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Preparing for Winter V
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Batch-cooking for the freezer today so we'll have homemade ready-meals, hot at the ping of the microwave...
I'm trying - slowly! but I'll get there - to organise my week so for instance I have a bath and wash my hair on the same day as I do lots of handwashing of woollens so I can use the heated towel-rail for drying them, which in turn warms the bathroom for me, and then the extractor fan helps deal with all the steam, rather than doing bits all through the week - when we moved in the flat had a bit of mould which we've slowly tackled with white vinegar, and a 'rechargeable' moisture-retention-granule pack beside the worst bit, so I'm wary of steaming up the place too much in the months when the windows are closed all day!
And similarly, trying to use the oven a lot on one or two days, rather than putting it on just to bake a few rolls for lunchtime each day or whatever - so ready-meals in the freezer are very useful, even with our tiny fridge-freezer. We have one drawer set aside for them and can squeeze 24 re-used food-trays in there!2025 remaining: 37 coupons from 66:
January (29): winter boots, green trainers, canvas swimming-shoes (15); t-shirt x2 (8); 3m cotton twill (6);
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2025 second-hand acquisitions (no coupons): None thus far
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2025 needlework- *Reverse-couponing*:11 coupons :
January: teddybear-lined velvet jacket (11) & hat (0); velvet sleep-mask (0);14 -
I know I am telling the experts but just a reminder to ensure all tech etc that can be charged up is in case of any powercuts these coming hours - we are Amber Alert but even those under Yellow Alert could still be affected never mind those with a Red Alert.
Check you know where your emergency lighting is (candles. lanterns - are they fully charged, do they need new batteries); Radios: Emergency heating if you have any or are all your blankets etc ready to use and easy to find in the dark? Hob kettles if you have gas or gas stove if you have one to heat water for warm drinks and washing - all, ok?
If things do get bad and water companies affected, do you have bin bags/carrier bags and cat litter for emergency toilets?
Manual can openers and cans that can be eaten cold.
Bottles of water for drinking - if there are any problems at water treatment plants, we might still have water but it might not be drinkable.
My DH is standing here telling me as he has done every time, I sort out preps for emergencies, that nothing is going to happen and so none of my preps will be needed - this is because he forgets the times, we have been hit by some kind of emergency and we were only slightly inconvenienced by it as I had the preps in place. That includes the times he has been out in car far from home and been stranded due to weather or accident (not him) and so he had all the things to keep him going in back of car).
So, if you have to travel these next 24hrs or so make sure you have all you need inside the car with you to ensure you can stay warm, hydrated and not hungry plus power banks to charge your phone and say E-reader or tablet - good ways to pass the time and no need for other lighting to use it. Obviously lighting, shovel and usual emergency things in the car - mind going blank with him going on at moment, he can be a bit Pompas at times but after over 40 years I just let that wash over me as he is a great DH in most ways - whole family calls him the grumpy old man, children and grands always winding him up over it. He is not happy as he has to nip to chemist to pick me up tablets as started the inner ear problem, I have every 4/5 years and so get very dizzy, hence me sending this so late in the day but shops still open if anyone is short of anything or time to dig anything out of shed etc - unlikely I know as most if not all of you will be as prepared as me, if not more so am sure, for this storm.
Stay safe everyone, be warm and snug inside while the weather does what it may outside. x
Need to get back to getting finances under control now kin kid at uni as savings are zilch
Fashion on a ration coupon 2021 - 21 left12 -
Always good to have somebody jogging iur memories for these emergency preparations. All the candles in the world are useless if we,ve forgotten to buy matches to light them with , or have a torch with a dead battery,!11
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Primrose said:Always good to have somebody jogging iur memories for these emergency preparations. All the candles in the world are useless if we,ve forgotten to buy matches to light them with , or have a torch with a dead battery,!Need to get back to getting finances under control now kin kid at uni as savings are zilch
Fashion on a ration coupon 2021 - 21 left10 -
Our lights started to flicker earlier but luckily have now stopped. I’ve plugged the iPad in to charge and then I’ll do my phone just to be on the safe side.It’s really blowing outside and is supposed to do so until tomorrow afternoon. It’s to be expected living by the sea though.
Keep warm and well guys
June NSD 8/156 -
my gutters are getting their annual hoover out today, I try and time it for after the majority of the leaves from the neighbours trees have gone, but today's is perfect, lol . after the winds we have had here there's like one lone leaf hanging on to a branch.
preventative maintenance,today's mood is brought to you by coffee, lack of sleep and idiots.
Living on my memories, making new ones.
declutter 104/2020
November GC £96.09/£100.
