make do and mend for tougher times

the_cake

Hugs Fuddle, so sorry you've had such a horrible start to your day.... I have every confidence that you will rise to this challenge as you have done so admirably to all the others. Have several cups of tea, and try not to make any hasty decisions. xx, the cake

Smoosh

So, the freezer wasn't just left open, it's actually broken. I opened the fridge this morning and it feels cold, but not as cold as it should. So I opened the freezer and the bread etc. is still soft and the ice has started to melt. I don't know what's wrong with it. OH phoned the maintenance man that our landlady has and he's coming after 5 today, he said it might just be a fuse but OH isn't home and I don't know what to do other than just leave it shut. We can't afford to lose all the food in there, luckily there's hardly any meat though, I'm just praying that if I leave the door shut it'll stay cold enough and that he'll be able to fix it. :mad: To top it all off we have to pay our car insurance today and we're behind on our council tax which needs to be paid in the next 7 days before they start legal proceedings.

Sorry for the rant. I need to get myself together

paidinchickens

PAH :eek::eek: I have heard such terrible stories about the police in these situations but never accusing a child :eek::eek: That's terrible you have all had to endure that treatment and I wouldn't want to walk in your shoes so hat's of to you xx

Went to Mothers on Sunday and had quite a pleasant time which is unusual. We took the boys to make them [STRIKE]suffer[/STRIKE] appreciate the older generation.

We picked loads of apples and elderberries and then we all stood round a big bucket with a fork each taking the elderberries off.

Made crumbles and apple pies yesterday and the elderberries are soaking ready to be turned into wine.

PiC x

born_blonde

Smooch I think if the food still has ice crystals in it you will be fine.
Do you have any fuses at home?
Changing a fuse is easy and if it is just the fuse you could have it up and running in minutes.
I always try something else in the socket first to make sure that is ok, then change the fuse then go for repair or replace.

Mrs_Chip

Morning Everyone

(((((hugs)))))) for all those here with tough time at the mo.

So sorry about the damp Fuddle, do you know where the wet is coming in? I guess it is an outside wall, could it be a blocked gutter, or a bit of damaged pointing? Often fixing it is very simple. Please try to keep calm, don't panic about it - this place is covered in damp patches!! I know it is so frustrating and you feel like upping sticks and going, but it might take you a while from what you say, it would be awful to spend your time there worriting.

I listended to a psychologist on the radio last week speaking about depression. He said that many of us strive to be perfect - perfect homes, perfect parents, perfect at work, and this leads to depression when we feel things are not perfect. He made a lot of sense, I know I struggle with feelings of inperfection in the things I do, but at least I don't worry now about the house around me - OH being a total doofus when it comes to DIY is is all down to me to fix stuff and I just can't do it all. So I have to put some stuff to one side and accept that things are not perfect, never will be, but lots of stuff is good.

It sounds so trite, but the answer from the expert was simple - accept imperfection, stop beating ourselve up for things we are not in control of, and be realistic about what is achievable.

Why are we always so hard on ourselves?

Smoosh

born_blonde wrote: »

Smooch I think if the food still has ice crystals in it you will be fine.
Do you have any fuses at home?
Changing a fuse is easy and if it is just the fuse you could have it up and running in minutes.
I always try something else in the socket first to make sure that is ok, then change the fuse then go for repair or replace.

It is still quite icy, it's mainly just the bready things that have gone soft, although they're not completely defrosted all the way through.
I wouldn't even know Our fridge and freezer are both totally integrated in to the kitchen so I can't see behind it or anything like that. The only thing we have is the switch on the wall, which is still turned on, but it's not a socket, so I can't plug anything else in there. We have a bunch of switches above our front door that are for various sockets and things, my parents said to check them to make sure it wasn't the trip or anything, but they're all still on.
OH just phoned and said I can drive all our food down there and his work are saying we can store it in their freezer I think this is the only time I've been glad he's works for a restaurant.

