It was getting tough in 2006 and the workhouse still threatens us in 2011

bluebag

Softstuff

It is honestly surprising how little you need to have a good Christmas. A long time ago my financial circumstances for one reason and another were truly dire.
We were given a small tree and some ancient real glass decorations, which I still have and use to this day. We had so little that Christmas, but we all had each other. It is one that stands out in my mind as poor but very, very happy.

Fun is free really.

Softstuff

Thanks Bluebag. Last year was a very frugal Christmas too, since it was the first I hadn't been working. But at the same time it's the best Christmas I've had, because I didn't work 12-16 hour days for the four weeks prior to Christmas day and didn't only have Christmas day off! I'm definitely all for the less money and more together time idea, heck, that's why I quit my job in the first place.

I'll be making homemade stuff for gifts (apart from 2 or 3 special bits), making homemade liqueurs for drinks, baking some treats and making some decorations. Mostly I just need to get my bum in gear and work with what I already have around.

I'm thankful for the repairs in our home that we've made this year, and I can at least see why I didn't manage to save for Christmas.

The only thing I'm really having to cross my fingers for is that our artificial tree will fold out again without too many branches dropping off in the process :rotfl:

notjustlaura

bluebag wrote: »

Terrible shock last night, heard this almighty thud and then what I thought was rain pattering on the window, turns out the whole outside pane of the double glazing has shattered! Googled it and apparantly it's due to imperfections in the glass and can happen years after installation.

As the excess is £200 on my house insurance that means I'll have to pay for the repair. That will put a big dent in the Christmas savings pot.

I always have some money for repairs but I've just had to replace a stolen phone and my busted tumble dryer so the repair pot is potless! Whatever next?? Ah well, keep calm and carry on. No one hurt thank goodness.

Oh dear But you mention two other broken items so maybe this is the third and that's it done?

ceridwen

smileyt wrote: »

She replied to say she'd just seen the words 'lesbian' and 'poetry' on the back of this book, which she got in a job lot, and thought I would enjoy it, so she'd passed it on to me. We have had a good laugh about it, but I'm still not entirely convinced she wasn't testing the waters!

So I am now wondering what will happen next Sunday. :eek::eek:

Hmmm....well...lets just put this in a different context. I'm heterosexual - so its men that I expect to be the ones "coming on to me". In my context - if a man gave me a book like that - I'd run a blinkin' mile and not believe for one second that he hadnt at least glanced at the book. So - personally - I wouldnt believe her saying that it had been an innocent mistake.

You can give her the benefit of the doubt ONCE if you see fit to - as obviously we dont know the general gist of the conversations you've been having and cant picture how she looked when she made the "It was an innocent mistake" reply to you - so werent able to watch her when she said that to see if she was lying or no.

It really doesnt sound a very likely tale to me though - and sado-masochism ...crikey!!

One way or the other - I reckon she's making a pass at you for sure - and, if you do decide to talk to her again - then you need to make some reference to what you personally think about sado-masochism (eg "Dont understand why people do that:eek:....").

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

This being two episodes now with different people - I wonder whether it would be an idea to get out a couple of different books on body language from the library?? Both for the purposes of reading theirs on the one hand and knowing how to look "frosty/unapproachable" if you need to on the other hand...

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

SOFTSTUFF
Re the Christmas tree - before now I've just got a suitably attractive big branch I found lying around and propped it up in a corner and hung ornaments from it. I thought it looked pretty good. In a British context - one could drape such a branch with things like ivy. I'm not familiar with Australian plantlife at all - but I'm guessing you'd have something that would act in an equivalent fashion for "draping" purposes...

katieowl_2

Top of the morning to everyone.

Managed to drag myself out of bed this morning! But DS has decided he feels too ill for college, so I could have had another hour in bed. Grrr.

My B&B people are up and have gone for a walk :eek: it's blowing a gale out there, very brave! They will be back for breakfast at 9 am.

Just checked my online leccie bill (came yesterday, but if it was bad I didn't want to give myself rage before bed last night LOL) Was actually DOWN to £70 which is great. Hope next month will be even better and start to pay down our 'balance' Think DD going back to uni helped with the hot water use, and of course now we've stuck the rayburn back on it's being heated by that not the leccie.

I've got some reduced mangos from Mr T on Friday, that I am going to make some mango chutney out of today. I made some last year and it was lovely, but not sure which recipe I used? One of the mango chutney pages looks as though I've cooked over it :rotfl: but it doesn't have apple in, I'm sure that I put apple in it?

I've got a few other things in the fridge I might make some kind of preserves out of, but I need more jars. Will have to decide if it's worth buying more. I might as my friend in the village if she's got some kilners I can borrow.

I saw in one of the online papers yesterday they are predicting snow for Nov, Dec, Jan - these rumors of a hard winter are not going away are they?

