Double Trouble - Nothing by halves

Skint_but_Optimistic

hey there are a few of us out here.

Hope today dawned a bit brighter :-)

Double_Trouble

Yesterday's work experience went well I am now confident that I am up to the job and I have someone else prepared to give me a reference so I now have a choice of referees depending on what sort of post I am applying for which is good. They did say that they would have offered me a job if they had enough work which is nice to know but doesn't really help the present situation.

E*N wanted a meter reading today which has been done and it is good to see that our electricity useage continues to be below last year although it needs to be with the price rises. not able to take up their solar panel offer as you need to have an unconverted loft available and we sleep in ours!

Garden is looking better after OH and his friend attacked it with strimmer and hedge cutter yesterday but still a way to go friend is coming back next Thursday so we need to see what we can do before then with the non machine related jobs.

Other than that things are OK but nothing spectacular happening on the debt front about to pay off the first £1000 off the credit cards and then need to work out how to recoup that before the end of the month

DTxx

Karmacat

Sounds good, DT!

I wonder if you can grow some veggies in the garden, to help with the food bills (you = OH, in this instance!).

Skint_but_Optimistic

Im growing lettuce in my hallway window, its therapeutic and the kids like to help out too!

se999

Double_Trouble wrote: »

Yesterday's work experience went well I am now confident that I am up to the job and I have someone else prepared to give me a reference so I now have a choice of referees depending on what sort of post I am applying for which is good. They did say that they would have offered me a job if they had enough work which is nice to know but doesn't really help the present situation.

Well done on the work experience, it does seem like it's working on networking and references. Just wondered about them saying they don't have enough work. Lots of places do have times when they need extra holiday cover or when people are ill due to flu bugs, maternity cover etc., so might offeering temp work help you get back in at least in the short term.

Double_Trouble

Karmacat wrote: »

Sounds good, DT!

I wonder if you can grow some veggies in the garden, to help with the food bills (you = OH, in this instance!).

Oh yes we could we have veg beds laid out already:o and thats where we have been strimming mostly as the weeds were 8 foot high most of the tall weeds have gone just one more patch to do next week but that has left a dense growth of weeds and grass all over the veg plot which is still going to take some shifting so next year veg maybe but at the moment it is still a recover the garden operation the problem is the garden is too big and the gardener laid it out in such a way that it kept him nicely in work he used to come two days a week and even then the garden was never what you would call immaculate always a project on the go he preferred new projects to actually maintaining what we had already got :mad: hence why eventually I lost patience and of course money went tight too we have spent a fortune on this garden over the years there is no way we can spend two days a week in the garden every week so we are trying to make it less labour intensive but it is a struggle we will get there we have to

I am growing tomatoes in the rescued from the undergrowth greenhouse whether they ripen I am not sure but I can make chutney if all else fails.

Lettuce is also in a pot and beetroot as there is nowhere clear enough to plant them in the ground so I am trying

OH is not really a gardener he does cut the lawn but he is a nightmare with weedkiller and a chainsaw so has to be closely supervised :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl: he does try though I used to do a lot of gardening pre gardener days but he took over and I backed off and somehow because it is such a gigantic task I have lost heart and just find it so depressing
right I am off to do a bit even a little bit is better than doing nothing - back to report later

DTxx

Skint_but_Optimistic

A small step in the right direction is still in the right direction.

Its amazing though, you will get back into it. Im looking forwards to pricking out my radishes at the weekend and taking them to the other house as Im running out of window sills

Karmacat

This is horrible of me - but I'm really glad to find on here someone who has taller weeds than mine :o:o Seriously tho, DT, it is *so* disheartening, isn't it - even more so for you, because you were paying someone to make it nice! Seems to me that once its under control, *everything* gets easier. Can you nab any cardboard/old carpet for free from somewhere - supermarkets or freecycle - to put on the strimmed bits, if you can't do anything right now? As long as you remember to weed what's underneath eventually, it'll be a big help.

I did that in my previous garden - and left it so long that new soil collected on top of the carpet, a layer about three inches thick, from all the leaves and whatnot - it was a huge effort to shift it *again*. This garden is so much more manageable, I can't believe I ever thought I could do the old one on my own

And you're right about a little bit making a difference - as long as you keep at it. Thats what my "fortnight before mum comes" list on my thread is about today is washing the patio table and chairs.

Good luck with your stuff - let us know what you've done.

gilligansyle

All of the above is why I am in two minds whether I *really* want a garden. I don't have time to keep my little yard in check, let alone a proper garden.

In a previous house we had a HUGE garden that had been neglected for years, XOH paid various people to do various schemes but they were really just papering over the cracks, when it wasn't really gardening that was needed, but some serious heavy labour. It took forever! Still think about my beautiful Japanese Maple, and my 8ft tall Barbecue with a chimney etc.

Double_Trouble

Karmacat wrote: »

This is horrible of me - but I'm really glad to find on here someone who has taller weeds than mine :o:o

This made me laugh I am glad you found a positive slant on my problem :D:D:D:D:D

Seriously though I have to say a huge THANK YOU to KC and Skint :T because of you I went out in the garden and spent about four and a half hours weeding just over half of a very large border clearing it of brambles and ivy as well. The brambles won a few skirmishes but I won the war it looks so much better and I will have to finish the other half now so hope for a good day tomorrow today was our first nice day all day for ages

gilligansyle wrote: »

All of the above is why I am in two minds whether I *really* want a garden. I don't have time to keep my little yard in check, let alone a proper garden.

In a previous house we had a HUGE garden that had been neglected for years, XOH paid various people to do various schemes but they were really just papering over the cracks, when it wasn't really gardening that was needed, but some serious heavy labour. It took forever! Still think about my beautiful Japanese Maple, and my 8ft tall Barbecue with a chimney etc.

The idea is nice but in practice unless you have lots of time or lots or money or both its a nightmare

Getting my laptop fixed tonight hopefully if the new part works this time I shall be so pleased I hate not being able to use it wherever I want but I have been grateful that my friend gave me a spare monitor or else I would have been computerless :eek:

DTxx