.

Definitely - the teach oneself a skill from books is the way to go. I think the clue is to be aware of what TYPE of skills one is likely to have real interest in (ie not just doing it because you "have to") and those are probably the ones you can develop at least some sort of aptitude for. I'm a pretty good cook by now (though still a lot to learn) and thats because I have a real interest in food (as well as it being a "means to an end" - ie getting fed). My father has a real interest in "technical" type things - so could pick up a book and teach himself things of that type to the standard where he genuinely could have got a paid job in that "line of trade" if he had chosen to. It DOES have to be something one is genuinely interested in - I certainly won't be building a house from scratch any time soon, because any DIY counts as "regrettable necessity - do I HAVE to? - why cant I just pay instead? (answer - because I cant afford it:()" - so I will never be much cop at that....:o. If you ever spot anyone looking resentfully at a paintbrush in their hand - that would be me psyching myself up to do my own decorating LOL...

Right now - I'm trying to persuade myself that it is a very British way of thinking to assume that one cant have something one needs just because there is no obvious way available to get it. So - I'll continue with my "American" Positive Speak for the Day - retreats to cook up morning porridge whilst reminding myself how far Positive Speak has taken me so far - so "The Universe knows I need x - so it will provide it...just make an opening for it to do so.....". Sometimes good money management does boil down to Positive Speak (and a good realistic assessment of one's own abilities and responsibilities....no "Sub Prime Territory - but borrowing anyway" or "If everyone waited until they could afford something before they took it anyway they'd never do it" thinking chez ceridwen).