Finally I have a mortgage I can start to pay off!

themadvix

Have just reread the email from Onepoll. I have to send the ID just to receive my payout. It looks as though, regardless of this, they've terminated my account. I'm not impressed.

South_coast

Can't you send them your birth certificate Vix, as that will have your maiden name on?

QueenJess

Did you do something like access one poll through VPN? I think that often comes up as another country and no survey sites allow the use of VPN.

it’s pretty poor to just terminate though and not have a chance to rectify/another chance.

themadvix

SC - they want photo ID, which is in married name, so marriage cert to show the change of name. 

QJ - I've been using Apple's Private Relay - I bet that's what's done it. Thanks - I hadn't thought of that. Ridiculous!

Karmacat

What a pain about one poll!  Seems like a lot of the survey sites are making things so tricky (because of fraudsters?) that actual real life people are getting put off doing it.  

And oh dear, I hope you and your mum continue to test negative!

Suffolk_lass

Sorry to hear about the positive test in proximity to you. What a pain.

Re pastry making, I do mine in big batches in the mixer, using the water measure from the egg-boiling machine to minimise handling and over-wet pastry. We also use slightly more than 50% fat to flour here, with a mix of non-dairy baking fat and lard - 10 large heaped tablespoonfuls with between half and a third pack of each fat. It takes longer to chop it than it does to make the pastry. My old food process or was even better, about 20 seconds to mix and another 4-5 to add the water to bind. I use the (Silverwood or similar) anodised aluminium patty tins that never stick. As long as they are washed correctly, they are the best

themadvix

Morning all,

Thanks SL. Sadly we don't have a stand mixer (no room, I would love one!) and my food processor isn't very big - I do sometimes use it for small batches (I hate rubbing in), but it's already had the motor replaced once, so I'm wary of over exerting it. Lard is a definite no-go here - butter only, thank you! Eek to the aluminium - it may be good for non-stick but it's not supposed to be good for you. (I do use a teflon coated tray mind you, but it's the only teflon thing I still have and will be replaced at some point - I very rarely use it.)

I had a lovely, very complimentary email from my main client last night, which made my day. Working on your own, from home, for yourself, it's rare to get (positive) feedback, so when it does arrive, it's super lovely, especially when it's as nice as that.

Only a tiny bit of work arrived overnight, so I'm expecting it to be pretty quiet between now and New Year. If there's platform jobs, I'll try to snap them up though. I have done a 15 min PA survey and it paid £4.25, so pleased with that. 

Today I need to test myself and, assuming all clear, collect some bits from Olio, head to WR and M&S, visit the zero-waste shop and finish the honeycomb. We're planning on collecting our bit of the Christmas supermarket delivery from the in-laws this evening (will do another test before leaving), and want to take their presents/the present for DH's godparents with us, in case rules change/we test positive, so that they can be delivered/opened at the appropriate time.

DH has his booster later, I have a call with Screenwise Select because they aren't getting our data (but we got the annual £30 bonus ) and I need to pick up the keys for cat-sitting over Christmas.... all being well (who knows what happens if I have to self-isolate?!).

MS things:
* PA surveys
* YG survey
* Clicks done - winnings on HW took me over £5 again, but I'll let it build up a bit before I withdraw
* NV survey
* DH made a £900 OP on Saturday - sorry, just a minor point, not the main topic for this diary! 🤣 We won't be able to use our entire allowance this year (by end of the month), but it's a good chunk off and we might find some more. Mortgage is currently £36107.81 (so you can see that I need to find £107.81 at least!)

Gratitudes:
* Friend who tested positive is fine - a bit of a tight chest and a bit sniffly - mainly cross about Christmas!
* Watched Love Actually last night
* DH cooked, which was really nice as I really couldn't find any motivation

Have a good day all!

Cheery_Daff

Ooh, how lovely to receive a nice compliment 😊😊 and an excellent OP there, well done!

themadvix

Thanks Cheery!

 Well I was Covid free when tested, so have been out to Waitrose, M&S and the zero waste shop. I broke out an ffp2 mask from DH’s stash from a work trip - it did make me feel much better protected, I have to say. Just not very comfortable!

In M&S and WR I spent nearly £70 but only £4 off that was cash - the vouchers came in handy. Zero-waste shop wasn’t so good (another £34), but some of that is presents for DH’s family, so he’ll give me cash for those (as was some of the spend in M&S, so that’ll turn into cash too.) I did however fail to get syrup, which I need for the last batch of honeycomb. When I’ve had this cuppa, I’ll wander down to a local shop to get some and hunt for LFT packs too (we’re onto our last box already!)

Suffolk_lass

In defence of aluminium bakeware (not saucepans), the issue is that acid food reacts with aluminium in its raw state (as in 1950s saucepans and pressure cookers). Anodising coats the aluminium with a chemical layer (such as the weathering of a metal bucket) that neutralises the surface and prevents it reacting with food. As aluminium has much better thermal qualities than stainless steel, your food in bakeware cooks more quickly and is in contact with the surface for less time. Pastry forms a protective layer between the pan and any potentially acid contents. The research about aluminium leeching into food relates to very limited scenarios where food is cooked at very high temperatures (eg in a pressure cooker) and the amount that potentially leeches into food is lower than some antacid remedies contain. I'm not trying to change your mind, but there is a bit more nuance to the discussion. I only boil dishcloths in my old aluminium pressure cooker (that was a second-hand gift). It is a personal choice of course.

Teflon however, the PTFE that makes it, and the PFOA (which stops the Teflon going lumpy) are proven to be harmful, hence they are banned. And DuPont knew this in the 1970s. We only use PTFE in tape form to help make a seal between two water pipes.

Lovely to receive praise in positive feedback. Always a little lift. I would definitely have to find that additional OP.

I was looking at the email from Martin yesterday and there will be some on here who could potentially pay off a small mortgage and pay down a 0% credit card over 35 months because the one-off fee will be less than the interest on their mortgage over the same period.