Cherry takes the reins

Cherryfudge

I am having one of those days where I don't feel I've got things done, largely because I haven't done any of the things I feel I ought to be doing. I have, however, got the sausage meat and accompaniments out for the freezer and cleaned/tidied that drawer, spent some time pruning in the garden, checked my work emails and messaged some friends. All those were worth doing.


Here is my list, to be amended as time goes on:

• water plants before sun gets round to that side - done
• text electrician re removal of stairlift at Mum's old house - can't find his number, messaged his mum ... and she sent it to me.
• get all info for new electricity supplier in one place - not done
• make something with sausage meat! - abandoned, it looked and smelled as though it had lost all its sausagey-ness.
• once the sun moves round, continue with pruning - done
• do ironing - made a small start

Late evening edit: NSD, had a lovely tea at DD's and DS1 has been popping round with more bits for their room. DS2 is in Munich and I'm stalking him via Messenger. It lets me know when he was last online. To give him credit, he's messaged me a couple of times too.

Cherryfudge

I've just checked my bank account and everything has gone through that I'm expecting. I can never be absolutely sure there won't be something though, so I've left £30 in and tipped everything else (£105.02) into the mortgage. Total overpayment for this month: £301.86 . That keeps me ahead of target, not by the mind-boggling amounts achieved by some of the people on MF Wannabe but head is ahead.

Other than that, this is turning into another of those days where I don't get the things done that I should be doing (sorting papers ) so I feel I've not got anywhere. I have, however, done abit of gardening, cleaned the top over and cleaned out a kitchen drawer. DS1 has been round several times, tying up odds and ends as they officially leave their house today.

My plan now:

• nip round to A&H's to take one last photo
• get the shopping
• put all my assembled financial papers in a folder, without sorting or processing a single one
• tidy the kitchen
• tidy the bathroom
• tidy the lounge
• water the smaller lawn (don't normally do the grass but the poor guinea pig is scrimping and saving for fresh grass)

Cherryfudge

Amazingly, I got nearly all yesterday's list done, though not necessarily well done. I was too tired to update before bed but in summary A&H have officially come here but are actually away for a few days so I have the house to myself today.

27/6/18 - Spends
Donation £9.95
Mortgage £105.02
Housekeeping £1.78
MS stuff:
Cheap pizzas for tea - though home made would have been cheaper
10th coin savings 32p
Wombled 29p

parsniphead

Well done cherry. That was a big list.

I hope you arm is now feeling a bit better.

Cherryfudge

Thanks Parsnip. The arm was suddenly a lot more mobile this morning, as the inflammation dropped overnight, so I'm really pleased.

A very peaceful, lazy day today, and not much done though I popped out to the shops and met a couple of friends along the way so I've done some catching up. I treated us to a fish pie mix and made two pies, one of which we've had for tea and the other we'll have at the weekend. That's an advantage to having the house to ourselves for a little while - not having to worry about cooking smells annoying other people!

Spends:
Medical £3.30
Housekeeping £7.40
Toiletries £6.47
MS stuff:
10th coin savings £1.10
Confession time:
Forgot to take water with me to town so had to buy a bottle (39p)
Decluttering etc.
A small amount in the garden, really small...

Cherryfudge

Another day in which I'm seriously not getting things done. I've been up since 7, it's now nearly 11.15 and I have watered the garden, sorted the post and checked the bank accounts. I've transferred £20 from my previous pay to the mortgage. I didn't transfer all DH's surplus to savings just in case anything is needed - his pay is showing as gone through but for some reason, dealing with bigger sums, I'm not confident to move it across. Odd, but anyway I have put the standard saving into the general savings account and some into the holiday account, leaving myself a note to move the rest into hols on Saturday.

Quite a nice surprise in my pay - I'd forgotten I had some extras owed from May so there's a nice bonus in there although I've been on sick pay all month. Enjoying it while I can as there won't be one for the next few months - no idea of a return to work date and it will be a phased return when I do.

I think I've already said I need to be cleared as fit to work before I can do anything about additional pension payment contributions, and today I really ought to be cleaning and tidying so I might try to make some progress with finding a new savings account instead. :)The one I thought I'd found turned out to have sneaky charges... well not sneaky but I read T&Cs for ages and completely missed them. :rotfl:

I also need to update my online prescription ordering: I don't know why this is so hard but the system is confusing me. I had the hang of the old one then they went and changed it.

I will try to pop back later to say what's been accomplished.

