make do and mend for tougher times

SpikyHedgehog

Popperwell wrote: »

Some great posts on here and mainly positive...

I had no "Get Up and Go" today and sometimes have periods where all I want to do/can do is sleep and lay down. I have wondered if I could have a form of ME...sometimes the littlest of tasks tire me out.

I can also have hot sweats and need to change my clothes.

Next time I fill one of those dreaded forms in I'll add this to the information.

Mum used to think when I filled them in I sounded as though it was too much all the ailments I had but as my original CAB advisor said..."You would make it sound as though you can cope, you do but you play it down" Don't! Give your worst case scenario and how bad you can be and what your worst days are like. I manage and adapt to my situation but until I feel I have no choice I don't want carers coming in and doing for me(I hated what I saw Mum go through)and that worries me that they'll be forced on me.

It's ntoo complicated to go through the comparison sites to look for the best deal on electric and gas. I think I am going to go direct debit and sign up with NPower.

If I do DD(carry on using as little gas and electric as I am)they give me a different tariff, they will save me £100 annually. £94 for the Tariff and they think if I use the energy as I am at present I will be paying £65(or less for both)I was paying quarterly for British Gas and NPower...

So that's approx £874 annually...anyone think that's quite good?

Mum and myself used to pool our money together and just pay any bill that came in but since she passed away I am £150 a week worse off. And that's before the changes come in that will affect many of us and I lose my help by having to use Mum's savings...
My new electric bill for the qaurter was approx £65(approx £22 per month)and we were in credit so I haven't had to find the money this time and I have approx £60 towards the next bill...

The killer might be the gas bill but I only put it on for 20 minutes or so keep the water warm for washing(if I don't use it)it stays hot for ages...and in this weather I have avoided using the CH(and in Winter I will try and wear lots of warm clothing so I am warm even if the house is not...

I eat mainly cold meals to avoid the electric oven being used and now am using the slow cooker and will the combi microwave and when I find the instructions again I can use the halogen oven...

Oh well...Whoever you are with it costs money...I can look at things again later on in the year or when it comes up for renewal again...

Don't think I can do much better...:(:mad:

Electric wise I only use a couple of DAB radio's, a couple of pc's and one light on the landing to light all of upstairs if it becomes dark, I think that is approx 70p a day which isn't bad but on the other hand that involves switching things off all the time and using the electric as little as possible.

It's been a better day weatherwise...I don't need to go out so I'll wait until tomorrow perhaps...

Found some great internet music stations that have no presenters and play music I don't hear that often on British radio so left my Laptop running overnight and slept with lovely Easy listening/melodic music in the background. How Mum would have loved that!

So as I am not interested in the Olympics I can avoid that and listen to these stations...they hardly use any of the useage allowance and overnight I can use as much as I like:)

Shelly Crow the recipe for that tart will probably be online and the programme might be watchable again via Channel 4's 4OD service...

I really cut back on unnecessary energy use last year after Errant Husband left, but still made sure the house was warm enough when we were home & up, & that I could feed the boys hot food. I'm not sure if you have looked at the preparing for winter thread (or if I've said that before), but there's ideas over there for ways to keep the warmth in the house & keep the bills down.

kidcat wrote: »

Havent had time to fully catch up but just wanted to share that DS8 was assessed today by the lady who diagnosed him, she was shocked at his responses to her questions and has said that she wants to give evidence on our behalf on any case we take up over his teacher. She says he has been damaged and will be hard for him to recover and that under no circumstances can he go back to her
Its such a relief to know that we werent imagining it, but on the other hand it was hard to hear his words.

Planning day out tomorrow to treat the kids and generally enjoy ourselves.

Will pop back later when I have caught up.

Its so good to know someone is supporting you &DS, but very sad it hadn't happened sooner.

fuddle

bonnie_bumpkins wrote: »

I am assuming this is a comment on your meal plan and not on your appearance :cool:

:rotfl: that made me chuckle. I think pops would chuckle too

Sorry Popperwell I couldn't resist, please forgive me I am very childish despite being officially 'middle-aged' (so my teenagers tell me) but I think 'middle-aged' is always 5 years ahead of my current age. Well it has been for the last 15 years anyway...

saint fuddle I hope all is calm in your house now x :rotfl: I wasn't so saintly, what with the thoughts that were running through my head :mad: :eek: :rotfl:

sammy-kaye I hope you get the payment problem sorted very soon, keep strong x

I had good news today... I got the job of assistant manager at my CS :j one day's paid to start plus holiday cover for my manager, and with the other 2 volunteer days I'll build up experience and hopefullysoon be able to cover other shops with paid sickness/holiday cover. Ginnyknit thank you for all your advice it has been invaluable for me gaining confidence and experience to get this far :A

Well done! that's such good news. Think we need some on here at the moment. *chink (if I drank!)

