Busy Mee's Last Leg

savingholmes

Glad you've had refunds sorted. What a fab mortgage rate!

Suffolk_lass

We might also have another mouth to feed soon. We have a friend about 50 miles from here who has rheumatoid arthritis and lives alone. As we are only out to exercise and shop I have offered for him to come here to stay through the isolation time, so he has some regular conversation and company (his sister died recently). He is normally away in his camper van but I said he can bring it here and live in it on our drive (or stay in an actual bedroom if he prefers) and use his bicycle or walk the different paths round here, to keep his spirits up - he was really struggling when we spoke this weekend. He won't do it this month but he might next month. He was considering camping in his garden...

themadvix

I think small two-man tents are the thing to invest in SL - every child with a garden is going to be going camping in it this summer, I think! So your friend might not be too far off the mark. Kind of you to offer him a much better alternative though!

savingholmes

Very kind SL. I know a few singles who have gone to live with friends or relatives rather than feel isolated at this time. A camper van sounds great - he can have his own space and still have some company.

Busy_Mee

Morning All,

Beanie. I know I was impressed with Jet 2. Emirates haven't even been in touch and looking at the website they want you to just keep the ticket open for two years. I would have preferred a refund but I suppose we might use the ticket again.

I am making a mental note throughout this, of the companies that have done the right thing by their customers and employees and give my business to them in the future. I would like to boycott people like Wethersp@@ns but never used them anyway 

Vix. Great minds and all that. We have just loaned our 2 man tent to a colleague of DDs, so that her children can camp in the back garden. Our kids loved doing this with their friends and it usually involved an extension cable out to the tent so they could use a laptop out there too  . Such happy memories 

Suffolk Lass. That is a kind offer to your friend and I am sure you will enjoy having some additional company too.

I made a 2nd sourdough loaf last night and it was better this time. The slower prove helped it to keep its shape and it still tasted good too. We had it with homemade minestrone soup 

Mr Mee went to the supermarket again yesterday and spent £106 ( where is the eek emoji when you want it ). He is becoming quite the hunter, gatherer with the shopping and he is even taking instruction on what to look for when buying bananas etc (he doesn't eat them and doesn't care). He is a bit of a careless shopper tbh. All the beans he bought came in chilli sauce, because he didn't look properly. I have tried to be gentle with my feedback 

I have a day off today. I decided to capitalise on the all the bank holidays and use flexi time to work 4 days a week until the end of May, to try and manage my work/life balance. I am working very long days on the days I am in and this looks like it will continue for some time. I learnt many years ago that you have to look after your own well being where I work. And the sun is shining and I am looking forward to a nice day of pleasing myself 

Busy_Mee

SavingHolmes. We are incredibly lucky with our mortgage product as it tracks 0.69% above base rate. Although I think Suffolk Lass's is even better 

We took the mortgage with Woolwich/ B@rclays out when we built  the house and it is also very flexible because it is an offset mortgage. Since then base rate has remained very low and so we have been better saving in higher interest accounts than paying the mortgage off.  Given the eye-watering size of the mortgage originally, the low interest has saved our bacon financially and I thank my lucky stars for it.

I have started to chip £500 chunks off the IO part of the mortgage when I can, not that this makes particularly financial sense to do so but psychologically I would prefer to pay a smaller lump sum at the end of the mortgage term. It will take a general anaesthetic to withdraw capital from my savings to pay it off otherwise 

We should finally become mortgage neutral at the end of May 

beanielou

Great idea on the 4 day week. 

Suffolk_lass

What a good idea to lend your tents to people with children - I might put up a FB post on the Village page. I used to do a compressed fortnight, 9 in 10 before I retired and it was brilliant (they would have owed me weeks and weeks if I had claimed for the extra hours but as you know, it is expected once you get to a certain point BusyMee1)

I was just going to recommend the little flatbreads that DH makes (Jamie Oliver recipe here) as a quick and easy substitute for naan breads - we make a third of the recipe for two of us.

Your point about prising the capital away from you to pay off your mortgage is exactly how I feel. Nightmare. That and the need to still feel part of the challenges on here of course, is why mine is still there (and the need to have a bit of disposable capital to hand). Our rate is 0.49% above BOEBR - my best ever financial decision - based on "Wake Up to Money" on Radio 5 with Andy Verity and Mickey Clarke (possibly the presenter before Andy but definitely Mickey, talking about fix vs tracker mortgages round about 2002!)

themadvix

The eek emoji can be found here: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/76975005/#Comment_76975005

Good call on the tent loaning... If ours fitted in the back garden I'd be tempted to put it up for a change of scene, but we'd have to incorporate a bit of pond... don't fancy falling in in the night!! 

Thanks for that recipe SL - always after a quick bread recipe for last minute whims. Dan Lepard does a good naan recipe though BM, if you're looking for a more authentic one. Recipe is here. I love his barely kneading approach.

End of May is so soon!  

savingholmes

I love the idea of 4 day weeks until the end of May. Glad you are looking after yourself. I loved the idea of 'gentle feedback' to hubby on the shopping! Well done to both BusyMee and SL on your tracker rates. Mine isn't be either - just 0.95% above base. I got stung by fixed rates early on so prefer trackers now - in the days when they were really low that it is!