EH - Essex > Hebrides...the next step of the adventure?

milann

You’re making the most of your time off…..take care not to do too much 👍

EssexHebridean

I get bored sitting - it’s fine if I’m reading, or doing something like crochet, but I ideally need mind and hands occupied!

today is off to a good start with a definite fainter positive line, some lovely sunshine and a nice walk in said sunshine. Also blueberry porridge again. MrEH has also just presented me with a cup of tea which is always welcome. 

The tomato seeds got sown yesterday and are now on the windowsill under a plastic bag. Beans are now going like the clappers - from 10 just showing yesterday morning  we now have at least half a dozen that appear to be turning into triffids, plus another 8 showing at a more normal pace. Nasturtiums are also increasing in number almost as we watch! I’ll probably go and re fork-over the area we dug at the weekend later on too just to try to break the soil,up a little more - it really needs to be much finer than it currently is. I’ve rescued my old strawberry planter from where it was buried under a fuchsia and a rather lively geranium too - I’m planning to see if I can get some herbs growing in that at some stage so may repot one of my parsleys into it as a starter -neither are doing much in their current pots so probably need a change of compost. 

Not too many jobs planned for today - I’ve got the mince out to make a pot of bolognese sauce but I might just start that off by frying the mince and onions then throw everything into the SC to do overnight. It works well like that and you get a decent depth of flavour from the longer cooking. Tea tonight will be the planned duck stir fry and the duck is out and defrosting. The chicken made two more meal portions plus we had lunch from it yesterday so I’m happy enough with that. One portion is in the freezer now, the other was eaten for tea last night.

Banking checked - the CC payment is now showing against the account but there is a small discrepancy between the balance showing and what it looks like it should be - I know there’s one transaction shortly to go on but that’s not showing in pending at the moment - it may be that, but I will be keeping an eye on it regardless. VSP transfers done - both my personal accounts rounded to the nearest £5. (Earlier in the month I tend to round to the nearest £1) We have also just agreed that when I pull the money out of the long term savings ready to fund the new Regular Savers I will take out an additional lump which will be transferred to a different long term account which is now paying substantially better interest. I need to add that to my list of financial jobs to do. 

One thing I do want to do at some stage today is to make a start in writing a return to fitness plan to be implemented - I can’t do anything that would be classed as “cardio” for 10 - 14 days yet, but will definitely be getting back to the gym as soon as I can - I’ll reduce weights for the first few visits back to ease back in. I really want to get back to running though and this seems like a great opportunity to just go back to the start of Couch to 5k again. I know it works, and I need a properly gentle route back both because of the Covid and because of the previous injury. Cycling once I’m back to the office will just be very gentle, not pushing it at all for the first week at least. It’s frustrating to have seen the work I’ve put in since Christmas just drifting away, but the plus point is that it will build back again faster than if ai was starting from scratch.

Surveys - I cashed out Prolific yesterday evening so that was just over £10 to the gym neutral fund. Also done a couple of small OnePoll surveys this morning. Nothing new on either Prolific or Ipsos though as yet today. 

EssexHebridean

Brrr it’s turned chilly today here - it was glorious in the sunshine this morning but now it’s clouded over it’s definitely a bit nippy. 

Parsley plants have been repotted - one into the top of my strawberry planter (which might become a herb planter this year!) and the other (which is actually two plants together) just into a fresh pot with new compost. One of those turned out to have a slug nursery round it’s roots too so we may have solved the mystery of why it didn’t want to do much! I’ve also given my rosemary a top up with fresh compost - much needed, and a good soaking with water, and repotted a random stray nasturtium (I think) that was growing in the pot I wanted to use for the second parsley. The balcony is starting to look pretty good now - 

Another dishcloth has been finished, and the second panel for my blanket - 4 more to do I think, then the sewing together/borders. Debating about going on with another dishcloth now - I want to do a stripey one next I think mixing my plain cream cotton and the rather brilliant multi-coloured one I’ve just been using. It’ll make the more expensive coloured one last better. Mum’s coveting one made with that too I think! I’ve also got a hat pattern I want to have a go at as well though - decisions! Having said that they use different hook sizes so I could get both on the go at once, couldn’t I! 

Now though, I’m going to do some yoga I think - I’ve found a new Yoga With Adriene series to work through and am aiming to get back to doing it regularly again. Once that’s done it’ll undoubtedly be time for another cuppa and an episode of The Simpler Life. 

foxgloves

Slugs usually hoovered up here by the local bird population but there is one in the greenhouse atm which I have been unable to find & it will doubtless require a stealth trip down there after dark at some point with a torch. It managed a tour of the bench last night, chomping a little bit here & there as it went......a basil seedling, half a leaf off 3 others, a decent mouthful of larkspur seedlings & most of a fancy baby cosmos before getting its robbing gob round a small lettuce. It will be put on the ground feeder for our ever-hungry blackbirds when I do find it, I can tell you that much!
F

savingholmes

Gardening stuff all sounds good as do your post covid exercise plans. Just don't over-do it

EssexHebridean

Morning all! 

Honestly Foxgloves - slugs are the bane of our lives here, along with their better houses snails comrades, that is! We briefly had a toad a few years ago - he was handy, but sadly he must have moved on for some reason (not lack of food I can assure you!). We use crushed eggshells as a deterrent which are better than nothing - but far from perfect. Once we have more stuff growing MrEH will pop out nightly armed with his trusty head torch and ensure that any he finds get given “flying lessons” out across the grass as far as he can get them! 

