'supporting each other through really tough times'

jpscloud

I totally agree with GQ fuddle - you will love the course and likely be more successful now than if you'd done it years ago. I did a second degree in my 40s with a view to "getting a career". I found that I was highly advantaged by being mature and not getting distracted by all the drinking and debauchery (chance would have been a fine thing on the latter, mind :cool:).

I had the time of my life and although very poor throughout I was very lucky to have my own place and a small self employed income. It changed my life, not exactly in the way I'd thought it would, but good all the same. I'm still poor but have a good life and count myself very fortunate. I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

In other news, peri-menopause has arrived with a vengeance and I'm seriously considering harbouring Nursie for a while. Can she be lured with malibu? It's all I have in the way of alcohol at the moment. She may also be impressed with the proximity of a fire station and an ambulance station (both within a mile or two, and full of a "few good men"!!

My understairs cupboard is too full to be a suitable residence but I do have a rather handsome garden storage box courtesy of £stretcher, waterproof and very sturdy.

Watching the horsemeat scandal on C4. :eek:

Aria`s_Tail

Oi, Fuddle, of course you can do it. XXX

fuddle

Feeling frustrated this morning. Seriously stepping up my frugal cooking an have decided to make pancakes with fruit drizzled in honey for breakfast. It's dawned on me that eating this for breakfast is far more expensive than giving my kids a bowl of cereal.

How the heck have we got ourselves into a situation where individual ingredients, healthy basic items for good nutrition cost more and ready made/factory made/massly produced food is far cheaper to buy?

84p just for eggs, 3oz milk and flour, cooking fuel, why bother? I can buy a pack of 6 for 49p.

I never thought I would be battling a 'principle' issue regarding preservative filled v fresh based on cost.

Cheapskate

Ah, but you know what's gone into your pancakes, fuddle, that's worth the extra cost. I know times are hard, and I struggle with stuff like this, too, but after the recent food scare (which I think is only the tip of the iceberg BTW) I'm more determined than ever to make what I can, when I can.

I think the days of cheap, "real" food are gone - we all might have to be OS with our food, maybe accepting a more limited diet (going back in time, so to speak) that we can afford and can be assured of its provenance.

Are you ok otherwise, hun? Will chat later.

A xo

savingqueen

Morning all,

Lovely sunny day again, been watching the birds flying from one tree to another.

Thanks for the messages Mrs LW and boult, they mean a lot to me. I feel like this is an important stage in my life, I am on a roll!! I told 2 close friends I have a place on the training, one was very pleased for me, the other said nothing. I am fine though with both responses as I realise why the latter friend said nothing. I have lost lots of friends along life's path as some can't cope with change even if its not them doing the changing. I have also kept friends who will route for you no matter what and made lots of new friends along the way.

Fuddle - you are going to be fine as everyone has said. You are going to have such an amazing adventure! I am similarly starting out on a new adventure and I am a lot older than you at 45. Its been great for me too to read all the positive comments about mature students - thank you all for posting them.

Sending strength, positivity and good old hugs to wcs and cheaps

washing has finished so my cue to get off my derriere
see you all later
sq:)

nuttyp

Morning everyone, hope everyone is ok. Had a visit to the doctors yesterday as ive been worrying all weekend as i found a 'lump' under my arm. It has been agony having to wait. Yesterday i got it checked and i have an abcess, yuck!!! how did that get there???? I went to 4 pharmacies to try and the antobiotics, and none had them. So i have had to wait another 24hrs for them to be got in. Will collect them at lunchtime. While i was there i had the usual checkup, and came away with 2 more prescriptions, they will have to wait until payday on money. Times are very hard at the mo. OH will need petrol this weekend, and we need electric and gas top ups in the meters.

I think i miss calculated how long till payday.

must get sorted, work becons even if im in agony.

fuddle

Yip cheaps, everything hunky dory

I know you're right and agree about the limited diet, or limit meal reportoire (sp?) I know grandma had 7 days of meals only, kept stock rotation rotating and only needed limited ingredients.

I watched the horse meat docu last night and saw the flippant attitude on Iceland boss. I've a real battle between sourcing locally, fresh produce, boycotting community business crushing supermarkets etc, real strong principles that I always back down on because of cost.

