Get a grip woman!

shangaijimmy

I feel your turmoil over clutter and stuff. Mrs SJ & me are polar opposites. I come from a clutterless upbringing so much so that Mrs SJ says that my folks house is 'clinical'. Mrs SJ upbringing is from a very cluttered house, and her Dad is definitely a hoarder. I often state how I can't relax at home when its bad, and if I'm overly tired mentally from work (some of my tasks can be emotionally exhausting). I hate the clutter and excess stuff and Mrs SJ couldn't care at all. I suppose our mediation is that I've refused to consider moving to a bigger house as we'd only fill it with carp that we don't need!! I've tried so often to get Mrs SJ on board with a declutter but she shows no interest. So I declutter all my stuff and the kids stuff and leave Mrs SJ's alone!!

Suffolk_lass

We started to discuss the clutter and storage options and ended up in different rooms. As I say Mars and Venus. I have a collection of things you put in drawers so you can see what clothes you have, all sitting in the Amazing basket, with a load of clear plastic storage boxes.

Neither of us go up into our two lofts (a legacy of when this was two cottages) - one is not accessible because of a wardrobe. The other is more accessible but has relied on DS shoving stuff up there. I really want to organise that and put in a proper access and ladder (and floor). Currently if I stand on a chair on the washstand, I can get my head up there but no way could I safely get up there. The whole space is an inverted V with no vertical walls so needs some planning to make it useful, but I would like things like Christmas wrappings and decorations up there (and the current boxes don't fit through the access hole).

One good job done yesterday - I bought two large heavy-duty groundsheets in the summer from Aldo's and they are now up in front of the cart lodge (door-like), instead of the wind-torn blue one. Unfortunately, all the "stuff" is still in there. Some of it is dependent on my intention to rebuild our pig-shed. I have various bits of MDF that will be part of the storage in my workshop part. There is also all the bike stuff and camping gear. Loads of it. Wrong time to sell it but it needs to be reduced or culled. Even I see that. The cart-lodge is a very attractive, slightly useless double one. The roof is oriented sideways if we wanted solar and the pillars have brick bases that mean they are too narrow for our cars. I can actually get the small hatchback in but it is tight and the advice from the estate agent was not to (apparently they look better empty). It isn't empty. There are several motorcycles in there...

The existing pig-shed building is full now (as of the weekend, all the wooden furniture is in there). It has a mixture of garden furniture and equipment, with a long shelving unit and my catering fridge. It is constructed of single skin block work, rendered and roofed, two rooms and sits on a damaged concrete platform. The door frame is a bodge and the pig-feeder means it isn't weather-tight and as we found, rodents like it in the winter. It is on the deeds as a permanent structure so could be more (an annexe, potentially?) ..With the shortage of builders and materials we postponed its replacement. It will be a bit bigger and three areas - one each for equipment and outdoor furniture and a larger, lighter space for my workshop. Personally I think it needs a fourth area - a beekeeping equipment area that could be like a covered lean-to. It won't be rebuilt in the winter as any replacement pad needs to be warm enough to set. I wonder if I could sneak a second floor for my workshop, so the footprint is not as big as the house?

Discussions continue...

Suffolk_lass

Well, following our book club meet I have ordered the books for this coming month and emptied my Amazing basket so two lots of drawer organisers and some plastic storage crates are on their way, together with my paperbacks.

It is service and MOT day for the motorhome today so I need to get dressed really...

Suffolk_lass

Well the Motorhome passed her MOT but with some advisory items so we have agreed she will go on holiday to the garage and we will SORN her for a few months so they can keep her to one side and fit her in, in between other jobs. This works for both of us and they suggested it is great for them to have these filler in jobs, and will keep the cost down a bit.

There is one major concern (rust in the suspension) that could be worse than it looks and several bits of preventive corrosion related things to happen. Oh, and a brake cable that sits in a plastic sleeve has started to deteriorate so that will also be replaced. We don't expect it to be cheap but it will give her 3-4 years of trouble free life. On a van that is 18 this is worth the investment. We paid £11k for her but have been offered £20k so a bit of wiggle space in there.

