Cherry takes the reins

Cherryfudge

I've not spent anything today.

Online church this morning had the first Advent Candle and lots of carols - lovely! Afterwards we joined the online chat which we don't always get to but it's nice to spend a bit of time with people.

It's been foggy again but not too cold: Dh and I went for a run this afternoon and lots of people were out walking so what we thought would be a quiet road route was spent dodging pedestrians in woolly hats. We've been trying various warm-up videos (J tells me I should save my stretching for cool-downs, but get properly warmed up before running). This seems to be paying off as both of us are getting faster - another few weeks and we might reach average 5k speeds! This time we ran almost all the way to H and A's house. A nice older chap called out to me on the way back that I'd catch up with DH. As it was, DH got home first, but I know I can do better over longer distances... at least for now. DH is the most uncompetitive person around but when we got home, he said thoughtfully that he'd like to think we could improve our time.

We had a video call with DS2, J and L at tea time, having already had photos of J's and A's decorated Christmas trees. I'm not normally one for starting Christmas early but this year it seems necessary and we're all wanting some light and colour. We discussed the awkwardness of our planned Christmas falling outside the prescribed times and have decided to exchange presents beforehand, open them over a video call and meet people for walks over the rest of the holiday. This way it's minimal risk and Auntie's planned visit will go ahead with just us (I hope! Aunties can be tricky to manage.)

I've spent the evening trying to compile a photo book that has to be sent off tomorrow if I'm to get the optimum price. The idea was to compile the children's favourite recipes especially the ones from my handwritten book, but it's so stained now that it's embarrassing and I'm typing out lots to scan in. There are a few pages that I can't actually read any more so I have to go on logic!

Tonight I'm thankful for some degree of Christmas resolution, for seeing people to talk to, for picking up speed and having DH to run with, for the technology to put the recipes together without writing out everything (!) and for the remaining goldfish settling down by his lonesome self and actually looking quite cheerful rather than moping.

Cherryfudge

I had the idea of putting together a photobook of family recipes for the children and there was a deadline of tonight to get the 'free' one off an app I use. Having discovered most of my handwritten recipes are splashed and faded and in fact almost unphotographable, I've spent my free time in the last 24 hours typing, scanning and uploading. Of course I threw the whole thing together, plus a few photos of the offspring and their culinary delights, and charged through checkout. It had occurred to me earlier today that I can divide the order between November and December which should mean two lots of postage but two 'free' books, so I'd decided just to order one copy today. As it was, I'd somehow gone way over the page allowance so it's ended up costing me nearly £10. However the silver lining is that I can do a critical look over this rather costly freebie and spend time turning out a better version when I have time. It's highly unlikely, realistically speaking, that I'll be happy enough with it to just order a couple more copies on the back of this one.

Other than that, nothing spent.

DH is now working from Monday to Wednesday so I'm losing my customary place in the dining room. This morning I had to kneel on the lounge floor, getting pins and needles as I typed madly! That's because I could then have the computer and scanner together, but I'll try not to do it again. I could perhaps appropriate part of DS2's room, as DH was going to do before we discovered the internet connection was unreliable. It's not so unreliable that I can't run a laptop from there, but all the techy work stuff DH uses required a better spec for some reason.

DH also rang Auntie to let her know about not meeting with any of her bubbles in the two weeks before she comes to us. He got a mutter about 'You didn't say anything about that last time!', but then I hadn't found out she considers herself to be in a 'bubble' with several people, seemingly from more than one household!

Now I'm all revved up from doing the photobook so I need to chill for a bit or I won't sleep.

Tonight I'm thankful for the sunshine having come back, a texted conversation with DS2 and having got the photobook sent off, for good or ill!

Cherryfudge

It's been another lovely day and I celebrated with a 5K run that was supposed to follow the route DH and I took the other day, but got varied by a railway crossing closing as I approached. Rather than mess up my time, I took a track to one side which is normally part of the Park Run. Now  I'm feeling I'd like to do some Park Runs once they re-emerge so my goal is to get a bit faster. I know no-one bothers if I walk all the way, that's not what it's about, but I want to feel I'm no longer last in the pack (interesting the lasting lessons we learn at school ). What's bewildering me is that I'm wanting to do that even though parts of the run get properly muddy, and I don't like mud. It's as if the part of my brain that decided a hill would make me a better runner though it slows me down, has kicked in again.

Later I went to investigate the new Mr L that's opened locally. I'd heard good things of it and I managed to go at a fairly quiet time. No point putting myself at undue risk. I've therefore spent £13.94 of which 99p was on a present and the rest is groceries.

I'm trying to make freezer space so tonight's meal was Toad in the Hole, using some milk and sausages from the freezer. The rest of the milk needs using quite soon so I've put together some oddments of frozen bread to make a bread pudding tomorrow which will finish up a box of eggs too. This creates a very small amount of space, certainly not enough to prep ahead for Christmas even though I've thrown out some buttermilk that had been in there two years, and defrosted a tiny tub of humous for lunch tomorrow. I'm feeling rather bad that I had to compost a bag of carrots the other day: they went off while waiting for fridge space.

This evening I rang a couple of friends and we had our usual video call. Good to see them! I also had a text from DD asking if I want to go out for lunch on Monday as the lockdown is ending and we cancelled our usual Christmas shopping trip. However I checked and it looks as though we can't eat out with people not in our bubble, so I might suggest a walk instead if the weather's not to bad.

Tonight I'm thankful for a really enjoyable run, Dh settling into his new job and another day off tomorrow. I hope I can find my bullet journal: I've not used it since Covid arrived as life has been a much slower pace, but I'm starting to feel I need to keep my Christmas lists together.