Popperwell

Molly41 wrote: »

But they are not expensive. The Meatzza only expensive ingredient is mozzarella which you could substitute with grated cheddar cheese - maybe less authentic but still tasty. The fries are just chips with a garlic added 20 p a clove and herbs which you can grow yourself in pots for a few pence. Over the years you can accrue stock items like chilli flakes or leave them out. Recipes can be adapted to suit taste and budgets, halved to suit smaller families or single people or in my case doubled or tripled to feed kids and their friends.

Totally agree Molly...It was quite interesting, good and simple fare that's adaptable. I'll be tuning in again. I would cut out the chili which many cooks/chefs seem to be using more.

prepareathome

Caught up at last.

Fuddle don't do anything rash, look for place but don't grab anything just because a landlord will take you on, you could end up somewhere worse.

We had a big damp patch in hall for years and council who was our ll then would not bother and as youngest had asthma it didn't help him so we ended up getting a builder in and all it was, was some pointing needed doing, we had it done and no more damp - we did send bills to council but of course never got the money back, but we had to have as damp free a place as possible with ys. Builder actually showed me how to do pointing and I have done some since although so far since HA took over they have been out every other year to check if tiles are ok and if pointing needs doing and done repairs.

Smoosh, remember anything that has gone soft, don't refreeze unless you change its state - raw to cooked I mean. Even bread should not be refreezed. If vegetables have defrosted cook them then refreeze same with meat and fish.

I got down stairs to make a cuppa( am amazed I didn't have a headache with not having a cuppa never mind food for over 24hrs) and found hubby had left a note stating back patio had filled so much with water that it had actually come over back door step(which is 6 ins above ground) into kitchen and we have two drains out there and both clear as I checked they were on Sunday. Also in front water had lapped door step but had not come over thank fully.

Outside pavements here are all underwater and as is my front garden, side garden is higher so clear. We are basically lowest stop at bottom of steep hill and so many people have paved over front and back garden that water ends up at mine and with all the rain all year ground is full so no where for it to go. Still raining now

According to local news there has been a lot of people affected by flooding and yet technically there is no where that should be flooded in many miles but this relentless rain has changed that, places that have never been flooded have been and so many have had to be moved out of their homes.

Spoke to friend this morning who told me a friend of hers who has always laughed at her stocking up and preparing is one of those who is out of her home, taken out in middle of night with nothing as she of course didn't have a grab bag ready, a nasty wake up call as to how emergencies can happen out of the blue and can be something never ever considered as this woman lives even further from a river than we do but the drains by them just couldn't cope and a whole street have to be evacuated. Flooding was the last emergency they would ever have expected. Why do people think because they live in a city the elements cannot affect them.

Well going to have a bath, feel I want that rather than a shower.

Have to see if food in sc still edible as put a stew in it yesterday around 6am for tomorrow night and hubby just left it on and ate of tins last night. He had added a bit more fluid though so hopefully we will have it tonight with the suet dumplings I planned to do yesterday. Its weird when you lose a day I keep thinking its Monday.

Hugs and Love to allxxxx

homerdog

Aw Fuddle, sorry about your damp wall and more sorry about your LL, they can be right bar stewards sometimes, my daughter's been waiting for an oven (fitted in type) for over a month, she's got 3 kids and pays an absolute fortune in rent, but since the has the hob and her microwave he's not rushing, just tells her it's coming soon, perhaps she should tell him the rent's coming soon too...
Hope you manage to get it sorted tho and don't have to move, it would be such a shame. But sometimes, as you said, a fresh start is for the best.
Good luck anyway xxx

Popperwell

Hugs to all who have come on this morning with problems...as if there isn't enough to cope with whether it's concerns of a loved one or problems today regarding what this rotten weather is doing/freezers packing up and food being lost.

We know the latter is not as important but it is, in that who amongst us can afford for our store of food to be lost when so much of a limited budget has been invested and the thought of trying to replace it all and possibly pay an expensive repair bill or find the money to replace the item that has failed.

Those who really need help from next year will see even crisis loans being removed. It's just one thing after another...

I hope as the day moves on these problems can be turned around and turn out not as bad as first seem upon waking.