The Big Adventure

Karmacat

Goldie, the £7 - does it make the jigsaws quite expensive for you when you re-sell them for less than that, is that the issue?

Interesting about bulk buy deals from Amazon - I hadn't thought of that for ordinary household stuff, just the weird stuff like that diatomaceous earth I bought last month!

Goldiegirl

shala_moo wrote: »

and then ours have started to disappear.. *confused*

Hope yours get ripe soon and you haven't got blueberries thieves like I have! :rotfl:

Maybe the birds are taking them? We had a problem with birds nicking our ripe strawberries, but I wouldn't have thought unripe blueberries would be that attractive. I think you need CCTV in the garden to find out what's going on!:rotfl:

Karmacat wrote: »

Goldie, the £7 - does it make the jigsaws quite expensive for you when you re-sell them for less than that, is that the issue?

A new jigsaw will cost around £11.99 to £13.99 in the shops, and similar online, but with postage included.


The batch that I've just bought have only been released in July of this year, and are very popular types of design (nostalgia - an idealised version of the 50's and 60's).


If I'm buying a second hand jigsaw, I'd probably pay between £1.99 to £6.00, depending on condition, release date and design, plus about £3.00 postage - so up to about £9.00. I'd also expect to sell for about the same price.


So the theory is, these new super-duper puzzles should sell at a premium price, hence my aspirational £7.00(plus P&P)


But it doesn't seem to be working - last night's puzzle went at £5.50, which is low, when you consider that I also sold an older puzzle for £5.25 (I'd bought that one second hand)


But we've had the pleasure of doing a run of lovely, very enjoyable puzzles, so that is a plus point, it's just a shame that the resale hasn't been quite as good as I hoped.


I've got another puzzle auction finishing Wednesday and another next weekend - I remain hopeful, as one of the puzzles has 21 watchers, which is a lot for a jigsaw!

greent

On the cake front, Goldie, How much sodium would a 'normal' cake recipe have in it? x

Watty1

Maybe it is the time of year that is affecting jigsaw prices on ebay? Just a thought.

Goldiegirl

greent wrote: »

On the cake front, Goldie, How much sodium would a 'normal' cake recipe have in it? x

Hi gt - I can give you an idea, based on a recipe I used to do a lot, from my trusty Stork recipe book, that I sent away for in the 1970's. I used to do this as a chocolate or coffee cake, but I haven't bothered with flavourings in the example, and the figures I'm using are for salt, rather than sodium


175g stork margarine (2.62g salt)
3 eggs (0.57g salt)
175g sugar (Trace salt)
175g SR flour (1.31g salt)


Plus stork icing (sort of buttercream) which would use 75g Stork, so that's another 1.12g salt


Total salt per cake 5.62g


Per slice (eighth of a cake = 0.70g)


The recommended daily intake of salt for an adult is 6g, but I aim for half of this, preferably less, so 0.70g is a sizeable chunk of my allowance, on something which is not a meal, just an 'extra'.


However, now I'd use unsalted butter, which would bring the figure right down, so it would be acceptable for my diet from time to time.


When I first started this diet, I used to do calculations like this all the time, but now I'm used to it, I just 'know' what's ok and what's not

Watty1 wrote: »

Maybe it is the time of year that is affecting jigsaw prices on ebay? Just a thought.

August is notoriously slow on eBay, what with holidays, and jigsaws are more of a winter activity, so I reckon you are right. But I don't want to stockpile them in my newly de-cluttered house, so I'll just eBay them asap, to keep things clear.


Actually, I had quite a good eBay weekend and ended up with 7 parcels for My Hermes.


We decided to send some at the parcel shop at the local shopping centre and then the rest at the farm shop (they get flustered if you give them a large pile!)


While we were at the shopping centre we had a free M&S coffee each, then remembered that it was Monday, so we got the O2 priority moments Boots meal deal for £1. We shared the wrap as part of our lunch, and the shortbread and the drink will go into our next packed lunch.


Then we walked down to the farm shop and picked some blackberries on the way back, which will go into a cake tomorrow.


I've had one of those moments, which gives a shot in the arm to the focus on 'MFW' lifestyle. We had a mailshot from our cruise travel agent for a cruise in 2017......a cruise round Australia! It's exactly the sort of thing we have been hoping to do, but obviously expensive. A once in a lifetime thing. We've sent away for a brochure, just to look :A

CathT

Hi goldiegirl. Onl my runs I have been on the lookout for blackberries. Gotta love free fruit!

Watty1

"just to look"


yeah ...right :rotfl:

wildesavings

Well I've just spent the best part of the last week reading your diary and I can't wait to retire!!! At 32 and having spent the last 12 years as a SAHM to 3 children I'm only just thinking about beginning to work again. LOL!!! But you've focused me on thinking about how we can get ourselves into the best position so that we can retire at a 'good' age with a liveable income! Lots to think about!!

You seem like a lovely lovely person and I really hope you have a wonderful fulfilling retirement!

Goldiegirl

CathT wrote: »

Hi goldiegirl. Onl my runs I have been on the lookout for blackberries. Gotta love free fruit!

We've utilized our free blackberries by baking this cake this afternoon.


http://www.itv.com/lorraine/food/blackberry-and-ginger-crumble-cake-john-whaite-recipe


I don't know what it tastes like yet, but it looks ok!

Watty1 wrote: »

"just to look"


yeah ...right :rotfl:

:rotfl:If it was left to Mr Goldie, he'd have booked it yesterday! I'm a bit more cautious. Expect a future post to weigh up the pros and cons to come to the right decision for Mr Impetuous and Mrs Cautious :rotfl:

wildesavings wrote: »

Well I've just spent the best part of the last week reading your diary and I can't wait to retire!!! At 32 and having spent the last 12 years as a SAHM to 3 children I'm only just thinking about beginning to work again. LOL!!! But you've focused me on thinking about how we can get ourselves into the best position so that we can retire at a 'good' age with a liveable income! Lots to think about!!

You seem like a lovely lovely person and I really hope you have a wonderful fulfilling retirement!

Hello Wildesavings - I take my hat off to you, reading all of my ramblings! Since I started this diary, it has been an eventful 18 months or so, that's for sure.


I remember being in my early 30's, and feeling the same, that I couldn't wait to retire. At the time, it seemed impossibly long time in the future, but looking back, it's all gone very quickly.


All I would say is, enjoy the now, but prepare for the future too - it's finding the right balance the works for you. You've just reminded me, it's 8 months today since I stopped work, so, it's still early days really, but I have no regrets at all about early retirement


Good luck with your journey - why not start a diary, as it really helps

wildesavings

Hello Wildesavings - I take my hat off to you, reading all of my ramblings! Since I started this diary, it has been an eventful 18 months or so, that's for sure.


I remember being in my early 30's, and feeling the same, that I couldn't wait to retire. At the time, it seemed impossibly long time in the future, but looking back, it's all gone very quickly.


All I would say is, enjoy the now, but prepare for the future too - it's finding the right balance the works for you. You've just reminded me, it's 8 months today since I stopped work, so, it's still early days really, but I have no regrets at all about early retirement


Good luck with your journey - why not start a diary, as it really helps

The children are far too young to be wishing it all away and I've loved the time at home with them. You're right. But one eye on the future helps with the more 'trying' days :rotfl: As for the diary..... I'm seriously toying with the idea but not sure it would be very interesting lol