Frump to Fab - A Whole New World.

helensbiggestfan

Moonshot...??  Am I misssing something.  😂

sounds like a great Morning there pixie.......especially the decluttering.  Good that your husband has decided to start letting go.  As you say there are plenty of people out there who are in need of warm winter clothing, Charity shops are always grateful for good quality men's clothing.  

I tend to divide my donations - the better stuff goes to a normal Chazzer and the more worn items which arent up to charity shop standards but are too good for ragging (my opinion) I give To the  YMCA. They either sell stuff or they give items for free to people who have been referred by social services. They are always really pleased to receive men's clothing.  

Well I had a change of plan.  

Several weeks ago I locked myself out of my safe......don't ask. 😂.  

Decided it was high time I got it sorted.  Thought about taking it to one of those key cutting kiosks they have near Sainsbobs (next to B&Q so on my route today). Decided to ring a locksmith first to see what they could do.  They told me it would be £295, plus VAT🤣😂🤣.  No chance.  

 My kindly neighbour managed to open It whilst I plied him with coffee. 😉. He had to destroy the lock of course but no matter, I will just price up a new safe when I pop into B&Q later. They are only around £30 ish. Isn't it ridiculous when you can buy a new item for around 1/10th of what it would cost to repair it or in this case just get access to its contents.  

I keep essential papers in there, plus my good jewellery and always some cash for emergencies.  Anyway I need access to some of the paperwork. So whilst I'm at it I have decided to sell some of my unwanted jewellery, plus I've got bags of old coins, currency and a few small collectibles. 

I've reached a stage where I just can't see the point of keeping stuff lying around, so time to start offloading  some of my unwanted treasures. And anyway I want to finish my "Swedish Death Cleaning" whilst I still have my marbles. 😂

Maisie_Moo

Well done Sheila what an amazing achievement and in 9 days that's a lot of walking/swimming .
LL when Moonshot was mentioned I thought what on earth is he talking about, imagining some Apollo landing, had to google it to find out , ambitious innovative idea apparently !
Your visit to the chiropractor sounds interesting I wonder if they could sort out my DH's snoring has got progressively worse over the years since he broke his nose playing cricket.
Had a very lazy morning today as we had been to Norfolk for a few days, the whole world and his wife were there too.
I think a lot of retired people had decided to have a break as soon as the children went back to school .
Did a fair bit of walking 13km one day and 15km the next so I can really appreciate Sheila's great achievement that's probably why I'm feeling a bit lazy today.
Only caught a few minutes of Boris and his 2 amigos last night, not a lot to cheer you up I must say.
I don't particularly enjoy doing my grocery shopping online but last month I decided to sign up for a Tesco delivery pass, thought it was pretty good value at £7.99 a month. I thought it should come in handy if we go into lockdown again in the winter as you can book your delivery slots 4 weeks in advance. I will still get some odds and ends from the local shops though.
Watched Nadiya Bakes last night, I love her enthusiasm but I'm not sure I will be faffing about with her cupcakes though, they looked lovely . Did anyone else see it ? 

thepurplepixie

Handy neighbour there LL.  I lost a set of car keys with a fob which switched the alarm off and unlocked the door remotely.  Old car worth about £800 and the dealer wanted £695 for a new key and fob.  I got a key cut and bought a 2nd hand fob on ebay and the key place reprogrammed it for £20.  I think it all came to about £60.  I nearly had a heartattack when they said £695, I was about to sell the car so wouldn't have left me with much.  The only time I've ever lost car keys and I did have a spare but  I think you do need two sets just in case.

Moonshot is Johnson's latest gimmick word, we had flattening the sombrero, playing whack a mole with outbreaks and now we have a moonshot of trying to do millions of instant tests so we can all go back to normal.  Apparently the BMJ say it will cost the equivalent of the entire NHS budget to do it and the tests don't exist yet anyway.  Wishful thinking?  Promising the moon and delivering nothing.  Who knows.

thepurplepixie

Well the sort out continues.  I think the kitchen cupboards might have to wait for a day or two.  So far this morning I've done some admin stuff for DH that he has been putting off and sorted out a couple more boxes of stuff.  Unfortunately the house looks like a bomb has hit it but I'm hoping it will be worth it in the end.
It is grey and miserable and threatening rain here so the grass cutting can wait.

