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

smileyt_2

I don't like bananas, so you can have my share, Skint!

I have been lurking for a while and reading most of the posts and have just popped in to say hello. I've been a bit low recently and some days it's like trying to stir concrete with a straw trying to motivate myself to get anything done. Doesn't help that I'm trying (and mainly failing) to give up caffeine! I've weaned myself down to two cups of tea a day and I think that's as far as I'm going to be able to get, or want to get!

So hugs to those who need them, and good vibes. I had some good news this morning - my sister had to go to hospital for tests to see if she had breast cancer, and although the results aren't through yet, the doctor she saw is fairly certain she has nothing to worry about, thank God.

Re preparing for winter (although the sun is out today and it feels more summery again) - I am trying to build some resistance by remembering to take my multivit/mineral tablet and my extra vitD tablet before I go to bed, and eat more vegetables.

Greyqueen and Maryb I share your pain over the weedy allotments! Mine is the same and in the ten years I've had it I've never managed to get on top of it. I just do what I can. The council here are a bit useless at managing the allotments so I have got away with it. Mine had lain fallow for a decade and resembled a bomb site with every pernicious weed known to the British Isles, including swamp rushes! I had to dig out bricks and huge lumps of clay. So the fact that I have anything growing on it at all is a bloomin miracle :rotfl: There is a waiting list a mile long in Manchester for allotments, but there is one spare on our site and I know there must be others spare, but the cuts have meant that there is only one person employed by the council to deal with all the city's allotments and he is just overwhelmed!

Not much OS stuff going on here. But I am pleased to report that I have spent nothing on anything which is not food for the last couple of weeks except for one magazine, go me! Even when I went to a local craft/fabric shop with Ginnyknit (:wave: waves at GK) I was very good and didn't buy the three thousand things I would have loved :rotfl: However there is a cracking charity shop nearby (books for 20p, jeans for 25p, other clothes max £2) so I might have a look in my penny jar and have a wander up later.

Foraging. I went with a friend yesterday to a hidden plum tree I know of, only to find no plums on the tree - they had ripened and fallen already! I distincly remember last year picking plums with my godson during August when he came up to visit me. So they are a month early this year. :eek: Or perhaps they were late last year? Anyroad, I've missed them, which means no plum jam boo hoo! I'm now keeping my beady eye on the blackberry bushes so I don't miss them too!

Happy OS greetings to you all!

Reverbe

GreyQueen wrote: »

There are a lot of people in this city who are cold every winter despite putting a huge chunk of their income into their pre-payment meters. When they run out of money, they just have to be cold, and no one in authority has to be embarrassed by looking at the statitistics for disconnections because they have effectively disconnected themselves.


we have our leccy on a key meter and TBH sometimes we have to struggleincluding not doing things and sitting in the dark etc because we cannot physically put money on the meter. Until recently there was only one place in our town that did it and they were a Christian Asian newsagents that was shut at nights and Sundays. Now we have a couple of other places but one of which always seems to have a broken machine which has necessitated a walk to the next town in order just to put money on..:mad::eek:

londonirish_3

Reverbe wrote: »

GreyQueen wrote: »

There are a lot of people in this city who are cold every winter despite putting a huge chunk of their income into their pre-payment meters. When they run out of money, they just have to be cold, and no one in authority has to be embarrassed by looking at the statitistics for disconnections because they have effectively disconnected themselves.


Yup and I am one of them, last christmas when it snowed I was putting on £45 a week to my gas so I could heat the house, it was still running out before I got my next wage. We went cold on a few days . It was my first time using a meter ( new home, but an old house) This year I am putting aside a little each week, and I pray it doesnt snow

jackieglasgow

Message from Mardatha - her internet isn't working, but she is fine, cracking nonsense as usual (YES I DO KNOW YOU WILL SEE THIS )

anguk

Reverbe wrote: »

GreyQueen wrote: »

There are a lot of people in this city who are cold every winter despite putting a huge chunk of their income into their pre-payment meters. When they run out of money, they just have to be cold, and no one in authority has to be embarrassed by looking at the statitistics for disconnections because they have effectively disconnected themselves.


we have our leccy on a key meter and TBH sometimes we have to struggleincluding not doing things and sitting in the dark etc because we cannot physically put money on the meter. Until recently there was only one place in our town that did it and they were a Christian Asian newsagents that was shut at nights and Sundays. Now we have a couple of other places but one of which always seems to have a broken machine which has necessitated a walk to the next town in order just to put money on..:mad::eek:

I'm with British Gas and have got Home Energy Top-up which means I can top up my key/card online at home so no more traipsing to the shop in the snow. Of course you do still have to have the money in the bank and a debit card.
http://www.britishgas.co.uk/topup

Skint_but_Optimistic

Im expanding my window lottie!

Wilkinsons today had some grow your own broccoli, tomato, and courgette seeds with pots and compost for 98p each. Ive a very sunny aspect and I should be able to grow these even a little out of season. We are adding to the lambs lettuce and other salad leaves! It should be a nice activity for the first week of the school hollies too. We are popping for the onions to plant later next week and will indisperse them with winter pansies, as they are in a patio pot. (they look like grasses, haha) Will look at other things which will perform in pots too. I really want a lottie now. Still need to break my teeth on these things first....

ginnyknit

Waves back to Smileyt :wave: Yes it was a nice trip out. And we were very good and I only bought what I went for but am sorry I didnt buy that linen we saw outside the tailors! Have thought of loads I could make with it for Xmas (whoops, naughty word!)

Been to Mums and she is fine, brought home loads of goodies and listened to here for a couple of hours, you really cannot beat real time contact.

