Put away your purse & become debt-averse

foxgloves

It seems to find people's vulnerabilities, @milann. My overall verdict based on my own experience is that it was significantly worse than a cold (when I can generally keep going) but not as bad as flu. Whereas cold & flu capsules keep me functional during a cold, they didn't have much effect on my Covid symptoms. I found tiger balm helpful for the headaches & decongesting, but I couldn't smell it at all & it's so strong! That's when I knew my sense of smell was truly messed up! It's almost back now though. Could smell my perfume this morning.
F

foxgloves

Afternoon Campers!
Not a lot to report today, but have been keeping the money saving faith. Free exercise this morning clearing out a long narrow front border before underplanting it with mini-daffodil bulbs & a muscari mix. Started over-planting with some of the violas I bought the other day, plus some stocks & a couple of bellis daisies which I grew from some truly ancient out of date seed packets from the stash I found in Mum's understairs cupboard. I'll do the border on the other side plus the tubs by the front door tomorrow. I've been counting out bulbs/plants & allocating them because I really don't intend to buy any more. except for a couple of modest packs of tulip bulbs to go in next month. Gone are the pre-LBM days when I'd spend double what I spent on the violas, cyclamen & bulbs pretty much just to fill one big container. Yes, I used to fill it to the brim & everything carefully chosen for colour/texture & it did look fab, but it was also silly money as I was, of course, in my 24-year-old overdraft at that time, with 2 additional loans & a credit card (& that's without Mr Fs contribution to the household debt level back then). 
Have paid a few budgeted-for spends off my credit card. I am in a triple loyalty points phase atm, which expires mid-Nov, so in the interest of building up as many loyalty vouchers as possible to put towards the Christmas turkey we have ordered, I am putting as much planned spending on this card as possible. I always clear the balance every month, so mainly use it for the rewards. I have also been doing a few I-say surveys this afternoon as I can opt for JL vouchers from them too, at cash-out time, so I am looking at all these points, from whatever source, as 'turkey tokens'. For some reason, Mr F finds this amusing, but I think it's a no-brainer. We are hosting Christmas this year (delayed because of the pandemic), we've ordered a big one, I always insist on free-range & suck up the annual expense, but my intention this year, is to throw as many vouchers at it as possible to see how much I can reduce the price. 
More on food-buying......Postie popped a bundle of unsolicited leaflets through our letterbox this morning. I was just walking them to the bin, when I noticed one was a discount voucher for Oc*do. We've never used them, but it is a good offer - £25 off an £80 spend. I must admit I hadn't got my specs on, so couldn't see the small print, but I'll look at it later & consider a delivery, as that's a good reduction if there are no strings attached.
Just myself & the cats this evening, as Mr F has a very late shift to cover a live music event. I'm planning an evening of being in control of the TV remote, making myself a cheese & coleslaw jacket potato (one of my favourites) & reading. 
Yesterday's mouse resurfaced at around 7pm. Soot chased it around the lounge like a loon then lost interest when he was unable to squidge his ample form under the stove to fetch it out. It was eventually caught by me, but not in a good way. I steered it into the trap with a wooden spoon & the zizzer sounded instantly to signify that the poor little thing had met its end. It was extremely quick, which is why I will only use an electronic trap rather than the old-fashioned spring clip ones which can horribly injure, but not kill outright. Mousey was duly interred by Mr F behind a rather nice clematis. I like mice actually, but we have an infestation of varying degrees every autumn & we know from experience we have to get on top of the problem before it gets out of hand.
Shall stop woffling now & get on with a few more things.
F x

foxgloves

Morning Campers!
Today I'm hoping to finish getting the front courtyard planted with bulbs & homegrown pansies, ditto 2 containers; bake bread; bake some kind of cake or muffins: bottle the mincemeat & do meal plans from Sunday right up to when we go on holiday. Intend to put some time into this to prioritise freezer & pantry. I think this will be enough for today, as the front flower bed will need clearing first.
No new 🐭 🐭 seen so will put the trap back in the pantry.
Oh, & will check for surveys - both PA, which I use to boost my monthly Personal Spends & a couple of others, from which I am earning ' 🦃 tokens'.
Am nicely caffeinated - had better crack on.
F x

