22 Foxhole East

f0xh0les

Just told DH  the LD's took Amersham in the by-election.

He is now in a very good mood, as he put on a tenner at 17/1.  Not a bad return - he knew something was up when Raab and Gove turned up 2 days before polling - so they knew they were in trouble, and thought sending those goons up would... somehow.. erm ...  make it ... better??   So he stuck a bet on.  

Had a lovely day volunteering, got a bunch of flowers from work, dh made me some perfume when he could not get the one I like and decided to try and make it himself - not the same, but still nice!   DS3 gave me a delphinium, DH gave me a salvia and a thuringia and a big map of the county - it was what I asked for, very excited by that, and some surprise cookie cutters.

DS1 and DS2 ignored the day.

DS4 has spent all his money (but not on whisky and beer) so I gave him a plant to give me -gypsophila.  This time next week he will be wheeling his suitcase out the door for his first lads' weekend away - well, school journey in a boys' dorm.  Same difference.

Then he gets two days off on Tues and Wed in lieu of the weekend (!) and Friday is his induction day into big school. Which means  he only gets one day at school next week, think of the work hours lost!  Maybe I should send them a letter?

Lots of new things going on, lots of excitement.  They are growing up.

f0xh0les

Got most of DS4s bag packed today - has to have long sleeves and long trousers because of the ticks (hair raising blue screaming emoji needed) in the forest.  The weather forecast appears to be thunderstorms for the whole weekend - how atmospheric!   Oh well, they will enjoy it whatever happens and if I can lie in wait, and snipe a cheap accommodation deal at the yha down the road from where they are staying, we can head back over summer. 

DS1 handed over the waterproof coats and trousers he has been hiding in his room that now fit DS4. 

Found out that I can get to Norn Iron, but would have to stay there 10 days before traveling down South -or I would have to isolate for 14 days when I got to in-laws,  both ideas  are frankly horrific -  10 days with step gran or 14 days with in-laws.  I would rather deal with the guilt trips.   Will wait and see what July brings.

Did get some nice photos of us all at the local arboretum so will print  a couple out in big, and send them over instead.

Did some great tidying today, found the boogie boards and kites, found out that I can get rid of a pair of wellies and a pair of snow boots that DS4 has outgrown to the c/shop. All the other wellies (size 2/3/4/5/6/7& 8 ) can go into the shed until needed.  Now on a shelf in there nice and neat and not in my house.  I am going to attack the shed this weekend if the weather holds here.

Tidied  all the kitchen worktops! All neat and tidy and clean. Happy me.   Feeling a little bit calmer now as well, spent most of the day pottering by the back door or outside the back door, going to have a shandy and watch the football now.

DS2 has a virtual induction day for his college subjects tomorrow, and I am at work, so I hope he behaves himself and settles down for it. 

The Child Benefit people have written to tell me they will be taking DS1 off the claim from September, and if DS2 is not in college he will come off too. They can send out those letters in good time, but they can't figure out the underpayment of the  child tax from the numbers they have from their own agency until - well, who knows?? June - October is their time frame.  Cannot wait until last year's claim is finalized and I get absolutely nothing from them  ever again on a regular basis.  On that note - it looks like strike action is pending again.

kerri_gt

Oh dear to the strike action 

I agree, both options across the sea sound frankly horrific, at least you can deal with the guilt trip from a distance at home.

Must be something in the air, I've just tidied the kitchen this evening. Toasted sandwich maker that's been lingering for months cleaned and away (the cleaning reminded me why i don't have it out often, but it's got sentimental value so i don't want a different one...yes silly an appliance can have sentimental value. My DA bought it for us years ago for xmas, she used to make me and my cousin toasted sandwiches when i stayed with them during a particularly tough time as a kid. The fact she remembers doing that and then thought to buy me one means a lot).
Also I'm seeing if the birds have any inclination towards inactive yeast. I bought some when OH briefly went vegan...it's ok but imo the one thing it's missing is...cheese. I can't bring myself to throw it away, but nor do i use it so finger crossed our feathered friends might appreciate it and i can put the rest out.

Right....more football time.

in_need_of_direction

Not sure of routes etc but travel to ni from within the cta no longer requires isolation.  Not sure if that helps

f0xh0les

You can travel to NI from UK without, but you can't go South of the border if you have been in Eng/Scot/Walesland within 10 days of arrival in NI or you have to totally self isolate for 14 days and do tests.     After the 11th day you can go up and down as much as you like.  If you live in NI you don't count and can travel where you like.