SH - I’m definitely not overdoing it, I promise! I’m determined to minimise the risk of long covid as much as possible so it really will be a gradual ease back in! 

Been out for our walk this morning - a little over three miles today so approaching usual sort of distance again but still at a slower pace than previous. This mornings tests were still positive but only just - I really do have hopes that we might both see a negative tomorrow. I’ve messaged MrBoss to see if he is happy for me to return if tomorrow’s IS negative, or if he’d be happier with me leaving it until after the weekend. Washing up is done, and we had a debate last night about whether we could get away without running the dishwasher for an additional day - the decision was yes so I may need to do some shoogling of stuff about in there later to get todays dishes & mugs in. WM might run through tonight, but I may yet be able to get an extra day out if that too - amazing how much difference not having fitness kit to wash makes! 

I’ve had some more of the blueberries in my porridge again this morning - the remainder will go into a double batch of porridge tomorrow probably as MrEH has eaten his last banana for breakfast this morning. I cooked a double batch of bolognese sauce yesterday as planned (although on the hob rather than in the SC) - in fact it made an extra slightly smaller portion too so I’ll use that as a base for a sort-of-chilli at some stage by adding some chilli powder or Tabasco and kidney beans. That and the second regular portion has gone in the freezer - the remaining one will be eaten tonight. 

Banks checked and all OK - CC still needs an eye kept though as something still doesn’t quite add up. 

A few small OnePoll surveys done this morning but everything else is all quiet at the moment. I’ll keep checking back. 

Plans for the rest of today involve more crochet, probably making a start on some financial wrangling re new accounts, some yoga, and at least an hour on the voluntary role this evening after a very productive online meeting last night. 😁👍🏼

Cheery_Daff

Sounds like a cheerful day planned. Glad you ere able to get out for a longer walk! Fingers crossed for a negative soon...

foxgloves

I always use crushed eggshells around our climbing beans, @EssexHebridean. I need to start collecting eggshells earlier, I think, as the beans with the most generous rings around them fare better than those with more stingy amounts of eggshell. Our worst garden pest isn't molluscs, it's sparrows! I have to cover most crops while young as they will simply get shredded to bits by naughty beaks. They don't even eat them - just peck them & spit the bits out!.
F

EssexHebridean

Bu99er - just lost my post - that’ll teach me to get distracted doing other things rather than just getting on with the first thing! 

Foxgloves thankfully our birds are pretty well behaved on the whole. We have a couple of regular wood pigeons who tip the water over from time to time, but that’s mostly about as bad as it gets. They’re forgiven because they do at least hoover up the seed the picky blue tits spit out! I’m also reminded I need to get on and get some eggshells crushed - I have a plastic tub full of nice dry ones just waiting to be pulverised! 

Cheery MrEH finally got a negative this morning, I’m still very VERY faintly positive, but so faint it’s almost nothing, maybe tomorrow might be negative day for me?, 🤞🏼

Normal (for the moment) stuff here so far today - a just-over 3 mile walk (at a slightly brisker pace, too), washing up done and DW emptied. Some general tidying done and a matter with my Mum on the phone. MrBoss confirmed yesterday that he’s not wanting me back in to the office until Tuesday although with today being positive anyway that would have been decided for me. Recycling taken out, and a nice arrival in the post - thanks to the sender, I’m looking forward to reading that! 😁

Banks checked - that discrepancy on the CC is still there and with no pending items it’s a bit of an odd one - I’ll continue keeping an eye unless it’s still there at statement time. Ahhh but hang on - no - I’ve released, it’s the Lundy related items that went onto the card after I’d cleared it back before we went - of course it was! 🤦🏻‍♀️ Easy dealt with then - I’ll just transfer the money from our “joint fun” account. For goodness sake - so much wondering and it was such a simple thing! It would have been taken automatically at the beginning of next month anyway but I’d rather manually square things away. 

I got my new regular saver opened yesterday, the “feeder” eSaver account opened too, and have requested the money from the long term savings as well as although technically we won’t need it quite yet (we have funds for the first month’s regular saver payment from elsewhere) the bulk of it will still be earning more interest when I shift it to the Marcus so I’d sooner get that done. I’ll still need to set up the required standing order to the Reg Saver, and remind MrEH to open his, too. 

We made one load of bath water do for both of us last night to save on showers this morning - but I have a feeling we’re pretty close to the point now where there’s little difference in the cost if showers are kept swift. Could probably do with a proper evaluation at some stage but with the extra cost of night rate power now there is definitely less of a saving than there used to be. Heating that immersion from cold is now definitely a pricier option than it was! When it WOULD be useful still though is if we were going to turn off the immersion the next day anyway - so the night before going away, for example, so that’s one to bear in mind. And very definitely if I’m going to have a bath just because ai fancy one, MrEH making use of the water when I’m done is now a given! 

Oh - and I finished a rather pretty self designed dishcloth, and have now begun on a hat! Exciting - this will be the first actual “thing to wear” I’ve crocheted so I hope it goes Ok! 

Blueberries got used up in porridge this morning, grapes were finished as pudding last night, and I’ve remembered to get bacon out of the freezer for tonight’s omelette which should also use up the remaining mushrooms. I’m doing chickpea and butternut korma for tomorrow and will also throw in the last of the broccoli to that, and need to Google kohlrabi recipes as we have one coming our way in the veg box at the weekend! 

Cheery_Daff

Ooh, do let us see a picture of your hat when it's done, what fun!