Champagne Lifestyle on a Lemonade Budget.

Wednesday2000

Mrs_Salad_Dodger said:

Being nosy 😉 - what are the 20 hobbies, please? Thank you

I said this on the Frump to Fab thread. You should come and join us Mrs Salad Dodger. Not that I'm saying you are a frump, just we have some giggles on there. It's in the Health and Beauty section. LessonLearned/ Helen started it there.

I will list them again.
1. Volunteering for a charity.
2. Going to comedy nights.
3. Cinema.
4. Joining social meet-up groups.
5. Joining a local dog walking group.
6. Seeing live music.
7. Joining a gym.
8. Tai Chi or meditation class.
9. Fostering cats or dogs.
10. Joining a local vegan group.
11. Learn to ride a bike (I've never learned to!) and buy a bike.
12. Start journaling daily.
13. Get involved with local politics or an environmental group.
14. Learn to play the piano.
15. Get regular massages.
16. Do a course at a local college/uni.
17. Go swimming.
18. Join the University of the third age (I read about that on here) I think it can be for any age as long as you are retired.
19. Join a sailing club.
20. Do an art class.

I don't know that I will do all of these, but it's good to have a goal.

Wednesday2000

Debsnewbudget said:

Also can you tell us what the book is called please

How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free: Retirement Wisdom That You Won't Get from Your Financial Advisor. Ernie J Zelinski.

I don't know how to make that smaller,   it's more about the emotional side of retiring, like making social contacts and looking after your health.

helensbiggestfan

Good morning my lovely friends. 

Wow thanks for posting your list on here Wednesday.......lots of great ideas.  And I think it's  fabulous that you are thinking about your new life and making plans. I love it.  I think it's wonderful to have goals and ambitions.  I guess I'm what you might call "target driven". I do love to forward plan. Ok sometimes plans have to be revised or put on hold but I still think it's great to have an overall vision.  

My family often joke about my "5 year plans" but one question I regularly ask myself is "What do I want to be doing in 5 years time, how do I see my life, what it will it look like". Then I work towards it.  

As you know I set myself a target this year....."A Year to Change My Life Part 2". For those who don't know .......I had already done part 1, which basically boiled down to moving house, losing almost 3 stones and going on the trip of a lifetime to the Amazon......I achieved all that although it actually took around 18 months in the end but no matter.  I reached my goals.  

This new challenge has been somewhat derailed because of CV. But again it doesn't really matter. I don't mind if it takes 2 years rather than the original 12 month timescale. I am patient.🤣

I think the key is to be flexible, to be prepared to bend a little, sometimes we just have to go with the flow.  Life is very unsettling at the moment, many people are frightened and rightly so. These are anxious times in so many ways, the virus itself of course but also the effects on the global economy and the changes and challenges we will have to face in the months and years to come. None of us know what the "new normal" is going to look like.   I think many of us are using this time as a period of reflection, asking ourselves what do we really want, what is important to me and what changes need to be made so I can make the best of my life now and in the future.  

I am hopeful and optimistic.  I think we humans are a resourceful species. We are opportunistic and resilient. There will be scientific and technological advances that come out of this, there will be innovations and new ways of thinking and living.  Yes, there will be challenging times ahead but challenge and change is good for us. They stop us from stagnating, keep us vibrant and alive.  

Weather not great today so more painting and I might make some bread. Champagne moment tonight will be a Facetime Quizz  with family and friends.  

Have a lovely weekend y'all.  Stay safe and happy.  

  

phoebe1989seb

Lovely sunny day here after the rain/windy weather earlier in the week.  The garden is looking so much better having had a thorough watering and more and more plants are budding/flowering which makes my heart sing and lifts my otherwise somewhat grumpy spirits. Soon it will be a mass of colour 

I'm very excited especially because my latest David Austin rose order just arrived this morning - six more roses bringing the total we'll have planted here to 49! The champagne moment being that because they are only offering bare root roses for sale due to the covid crisis, we've saved a fair bit on what we would have paid for potted ones 

When we lived nearby we used to visit the David Austin nursery/garden regularly. We both miss that - although on the whole we didn't enjoy living so far from the sea - but hopefully we're creating a little bit of rose heaven here in this corner of Wales!

Looks like a(nother) busy weekend of gardening is in store 

Used up another load of larder cupboard ingredients and made a yummy chocolate cake yesterday. It may not look much, but it tastes delish!

I've also been investigating Instagram - having opened an account a while back I need to get my act together and start adding those pics of our cottage/garden restoration journey, not to mention posting them on the home forum here......

Hope the weather stays fine where you are and that everyone manages to have as good a weekend as the current circumstances allow!

helensbiggestfan

Ooh Phoebe. Could you please tell me the name of the supplier you are using for your roses.  I am determined to create a rose garden....love David Austen but they are more expensive.  So if they have a sale......💐💐💐. 

helensbiggestfan

Thanks for the book recommendation....I will take a loot at that too.  Might just treat myself. Talking of. treats....

helensbiggestfan

Free from my garden...........

"Flowers are nature's Chanel".  

Ok I can't afford to wear Chanel but I can run to some flowers.......
 especially when they are free from my garden.  😂

Greenglockenspiel

Hello everyone, I haven’t posted on this thread before but thought I would de-lurk to mention my champagne moment for today. Since they are closed, the Royal Opera House are posting videos of performances on YouTube to watch for free. I’m watching Così Fan Tutte right now and I’m going to watch A Winter’s Tale (ballet) when it gets posted tonight 😊 Extra points if you dress up nicely to watch!

phoebe1989seb

helensbiggestfan said:

Ooh Phoebe. Could you please tell me the name of the supplier you are using for your roses.  I am determined to create a rose garden....love David Austen but they are more expensive.  So if they have a sale......💐💐💐. 

We actually bought them online direct from David Austin, Helen/LL 

They only took a week to arrive despite the site saying to allow up to twelve working days.

By purchasing bare root roses we saved £7 per rose (£18.50 each instead of £25.50 for potted), a huge saving when placing a decent sized order....or even if not!

Sadly, it looks as though they are now taking orders for November delivery on the bare roots - normal practice, I believe. As a result of Covid-19 they had been offering bare root roses only for sale - I guess they are easier/cheaper to package/send (delivery is £3.95 regardless of quantity on both bare root and potted) - but I suppose that as we are now into May the bare roots are no longer available. The website did say they hoped to offer potted roses for sale again soon (early May, I think) so probably worth keeping an eye on things......

Occasionally you do find other nurseries selling David Austins online but I've not visited any recently, so can't recommend anyone else I'm afraid.

It's little help at the moment, but in previous years at previous addresses across the UK, we've sometimes managed to pick up the odd DA rose in a garden centre sale - I recall getting some for the bargain price of £10 each back in 2014 when we had our house in Wiltshire. 

Do you have a local nursery/garden centre with an online presence who might be a supplier? We have one locally that we've been supporting since lockdown, but they were unable to get any DAs this year 

Your cut flowers are gorgeous, btw - definitely a champagne worthy moment

helensbiggestfan

Thanks for that Phoebe. ........I'll just keep an eye out.  We've got several nurseries who stock Austin's roses.  I am sure there will be a few bargains going when things kick off again.  I think most retail establishments will want to stimulate sales and get the tills ringing again, so I'm betting there might be some offers around.  

Took the car for a little run just to keep the battery charged. There were a lot more cars on the road. Did a drive by Aldi thinking I might pop in but the queues were too long for my liking. I'm not desperate for anything.   

One silver lining.  I'm not spending much at the moment. 😆.