Put away your purse & become debt-averse

Humdinger1

Foxgloves 

My new go-to phrase is 'supermarket gannetry'.  Thank you for that!  I haven't heard the gannet named since my mother used it to describe me and my teenage friends...took me right back.

I'm so grateful that I had my LBM before this crisis hit.  I'm worried about people on zero-hours contracts without an EF or who've never got round to budgeting.  I hope there will be some silver linings:  while feeling for all those working in retail, this may be a reset moment in relentless consumerism.  Any new normal will take some adjustment though.  Anyhow, I will keep reading your diary for moments of golden hilarity combined with sound common sense.  Love to all aboard Humdinger x

Honeysucklelou2

Gannet is an oft used word in this household with 2 teenage boys 😂. We tend to use the term  gannitised to mean anything that was there to eat but the boys got to it!

HairyHandofDartmoor

We are indeed living in very strange times. I went to two shops after work today and I have never seen so many empty shelves. It is truly astonishing and almost frightening. I guess the sort of people who used to eat out three times a week and have a take away on the other four nights will be buying more food to cook at home if they're intending to go out less 🤣.

I hope you enjoyed a peaceful day of cooking and gardening Foxgloves. A bit of much needed normality .

foxgloves

Actually, HHoD, that's a good point about people who eat out a lot..... yes, I bet you're right & that will be an additional factor re the empty shelves.
Also agree re normality. I think we're all going to have to try & maintain as much of it as possible, aren't we?
F x

foxgloves

Hello Diary Readers, 
Well Cat can't settle because Mr F isnt home yet. He's on a late shift but not as late as expected because his event was cancelled due to theatre closures. So I am managing to get a bit nearer to the fire than usual. 
Productive day. Last laundry of the week pegged out, batch cooked spicy chickpea burgers - a Delia recipe though I slightly altered it today as had a red pepper which needed using up - & froze them.... 4 days of meals there for both of us from very little really, & tasty too.
Have also potted up lots of veggie babies - two types of tomato, chillies & cucumbers. Nice to be using so much recycled stuff. I sowed the seeds in old spread tubs, have potted the seedlings up into saved yoghurt pots & they are covered with home made bottle cloches. And when I've finished with it all, everything just needs a rinse & can go in the recycling wheelie bin. 
I've also done two Annoying Jobs today.... you know the ones.... things which annoy you absolutely every time you see them, but you still don't do them. Then you just feel annoyed with YOURSELF every time you see them.... & so it goes on. Every so often I have a bit of a blitz & just force myself to do a whole load of them.
Cancelled a Sunday lunch to which we'd invited friends, which is a shame but we are trying to do the social distancing thing. We've agreed to text & phone more often during all of this & my sis & I are going to start skyping each other.
I'm actually wondering whether I'm just getting the very first inklings of a sore throat, so I'm off to gargle with some blackberry vinegar. 
Take care m'dears, 
F x

savingmore

Good good Morning Foxgloves and everyone.  Firstly I wanted to pop on to say I love being called a daffodil!  I love spring flowers especially daffodils and primroses.   On that subject, have you ever crystallised flowers?  My paternal grandmother was an amazing home maker, so talented.  She used to crystallise primroses and decorate a birthday cake for me every year with them (in April), and of course you can eat them.  Beautiful, and so much nicer than shop bought chemical laden cake decorations.  Have a good day everyone.  

foxgloves

Hi Saving More, 
Actually, I have, but not for about 3 decades, so thanks for reminding me about those. Primroses & violets grow like weeds in our garden so it would be easy to crystallise those. I used the method where you paint them with slightly whipped egg white then dip them in caster sugar before leaving on paper to dry. Did you mean those? I've never tried any other method. I did try making candied orange peel once, but I must have done it wrong as I only succeeded in turning strips of orange peel into strips of sweeter orange peel which went in the bin!
F x

NorthernSoulSouthernLife

Re veggie growing, my advice to beginners (if that's what you are) is to get hold of Geoff Hamilton's 'Organic Gardening' book, published by DK. I bet it's out of print now, but it is absolutely my bible for vegetable growing. Great photos, clear advice, & covers all other gardening topics too. I love mine. Was consulting it only the other day as we are growing celeriac for the first time & I wanted to check what conditions it likes. I've seen copies of this book in charity shops & if mine came to an unspecified grim end, I'd have to replace it somehow

Always plenty to do in the garden if self-isolating. I'm trying to comfort myself with that thought! 
F x

Thank you so much for the recommendation, I absolutely am a beginner.
last year, my husband being a chef & quite green fingered decided he wanted to teach our little girl all he could about food from growing to cooking . She’s not quite 2 but it was so important to him that she understood ‘where’ our food comes from plus he thought it would be fun for us all. Unfortunately my husband died very unexpectedly on Christmas Eve 💔 & we hadn’t gotten around to starting.
Now it has become something really important for me to do but I literally have no idea at all where to start .
im also a bit of rubbish cook and desperately missing his culinary skills too so will; I’m afraid be picking your brains for recipes & ideas in the kitchen 💛
much love to you all x x

Baileys_Babe

@NorthernSoulSouthernLife I'm very sorry to hear of your loss.
Perhaps in time you and your daughter could learn to cook together.

HairyHandofDartmoor

Baileys_Babe said:

@NorthernSoulSouthernLife I'm very sorry to hear of your loss.
Perhaps in time you and your daughter could learn to cook together.

That's very sad NorthernSoul. Bailey's suggestion is a lovely one.