Get a grip woman!

shangaijimmy

Just catching up. All busy busy and productive in here as usual.

I feel for you on the jab reaction, my sister was completely floored by it as well. Seems so random how bad peoples reactions are, and the only thing I've wondered (purely from the people I know and with no scientific knowledge) is if those that have the yearly flu jabs have built up some form of resistance to vaccines and so are having less of a reaction. Again pure speculation on a topic that I am trying to have no opinion on as its impossible to have an opinion when I can't believe the majority of what gets reported... I'll go back in my box now...

Suffolk_lass

@shangaijimmy - good to "see" you! I do have the flu jab every year but don't usually get a reaction to that.

I do get lots of allergies though to rabbits, cats, pollens, moulds (leaf mould rhinitis), fungi, can't eat mushrooms, quorn or truffles (no hardship) or I get blister-ulcers in my mouth and blue cheese is a rare indulgence as it literally leaves the roof of my mouth raw (like when you eat corn on the cob too hot) if I have more than a spoonful - and I'm allergic to three anti-biotics including penicillin so I know my immune system is very enthusiastic about fighting off foreign invaders. 

My own unscientific thinking is that your body remembers things that disagree with you - when I broke my vertebrae (L1) the orthopaedic surgeon reassured me I was not going to be in a wheelchair but cautioned that I would "probably always have back episodes with extreme pain, because of the nerve damage and muscle memory" - and I have, so I have extrapolated from that; this is why allergic reactions get worse each time and why something that emulates a flu-like invader evokes a flu-like defence, pain-interpretation in the vaccination reaction. 

I shall still be extremely grateful when I go for my number 2 vaccination though, with no hesitation.

My Sis rang Mum's surgery to remind them they were due to give her her second, and they rang back twenty minutes later to say come now! - so she is done now. Just the bone scan (osteoporosis check) and skin cancer surgery (it's the carcinoma not the more severe melanoma) to follow then. Both she and my Sis get these - both sun worshippers, whereas I am just a gardener with a few hours in the sun every now and again, usually in dappled shade.

DiscountDuck

Oh my goodness, you’re getting good value out of how much you’re squeezing into that trailer! It’s silly that councils put limits on tip visits from private households, while bleating about flytipping. Not everyone will be so responsible as you and store it all. We have loads of fly tipping in the countryside round our village and it’s gone up in Covid. It’s a shame for everyone that lives here and would be really easy for the council to reduce. Do you have friends that could take your trailer and do a run in their car too? 

Suffolk_lass

Thanks @DiscountDuck - we can't really ask someone else to take our trailer as the electrics are dodgy (not sure if DH may have run over the switch, or maybe it is just a rubbish one) - I notice it has acquired Duct tape so am going to order a replacement. I have bought a 125L incinerator and we are going to have a little burn of pruning twigs when the wind is in the right direction not to spoil my neighbours' day so we might be nearly there - the nine worst bags have gone now along with the old irrigation system and a load of other plastic carp.

themadvix

From anecdotal evidence the second jab doesn't have the same severity of side effects - that's what I'm hoping is the case for me too!

Suffolk_lass

@themadvix that is what they are saying regarding the Oxford vaccine. Our DS (keyworker) had the Pfizer and had a worse reaction to the second. Nothing too bad that a slow weekend did not fix. 

I understand they are testing an immuno therapy drug with another drug that uncloaks (makes visible) the type of brain tumour that Tessa Jowell (the Labour politician) died from and in one case all trace of the tumour has disappeared. I do hope the fantastic work on vaccines has some positive side effects for other illnesses. In this case the brain tumour is horribly aggressive so it must have been a recent trial and I extrapolate to wonder if the treatment follows similar principles to develop an immune response to despatch the tumour. 

Suffolk_lass

I found a nest of field mice in the greenhouse, they had secreted their nest in a bag of part-used seed compost. It was naive to think that their removal cracked the problem and clearly there are others - my insurance cucumber plant from the garden centre (£1.49) was just a stump in a pot by yesterday. My newly germinated young seedlings from the kitchen windowsill are out there now, but in an unheated propagator with a tall cover.

Lots of bee activity. More at some point (a split planned).

Money wise we have been out twice, once to the garden centre, followed by a drop in to the local pub and a lovely pint, and then on Friday we met DS at the same pub for a late lunch/early supper when he finished early. I had to explain what POETS day was - he was impressed!! - it was so nice to see him happy - the first but of socialising for him in a year as his job meant he kept very clear of any (all of) his friends where rules were being stretched all of last year and this. He seems happy and apparently doing OK at new job, they seem to like him (why wouldn't they?!) and he may get offered more again. 

We need to sort out his broken dishwasher today - it is a write off after water compromised the mother board, according to the repair man (who did manage to identify the problem with the WM and the part is coming this week). Half what we were expecting...

In the dead zone for money I might just update on the annual grocery budget - I plan only to spend on weekly milk bill and possibly the greengrocer next week but otherwise after four months by total spend (against a £3000 + £500 contingency budget) is £953.26 spent. While I have consistently kept under the £200 per month I allow, we are well over on stores, which includes various subscriptions and bulk buys (eg 300 washes of the laundry stuff that is no longer made, from a commercial source).

I need to review nuts I have - pretty sure some are out of date and @Karmacat reminded me they go off... we are not having rancid nuts!

Cheery_Daff

Sorry to hear about your greenhouse mice! Glad you had a nice pub visit though

Karmacat

The thing about nuts isn't intuitive, is it - there they are all "nicely" packed (ie, in plastic!) but it's not as easy as that.  Grocery bill is interesting too - I did check my spends a few years ago, and it worked out to £120 per month, but it was tricky, because I bought other things from supermarkets than simply food.  Now, though, this last year is great for analysis - the only extra thing I've bought from supermarkets that isn't food is a digital food weighing scale, some stamps, and some cards, and all the receipts are in a special folder in my email account, which I love.  I think I might analyse April to April.

Sounds lovely to meet up with your DS *and* to go to the garden centre.  Yay!

Busy_Mee

Your grocery spends are impressive. I definitely need to get a grip of mine again. We have had too many "events" recently and Mr Mee is still doing the shopping.