A new 'tougher' thread... and so it continues

smileyt_2

Morning peeps.

Please allow me a quick rant! My kitchen STINKS. Lodger-boy has not done any washing up for three days and in this hot weather it's getting beyond a joke. I am loathe to give in and do it but the smell is revolting. There are chicken bones in the washing-up bowl _pale_ which is quite enough to turn my vegan stomach. He has gone off to his voluntary work for the day and we are going to have words when he gets back ......

Sorry for the rant but I cannot believe how unbelievably grumpy a dirty, smelly kitchen makes me feel. It makes me feel murderous in fact!!!!!!

Wishing you all a clean kitchen and a smell-free day! :rotfl:

Mrs_Chip

Kate - PM'd you re toms - if you still have some

elona

smiley

I would be tempted to put the washing up bowl and all the dirty
dishes and pots in his room and let him cope with the stench!!

Looks like a lovely day again. We finally managed to use the garden table and chairs I bought a couple of months ago and ate outside last night. I made lamb koftas, potato salad, vegetable rice, green salad leaves and (bought):o coleslaw . Everyone cleared their plates and requested lasagne with salad tonight so might start cooking before it gets too hot.

Going to make me and DH boiled egg and toast and watch the base for his potting shed being completed. Going to say it's his 30 th anniversary pressie) think he has forgotten it is on Sunday).

Made out an order for AF last night - loads of tea bags, coffee, stir fry sauces, cereal, cereal bars,cous cous,poppadums,curry paste, tomato paste, lunch box bits and best of all as cans of soft drinks etc are costing a fortune- diet coke in bottles and cans, 7 up. and bottles of lemon iced tea which dds love. Paid around £50 including delivery and saved well over £100 :j
Just hope it gets delivered when dds are not around as they get
a bit sniffy about bargains.

DH is thinking about a new gas fire in living room before winter
as we have been here nearly two years and it is on its last legs.
We found one at a showroom that was around 90% efficient and he nearly ordered it then and there. Fortunately I persuaded him to leave it for a day or two and did a lot of internet searching finding a range of prices from £699 to £457 for the same make and model of fire. My tea deprived brain makes that nearly £250 difference that I would rather have in our pockets than some businesses.

Rambled on for too long so going for brekkie.

Hug to all

fuddle

yeah smiley, get them out the kitchen and clean till your hearts content. Put them in the garden our outside somewhere and let him deal with it when he gets in.

Nicepeach

Guess what??? Yes, it's back again, it's officially the fourth day we've seen the sun in these parts! Monday was okish but Tuesday & yesterday were positively glorious. I'm resisting the urge to do a whole line of the little jumping for joy icon & I'll stick to the exclamation marks!!!

Woke this morning to thick sea fret & the sound of the fog horn booming but the sun is burning it away nicely now & looks like it's going to be another glorious day.

GQ Thanks for the tip about putting covers on slightly damp, I may well give this a go. Also thanks for the info. regarding steeping tights in tea. On a scale of 1-10 of comfiness, how does the new sofa rate?

SS I was going to recommend elasticated waistbands too but KO beat me to it - I take a while to get going in a morning! I was given a useful tip by a colleague when I was pregnant to "expand" waistlines on skirts & trousers to accomodate an early bump & maybe you could "reverse" the tip to try & cope with the falling down pants? Loop an elastic band through the button hole & tie in a knot or loop it back on itself (if that makes sense!). The elastic band then becomes the button hole & you loop it over the button (is this making sense!). Maybe you could try moving the buttons along to make garments smaller (even smaller than you really need) & then use the elastic band to hook over the button. It works best on side & back fasteners & I used it almost all the way through my pregnancy & only bought a couple of pairs of stretchy trousers in bigger sizes at the end. Another thing which may help are wrap dresses? I'm a big fan of dresses as it's just one garment to put on but I know some ladies never/don't like wearing them but it's just a thought as they can be "tighten up" as well as "let out". Not sure I'm making much sense this morning - only had 2 cuppas so far!

Also pleased you got a good result with your mug. I agree about the customer service & the person you've got obviously follows my motto of "under-promise & over-deliver" when dealing with a customer complaint situation.

As I said, it was gorgeous here yesterday & we had another exciting "bee" day. Dad's bees had swarmed into neighbour's garden. Luckily her gardener noticed them in the hedge & came & told Dad so I was duly summoned to assist in collection. So I was probably the ONLY person in these parts putting on extra layers & topping them off with waterproof trousers & a bee smock & gloves - phew, it was sweltering under that lot!

Anyhow, we managed to extract them with minimal damage to her beech hedge & she was really OK about it & even came out to watch us & found it really interesting. Managed to get it into a spare hive, waited for them to settle for a few hours & then transported them a few miles down the road to our permanent location for our hives. Mother VERY unimpressed with Father & wants the hive in the garden OUT. Left them "discussing" it last night...