Speaking of which. I don't drink alcohol any more. It's connected to my mother's alcohol dependence issues but after today I quite fancy just a little tipple :eek: (i do like a Baileys at Christmas, and think that's ok as my Grandma liked he occasional sherry ) Sat here with a cup of tea and still wound up. Neighbour offered demi john a few days ago and I said I would think about it. Is the alcohol you produce at home as strong as shop bought wine, for instance?

Also running through my head is this. My Grandma was a legend. I twitter on about her all the time on here, I know. Thing is Grandma was mam's mam. How is it possible for my mam to be so far removed from what I remember of my Grandma? All I can think of is that I look upon my Grandma as just that, a dear old lady with plenty of stories to tell. She would be 85 now if she was alive. Maybe growing up my grandma was tough on her kids and why Mam is the way she is and resists the frugality as it was hard years. My mam is 56.

Also, came home to good news. An email with an offer for a bed base for my DD from freecycle :j:j:j I've had the advert on there for weeks now and had given up hope. It won't fit in DH's car but he's going to get one of his van drivers to sort it out for me. The van driver has replied to DH tonight saying he would do it for a bacon sarnie. I think the deal is on

Off to go read about foraging

GreyQueen

prepareathome wrote: »

Sammy kaye a good few years ago my council tax payment vanished - I was then paying by standing order, they will not let you do this now - and even though I could prove via my bank I had paid them, they told me they didn't have it, it never arrived so I had to repay. Then a kind person in bank told me most council, HA and big businesses that take payments from many people to pay accounts with them have one big holding account where money goes if for whatever reason the correct ref number is not with the payment amount ( even banks have this as payments can turn up sans correct ref so not end up in your account) and told me to demand the council check this. I did and while I was on the phone after muttering and grumbling the guy I was speaking to checked and found my payment - I knew date, amount and time I had made it ( not sure if time is needed) - but they were able to match up those with a payment for that exact amount paid as and when I said and so they then put it on to my account.

So tomorrow I would be asking them to check their holding accounts giving the the date and amounts and seeing if they can find your payments as unless someone daft person has paid your money into someone else's account, which happens more than any company would like you to think, or someone is committing theft that is where your money should be.......

If not turn up at their offices with local paper or tv company in tow that should do the trick - fingers crossed.

Hugs and Love

SK, the above is bang on the nail. In my LA they have something called the "suspension account" which is where stray payments lurk until their destination account (council tax, housing rent account) is identified. Your council should have someone who is Chief Cashier and it should be (s)he who is chasing down the missing cash. Please don't let this ride; raise heaven, hell, highwater, MP, media, whatever it takes.

Because of working in admin-y type roles, I admit I am beyond paranoid about getting receipts and noting that I spoke to X person on Y day/time. Stuff does go missing.

It saved me a lot of money once on a housing benefit claim when they said I couldn't be paid from X date but only from Y date (much less money) because I hadn't given them this particular piece of info by a certain date.

I immediately asked them to review this decision because I had the receipt which proved that the info was in their office and I won and they had to pay up. That one piece of paper saved me over £100.

bonnie_bumpkins wrote: »

I had good news today... I got the job of assistant manager at my CS :j one day's paid to start plus holiday cover for my manager, and with the other 2 volunteer days I'll build up experience and hopefullysoon be able to cover other shops with paid sickness/holiday cover. Ginnyknit thank you for all your advice it has been invaluable for me gaining confidence and experience to get this far :A

:j:j:j:j Yayyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!! Go, bonnie, go bonnie, go! :j

Fantastic news! Brilliant, well done! You deserve it!

:beer::beer::beer::beer::beer::beer:

Mardatha, I lived in Scotland in the 1980s and was very active in the anti-poll tax movement in the big city I lived in. Marched in the streets and all sorts. One of my flatmates ended up with a broken leg on one demo. Got chased back down in Englandshire for unpaid Scottish poll tax (paid up as couldn't subject my parents to bailiffs coming to their home, where I was staying at the time).

Was only talking to an English student earlier this month and she couldn't believe that they ever charged students. But we have no money! she said incredulously. Neither did we, I retorted, and we had to march in the streets and do all sorts to see the back of it! You're reaping the benefits of what we did!

