Squeaky spreadsheet diary

Tiglath

How sad am I to get excited that tomorrow the weather is supposed to be good and sunny, and I'll be able to start 2013 by hanging my washing out (which always soothes me). My inner New Year's Eve party animal apparently died a long time ago ...

Tiglath

Felix has gone down in price in Costco, saving us about £4/month. Works out at 46.4p/tin. Sainsburys Basic instant coffee granules are acceptable (we're not coffee snobs). Am waiting to see what the Basics ketchup is like. They sadly didn't have the Pride tinned tomatoes on offer (4 for £1) - I was all ready to stock up. DH has just put in the new shower hose that I bought a while back, and I'm soaking the showerhead in white vinegar to unclog it. Water now coming through the bathroom ceiling in two places - that's not going to get fixed anytime soon. My world is so glamourous it's a wonder how I keep up the pace.

Tiglath

Several hours later and I've found a way to largely give up coffee for New Year. I now find the Basics coffee so vile I physically can't drink it (very rare for me), but DH likes it. As he has a 10 cup a day habit, he's welcome to it. I'll have a pot of tea or glass of water instead.

Tiglath

Happy New Year to all

I could cry at the state of my garden. Haven't touched it in 2 years since my neck problems started, and it's a tangle of brambles, dead bindweed right up into the trees and rotted comfrey. Two fence panels have disappeared, and the wooden bench has collapsed completely. We'd be justified in being given as ASBO, it's so bad.

I've just been out and stacked the chairs and run out the retractable clothes lines. At some point over the next fortnight I will gather what vegetation I can and put it in the compost bin, and get DH to sort new fence panels as it's not fair on our neighbour. We've really got our work cut out with it but I'll start in one corner and work my way round. A lot of it is plastic pots etc which can go to the dump as they won't be used. It needs a minimalist approach before I can think of growing veg there again. At least the greenhouse is still standing with no broken panes.

Tiglath

30 minutes clearing done (it's all my back will cope with in one go). 2 binbags of garden plastic toot made up, 3 big pots of dead things emptied into the garden waste bin + pots put out the front in case anyone wants to take them, and a crate of slimy dead comfrey put in the garden waste bin as well. Might do some more later if I feel up to it. I'll need to dig the comfrey roots out completely at some point.

barnsleylass83

Have just read your diary, what an inspiration you are, am determined to follow your example. Well done you!!!

Tiglath

Another mini-session. I've filled the garden waste bin so can't do any more until they empty it. The dead comfrey is gone but new stuff is sprouting. I was going to dig out the roots but can only find a broken garden fork, so that's that. The biggest problem is going to be huge mounds of wild grass. Still, lots of rotting vegetation and 2 binbags of plastic gone, so not bad for a first attempt. DH is complaining he's cold - well you don't work up much of a sweat in a morning on Facebook, do you

StressedSteph

Hi Tiglath,

Just read your last few posts and you inspired me. I just dashed out and hung out my washing in the sunshine. Its ashamedly the first time I have hung my washing out in years.
You are right, it did feel good and very worthy hanging it out in the sunshine, and imagining the collective yearly cost of the tumble drier. have no clue how expensive a Tumble drier is but its definately ALOt more than sunshine .
Embarrassingly I had to scramble around in the grass trying find the spilt clothes pegs that have been hanging around on the un-used line for years. oops

Will try to get into the habit of putting the washing machine on, on days that are forecast dry so I don't get forced into using the Tumble.

Sounds like you are on a mission with the garden, well done :T. sorry your hubby is caught up in the evils of Facebook. It is such a timewaster.

Keep going hun, it will feel so satisfying when you have tidied up .
Happy New Year xxxx

Tiglath

I stamped my proverbial foot and insisted we did 30 minutes of putting away clean laundry. About a quarter needs to be rewashed because it's been catted, but there was some progress Facebook is fine for the odd pootle, but if you need 3 hours to read your newsfeed you have too many so-called friends.

I do aspire to hang out my laundry but didn't manage it once last year. It gets tumbled, sits in a pile in a basket, a cat or 3 sleep on it, it gets rewashed, it gets tumbled ....

StressedSteph

Tiglath wrote: »

I do aspire to hang out my laundry but didn't manage it once last year. It gets tumbled, sits in a pile in a basket, a cat or 3 sleep on it, it gets rewashed, it gets tumbled ....

Had to laugh at this. I am the same. I am very good at getting the washing done and dried, but then it sits around in baskets waiting to be put away. :o:o