Here in lies a challenge to see if I can buy little and often, fresh local ingredients, produce good quality meals and lunch box snacks without buying into ready made, ready flavoured, ready portioned etc.

Just as well I have the luxury of time then eh? Working mums how do you do it!?

[Deleted User]

Ouch NUTTY poor you!!! I hope the antibiotics work really quickly, that must be so uncomfortable for you. I have worked in a chemists shop and know many of them haven't the space to carry all drugs that are available, and if it is something that has a short shelf life or is not the run of the mill thing usually prescribed that is probably why they had to order it in for you.

FUDDLE I find the way to make home made things affordable is to tweak the original recipe to make two lots of whatever it is for the price of one! with pancakes I would just add in some extra milk and flour and until it is batter consistency, make them slightly smaller than usual by using a smaller ladel to put the mix in the pan. The extra ingredients won't make a substantial difference to the look or taste of the finished product and you can then freeze the extra ones for breakfast another day. If you fill them with homemade jam it makes a very economical breakfast, Hope that's useful, Cheers Lyn xxx.

The other thing you could do to stretch the original recipe would be to use bun tins and make popovers (yorkie puds to you and me!) and fill them with jam or fruit, think that would make them more substantial than pancakes and go further that way without costing you any extra. It's quite filling so you'd need less of a portion! Lyn x.

elona

MrsL

You beat me to the reply about pancakes. I agree completely;)

Fuddle

You can't compare your own pancakes made with milk, proper flour and eggs ( even without the fruit and honey) to a pack of six for 49 pence. Even if you think of the price of a certain brand heavily advertised on telly - that is nearer to a pound just on its own.

I think we all tend to do ourselves a disservice when we compare what we make to shop bought and should be comparing our food to a good few levels higher than basic. I am not suggesting we are masterchefs or anything but we all care about what we cook and what goes into the finished product.

DH visited a manufacturers who made pizzas about ten years ago
and was dumfoundered when he realised they made a pizza for a few pence and sold it for much more and also when he told me how they were manufactured made me determined to start
making my own.

What surprised me even more than the "meat" in a certain brand of lasagne was when I looked at the ingredients and the cheese sauce and topping was not even real cheese!

Fuddle apart from knowing that real milk and eggs went into the pancakes you also know if there was any salt , sugar, colourings, additives added and what kind of fat was used. You did a great job and should be proud of yourself not discouraged.

I am going down to local butcher later and getting more meat for meals for the week. It is great to find food with flavour that does not shrink dramatically on cooking.

I even passed up on yellow stickered meat the other day at the supermarket and only bought clearly identifiable chicken pieces reduced to a quarter of the price and slammed into our freezer for a curry or fahitas.

Hug to all

Mrs_Veg_Plot

Nuttyp what a worry for you over the weekend. Glad things turned out as they did. the antibiotics should soon do the trick.

I went to the GP this morning as I an still having back pain from the car accident in October. The painkillers have been increased for the next three weeks and I am being refereed for a MRI scan.

I agree with MrsLW with regard to the homemade breakfasts, at least you know that there are no nasties in them. I am making the Hairy Dieters crumpets with warmed spiced berries, yogurt and honey for breakfast tomorrow. I will however be making my own crumpets in a large batch and will be freezing the excess for future breakfasts. I have tried quite a few of their diet meals so far and have managed to stretch them and freeze the extra. We had the crispy chicken last night. I usually only buy a whole chicken but bought chicken breasts from Aldi. They were quite thick so I bashed them out a bit and was able to then cut them in half and hey presto 8 chicken breasts for the price of 4. I actually made the extra into nuggets using the crumb coating . These will be used as nuggets of in wraps with salad for lunches. You really have to be savvy these days with shopping and meal planning these days. I was talking to OH about purchasing all of our meat from a butcher but he is not keen on the idea of not having meat every night. When I talked him through our meal plans he had not realised that in the grand scheme of things we only have meat 5 nights a week and sometimes only 4. I mentioned including offal but was met with a definite no. One of the blogs I look at had a recipie for HM faggots recently. I am going to try these as I am sure that if he does not see the liver going in he will not know it is in there. It is a bit like sneaking veg into meals when the girls were little :rotfl:.