Preparing for Winter V

Auntycaz

@Uniscots97 Hope you are feeling better now. Glad the weather has warmed up a bit.I hope @siclist and his wife are ok he doesn't seem to have posted for quite a while.

-taff

leftatthetrafficlights said:

Actually it was 21st December in the UK @21.47.....

You know, I thought it was, but then I was checking and whoever i checked got it wrong. To be honest, i didn't even know it could be on different days...

Laura_Elsewhere

Shortest day was definitely Wed 21st December this year - I know that because I don't normally swim at my local quarry on a Wednesday but went along this week for 8am, setting off in pitch-dark but coming home in daylight...   a score of us 'swam-in' the sunrise...  

(I'm not even the slightest bit Pagan, but it felt like a nice thing to do - bringing-in the sun with laughter and cake and joy and swimming)

PipneyJane

Uniscots97 said:

I hadn't realised it had been so quiet. I'm afraid after being really ill for nearly a month (chest infection, cracked a rib from coughing and nearly ended up in hospital) I put the heating on constantly. I did wear layers too but I'm dreading the bill but my health has to come first as I have a lung condition and that bout of illness really scared me. I was glad of home made soup (prepped) and lots of blankets and lots of sleep. 

Sorry to hear you’d been so ill, @Uniscots97.  Hope your recovery is smooth and uneventful.

Working from home, I’ve been watching the smart meter like a hawk.  Our house’s “resting temperature” is 10C.  Normally the central heating never comes on during the day.  On a couple of days last week, it was on almost all the time, just to bring the temperature up to that low.  (I was surprised when I heard it kick in.). I think the worst day, we clocked up £12.80.

- Pip

Novice_investor101

Survived the cold snap by putting the heating on during the day whilst I worked from home. I tried to keep it off but it was uncomfortable for me & I saw my 5 month old puppy shivering one morning early on. Heating was on when needed since that moment. Kept to 16c in the day & up to 18c for the evening. On the coldest days, the heating struggled to warm the house quickly but I decided against turning up the flow temp in the boiler. Cost £5-£6 a day. Glad it’s warmed up since. 

No power cuts but I have candles & matches on my mantle piece anyway & torches in places around the house, esp downstairs as they get used when taking the dog out in the dark. All my camping gear is in one cupboard, so the stoves & gas are easy to find. I’ve a gas hob, so shouldn’t need those anyway. 

I felt a little joy knowing that the hours of daylight are now slowly getting longer. I’m not a fan of Winter, I very much prefer the warmth & daylight of Spring and Summer. 

Uniscots97

PipneyJane said:

Uniscots97 said:

I hadn't realised it had been so quiet. I'm afraid after being really ill for nearly a month (chest infection, cracked a rib from coughing and nearly ended up in hospital) I put the heating on constantly. I did wear layers too but I'm dreading the bill but my health has to come first as I have a lung condition and that bout of illness really scared me. I was glad of home made soup (prepped) and lots of blankets and lots of sleep. 

Sorry to hear you’d been so ill, @Uniscots97.  Hope your recovery is smooth and uneventful.

Working from home, I’ve been watching the smart meter like a hawk.  Our house’s “resting temperature” is 10C.  Normally the central heating never comes on during the day.  On a couple of days last week, it was on almost all the time, just to bring the temperature up to that low.  (I was surprised when I heard it kick in.). I think the worst day, we clocked up £12.80.

- Pip

Thanks Pip it's been a slow recovery. Just when I think I'm getting somewhere I'm a few steps back. I even wore a fabric mask during the coldest weather when I had to go out only because I found it helped my asthma by not wheezing so much. 

I think my anxiety would be through the roof with a smart meter. 

-taff

I make myself a snood thing nearly every year and cover the bottom half of my face with it in cold weather. Definitely helps with the breathing.

leftatthetrafficlights

Merry christmas to all who celebrate it! 🎄 

MrsCD

Rather chilly here today in the North East with a light wind that goes right through you, but it is bright and sunny for now. The BBC weather app says 4C at midday but feels like -1C. Our heating is still not on very high, as our old night storage heaters aren't that good. We bought a couple of plug in oil heaters, the type with fins, and they heat the living room in about half an hour if it gets too cold. We can always put another jumper or cardi on!

Wednesday2000

It is not too chilly here today but I have put the heating on for an hour to dry the laundry. I can't wait for Spring/warmer weather when I can dry clothes outside on the line again. I have noticed the loss of our tumble dryer, especially with drying bedding and thick jumpers. I am going to make sure I only buy thinner fabrics whenever I buy duvet covers and jumpers now. Two of my husband's thick fisherman style jumpers were taking so long to dry that I donated them to a charity shop as they were annoying me so much!