Dad also made his English council take him to court for the Poll Tax and attended (with the cheque in his pocket, but he insisted on having his say in court). The magistrate wasn't in disagreement, either. I believe it was the beginning of the end of the last Conservative government........here's hoping for a re-run. Barstewards.

And breathe.........:o

Have had a lovely day harvesting the potatoes with my parents' assistance (the GQ motto being wear the oldies up first). Only kidding. Mum was sitting in the shade podding broad beans as I'd set her to picking for them to take home but I wanted the pods left on the lottie so I can compost them. The Dalek composter is full to the brim with beanpods and the others will have to loiter in a pile on the ground until it has room.

I'm thinking I might take a shovel and bucket down to the common where some ponies are tethered to harvest what the Americans call a horse-apple to add to the Dalek. Did this once before and the fresh dung seemed to turbo-charge the rotting process. By heck, there is so much to learn about this gardening malarkey, it never stops.

Sorry to mention it in front of the northern contigent but it has been in the mid-twenties all day in blazing sunshine with a cloudless blue sky. Have been drinking litres and litres of water and wearing a wide-brimmed sunhat as am a redhead despite my rapidly-whitening mane.

Smileyt, I wish I was like your friend who goes nut-brown in the sun, as I've always had to lurk in the shade and wear long sleeves and trousers in the hottest of weather. Was once with a pal in someone's garden once summer afternoon and she announced that she could see me burning. Duh, that's redheads for you! And some blondes of course.


Oooff, more tea needed. I shall go back tomorrow to tidy up the tattie patch. Have a good evening, everyone.

kidcat

Just lost a long post so will have to try again from memory

Bonnie - huge congrats

Fuddle - I was about to post that I hoped you were having a calming glass of wine but obviously not, I always find a nice candle is quite relaxing. Home made wine is potent, my grandad brewed his own for years and I remember the number of visitors that had to leave the car and taxi home after one glass!!


Sammy - I am sure GQ can offer more in depth advice but basically they need to do an account reconciliation, unfortunately most council employee who work in the account dept have little or no accounting experience so its not something they will have much experience of. It can be a laborious task which will make them unwilling if they think they can get away with it, however if you can narrow the time frame down it will help loads and then of course you simply need to find a staff member who knows how to do it. Good luck

Spiky and everyone else who sent good wishes thank you. My neighbour has just raced to M&$ for uniform as they have an offer on, she offered to take me with her, I pointed out not worth me buying much as I have no idea what will be happening with either boy, and DD has loads of stuff already Money saving to the max in this house then

Took kids to a farm today, cheated and bought sandwiches locally for £8 before we left and took drinks from home. LUnch there would have cost upwards of £35 so its a saving sort of, and I have discovered that if there is too much stress or rush before a day out it sets both DS up for a bad day. The whole getting everything together and getting out of house is stressful enough without adding to the mix and it seemed to work. There were no major meltdowns and everyone got to see what they wanted to see.

AM attempting an approved food order but keeps getting sidetracked and losing my basket - maybe its just not to be.

Had big household paperwork day yesterday, buying car insurance, sorting energy bills etc. Have swapped energy provider and done a deal for broadband which gives me it free for six months - didnt have any intention of moving anyway (having no BB during changeover is living hell with teenagers) so it was a win.

OH sulking because we had day out without him, but besides it being less stressful am mindful that this weather wont hold forever so am grabbinhg it while I can.

Mardatha - come here, we have plenty of the yellow stuff and the kids playhouse is vacant at night, you are welcome to board! (Now if only we lived in London we could be making a pretty penny!)

Popperwell

smileyt wrote: »

Pops - So I've just ordered soya chunks and loads of different seeds for sprouting, plus some coffee sachets for when friends come round - I don't drink coffee so a jar would be a waste as it would go off before it all got used. Go and have a browse and see what you can find. They get new stuff in every weekday. Delivery is steep (£5.25 to UK mainland, extra if you're ordering over 25kg of stuff) but the savings outweigh the delivery. And until Friday delivery is free.

It saves lots of food being thrown out and waste but how awful it's come to this in the 21st century, I never thought aboutcoffee going off...I've probably used coffee past it's date before. Those sachets are handy and I can get two or three drinks out of one sachet!

I'll be honest I don't give it a thought whether it's instant or otherwise.;)

Popperwell

bonnie_bumpkins wrote: »

I am assuming this is a comment on your meal plan and not on your appearance :cool:

Sorry Popperwell I couldn't resist, please forgive me I am very childish despite being officially 'middle-aged' (so my teenagers tell me) but I think 'middle-aged' is always 5 years ahead of my current age. Well it has been for the last 15 years anyway...

