January - the month tighter than Mr Tighty's hosiery

AnnieO1234

First of all I will say I normally enjoy these live below the line challenge blogs but wow this one is incredibly stomach churning. All gushy and clueless. The prices seem about right to me too, at least round here with markets and grocers. I'm not sure why she didn't buy a small bottle if milk and some cheap teabags or swap them for the veggies she sold. I don't think that was really in the spirit of the challenge either. I mean I'm sure there are places and people that do have a spirit of community and cooperation to share of their meagre portions but I'm fairly certain that isn't the case in the developed world.

Jojo good to hear from you - I'm especially glad to hear you managed a meal from the dark recesses of your cupboards. xxx

candygirl

There was a similarly annoying article, in the M@il last week, where a lawyer was trying to live off £1 a day:mad: Ok when it's just temporary for them:cool:

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

I think they veer between getting away with it by scamming/taking advantage of anyone and everything, and mock saintliness when they turn down the opportunity for free food - as if anybody ever does that when they're desperate.

Butterfly_Brain

Jojo I make these a lot and they are cheap tasty and filling

But I make SC pastry rather than puff pastry because it only works out to 30p if you make your own.

It works with left over curry as well just add potatoes and peas to bulk it out

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/9591/curried-potato-pasties

Total cost for four .......using HM sc pastry £1.01 (25p ish each )

300g potatoes, peeled and cut into small chunks 15p
100g frozen peas 9p
2 tsp oil 10p
1 onion, sliced 10p
1-2 tsp curry paste (any type) I like pataks 49p a tin in B&M 20p
375g pack ready-rolled puff pastry (HM sc 30p)
1 egg, beaten 7p

I don't add lemon juice, coriander or mustard seeds as in the BBC recipe

suki1964

Jojo. I hope that there is a pay day on the horizon very soon

I know how you feel about that blog. I too have been in a very bad place, only mine lasted months and the eating or heating didn't come into it, some weeks it was the choice of food or sanitary protection


Nowadays things aren't so tight although I still have to think about my purchases. I can usually get by on £30 - £40 a week for three adults and that includes cleaning materials and family toiletries.


Is there anyway any of us can help with meal planning , recipes etc to help eek out a budget ? I no longer live your part of the world but I do know there's a good few Asian / Chinese superstores and halal butchers and street markets which are great for bargains. I used to go to the street veg market end of day and scoop up what I could for free even, but even not going to that level there are many a store holder who will sell off bags of stuff for very little. Maybe some inspiration on how to make it into an interesting dish ? I remember in my darkest days I lived on potato soup. Literally soup made with a couple of boiled spuds, an onion and half an oxo cube. Today I made six good sized pasties from 2 small spuds, half a chicken breast and a mankey old leek ( hm pastry made from lard)

im sorry if I sound condiscending and you know all the tricks, I'm just trying to help cos it breaks my heart to read that someone who is doing everything in life to be independent from the state is in this boat

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Not condescending at all, Suki.

There are times when I look in the cupboards and wonder 'what on earth am I going to do now?'. As it is, he came back today with two cheese and ham rolls that were reduced in the supermarket. They were quite stale, but adding the last of the mustard and microwaving them made them edible for a total of 40p. It saved money because buying bread, ham and cheese would have cost a lot more - and I'd be tempted to eat the lot in a huge, melty cheesefest.


The Bloke is being very gentle with me since DD's admission and my letting him know how bad the money situation is, but I'm tired. I'm getting headaches almost every day, I'm sleeping for longer without feeling rested and, tbh, I'm bored and want something to laugh about, but the prospect of actually leaving the house when I don't have to for work, and interact with other people doesn't appeal in the slightest.

Each day, I'm looking in the cupboards and trying to think of something that he'll eat and won't take too much effort/energy to do, as I just want to curl up in a corner. And he still hasn't been paid.


So any suggestions will be gratefully received.

suki1964

You will get by this, not a platitude, but knowing that you will

Post how much you have to spend and how long it has to last and we will help you ovr this blip AND for the future , cheap nutitional meals as low as we can get. flip Ive turned my carnivorous huby into accepting two veggie meals a week so he can still eat chicken and beef 2 or 3 times a week. Just takes a shift of mindset and the want to challenge yourself ( pus a few cooking skills )

CRANKY40

Has she said when she does plan to pay him? Have you had a look on facebook for any community stuff? We have a community group here that provides food bags for people that need them regardless of employment status, income etc. Do you actually have any money to spend and what about the cat? I don't mean eat the cat, I mean do you have cat food?

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

I bought a load of cat food when I was paid in December, so we can continue fattening him up for another fortnight before he gets the paso treatment. Or sooner if he falls off the back if the bed onto our heads tomorrow morning at 5am again.

I'm - gulp - already overdrawn now the rent and council tax has gone out.

He was supposed to have been paid 'in January'. She gave him £30 last Thursday and said she's got a bunch of new customers starting. He's tried talking to her, but he's worried to push it in case she decides to take the work back off him again.

He's got two meetings this week to try and get other work for both of us.



I had a meltdown at him over the weekend. It started as tactfully explaining I'm finding it harder and harder now. He made a light(ish) comment to somebody who made a comment about us not living together as being two lots of rent and he replied 'it's hard enough for us to pay one of them at the moment, I'm not lumbering her with responsibility for me on top of everything else'. By the evening, I just lost the plot with everything that's gone on. He was so worried, he wanted me to take time off work to be looked after by him. I went to work anyway.

The following evening, he'd set up these meetings and got a bit emotional about how it's been affecting me.


Budget is therefore £10 for the next week - fortnight. not because I can afford it, but because I don't want to go any deeper into the overdraft than necessary.


We have bread, rice, mince and a couple more bits of chicken and frozen veg.

CRANKY40

I'm guessing she owes him way more than £30? She's not daft is she? She's got him working for nothing. I wish you lived near me, I'd be happy to share our cupboards not to mention the cat food that two fussy little madams are turning their noses up at!