Came home to find the bank have totally bu%%ered up our bank accounts - you would not believe it possible.

1. sorted my loan account out ok
2. paid the balance of my loan into OH's account , stopped hos O/D and charged him 91.00 interest
3. taken 450.00 out of my account I didnt have and paid it into his other account - so I am overdrawn AGAIN

On the phone no one can help me as they cannot access his accounts -but I can???

I am out of my flipping mind now and very angry so I think we will visit the branch tomorrow and talk to someone vaguely human.

muffin_man_7

londonirish wrote: »

Reverbe wrote: »

GreyQueen wrote: »

There are a lot of people in this city who are cold every winter despite putting a huge chunk of their income into their pre-payment meters. When they run out of money, they just have to be cold, and no one in authority has to be embarrassed by looking at the statitistics for disconnections because they have effectively disconnected themselves.


Yup and I am one of them, last christmas when it snowed I was putting on £45 a week to my gas so I could heat the house, it was still running out before I got my next wage. We went cold on a few days . It was my first time using a meter ( new home, but an old house) This year I am putting aside a little each week, and I pray it doesnt snow

Thanks for the info re gas pre payment meter atm i've only got elec on prepay and have got our usage down to £11 a week atm but this will probably go up when the winter arrives ( plus £4 a wk 0ff arrears which i will be paying till 2013) i owe around 200 300 on gas and am hoping to avoid prepay meter for gas but if it has to be i'm hoping to avoid it till next year the gas won't give me any help in working out how much gas we use i didn't want exact just a guide and you saying £45 was not enough for a week has me really worried as the gas are saying £50 a month on a payment plan which i struggle with and am now thinking maybe even that wont be enough the lady was really helpful in that she said i won't have to pay more than £4 a week off the arrears but that is working out at £34 a month for usage so that must be too low so i am really gratefull to you for sharing your costs as if i do have to go with pre pay meter at least i will have some idea of what i'll be needing so can try and cut budget to allow for this thanks

ceridwen

Red_Doe wrote: »

I don`t much post on MSE, but do lurk and read threads like this one and the getting ready for winter one.
Just wanted to say, if Ceridwen and Grey Queen haven`t already, I wish they would write blogs or books because their posts are always either full of info, or encouragement for others, or are fascinating to read accounts of life/gardening/cooking etc.

Thank you.:)

Well - its always possible to click on the homepage of anyone on MSE to see if they have a blog;):);).

Unfortunately my buddy pal GreyQueen doesnt have one - yet...yet...perhaps I should "work on her":D. Coo-ee GreyQueen gal..."younger (virtual) sis of mine":) - I'll up the ante here. You know you have an invite any time you're in my neck of the woods that I'm buying the drinks if we go out for an evening - errr....dont suppose I could tempt you into a blog if I "up the offer" to a top-rate 3/4 course meal could I? Yep...I'm serious...and we DO have a good-range of places to eat out hereabouts. One big grin went on my face when a hubby/wife tourist couple stopped me one time and asked for my recommendation as to where they could eat dinner that night. At that point - I asked them what type of place they favoured and started listing genres available. He looked a bit nonplussed at the level of choice - so I just looked him up and down and said "Okay - you personally will prefer x place" and told him where it was. The look on his face was a positive picture - as he confirmed that that sounded exactly what they WOULD like:rotfl::rotfl:(but he wasnt a bad "person judge" himself - as, at that stage in my life, I was regularly having meals out in every new place that came up on the scene that I could inveigle someone to visiting with me...).

So GreyQueen - the meal out is on me if ever you're around - if you set up a blog:D

love
ceridwen

(always a great fan of "bribery and corruption" <joke> if that'll do the trick):);)

*************************

Personally - a little idea I play with in my mind is, when I have more time, amending my cooking blog from private to public and conducting a lot more experiments than I do.

I'm very into trying out the "bits and pieces" of food that peeps normally chuck to see if they can be made into anything edible and, to date, have concluded it includes:
- potato skins
- broccoli stalks
- butternut squash seeds
- watermelon rind (except the green outer bit)
- radish leaves
- beetroot leaves

On the gardening front - I've given up on the idea of "pop in a couple of radish seeds in any spare bit of soil" - as that doesnt seem to have worked for me personally for some reason. I am popping in a dried pea anywhere possible - as I find that pretty shortly afterwards I am getting peashoots popping up to add to salads and can "cut and come again" 2 or 3 times on that. So - thats an easy win - "low-hanging fruit" as that awful modern phrase goes...

I'm very into an experimental take on things within a certain range that I am interested in - to see what works and what doesnt - so maybes one day...

Rowan9

Softstuff wrote: »

So as penance, here's my chickpea curry recipe:
Cube a carrot and a medium potato and boil until soft, drain that. Then chop an onion and fry in oil with a sliced clove of garlic, tsp ground coriander, tsp ground cumin, tsp ginger (ground or fresh), tablespoon curry powder. Then add the chickpeas, carrot and potato, and a tin of chopped tomatoes (I know you have one spare GQ). Stir muchly. Add a little water and leave to simmer until you're really bored. Stir in a little yoghurt, or cream, or sour cream, or even coconut milk (whatever is in the fridge lurking), serve with rice. You can throw anything else in there that's going manky too - green beans, spinach, cauli, broccoli.

That's tonights dinner, so I'd better go cook it.

Thanks for this softstuff - I've just made it and it's lovely. I added some of a HUGE cauli that I bought in a Polish shop near me - also bought massive tomatoes and a few tiny cucumbers. Will have a side salad with my curry - bit odd but yum yum. I have enough for the next couple of days as well as DH isn't keen on veg curries - he likes a good chicken madras!