Get a grip woman!

Suffolk_lass

I found the £500 electricity credit had arrived safely and moved £400 of it over to the running costs file in time for the almost £900 credit card bill that will clear next week. That card includes 50% of the rather nice Airbnb that we have booked for next April (Skye). 

While out with the dog I took a large carrier and scissors and picked my elderflower blossoms. I only had 1.5 lemons so I zested the whole one before thinly slicing both. I had a sachet of sparkling wine yeast so that went in as a starter too, along with 1.5k cane sugar and 1.5L of filtered water, made into syrup. Having checked out several recipes for elderflower "champagne" I elected to use the Mary Berry recipe I use for cordial, but leave out the campden tablets and add the yeast instead. Fingers crossed, it smells rather marvellous this morning.

Finally some warm (read hot) weather in the East. I hope to plant out and net my flower bed squashes today - it was good to see Monty emulating our vertical growth of squashes - he is growing pumpkins and butternuts vertically - we grew pumpkins and tromboncino last year - determined to try a courgette and butternuts too but DH planted all the beans at the bottom of the poles (I have now suggested growing them down the middle with a net towards the arches so they are a bit more accessible, when I come to pick them. I hope to pot on my chillies, peppers and cucumbers that are running rather late this year. And sprinkle some salad seeds. Oh, and dig out some thistles.

That will do for today's ambition, although I would like to visit the farm bees and check on the other remote bees it isn't going to happen as DH isn't here and I can't leave the dog in a hot car while I do so. So that is a Monday job.

Suffolk_lass

Money Rabbit holes!

Yesterday I called HMRC to obtain the reference number I need to pay for the last four years of contributions. All the figures I had looked up were agreed and I was given the number. Then however, the advisor said I could further increase my pension if I paid for the current tax year, next year. I queried this as I will reach State Pension Age (66 in my case) in March, before this (tax and contribution) year completes. He assured me I can but I am sure he is wrong. I started a new thread on here to check and others confirmed that I am right. The relevant legislation specifically says including the year in which you have your 16th birthday, and excluding the year in which you reach pensionable age.

badmemory

You are right he is wrong.  Even if you are employed for the full tax year it doesn't count.  Was it the future pension centre you spoke to.  They don't usually get anything wrong.  Obviously don't take my word for it.

ETA  I've just checked out your other thread & you have 2 of the best poohsticks & dazed

Starlight_at_Sea

Saw this and thought of this thread! 

 

Suffolk_lass

Thank you @Starlight_at_Sea. Oh dear, do I bumble (pun intended) on about my bees all the time!? - don't answer that! 

Money first today
Well today DH phoned HMRC and the advisor was much more on-script and was strongly recommending that he should first speak to the future pensions centre. After a bit of to-and-fro we got the 18 digit reference number (I think it was when DH read him out the account number, name and sort code, and explained I had done mine first that he capitulated.  Then paying it from HSBC I had to first try and delete the payee to be able to use a different reference, then it wouldn't let me because my payment was still too recent, so I did it by using their company look-up and choosing it again. I have screen shots in a file, just in case something goes wrong (it often does with us!)

Bees
Next it was onto a beekeeping kit supplier and I successfully paid and ordered in around five minutes whereas others had been struggling since midnight. So that is yet more kit enroute in due course. No hurry for this stuff, we hope.

DH extracted most of the spring honey the night before last (until 03.30!) - Oh, me? I was in bed, the dog with me, and the cat too, opposite ends of my bed. Dare I hope for a truce? Anyway, the honey... I bought him a refractometer for Christmas and this morning it was calibrated and used for the first time. This link to FERA explains the average and acceptable levels of moisture in honey. Ideally 18% but under 20% for good quality honey. We extracted an uncapped box of frames as we were worried it was from oil seed rape and would go solid if we left it. It was a little too much moisture so that is now in the freezer and we will feed it back to the bees when they need it. The other three are a percentage point or three above 18% and perfect. One more to do in the next night or two.

Meanwhile I want us to store our honey boxes further away from our nice neighbours with the small children. Unfortunately DH has quite a distinctive perspiration (pheromone?)  and the bees don't like it, so our initial intended place which needed clearing, has been temporarily abandoned and a couple of paving slabs away from their fence are in use instead. We have just got back from collecting some pallets from the nearby town, to rig up a shelter.

Starlight_at_Sea

no bumbling at all - it's fascinating! I like Blistons daily poems and didn't have anyone else to send that one onto! 

enthusiasticsaver

My goodness there is an awful lot to bee keeping.  I never realised how much time you would need to spend on running hives. 

Good you managed to sort out your state pension contributions.  I do childcare for my grandchildren so have been making mine up by claiming childcare credits from my DD. I have until March 2025 to make mine up as you say it has to be the tax year previous to retiring. 

Suffolk_lass

I think this year has been especially swarmy to be honest. Every beekeeper I know has used all their kit now (we have a bit spare, but because we are uniting weaker colonies to get them strong to defend against wasps and winter). I have just agreed to take another swarm, but I have suggested the queen mates first because here, we seem to be losing our large tasty-looking queens on their mating flights to the corvids that are so prevalent (because my neighbour the other end of the village feeds them!!).

That said, I made a ghoulish discovery yesterday. The two young (fledged but still being fed) magpies had drowned in my open water butt that is by my greenhouse. I am not a magpie fan, having seen them literally tear the young fledging thrushes to pieces last year, but I felt a twinge of sadness as I removed them and put them in the dustbin, in an old compost bag. The parents seem to have gone for the moment.

Watty1

I love this thread.  It feels like a lovely village catch up.  Such a joy to read about your bees.  When I am more settled I am going to offer up space to a bee keeper thanks to you.

trix-a-belle

Do I see a semi gag gift for DH of pheromone colognes in the future to adjust his scent enough