Most of all, she is lots of fun

themadvix

Suffolk_lass said:

Most of all, she is lots of fun

And that's what it's all about!

Suffolk_lass

Phew! Having depleted the emergency fund pot to pay for the replacement oil tank DH has now had the message that his RS is about to mature. I might buy £250 of PB as it won't be taken this month. He squeaked in with 1 2.75% one last year, just inside the drop to 1%. I need to check if there is still a 3.5% one with Skipton, and whether he is eligible as it was for existing customers and I don't think he has an account in his name (since the mortgage finished).

In the meantime I need to shop. We have only got cabbage in the way of fridge veg and we need greater variety. There is half a pot of yogurt and a stub of cheese but that is all.

Suffolk_lass

My shopping got a little extravagant as I wasn't able to finalise the click and collect I did it in person after meeting my friend for coffee (and a toasted teacake for a late breakfast in my case, very nice and what a treat!). Unfortunately my favourite DOCG Proseco was on offer so I did the only sensible thing and bought a case (of 6). At least 3 will be used at our Christmas preparations sessions (excuses, moi?!)

I ordered my turkey at the butchers' and a kilo of sliced cooked ham that will be a present for DS.

I stocked up on a few things like bread and biscuits because they had them, and bought some of those reconstituted potato snacks in tubes because Walker's crisps have a manufacturing problem and I daresay there will be a rush when they reappear. 

While I was there I picked up a few desserts (packs of two own brand creme caramels for £1 and similar for profiteroles). Very indulgent and it isn't as though I need to get fatter  - I asked if it was panettone season yet (my local Morries has in-store baked chocolate chip panettone for about a month a year from mid November) and they are due next week (shh, don't tell everyone). They are a third the price of the boxed ones and make awesome trifle. Just saying...

My word, it's a good job we have had a quiet month socially as the treats and entertainment budget took a hammering!

Most importantly, I stocked up on carrots (2 kilos for 70p), cauliflower (99p) and calabrese (broccoli 79p). Aubergines (49p each) and lots of limes, lemons and oranges, and replenished my freezer supply of butter and my fridge supply of greek-style yogurt (£1.55/kilo)

Suffolk_lass

I took a trip to Sainsbugs big store (20 minutes away) in order to buy a replacement blender. The top of mine is broken and it is impossible to get a replacement. It still works (it is at least 40 years old) and I use the coffee grinder bit but I am going to be using it in front of others so I have built in buying a new one. I resisted all the magic, nutri, pretty things and bought a simple beaker thing for £23. Unfortunately I then went round the store... I bought six packs of Christmas cards (they don't ever have any religious images here as DH refuses to use them - it took me several years to use up the ones I had bought before I knew this) and then I wandered into the food bit. I do like their own brand stuff.

I did pick up a bag of satsumas for £1, two large jars of the particular premium mango chutney we like and a bag of dried cat food. I compared lots of prices and did not indulge but I did buy one pack of sweet shortcrust pastry, to try. I normally make my own. I also got some free from (DF in this case) mince pies to save myself some aggravation later this week - I am providing mulled wine and a nibble for the first Christmas preparation session. This one won't raise much money but it will be fun.

The bill was over £50 and just going to check it...

Suffolk_lass

Ah yes, well - there were some of their custard tarts I forgot about. £1.20 for four is only 5p each more than they are in Morries.

Yesterday we went to check on bees and one lot had consumed all the fondant already so we replenished that. Happy little bees. I realised that DH had left supers on three other hives with queen excluders which don't want to be there over winter, so we managed to get them out, albeit attracting the aggressive attention of one hive. We abandoned our intention to swap the boxes over as they were just too cross.

We will have to go back today to collect the excluders that had been all over (so we left them propped against the fronts so they could walk back in. So now we have two hives with no super (commercial size), one that has the super under the brood box, and two that have supers on top. Of the three with supers, only one has stores, two are quite light but probably where some of the bees are resting. I would prefer it if there were no supers as we don't really want the queen in there, laying but it is what it is. 

Karmacat

There's such a lot more to beekeeping than it seems!  What is it about not wanting a queen in one particular hive?  Does it set the hives up for aggression between them, as the queens automatically want supremacy/top of the heap?