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

ceridwen

redlady_1 wrote: »

Well, O Fortuna at 6 am full blast should have got my message across. Everything was fine here until CC moved in (not OUR CC) last August. Since then all they do is drink and the youngest chav plays music SO loud every day. But recently it has turned into night too. Oh, did I mention I live 3 doors away from this toss!!!!! The trouble is the way the cottages are laid out both myself and another neighbour get it full on. However, my "neighbour" is currently empty. How they afford the rent on the place is beyond me as it must be £1500 per month, at least.

There have been parties until 3 am in the week. Now I wouldnt mind but this is considered the better area of the town so you wouldnt normally expect to find people like that here....God that sounds so up myself but you know what I mean, I hope.

Anyway, I am off so will catch up with you happy peeps soon.

Laters xx

Opera:D:rotfl: Like your style - I must admit - that though my taste is more towards folk and New Age music - I dont think I would be able to resist going out and buying a piece of opera music in the circumstances (such a "civilised" way of saying "** *****":rotfl:). I would have been killing myself laughing personally thinking "Bet you cant top opera music..." That would appeal to my sense of humour I must admit....

Yep....I must admit that bad behaviour tends to lead me towards "outclass that - mate - so there..." mode. So - you dont sound "up myself" to me - because I know I shouldnt but I sometimes cant resist similar when pushed into it by someone's bad behaviour.
I've used a couple of blasts of some very "acquired taste" music from a non-Western country before now - it worked:D

GreyQueen

Morning all!

Well, my eyetest yesterday confimed that I do need new glasses having gone up 0.5 and 0.75 (diopters, no sure if the spelling is correct?). I knew I was struggling a bit as I couldn't see across the call centre at the VDU display of the waiting times on the various queues. Mind you, that can be a blessing at times. If it's in blue, there are no customers queued, if it's in red, they're waiting. Still, as my boss says, you can only talk to one person at a time.

Actually, being a blabbermouth, I can beat that easily.

Today and tomorrow I'm off work taking back my flex time and will be at the dentist first thing then comparison-shopping for the best deal on new glasses. So many providers and sites etc. I detest buying glasses with a passion. In fact, with the exception of charity shops and bootfairs, I pretty much loathe shopping full stop. I guess it's because it rubs my nose into the Low Income Dungpile.

Dee on the subject of your family being unkind about your home-made gifts and general lifestyle, there has been much wisdom and good advice from the other posters already, but I'd like to add my two'pennorth.

I'm lucky enough to be talented in the arty-crafty line of things and even went to art school too (:p hence working in a call centre lol) and can turn a hand to most crafts. I have learned that some people are just unappreciative of the most lovely h.m. gifts and it's best not to waste your time and skill making them anything. If that means that you can't give them anything at all, so be it. I always love h.m gifts or even re-purposed gifts, as I don't want my friends and family to have to "buy" me.

Not being able to afford to give gifts, or participate in big ticket occasions such as that stag do in Prague or the hen weekend at the spa/ wedding or whatever, are seldom-discussed aspects to being hard-up. I've felt social shame in the past that I couldn't join in with what my friends are doing, simply because I couldn't afford it out of income, wouldn't jeopardise my limited savings and certainly wouldn't get into debt over it.

I'm getting a bit more thick-skinned in middle-age but it still sometimes hurts when people who know I have less than £10k a year and have to pay all my bills myself assume that I can spend like they do, with 2 full-time incomes, each of which is 3-4 times greater than my own.

However, the times they are a-changing and I like to think of us Old-Stylers as in the vanguard of a forced movement into a more sane and sensible way of life. What should matter in gifts, as in life, is that you are thinking of the other person. I'd say leave your sisters to their own devices without having a row (if possible) and be receptive to their attitudes changing over time.

redlady I loved your post about remarking that your car is paid for, thanks to your lifestyle, when the people criticising it have theirs on tick. My first-ever car was a 13 y.o cast-off Austin Maxi from Mum and Dad and I ran it for a year before corrosion underneath caused it to go to the great scrap-heap in the sky. Not one of British Leyland's finest products, but I was glad to have it.

Anyway, one day I came back to the Maxi in the Hometown's carpark where I'd got a little shopping in and was propping up the hatchback with a squeegie mop pole (the riser thingies had gone slack and the hatch would go up and then slowly descend on your noggin whilst you weren't looking). About 3 spaces over there was a young couple with a flashy motor and he said something about my car to her, just under the threshold of my hearing, which was clearly derogatory. He was too dense to read the look she was giving me, that sort of "OMG he's being a plonker, sorrreeee," thing which women sometimes do when their bloke is showing them up.

