Tales from The Shire

Fortune_Smiles

Happy New Year!

Thank you everyone - I was really surprised to see what we had achieved in 2020.

The last day of the year was a busy one for us.  Mr F and Uncle F spent the day outdoors replacing fence posts and building a rat trap 😲  Something had been gnawing the bottom of the shed trying to get to the bird food in there so we bought a trail camera and, when we reviewed the film, saw an enormous rat having a nibble 😲  Uncle F works in agriculture and has a licence for getting rid of rats.  He had a look around and there are several nests around the place which isn't unusual for a rural property but we will have to do something about it.

Uncle F has to go back to his property to pick up some personal and work items tomorrow so I spent the day liaising with various parties to ensure he could so so as safely as possible.  It's a complex situation and very time consuming, however, he can't deal with some of this stuff himself without putting himself at risk so we will need to support him with it.  Mr F will be going with him to the house just in case.

We ended the day with a video call with some friends but everyone was exhausted so we made our toasts at 11.00 and toddled off to bed - very rock and roll 😆

I'm hoping today will be a more relaxed day as I'd like to get a bit of space to think about my goals for this year.  We are planning a late sit down lunch.  Friendly Farmer gave us some pheasants for Christmas so I'm going to serve those and an apple crumble for dessert.

My very best wishes to you all for a happy, healthy 2021.

Fortune x

Busy_Mee

Happy New Year Fortune. Loved your very positive round up of 2020 and hoping one of your goals in 2021 is continue with your delicious cooking. I can't tell you how many of your recipes I have tried after a recommendation from you x

Cheery_Daff

Happy new year Fortune! 

Gosh, the situation with Uncle F sounds rotten So pleased you've been able to help, and that he can deal with your rat problem! 

Hope 2021 brings you plenty of adventures (of the nice sort) x

Cornish_mum

Happy New Year Fortune to you and all the family.  So sorry to hear about the rats; sounds like a great project for Uncle F to work on though. I hope all goes well today. CM

maggiem

Happy New Year Fortune, lovely positive post about end of year goals. Looking forward to reading 2021s. Thank you also for all the foodie bits, I have made some of the recommendations and enjoyed them all. Hope Uncle F's visit goes ok too. 

rtandon27

Happy New Year Fortune!

savingholmes

Happy New Year. Hope you make time for fun. I'd love to have a place with land too... Maybe one day in the next 5 years or so

beanielou

Wishing you a happy healthy & positive new year  x

greent

Happy New Year, Fortune x

Fortune_Smiles

A Tiny Ship of Order in the Vast Sea of Chaos

I'm going to keep things simple this year.  There is going to be a lot of uncertainty in 2021 for us, not just because of the pandemic but also because of our change in personal circumstances.  So, I'm going to stick to three key areas - Health, Wealth and Happiness - and a few things to aim for under each:

Wealth

• draw my Defined Benefit pensions
• continue to overpay the mortgage by our usual regular amount and my pension amount
• agree a financial contribution with Uncle F.  We don't want to make money out of him of course but can't afford to be out of pocket either
• increase our emergency fund target by 25%
• replace at least 3 of our old windows
• replace 3 field gates
• identify and prioritise other home improvements as budget allows or need arises.

Health

• continue to practice yoga 3 times a week
• walk FDawg daily
• reach target weight
• make sure I get some time to myself.  Uncle F is going to need a lot of support and, with two Fortunate blokes in the house, I want to make sure I get some down time.

Happiness

• stay connected with friends and family virtually/physically
• mark weekends and special occasions as different from the other days of the week
• include some time for creativity in my schedule.

Nothing out of the ordinary as we've still got to navigate the pandemic and get used to a new way of life.  I'll review on a monthly basis and revise as need be.  I think the year will get off to a slow start but, hopefully, a course will become clearer as the year progresses.

And this year, I'm going to make a note of this page number so I don't have to trawl through all my ramblings to find my 2021 plan 😆

Fortune x