I had good news today... I got the job of assistant manager at my CS :j one day's paid to start plus holiday cover for my manager, and with the other 2 volunteer days I'll build up experience and hopefullysoon be able to cover other shops with paid sickness/holiday cover.

I like it and that's the way I am/was...Mum was mischievious and full of fun even at the hospital and nursing home...I miss that. I feel as though I am in my teens but sadly only approx ten years from being a pensioner:(

Time will pass by very quickly...I try to live for the day...

Great news about your job, boy, don't we need some...:beer:

Popperwell

I can only pay the rent by Paypoint or DD these days. They closed down the rent offices...

Next year we have the carry on where all our benefits will be paid to us and we have to pay everything to the councils directly rather than the DWP or whoever paying the HB etc...to the council on our behalf. More work...

And that idea as mentioned in that article posted earlier today is a worry for everyone. I doubt things will improve whoever is voted in. Our only hope was the House of Lords who actually for all they get criticised, often talk a lot of sense and are more in touch with the population than the House of Commons...

Mum wasn't very political and really had never had much reason to be but she could not understand why and what the Government were doing and used to say even a week or two before she passed away how can one man man cause so much harm to so many people? And as he is not short of money himself whay is doing it?

SpikyHedgehog

sammy_kaye18 wrote: »

Everyone seems to be having a horrible time lately so do you mind if I join in?

Thankfully, me and Owen both have jobs - ok he hates his with a passion but Im lucky I like my little job but we have just been well and truly done over by the council.

I had a letter on Hollys Birthday of all days telling me they were going to file seeking possession of our house as I was £690 in arrears with my rent so thankfully I had card references etc for two transactions each of £330 which they managed to trace up so I figured that was £660 and I would pay the £30 this week to bring myself up to date. Well I went to get a balance before I paid ot be told I still owed £390. My council cant now find the payment for May and because I paid in the office I didnt get a receipt and I paid cash so no proof I paid it! so I have to repay it!

told them yeah its like I have that money in my back pocket at all times and then my council tax payment went missing aswell so thats £107 so I have 28 days to pay off the rent or substancially reduce it and if I dont pay the council tax by the 25th I cant pay in installments anymore and the remaining council tax is £800+

The complete total of what we owe by then will be £390 + £90 + 107 = £587

My housing officer is away this week (23 - 30) and I and Owen get paid on the 31st

So I've been sat listing a few bits on ebay to see if I can get some money together

Owen is paid on the 31st so Im going to pay £360 then and I will pay £180 (£80 of that is money I got for my birthday) and the £100 was what I should have spare this month!

so I will only have £47 to find so Im hoping my stuff sells

To top that rubbish news off - my mum cant afford to feed herself despite working full time so my sister who is 7 months pregnant is feeding her every night, my auntie is struggling as a single mum so she asked my mum to move in with her, my father in law lost his job, my in laws are arguing, owens not talking to his nephew and my insomnia and panic attacks are getting worse and the last week I have had 3/4hrs sleep a night...........which explains why I feel practically brain dead now and the doctor refuses to put me on any form of medication because I have two young children........

Surely things are going to get easier for everyone soon

Sammy-kaye, I'm so cross on your behalf! I'm posting before I've read further so I don't know what others have said...

You've paid that money to the council & they've lost it - I know you can't prove to them they've had it, so they're not willing to look for it right now.

That money is either at the council (in their bank ac) but they don't know who from.

Or someone at the council has stolen it as people have paid it in as cash. In which case I don't suppose you're the only people to be told PAY NOW!

I'd be shouting for help in getting it sorted - you cannot afford to pay twice! Have you asked your councillor for help? Or asked the police? I'm serious about the police - if you'd paid your window cleaner cash & he said ' oy, you never paid, I'm gonna sort you out!', you'd have no problems contacting the police. Your money has been stolen either effectively or deliberatly.

Good luck! (& get a cheque book to pay in future) xx

Pips_Mum

Well done Popperwell!

I must have just been lucky with AF as I've never had anything break in transit. It always seems to be well wrapped and I end up with enough packaging for Ebaying after their delivery!

Popperwell

Fuddle,
I don't drink much but with the price of wine I usualy have to go for larger and cider and even then look for the offers.

I did make my own wine in the past and it was as good/better thsn the stuff in the shops...easy to make and one the initially equipment was purchased and empty bottle sourced...quite a lot cheaper. If I can stay here and am not in a small place with hardly any room perhaps I'll give it a try again.