foxgloves

Well, I've managed to get all my jobs done. I am already aching in my backside & tops of my legs from all the bending. I've spent most of this morning doubled over in a front flower bed. It shows just how little exercise I got while I was poorly with & recovering from the lergy, that a single morning of hard graft has me creaking around afterwards like an ancient crone!
Managed to save a bit of gas usage this morning & it's something I'll keep an eye on, Thermostat is set at 18 deg & heating had been on first thing as we got up. I went through to the back garden to fetch the broom when there was the unmistakable whoosh of the boiler firing up for the heating. I was in & out constantly, still with most of the morning to be spent in the garden, so I popped indoors & turned the thermostat much lower to stop it coming on. Could see no point whatsoever in paying to heat the street. I had every intention of switching it back up at lunchtime, but I got side-tracked watching the cr*pola which passes for PMQs these days & forgot. It's still off. I've baked bread, a blackberry jam filled semolina cake & sterilised the jars for bottling my mincemeat (to save heating the oven up multiple times) so the kitchen is plenty warm enough. I shall turn it up later when we need it. It struck me that I could also switch the thermostat right down when we are going out for the morning. The house heats up pretty quickly once it is turned back up. I know we are getting the energy bill subsidy atm, but the truth of the matter is that energy still costs double what it cost last year. I want to mitigate that as much as possible.
Another energy thing I've noticed.......If I need a bowl of hot water for washing-up, I am now making sure I remember to switch the tap lever from the 'hot' to 'cold' position, because there have been a few times when I went to rinse something or some other small task for which cold water is fine, & I haven't noticed the lever is still on 'hot', meaning that the boiler fires up. Yes, I switch it to cold as soon as that happens, but over a year, it could happen heaps of times, so I am on it now I've noticed it's happening regularly. Some of these energy 'leakages' really are such silly little things, aren't they? But it's the regularity of them happening which adds up in terms of cost.
Well, time to see if there are any surveys for me today, then I shall start my mega meal-plan which will cover between this coming Saturday right up to when we go on holiday. When we get back from holiday, I intend to do exactly the same between then & Christmas. Planning always saves us money & we need to be making serious inroads into freezer contents. I read yesterday that grocery inflation was 13.9% for September. I can believe that - prices on some things seem to have risen every time we shop.
Reminded me of my Mum & Nana talking about food price inflation back in the 1970s.
F x

DawnW

I actually am an ancient crone , and similarly ache from digging up my raspberry border which wasn't doing at all well because, I think, the plants had become too crowded. I have only replanted 3 clumps, and given away loads. There were some other things there, such as rhubarb, a loganberry trained against the fence, marjoram and lemon balm, which I have left, and also planted lots of other, smaller things in between, permaculture style. I just used plants that I already have - Welsh onions, thyme, acquilegia, foxglove and forget me not seedlings, strawberries, bulbs of various kinds. I then scattered a packet of wildflower seeds over the lot and gave it a good water. Not sure how it will turn out, but it looks a lot better than it did!

foxgloves

That sounds like a really productive session, @DawnW. I'm really looking forward to my annual plant freebies treasure hunt. I found 2 perfectly good beetroots yesterday, which I'd somehow overlooked, & I'm pretty sure I've spotted some self-sown watercress lurking under the old bean wigwam. I think one of the joys of cottage garden planting style is that the prolific seeders & breeders are often the very plants which look fab in groups dotted right around the whole garden. Price=zero! I've saved quite a bit of seed this year too. I got back into it after paying over £3 for a packet of cerinthe seed which contained about a dozen seeds! Large seeds & easy to harvest. Shan't be making that mistake again!
F x

ladyholly

Foxgloves dont do too much after your lurgy bout. You do need to take time to recover.

foxgloves

Yes, I think I did do too much this morning, @ladyholly. I feel ridiculously stiff & achy now. No garden plans tomorrow, apart from scooping apples out of the apple picker pole when Mr F goes up the ladder, so my.muscles will have a chance to recover.
F x

Blackcats

Glad you are feeling better.  Not sure you completely understand the concept of taking it easy while you recover???

kayannie

@foxgloves - I remember that a few months back you were querying the lack of surveys from U Gov. Did you ever get a reply, only I am now in the same position, surveys completely dried up. 
KA