Get a grip woman!

beanielou

Happy days ahead & a birthday to look forward to 😊🌼

Suffolk_lass

Morning everyone. I don't think I remembered to say that I received the pet insurance renewal through from Tosco, proposing (again) an increase of 100% over last year's premium. Both years I have renewed they have done this. Last year I went online and the same insurer offered us the same policy for £2 more. This year I have gone online again and renewed for less; £60.pp instead of £70.pp. I should just add this is accident only (3rd party liability too) for dog only. Our cat is an indoor girl, very contented looking out of the windows and is happy, well-fed and affectionate. Nearly 13 now, she goads dog. We consider the risk to her is very low and she is not vaccinated (any more) or insured. Dog is 2 and a bit, healthy, noisy and a miniature. Suffers terribly from separation anxiety and repels aliens at every opportunity. DH is besotted. I might be too...

I washed a big bag of jeans and another of jackets, managing to get them all out on the line yesterday, once the rain stopped. One of our local roads is badly flooded, making the residents a little more isolated than usual, but it stopped by 2pm and the 8 pairs of jeans I washed are all dry and smell a lot better. I intend biting the bullet and listing them. I think they are all 1980s jeans, from my spendy days there are 8 pairs, all brand names like Levi and Brutus. I need to sell them.

One of the jackets is a two part ski jacket with a goose down filled inner jacket and a purple gore-tex outer jacket. I still love it and when it comes in I will try it on and see how much too fat I am to wear it (I assume I am too fat) - it might even incentivise me to diet and get more wear out of it!

There was also a huge canvas bag with two mummy-style sleeping bags in. One is a Snugpak (this is what the UK forces use, but not in silver and blue!) it is a £200 sleeping bag. I wince at the price we paid. The other is a Caravan brand (they were a Scandinavian brand that went bankrupt in 1991 and the management buyout by Nordisk carried on making bags for the North German market, but dropped the caravan brand name). Another £200+ bag they are both all-season and really excellent quality. Now we are in our mid sixties I cannot see us doing that sort of camping again so I need to list these too. I wonder if anyone would even realise how good they are!

Meanwhile, only milk being delivered to top up what we have in the house, I will need milk to top up, and possibly potatoes, but we might just make it to the end of the month with buying nothing else. Subscription big river stuff included a few grocery type things this month. 

No word yet on the inevitable council tax increase, I have kept CC spending low this month, in anticipation of an increase in our home insurance premium next month. DH reminded me yesterday that one of his motorbikes renews next month too. 

More loft stuff to go through today, I also want to do some study group preparation ahead of tomorrow's zoom call, read a bit of my book, do a bit of gardening and finish baking the sourdough I have proving. I don't want anyone to think these are all massive tasks (well some are) because when I say some, I mean no more than an hour and a half, followed by a little sit down and a coffee or tea and read of my phone

Have a good day, whatever you are doing

Watty1

What a lovely catch up, bees memories and just a life well lived.   Interesting idea to hire the village hall for a mini Stacey Solomon experience (I loved that show) but I think they would most likely need help.  Someone to gently say just pick 5 things from this pile.  I need help to declutter my wardrobe many years ago, first a friend had a go but eventually I got a professional in and wow what a difference she made. I ended up with 6 bin liners to donate a pile of stuff to sell and more clothes to wear than I thought.  They were there in my wardrobe all along just needed styling up or finding.   

redofromstart

I knew about Snugpak and their value as mr redo bought one a few years back. 

Suffolk_lass

OMG! How many pairs of Russell and Bromley shoes?!! I had kept two pairs (why two?) in case I ever need to wear a black court shoe again, but have now found a pair of black patent leather shoes with kitten heels in a bag of (mostly) DS's outgrown gore-tex walking boots. I think I will carry on sorting through before a bit of a try on and charity/eBay session. A quick check of sold R&B my size black over the last several months and lots sell...

beanielou

Used to love R & B shoes SO much. 

trix-a-belle

beanielou said:

Used to love R & B shoes SO much. 

My mum always took me to R&B for my school shoes, so that they lasted the school year.

I recently found more a more than sane number of black court shoes & black ankle boots but the heels are wrecked & I can't see me going into an office again any time soon so there is literally no reason for me to hang onto them, I just closed the cupboard door again but you might have just shamed me into actually throwing them out and culling back to a sensible pair or 2 and not the totally knackered ones

Suffolk_lass

trix-a-belle said:

beanielou said:

Used to love R & B shoes SO much. 

My mum always took me to R&B for my school shoes, so that they lasted the school year.

I recently found more a more than sane number of black court shoes & black ankle boots but the heels are wrecked & I can't see me going into an office again any time soon so there is literally no reason for me to hang onto them, I just closed the cupboard door again but you might have just shamed me into actually throwing them out and culling back to a sensible pair or 2 and not the totally knackered ones

Mine are still in the sorting out bedroom. Today we plan to put all the beekeeping stuff (mostly new, empty jars and lids), Christmas Decs (6 small plastic boxes) and cocktail glass boxes (don't ask) in the loft nearest the stairs, and all the crates of photos (mostly from late MiL) up in the loft at the other end. Then it is shoes, DS's mementos and loved toys, pictures and books to go through. I managed to offload two lovely waterproof jackets and two ski jackets (1980s retro) to DS & GF.

They were here to talk about her moving in with him so she would give up her HA flat (she has this because when her Mum died, she was quite young and her Dad could or would not have her, so she was homeless under 18 - after two wholly unacceptable places she was given this flat but it is not a happy place). My fear is that the relationship fails at some future point (it is still quite new) because her earnings are not enough to pay a commercial rent and even if she lost her job, she would not be in circumstances whereby she would be a priority now she is employed and over 18. She wants me to help her get out of debt in the way I have with DS - basically he gave me his card for his savings account and moved set money to that each month so that he had a living allowance in his other account. It just meant he had a gate-keeper asking why he wanted to do x, subscribe to y or buy z. I know I can help her and it feels like she has seriously lacked parental input in some crucial years, especially emotionally. I think to be honest, she feels safe with us as a family, in a way she has not previously had. A big thing for all of us. We like her very much, so anything we can do to support really, I think we will do.

I really must collect my prescription in the next couple of days; probably this morning as the market is on tomorrow (and I don't need anything) and we can't spend the whole day moving boxes (can we?)

enthusiasticsaver

That’s a nice thing to do for your DS GF. Such a shame her parents died when she was so young. I do understand your reservations about her moving in though.

 My DD has had to gatekeep her husband money wise too as he never learnt how to manage money and it just disappeared as it came in. He asked her to do it as he struggles to budget and having ADHD he gave in a lot to impulse buys. He is much better now. 

Good luck with the ebaying. 

Watty1

What a lovely practical support and how nice she feels comfortable to do that with you.