Finally Debt Free After 34 Years, But Still Need to Live Frugally

HairyHandofDartmoor

FOOD UPDATE
Last night at about 11pm DH noticed a click and collect slot available from Mr T for this morning and so he booked it quickly 😀. He said we only had 15 minutes before it expired, so we raced against the clock to quickly order things we were likely to run out of soon, like stuff for the freezer, more milk, more eggs, mineral water, honey, more bananas, tinned tomatoes, toilet roll, deodorants, onions, bread, satsumas, corned beef, germolene and washing up gloves. We just finished in time and then DH said "Oh hang on we've got another hour before it expires". Where's a strangling person emojie when you want one? 😡🤣

In more food related news, DH and I had previously decided to do another early hit and run on Mr M this morning to buy more easter eggs and plants 🥀 (hangs head in shame 😵) and to pick up more milk as DS1 bathes in it daily (it's the only explanation for much we get through 😂). So even though we managed to get the Mr T click and collect slot, we decided to still go to Mr M as we couldn't get the plants from Mr T, the easter eggs were more expensive and we couldn't get a baby card. So we got up at 7am again and I was outside the shop by 8.20am and I walked straight in again. I wore my mask and gloves and kept my distance from people as much as possible. I got some reasonably priced violas, lobelias, white heather and another phlox 🌺🌻🌷🌼. I also got two more easter eggs which were two for £5 instead of £4 each. I managed to get a pack of Dett0l cleaning wipes that say they kill bacteria for £2,  an Astonish cleaning spray for £1 (which says it kills bacteria), a bottle of multi surface cleaner, some baby wipes for general cleaning, salad tomatoes, jam, a six pack of baked beans for £2.50 and a baby card for my niece. I know the plants and easter eggs aren't essential, but they serve a purpose in keeping morale high and I'm pleased with the cleaning products as I'm doing more cleaning recently. As it turned out the antibac wipes we ordered from Mr T weren't available so I was glad I'd picked up the Dett0l wipes from Mr M.

We sound like we're stockpiling food 😵, but we bought different items from each shop and now we won't need to go again for at least a week. We also eat a lot more than some families with four adults in the house. Excuses, excuses. Anyway we have no money 😭 but plenty of food now 😀, so I won't have to stress myself out for a while. 

I was very impressed with the click and collect by the way🙂. We ordered and paid online and were able to collect between 10am and 12am this morning. We drove up to the collection point, told them our surname and they loaded all the food into the boot of our car. We didn't even need to get out of the car. It felt very safe 🙂. Now I've discovered the wonders of click and collect I think we'll try to do this in future and leave delivery slots for people who aren't lucky enough to have cars.

HairyHandofDartmoor

OTHER STUFF UPDATE
I've spent a lot of time doing book tetris today. With all DH's sci-fi books now in the bookcase in the office, I've been able to bring down seven plastic boxes of books from my bedroom to put in our other bookcases 🙂. My vintage Agatha Christie Pans, Fontanas and Tom Adams paperbacks are in a bookcase now where I can get to them and enjoy them 🙂. I've also been able to display my vintage Pan and Fontana collections of Patricia Wentworth, Georgette Heyer, Ngaio Marsh, Ursula Curtiss and Mary Stewart paperbacks 🙂. They're not complete collections, but I can see what I've got and what I haven't got now. Also my non-vintage copies of books by those authors are out of boxes now so that I can enjoy reading them. It's all very satisfying 😃 but competely exhausting lugging books down flights of stairs 😓. I've had to dose myself up with ibuprofen for my aching neck and back now.

DH is going to re-purpose the plastic boxes to contain office clutter, or what he considers to be useful office items 🙄.

In addition to the food shopping and book tetris, I've done a towel wash and hung it in the garden to dry and emptied the kitchen bins. I've also folded up yesterday's clean washing ready to put away 😇.

I'm also delighted that I persuaded DS1 to spend ten minutes de-cluttering his room. He filled up a bin liner with rubbish and put a few things into another bin liner to go to the charity shop (eventually). A corner of his room already looks clearer 😁. He's agreed to spend ten minutes a day doing this and if we keep this up his room should eventually be transformed, so that in time I'll be able to get in there to clean and dust it 😁.

Onebrokelady

Wow,you've been busy Hairy,I need to go for a lie down after catching up with your diary 😂😂 good news on the bookcase re arrangements and also snagging lots useful shopping,the lady on the till in my local Tesco express says that Easter Eggs are essential shopping so don't feel bad 😂

HairyHandofDartmoor

Onebrokelady said:

Wow,you've been busy Hairy,I need to go for a lie down after catching up with your diary 😂😂 good news on the bookcase re arrangements and also snagging lots useful shopping,the lady on the till in my local Tesco express says that Easter Eggs are essential shopping so don't feel bad 😂

Thanks OBL 🙂. I'm completely knackered so that's all I'm doing today 😩. I agree that easter eggs are essential 🤣.

Sunshine_girl2

Click and collect at Asda near me are coming available the next day , so I think more people must have delivery slots given to them. Well done on your very busy day , you have done loads. 

HairyHandofDartmoor

Sunshine_girl2 said:

Click and collect at Asda near me are coming available the next day , so I think more people must have delivery slots given to them. Well done on your very busy day , you have done loads. 

Thanks Sunshine 🙂. I feel really tired but pleased with what I've got accomplished today.

Perhaps there are more delivery slots available now. The shelves in the supermarkets certainly look fully stocked now with no more empty shelves. Unless people have finally stopped stockpiling.

redofromstart

Quality book choices :-)

Sun_Addict

Glad they're making the click and collect slots so safe and simple. Makes me wish I had a car 😂  Don't feel bad about buying non-essentials. It's becoming annoying this looking down on people buying them as part of their normal shopping trip. If buying a few plants is keeping folks in their garden, what's the problem, plus it's Easter and the kids will still expect Easter eggs (some adults too). At least you don't need to worry about going out again for a while now.

EssexHebridean

Good work on the click & collect thing - I know around here the supermarkets are pleading for those who aren't at risk and can do so to shop in store, and those who are at risk but can do so to use click & collect as there aren't enough slots for those on the vulnerable lists. I'm not complaining as I hate online shopping - even at the moment I'd far rather pick my own stuff and there's no way I'm trusting someone else to choose meat for us - it's bad enough having to buy it from the supermarket in the first place!  Also not complaining about doing our own shopping on foot either - we can get to all of our local stores easily enough, the furthest is Sainsbugs at just under 2 miles away. and all without needing to risk coming into too close a contact with anyone else either, so no complaints there at all - means a little bit more exercise also which allowing I've been baking every weekend is probably no bad thing! 

A friend of mine was saying last night that her sister got called out by a checkout operator in the supermarket for buying hairspray " you can't have that - it's not essential!" would you believe. She did exactly what I would have done and left the entire basket at the till and walked out. Yes I agree about only going out to buy essentials, but once you are there then there is really no issue with buying other stuff to my mind - it's more about not going out specifically to buy those other things, surely! 

HairyHandofDartmoor

redofromstart said:

Quality book choices :-)

Thanks Redo 🙂.