I have a mountain to climb, currently every room in the house has "stuff" I'm trying to sort, boxes of things like old bills, payslips, car insurance, MOT, AA/RAC memberships going back 40 years is making me feel a bit despondent but every bit that goes is a step forward.  Emptying cupboards, pulling boxes from under beds and so on makes the size of it real.  I'd love to get a skip or maybe just pack a bag............

helensbiggestfan

Good morning lovely ladies. 

Pixie.....it has to get worse before it gets better. Apparently.  😉.  

 

I don't know if it would be easier but maybe focus on one space or category At a time so as to minimise disruption and overwhelm.   I know Maman used to say the MK method of pulling everything out just wasn't for her, she used to do it one drawer or space at a time. 

It's cold and miserable here too.  I really do want to start gardening but there is such a spiteful cold wind this Morning. Maybe it might warm up a bit later and I can get out then.  I have a lot of planting to do, the sooner I can get started the better.  Need to catch the small window of the next couple of weeks in case the weather breaks early like it did last year.  Definitely need to do it before the baby comes because I won't have time then.  

DIL has just found out then whilst my son can be there for the birth, visiting will be restricted to "1 birthing partner only" during the delivery and then only 1 hr Per day when she is transferred to the ward. Obviously they appreciate the reasons why but they are a bit anxious about how. she will cope if it is a Caesarian.  Although if it's straight forward with no complications she should be out again next day.  They don't keep them in long these days. I'll be glad when it's over.  I think I worry more about them than I did about myself when I had my babies,  😂. Maybe that's the role of being a grandmother, we just support from the sidelines.  Not good for a control freak like me. 😂🤣. At least once they are home I can be of use, an extra pair of hands and all that.  I think I will probably stay with them off and on for a few weeks.  Apparently they have set up the guest room for me and have cleared out wardrobe space already.  

Well I've done my hrs exercise this morning. My feet are really painful today, (arthritis) so I slathered on some pain relieving gel, gave myself a reflexology massage (not the same when you do it yourself but better than nothing) and am wearing two pairs of socks so hopefully keeping them warm might help.  Might start giving myself some hot wax treatments soon.  Painful feet might sound a bit of a joke but they aren't funny really.  A Charlie Chaplin walk isn't very glamorous is it.  😂And it does restrict what shoes I can wear when my feet hurt. Looks like I'm going to have to dig out the thermal socks soon, it's only September. !!!  

Moonshot.....😂🤣.  Whatever next,  does he dream them up himself or does he have a team of scriptwriters.  Speaking of politics I watched a really good film last night, called the Contender.  The Vice President dies and a replacement has to be found.  I won't spoil it for you but It's a cracker, full of intrigue, machinations, behind the scenes scheming and plotting and through it all a strong theme of gender issues.  It's a bit slow to start but once it got going i was hooked.  

I also watched a documentary about how rich folk in Chelsea live (BBC Iplayer). .  It was interesting but I found the presenter absolutely appalling.  She Seemed to have a huge chip on her shoulder and tried to turn it into a rant about inequality.  She hadn't done her homework though because a lot of the people she spoke to were self made and weren't born with silver spoons in their mouths so didn't really meet her brief of spoilt rich people who had had everything handed to them on plate.   A bit of an own goal. 😂🤣.  

The BBC really ought to concentrate on making decent programmes and stop trying to shove their political bias down the viewers throat, It felt like I was watching a party political broadcast. 

I'll get off my soapbox now and do some cleaning in the hope that when I've finished it's warm enough to get outside.  The sun is trying........

Wednesday2000

I woke up in a foul mood this morning. I just suddenly felt stir crazy thinking about there being another lockdown, trying to lose weight, trying to save money, whether we are moving house next year etc... I just felt really stressed out!

I got dressed and walked to a charity shop that is quite far away. I bought 10 new tops and a silver photo frame. I hadn't been in there since March. I bought two tops in my favourite cobalt blue colour and a nice dark red one. The others were pastel colours and I'm now dyeing them red with fabric dye.