NoOneAround

Hello Cherry,
Good to hear that your arm is much more mobile
I know how you feel about keeping on top of what is being spent where, I've lost the plot a bit too and over the last few weeks food spend has escalated:o will need to start meal planning properly again. My main problem is that DS's appetite alone is as much as the rest of us put together!

Do your prescriptions get delivered? I'm not sure whether to use that service - i keep getting post about it. Not really sure how it works - at the moment I get it from my surgery - which I like doing as I know them and they are responsive to sorting out problems. Not sure if it advantageous to the surgery to dispense themselves or not?

NOA
x

Cherryfudge

NoOneAround wrote: »

Do your prescriptions get delivered? I'm not sure whether to use that service - i keep getting post about it. Not really sure how it works - at the moment I get it from my surgery - which I like doing as I know them and they are responsive to sorting out problems. Not sure if it advantageous to the surgery to dispense themselves or not?

I have the option to have them from one of three local pharmacies and it happens one is a few minutes' walk from home so that's where I pick them up. We're in one of those fairly self-sufficient towns that isn't huge but has the basics of most things so really we're well provided for. I did swap pharmacies as the original one was rather out of the way for me. I've not had any problems so far but DH, who was with the same pharmacy, changed to another as this one doesn't supply his rather unusual medication! I always assumed pharmacies had everything, showing my ignorance there.

Cherryfudge

I sorted out the electronic ordering and even remembered to go and collect the last lot of medicine, laboriously ordered by walking to the surgery and popping a form in a box.

L phoned and suggested a family picnic, so I got some food contributions and we met up at a local park, took a few photos and sent them to the holiday contingent who sent back a group selfie with a trace of a new person on it - rumour has it DS2 has a new girlfriend! He hasn't said anything to me but if it comes to anything then I'll hear eventually. Meanwhile they all looked very happy which is good to see.

I've managed some more in the garden: cleared some brambles and put the prunings from the other day in boxes to go to the recycling centre, then this evening filled the watering can from the bath and watered some of the larger lawn! Makes sense to recycle water when everything's so dry.

I came across a book on extreme early retirement which looks interesting but is £7, which I'm reluctant to spend but it turns out the author has a website so when I've finished the free sample from Kindle, I'll have a look at that.

I noted that part of his method is frugality, and that's something I'm not doing too well with at the moment: there doesn't seem to be much interesting or original in my 'MS stuff' list nowadays. Perhaps I need a refresher course.

I've also had a few £2 coins recently so I'm going to try to save those as I notice people do. They don't seem all that common but being a bit bigger, they add up better.

Spends:
Housekeeping £4.27
Mortgage £20.00
MS stuff:
Cheap strawberries and cheap crisps to the picnic - the strawberries were delicious, the crisps were disappointing so I'll know for next time.
Paying as much as I can to the mortgage so as to pay as little interest as possible.
Put as much as possible into savings so it doesn't appear to be there to spend in our current account.
Clearing brambles reveals a raspberry plant with a crop on it. (Am saving the tastiest brambles till they've fruited, they are wild but good).
Two boxes of twigs for the tip - cheaper than paying the Council to collect a green bin (we compost as much as possible but twigs are resistant).
Managed to resist buying the ebook though it's interesting.
10th coins savings £1.02
£2 jar £4
Confession time:
Treated us all to a few bits and pieces for the picnic but not too bad really and J&L supplied the savouries.
Decluttering:
House - cleaned the oven door (it was a mess )
Garden - some bramble clearance.

Eager_Elephant

NoOneAround wrote: »

Do your prescriptions get delivered? I'm not sure whether to use that service - i keep getting post about it. Not really sure how it works - at the moment I get it from my surgery - which I like doing as I know them and they are responsive to sorting out problems. Not sure if it advantageous to the surgery to dispense themselves or not?

NOA
x

Sorry to butt in but just wanted to comment on the delivery of prescriptions, our local GP surgery sent a letter to everyone about the online system and tried to get everyone to stay with collecting from their pharmacy.

The online system is the NHS' way of trying to save money because if they fulfill prescriptions then they dont have to pay paharmacies to do it - I can see a lot of downsides and not to many upsides.

There are plenty of comments on line which are good and bad.

Personally I would rather support my local pharmacy, they know who we are, can help when there is a problem, they can speak to a GP immediately about any prescription query and also I worry that if more people get it through the post then pharmacies will close and where will that leave older people??

In my area some of the pharmacies offer delivery for free which works well especially for older people, my f-i-l had his delivered weekly and so did everyone else in his bloack.
It worked really well.

I also worry about security, what if the prescription went missing, what if the wrong ones were delivered?