I unpropped my hatch and went to unlock my car, whilst smiling sweetly and looking at them as I said "At least it's paid for." His jaw literally dropped and she snorted back a laugh. Yes, it was a cheap shot, but he'd had it coming.:rotfl:

Always remember when you're feeling a little bit 'umble and threadbare, that paid-for beats owed-for hands-down. After all, if they don't own it, they're just fakes and frauds, IYSWHIM.

Right, getting some brekkie of Tesco Basics porridge with water and foraged walnuts from a tree in the park (2010) and it'll have cost me about 5p I reckon. Then I shall hie me off to the tooth-wrangler and scour the opticians and the web and reward myself for all tha horribleness my CHARITY SHOPPING. Yayyyy!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for the kind PMs and the welcome back comments, nice to have been missed. Hope everyone has a good day.

silvermaid

Thanks for that Redlady & Ceridwen, I had no idea.

So sorry for your intrusive neighbours Redlady sounds like a nightmare, but as Ceridwen says interesting response. Good luck in your exam.

GQ very good to read your entertaining post, thanks. Hope the lottie is getting some help from the celestial watering can - we seem to be getting a good amount here.

LittleBrownFrog

I make a cheesy sandwich spread with grated cheese, chopped onion (red for preference, any will do though), grated carrot, chives and a mix of mayo and plain yoghurt - I find the yoghurt makes it less claggy.

(I also do much the same with mushed beans (kidney & haricot at the moment, but whatever I happen to be cooking) in place of the cheese & sometimes some fine-chopped red pepper)

catznine

Now I feel more recovered from the lurgy of the last 2 weeks, I am sifting through the fridge and freezing anything that can be salvaged, grating and freezing cheese and cooking apples into purree. On finally getting to read the posts I am feeling inspired to get down the dehydrator I bought a couple of years ago so that I can dehydrate some apple rings. Last time I coated some with a sugar and cinnamon mix and dried them, they were lovely with porridge! The house should smell lovely soon and finally I shall be able to smell that loveliness!

So good to see greyqueen posting again! love your posts! and so encouraging for me reading about you coping with your lottie while suffering from ME, I have no excuse for not doing a little bit of gardening now!

9 days until dd's wedding, the hearts and bunting are made, orders of service are ready to be assembled, gifts ready to be wrapped - thank goodness for past times sale! Just got to get flying on the house cleaning now!:o last pennicilin this morning so I should be back to normal (whatever that is soon)

[Deleted User]

yes greyqueen, I was one of the ones that worried about you. You really must say when you are going to be away (tongue in cheek)

I even woke up thinking about you

re glasses, thanks to this board, I made the effort to find an optician here as I haven`t had eyes tested for 3 years. I found a specsavers and being a bit `glasses snobby` I decided no harm done to try them. Well they were fantastic, my eyes are the same and no pressure whatsoever to buy new ones. I have had specs since 11 and believe me the specsavers exam was top notch

HariboJunkie

*I think it's a shame to discuss the ignoring of a poster so openly on the thread.:( Regardless of the content of posts or their frequency, I don't think all this criticism is necessary or in the supportive tone of the thread. It's quite possible to put someone on ignore without making a public issue of it.*

Sunny here. :j So the washing is going out. :TThen I will spend the day juggling money to take account of the clients who have paid us late again. :mad:
Sorry about your neighbours Redlady. That's a terrible thing to have to deal with.

kidcat

I thought it was just me, not getting it as it were. And was finding keeping up really difficult.

And I wasnt aware of ignore so without the talk would never have known that I wasnt alone as it were.

HariboJunkie

kidcat wrote: »

I thought it was just me, not getting it as it were. And was finding keeping up really difficult.

And I wasnt aware of ignore so without the talk would never have known that I wasnt alone as it were.

Fair enough, but a simple hint from someone on using the ignore button would suffice, rather that naming and shaming one particular poster. (IMHO )
Not wanting to fall out about it but just wanted to air my opinion as everyone else was airing theirs.

Maybe it would be worth pointing out to ALL posters that there is an edit function on your posts so rather than make lots of posts in a row you can edit your post to add more thoughts. I'm often surprised how many long standing posters make new posts when they could edit the one above.

*moving swiftly on*

silvermaid

I agree kidcat. I didn't know about that facility and without the talk I would still be in the dark. Haven't used the button yet though.

I think this thread is very supportive and people pass on really useful ideas.

But it is also a place where I can give supportive virtual hugs to those in need because of thoughtlessness (be it families, neighbours or posters).