Sun_Addict

It’s the self satisfaction from getting faster at running even if no one else cares what speed you’re moving at. I will admit my running has slacked off a bit since dark mornings hit. I’ve no excuse I’ve got a treadmill, although it wouldn’t be fair to wake everyone up first thing pounding it, I can run after work. Must get my mojo back. I should’ve been running tonight but doing Zumba instead.

I’m glad DH is settling into his new job. My DD bought a signal extender so the WiFi can reach previously weak signal areas. So our Virgin hub is now just a modem. Working well so far.

Honeysucklelou2

I do admire your continued running progress, especially at this time of year. I must confess I need to restart the C25K.

Cherryfudge

Clear, cold weather makes running much easier for me: I seem to heat up very effectively and I don't have to balance this as much when it's cold. I think it's at least partly due to having an underactive thyroid, which if untreated can mean you feel cold easily: most of my life was spent hugging any warmth I could find, but this stopped after I was put on thyroxine and now I'm the opposite. That said, tomorrow sleet is forecast so I'll be very surprised if I run at all!

Today's was a shorter run on a route I've not done for a few weeks and I soon found out my time hasn't improved as much as I thought. I'd just been on fairly flat ground!  

The project to use up freezer contents ground to a halt on day 2 when I found I don't have much that needs using up apart from frozen fruit and that will go in yogurt or puddings for months. I went to the new Ic*land to stock up a bit but I think I've outgrown it. It was such a useful place when I had young children but being faced with an entire aisle of chicken products today was a bit daunting. I had to go to Mr T anyway for a couple of things I could get elsewhere, then realised what was really missing was a visit to Mr L, again. This was all about the lure of their gigantic sweet potatoes, but I remembered I had some already and bought some other stuff instead.

Total spend £15,27.

This evening I'm thankful for fitting in another run - the first time I've done consecutive days - a beautiful sunset, progress made on fridge and freezer contents and a plan to meet DD for a takeaway on Monday.

Cherryfudge

It's not exactly sleeting today but it's grey and wet. DH had an attack of tidying, which always makes me nervous, but I don't think we've lost too much.  
He's now gone to work at the charity shop for the afternoon, they having re-opened after lockdown. He's taken a  couple of bags with him so we have a tiny bit more room: 9 small soft toys found at Mum's had a bit of a Febree ze as they smelled damp but I read about how it was actually originally designed to take odour out not mask it, so I think they should be okay. Apparently people didn't really buy it till the scent was added but the main function is to remove smells. Also gone are a pack of tights and a coin tray from Mum's and a couple of items of clothing I don't want any more.
I shall be off to work soon so I need to go and wash my hair, finish making my tea and dig out my diary so I can remake a series of claims for leave that I submitted the other week, immediately before our manager went off sick, meaning they haven't been processed.

Cherryfudge

I have also had an attack of tidying: I tidied some rubbish out of the shoulder bag I used most pre-pandemic. Somehow the usual junk got side-lined and never replaced in the cross-body bag I used all summer. I guess I never really needed it. I've not long gone back to the old favourite bag so it had a clear-out. It was a strange feeling, throwing out paper napkins from goodness knows what social event from that long-ago lifestyle. I've no idea when I picked them up and I'm not tempted to keep them but it really was another life, wasn't it? I also finished up a wrapped biscuit that was cluttering the place up, some F entiman's ginger beer I was given last Christmas (worth waiting for) and have sorted all the letters from my Mum to my Dad into date order. She was a highly entertaining writer so I'm enjoying dipping into them. Oh, and another moment of nostalgia: I decluttered a packet of Thai green curry noodles in the direction of my stomach and suddenly very much wanted to go out and buy interesting food from other countries. It's odd to think that this year will indeed close behind us and we will go forward eventually into something rather like what we've left behind.
Other than that I've been to work but not much else. The weather has been cold and sleety. The charity shop accepted the bags I sent yesterday so hopefully someone will get some joy from them. I just had a look at some of the things I really ought to sort out and quailed at the thought, but I guess I'm better doing some of it than none of it.
Tonight I'm thankful for my colleague's improved health, another colleague being back to work after family illness and the really remarkable recovery of someone else who was in hospital this time last year.

Sun_Addict

Made me smile about the paper napkins because I’m forever finding them in handbags from Costa etc 😂 Good to hear about colleagues good news and the recovery of the other person 👍

Cherryfudge

This morning was nice so we went for a bit of a run and I put the washing in the machine, dashing off to work with hurried instructions to DH to put it out on the line. Then the rain started and has continued most of the time since, so the house is festooned with drapery.

Work was quiet and I was mostly spare (we had two people staying who need two to one but only part of the time so I found some exciting jobs to do like refilling the soap dispensers).

DH has been shopping for Sunday dinner and taken some 1960s hardboard off a 1930s door which turns out to have been pale green in its youth. Does anyone know whether it's possible to remove door frames and send them to be dipped, as you can with doors? The doors are a lot easier than the frames, encrusted as the frames are with gloopy generations of white gloss so very scroll-y details have lost their pretty definition.

Other than that I've braved the intarsia section of a little knitting project that I started a couple of months ago. It's not tricky, apart from keeping the yarn untangled... so it's tricky. Anyway I've now nearly finished the making part and will wait for good light to sew it up. I have rather a list of easy knitting stocking fillers but at present this is the only one to see the light of day.

So I'm thankful for work being peaceful and for getting some exercise in while we had a window in the weather.