I have to say that since DD went back to uni, I think OH DS and I have done brilliantly eating up all the random bits and pieces in the fridge. I bought some gammon offcuts from the butcher Friday, when I got the B&B Bacon, they were selling a pound for about £1.20 - Sat night we all had some of the bigger pieces fried up with a jacket potato and beans, and last night DS made himself spicey noodle soup (for his cold - bless) with some more of it diced in, and I diced the rest, cooked it and added it to some leftover beans, with a few more for good luck, a spring onion and a tomato that had gone squishy, the remains of some tom puree, and we had another couple of jacket spuds and lots of cheese - nom nom. REALLY feeling the benefit in my purse.

Better go and rattle my pots and pans. Makes one feel a bit better about getting up when you get paid for it!

Kate

Softstuff

ceridwen wrote: »

SOFTSTUFF
Re the Christmas tree - before now I've just got a suitably attractive big branch I found lying around and propped it up in a corner and hung ornaments from it. I thought it looked pretty good. In a British context - one could drape such a branch with things like ivy. I'm not familiar with Australian plantlife at all - but I'm guessing you'd have something that would act in an equivalent fashion for "draping" purposes...

Thanks Ceridwen. I do like a tree though, so fingers crossed either it holds together, or I can wire it back together! There isn't much green and bushy here tree wise, my husband says you can tell an Australian native tree by the fact it looks dead!

ifonlyitwaseasier

RE Xmas trees - i have a fake one that i rather like, was about £10 from MrT, but then last january when the sales were ending hubby came out of work with 3 for free, one is a mahooosive really real looking one, so whilst i love real ones i am sensible enough to know that when we are on our own place the fake ones will do, (maybe with a pine air freshener hidden on it tho!)

Chickenopolis

smileyt wrote: »

She replied to say she'd just seen the words 'lesbian' and 'poetry' on the back of this book, which she got in a job lot, and thought I would enjoy it, so she'd passed it on to me. We have had a good laugh about it, but I'm still not entirely convinced she wasn't testing the waters!

:rotfl:Don't normally post here but this made me spit my tea out Smileyt- you may get your answer if some "car keys" get posted through your letter box to you !!

SDG31000

Thank you HariboJunkie, NualaBuala and kidcat for the kind thoughts. DH picked Buckbeak's remains up from the vets this morning and DS2 and I buried her in the back garden this afternoon. I resisted the urge to swear at the huge lumps of clay and what seemed to be boulders left over from the last ice age. I'll pick some winter flowering pansies up to plant there when I can and hope my black thumbs don't kill them.
Softstuff I'm sure you will have a wonderful Christmas. Our best ones so far have involved just the four of us and having a calm, relaxing, non panicked day. As long as my lot have their own weight in fudge, choc oranges and turkey they couldn't care less about anything else. Buy yourself a treat or just make some of those cinnamon buns and lapse into a sugar induced haze.
smileyt I'm trying to think of a way of replying to your post that doesn't involve everyone running from the thread in shock or giving everyone the wrong impression about me. As someone who has practiced what can be classed as an "Alternative" lifestyle, I can honestly say that it's the most novel approach I've ever come across if her interests do lean towards S/M. If she is in the lifestyle, then you have nothing to be worried about. A gentle refusal should be enough to make her back off from pursuing it any further. You shouldn't have any car keys or anything else appearing through your letter box. I hope you enjoy your book

Belts in the SDG household need tightening a lot at the moment. DH is owed £700 worth of expenses, but until they hit his bank account he is overdrawn. Last month was an expensive one. The expenses system says they have been approved, but there is no way of telling when they will actually be paid. Thankfully the cupboards and freezers are overflowing with food and DH is off work next week, so no petrol to pay out. We might have to cancel going to see friends in Norwich next week, which is a pity as we haven't seen them for nearly two years. However there are lots of people in much worse situations then we are, so I'm thankful for what we have. At least we know the money is coming at some point.
Hugs and best wishes to everyone (((((((((((hugs)))))))))))

P.S Liver is evil and should be destroyed. My DM is a terrible cook and I shudder at what she can do to a piece of offal. It isn't a pretty sight.

Hardup_Hester

Evening all
I'm quite happy to scare everyone from the thread, lol, I also share an alternative lifestyle & I really don't think you have anything to fear Smiley, the main tenent of the BDSM scene is SSC, this stands for Safe, Sane & Consensual, so if you aren't interested just say so & it shouldn't be a problem. Car keys used to be used at swinging parties, though they are no longer used & as far as I'm aware have never had anything to do with the BDSM scene, they are both alternative lifestyles but the 2 don't necessarily mix.
HTH.
Hester, otherwise known as Madame Scarlett!!