December GC £00.00/£1009 -
cornishchick said:my gutters are getting their annual hoover out today, I try and time it for after the majority of the leaves from the neighbours trees have gone, but today's is perfect, lol . after the winds we have had here there's like one lone leaf hanging on to a branch.
preventative maintenance,Need to get back to getting finances under control now kin kid at uni as savings are zilch
Fashion on a ration coupon 2021 - 21 left6 -
prepareathome said:I know I am telling the experts but just a reminder to ensure all tech etc that can be charged up is in case of any powercuts these coming hours - we are Amber Alert but even those under Yellow Alert could still be affected never mind those with a Red Alert.
Check you know where your emergency lighting is (candles. lanterns - are they fully charged, do they need new batteries); Radios: Emergency heating if you have any or are all your blankets etc ready to use and easy to find in the dark? Hob kettles if you have gas or gas stove if you have one to heat water for warm drinks and washing - all, ok?
If things do get bad and water companies affected, do you have bin bags/carrier bags and cat litter for emergency toilets?
Manual can openers and cans that can be eaten cold.
Bottles of water for drinking - if there are any problems at water treatment plants, we might still have water but it might not be drinkable.
My DH is standing here telling me as he has done every time, I sort out preps for emergencies, that nothing is going to happen and so none of my preps will be needed - this is because he forgets the times, we have been hit by some kind of emergency and we were only slightly inconvenienced by it as I had the preps in place. That includes the times he has been out in car far from home and been stranded due to weather or accident (not him) and so he had all the things to keep him going in back of car).
So, if you have to travel these next 24hrs or so make sure you have all you need inside the car with you to ensure you can stay warm, hydrated and not hungry plus power banks to charge your phone and say E-reader or tablet - good ways to pass the time and no need for other lighting to use it. Obviously lighting, shovel and usual emergency things in the car - mind going blank with him going on at moment, he can be a bit Pompas at times but after over 40 years I just let that wash over me as he is a great DH in most ways - whole family calls him the grumpy old man, children and grands always winding him up over it. He is not happy as he has to nip to chemist to pick me up tablets as started the inner ear problem, I have every 4/5 years and so get very dizzy, hence me sending this so late in the day but shops still open if anyone is short of anything or time to dig anything out of shed etc - unlikely I know as most if not all of you will be as prepared as me, if not more so am sure, for this storm.
Stay safe everyone, be warm and snug inside while the weather does what it may outside. x
I also have a power bank that i keep charged up. It will recharge my mobile from empty to full, twice.
There's nothing wrong with being prepared.7 -
It’s weather like this that makes me glad I’m a camper! Fully stocked up on candles, matches, fuel for my gas & alcohol camping stoves (i do have a gas hob too), torches, & always have a stash of tinned food. Multiple power banks all kept fully charged & lots of warm hats, gloves & coats.If it gets really cold, then a campfire in the garden will be a fun way to warm up for one night.Stay warm everyone. Don’t think my power went out yesterday but I ended up sleeping out in my tiny campervan last night due to the M62 looking far too risky to drive back home from visiting family.I was snug as a bug in my sleeping bag & blankets. All the essentials were there ready to be used.16
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Hope everyone is okay!We had a couple of roof tiles slip which a nice roofer has offered to fix this afternoon for £60. Normally I would never even consider saying yes when someone knocks on the door offering a fix as he's doing a job in the street but this is an exceptional time - most houses in our village have small amount of damage so booking a roofer in would be a challenge. Apparently, it was the worst storm since 2005. Winds were over 70mph here, but they were blowing over the top of the hill, rather than up from the valley like normal which I think has meant more damage.We've also had two windows leaking - they're UPVC but I think date from the '80s or early '90s so they'll need replacing rather than repairing (I fixed one with a blob of silicone last year at the recommendation of the window fitter we're going to have replace them).Luckily our power stayed on, but half our town was without electric for about 24 hours. That was an eye-opener - I've never really experienced power cuts as an adult. I often think about getting an induction hob but that's put me right off now! Like @No@Novice_investor101 above we are campers so have a couple of stoves etc but still I think a gas cooker and gas fire would make all the difference in a power cut. Embarrassingly, my battery lanterns and a couple of torches were in the back of the loft, so I've put them, and the stove-top kettle in a drawer in the dining room along with some batteries, the head torch, a lighter, matches and some candles. I'll pop a small torch in the sock drawer too so we have one upstairs.It also dawned on me that although I listen to the radio for hours every day via the smart speakers we don't actually have a real radio, so I've ordered a AA battery powered one to go in the drawer too. I think I'd struggle with silence in a power cut!I'll also start making sure we have a power-bank charged up for phones. We have a couple but they just go in a drawer and go flat so we need to keep on top of that.9
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