I feel a lot better and I got in almost 9,000 steps before breakfast. I also went to Gregg's and got a vegan steak bake and that was my unhealthy breakfast. It tasted absolutely delicious after all that walking on an empty stomach.

thepurplepixie

Wednesday that was how I felt the other day.  I also went out, didn't buy much but a mooch did me good.
LL I think for "normal" people and their stuff doing it an area at a time would work, for DH it just doesn't work as it is so much stuff and so mixed up.  I will get there.
I'm sure you DIL will be fine, back in the day it is how we all did it.  With my first, 1971, DH not allowed to be there for the birth, he was allowed a visit to the labour ward but was sent off about 12 hrs before the birth.  We had 1 hr visiting a day with one visitor by the bedside and an extra afternoon visit on Wednesday and Sunday.  Staying in for 8 days for a normal first birth was standard.  I actually think it was good, mums supporting each other, sharing stories and talking through the whole experience.  It was like therapy really.  The sister on the ward was a big lady, Hattie Jacques, and she would visit every new mum on the ward and say, "You are a princess for a day, tomorrow you get up for your food and to get anything you need, today just ring for anything you want."  It was just in that time where things were changing, the other maternity hospital was allowing father's to stay for the birth.
If she is having a section my advice is make sure they top up the epidural before she goes back to the ward, being painfree for a few hours with a gradual return of sensation makes a big difference in my experience.  I had an EMCS so no time for epidural so I woke up to the full blast of pain, other women had those hours of enjoying something to eat, having a nice wash, chatting to people on the phone and it seemed to give them a real head start.  I have to confess I desperately didn't want another section and had to beg doctor to try a forceps delivery, he agreed one more push and if I could move baby he'd deliver him and that's what happened.  Of course it was a bit different for me as DH was already ill by the time the last one was born so I knew I had to go home and look after him, a lively toddler, two teenagers and the new baby so I couldn't afford downtime.  We got his diagnosis when baby was 10 days old, the poor Consultant was very uncomfortable delivering the news and when asked how it would progress he kept looking at me and trying to gloss over it.  What a day that was.

helensbiggestfan

Ah pixie.....you had a very trying and emotional time. Your husbands diagnosis coming on the heels of your new baby.  That's a heck of a lot to deal with.  

I remember the day we sat in the doctors office with my husband.  No diagnosis but Just watching him do the simple neuro tests I knew from the outset that whatever "it" was, it was both serious and terminal.  It was blindingly obvious even to a non medical person like myself that something was very wrong,  The look of pity in our doctors eyes told me all I needed to know. I felt that my heart had been pierced by a shard of ice Which would never melt.  It was without doubt the worst moment of my life, even his death doesn't touch it.  By the time he died it was just a blessed relief.   I miss him like crazy but I'm glad he's gone, his ordeal is over and his great spirit is free.  

Hey ho.....mustn't get maudlin. 

I think you are right though, in many ways the older ways of childbirth were perhaps better.  A longer stay in hospital and restricted visiting meant more rest for mum, to ensure that baby was thriving and feeding was going well.  A constant stream of visitors can be very tiring.  Not to mention the risk of infections.  

Wednesday - I can so relate to your foul mood.  That has been happening to me too lately.  I keep getting very angry too, either an impotent rage just bubbles up or I just feel empty and devoid of any joy or pleasure. Sometimes I really have to fight to keep my emotions on an even keel and to remain positive.  The idea of further lockdowns fills me with dread. 

Would it be easier if I had a partner rather than doing time in solitary confinement.  I honestly dont know. I was reading today how some relationships have broken down.  I guess it can be just as stressful being with someone 24/7 as it is being alone, especially if there are children, money worries and job insecurity to throw into the mix.  

I am just going to try and keep busy, do something productive with my time and stay focussed on my long term goals.  I am going to see if I can find some online courses in subjects that interest me. Maybe try and brush up my Spanish.  I said I would try and improve my language skills last time but I got sidetracked.  The kitchen took longer than expected and I ran out of steam. 😂.  

Anyway well done on your Chazzer shop finds, that's quite haul you've got there.  I might try some different chazzers soon.  I could do with a few more tops.  

Right time to try and make a start in the garden.  If I keep moving I should be warm enough.  

Floss

Pixie, I think if you could list what there is to do in each room (I use a spreadsheet with different tabs), you can then cross it off which helps when you feel there is no end.

Would it be worth looking into taking the confidential stuff to a shredding firm (or asking them to collect it?

candygirl

I'm in a rant mood today, the insurance company are being complete a***holes, about paying out after my flood,  not answering my calls or emails .I'm going to go nuts on Monday 😡😡😡
I had my Daughter in 87.It was a tough forceps delivery after an induction,  n I had to stay in hospital for 8 days after the birth .Ex hubs was allowed at the birth , but they kept sending him home, as I was in labour for 36 hours🙄🙄😯😯 He was as much use as a chocolate teapot anyway, so it made no difference him being there 😂