Another day to please myself today so I'm going to do exactly that as sadly I'm at a funeral tomorrow & working at the weekend. Got my little gardening jobs done yesterday, decided to put strawbs in a little space in the garden in the end & planted herbs in the pots. May give the grass a quick whizz over today or may just sit & watch it grow! It's just nice to have the choice when the weather's being so kind.

Smiley I'd put the whole stinky lot in the bowl & put it all in his room. If he complains, remove all crockery & make him use disposable - what a rude thing to do in someone else's house!

Kind thoughts to any poorly people & anyone having difficulties. Keep Calm & Carry On, try to stay positive & hopefully things will improve.

Hope everyone gets a fair share of the sun & has a good day. x

Softstuff

Smileyt, that sounds yick. Another vote here for "removing it from the environment" whether that means outside or in his room is your call, you shouldn't have to deal with that.

Katieowl and Nicepeach, I'd avoided elasticated waists because I can't have anything tight around the stomach and had been worried about that but I think I might try some on and see if I can cope with it. I think I see what you mean about maternity in reverse Nicepeach and thanks for the tip. I might have a fiddle and see what I can do. I'm also going to try a wrap dress when I'm next shopping, I'd avoided those because of how they sit around my chest, but might try one with a vest under. Thanks very much for the suggestions.

Byatt

Well, I've worn myself out. Two days of feeling hyper and wanting to get as much done as possible whilst feeling good, means I have crashed and burned.

Still I did get a lot done, so glad about that. Have also got to sort out with the dwp the one benefit I get which will stop in September, because the year is up, as they have messed it up and it's reduced so much because they say I have been overpaid when I haven't, I must write a long letter explaining why, and just don't feel up to it. Tired of people not knowing their jobs. It's all a mess and to be honest I predicted this back along (privately to myself), that conscientious people rarely exist it seems anymore and the whole system is chaotic. This is going to be a rough month or so, but at least I have enough in freezer and cupboards to live on, until I get some money for my pet sitting in June.

It's so wearing trying to battle on when your health is poor. I'm siskc of the "standard letters" that don't take into account individuality. Just use scare mongering tactics to get you to respond.

Softstuff, elastic waists seem to be the best bet. They are no always the tight, barely can breathe things they once were. I have a lovely pair of trousers from M£S with a loose elastic waist line. You can also get the ones with elastic at the back, and a "normal" look at the front.

Smiley, my DD is similar, it just doesn't bother them the same way...but a chat about manners and so on is needed for him. I think it's more thoughtlessness than anything else, as it probably doesn't seem a big deal to him, so he just doesn't do it. He must feel like it's home though, he feels so relaxed.

edit: and as a final rant, I hate the central numbers of govt depts, banks etc, where it is impossible to talk to someone who knows you and your case.

stiltwalker

Morning all, more glorious sunshine here. Going to have a quiet day with the kids though. OH gone back to work today and he has his last essay to finish off when he gets back so we might pop out then to keep out of his way. I've got a really sore arm from helping DD around the farm park yesterday, considering joining a proper gym and getting a proper workout plan to support my muscles and joints as she gets bigger - will have to after at least one of my OU courses finishes though as I hardly have time to blow my nose at the moment!

Soft stuff - don't know about your side of the world but there seemed to be loads of maxi dresses last summer so they might be in the charity shops now - not always the most flattering garments but would meet the not tight on the tummy bit and with not being wrap around you wouldn't get escape artists IYKWIM?:o If I remember right you would have no probs taking up the hems if you don't like them so long - it's why I don't wear them, however cool and comfy they look, as I'd forever be tripping myself up bending down to sort the kids!

DD has obviously been watching me do my lips, as before we went out yesterday I slathered both the kids in sun cream then got out my lip balm with sun protection to do their lips and she looked up at me holding her mouth in an O! She's only 3 - bless her, just hope she doesn't think she can have the tinted versions!

Have a good one, all!

fuddle

Aw Byatt. It does feel like we live in a world where no one really cares. Everyone is so busy doing a job that sometimes it feels like they don't actually do their job i.e. looking after the consumer/client/customer etc. I realised long ago that customer service or people who serve do so so their bosses can make oodles of money. I am yet to come across anyone in my day to day life that is bubbly with their job, loves it and wants to really help me out. Too many stresses in our lives though I guess. Too busy, need money, got worries. It's sad isn't it. Hey, I'm generalising again. Ignore me. Some times it does feel a bit like that though. I hope I haven't offended anyone working hard in the service industry! Really sorry.

Byatt

Thanks Fuddle, I used to work for the govt and although I didn't love my job, hated it very often, and it wasn't that long ago, late 90's, but people could get a "real" person, and your name and you got to know customers/clients and it had a personal touch. No-one could hide behind the anonymity of call centres and you were held accountable. There was a job satisfaction too. Then it changed to call centres and to be honest, some people have no conscience and when you don't know who you are talking to or you don't get the same person twice, information and help is lacking to say the least.

Oh well, need to write some letters...

edit, Stiltwalker, such a cute story about your DD. And well done on the OU studying. What courses are you doing? I did an OU course around 95/96 and really enjoyed it. May well do some more in the future if my memory doesn't deteriorate much more!