Stena have even put on an extra Holyhead to Belfast route with 2 boats daily as Ireland (South) do not want UK visitors. so they are dropping them in Belfast and letting them make their own arrangements to go South under the cover of darkness.

f0xh0les

Well hello!

Turns out the only day DS4 is in school next week is in fact SPORTS DAY!  All  years are kept separate.  All parents must remain 2m apart, there will be no seating, no refreshments, and no toilets. You are not  allowed to come within 2m of the children and stand only in the allowed spaces.  One ticket has been allocated for each family.  I hope it pours down for 48 hours and gets cancelled.    Sorry! It was funny while they were small, but this year I will give it a swerve.  I am probably going to go to hell... but It will be worth it.

This morning I was good, stuck a load in the laundry, emptied soil into 4 planters ready for my little sprouty seeds when they get a bit bigger, swept up outside, watered stuff, had breakfast and coffee, cashed out p/a (well over £10 made this week) so now  I have  a £45 budget until payday (Thurs).  have just rescanned some books to go to the charity shop, and 18 of them have scanned and I can make £7- £8 so will box them up and send them on this week.  Roasted a massive tray of veg for easy weekday lunches, read the 15 page school email end of term  newsletter that says the school day will change from the new term - starting at 8.35 and ending at 2.55, no longer will there be a 2-weekly rolling timetable (stupid stupid idea anyway) and will go to a one week timetable.

Decluttered all the coats, hats, gloves, and cloth bags hanging on my coat racks (I have 2, one by the front door (8 hooks), one in the long  dark narrow corridor to the kitchen (15 hooks)) and put all the bits of football kit into the right bags. So now it all looks very neat and tidy.  I think I might make a skinny vertical hook board extension for the bike helmets - honestly we seem to have thousands and I am not sure they all still fit - will have to have a trying-on session soon.   Plus I know there is at least one in the shed, probably more. I suspect they breed (nods wisely and changes the subject).

I now have 4 bags ready to go to the c/s and will have a totally clear hall floor very very soon.

I am going to make mango lassi overnight oats after supper tonight (no room in the fridge until tonight's veg comes out) supper will be a sesame miso broth with gyoza , broccoli, carrots, celery, corn, and bamboo shoots with a very small amount of rice noodles.  It will use up all sorts of bits and things that are not enough for a meal by themselves, but uses up a lot of stuff wasting space in the fridge.  Plus it is masses of veg and very tasty, and it is  quick and I can have it all ready in the time it takes a footballer to eat his half time orange quarters. There, that is the plan. 

DS4 has arrived at the seaside and is probably having a whale of a time. There are a few photos on the school tw1tter page.  

This month has seemed very spendy, but I think I have just shunted a heck of a lot into savings and the mortgage o/p at the start of the month, and so feel really poor for the last 2 weeks.  I suppose I should be proud of myself for being so focussed, but for once I am feeling constrained by the frugality.  Maybe because we will be going away next month and I know it is going to be spend-iferous unless they get the govt go-ahead to reopen the self catering kitchens at the hostel.

Happy Saturday, and well done, you have made it to the weekend.

f0xh0les

Numbers!!!

I have overpaid a massive (for me) £563.04 to the mortgage today, which combined with DH's regular payment takes us down another £1k, so we are now at  £82,999.99

We paid £123.58 in interest last month ....which is £4.11 a day ....... 5p a day less than the month before.

That is progress.  I want to be under £4 a day asap.  Every £1k off is about a  4-5p a day drop.

All the bills went out, and my extra mortgage overpayment, and I have a total budget of  £300 for July - plus the child benefit of £250 half way through the month.  With DS4s school uniform and 2 sets of PE kit

We are off to Whitby for 5 days.  We have 6 school days left until the holidays.

I am so angry with this government I do not have the words to tell you, and I am surprised that a lot of the countries on the 'Green List' do not turn round and say 'No way are you coming over here with your dodgy variants'

It feels like the govt thinks if you can go to the pub, and have a week on a foreign beach,everyone will forget they let people die due to their absolute refusal to listen to the warnings from Italy, because the virus would obviously know if someone is British and would not treat them the same as 'Europeans'.   Grrrrr.

mark55man

Couldn't agree with you more.  Also treating the virus as if it was something that could be managed by political theory rather than science and medicine and then repeating the error at every opportunity
  

VintageHistorian

The sad thing is though f0xh0les, a lot of people WILL forget it.

badmemory

Well not even being double vaxed & escpecially not their politically based relaxation of restrictions will stop me wearing a mask whilst out & about.  I really don't like wearing a mask either.  The cases are still going up here, I don't like being expected to pretend I'm stupid & go along with them.