Frugal, thrifty, make do, mend! Let this debt come to an end!

KajiKita

I’m liking the idea of tracking how many veggies per day / week. I might start that from next week. (I’m going into a period of unemployment and I know from experience how easily that can become sofa stasis and atrophy so trying to set a more positive plan.) That meal looks delicious and 🎉🥳 for the HG tomatoes in it ❤️😊 - so satisfying. 

Hope your scalp is still feeling calmer and the dog walk today can be taken in a dry spell! 😊

KK

SuzeQStan

Food looking very yummy Elisheba x pls let us know when you get home safely today - it’s worrying travelling in rubbish weather take care xx

Slowdown

Nice to back Elisheba. I’m enjoying your posts. 

I’m also trying to dodge the raindrops with the dog walks and am delighted to see some blue sky this morning. 

Your food looks very yummy. 😋 I got a library book out recently which was about fitting 30 plants into your week. It had recipes at the back which were very useful. If I can remember the title I’ll let you know. 

I rarely shop at Ald! Or L!dl but enjoy it when I do. Looking forward to hearing how the fresh v frozen veg goes. 

🙂

Elisheba

Morning, frugalistas,

I am so sorry, @SuzeQStan!  I was so tired on the way home on Friday I just listened to music and didn't check my phone, and then had a bit of a digital detox weekend.  Then this week I have been feeling a bit bleurgh and didn't check either, so didn't get back to you.  But yes, I got home fine.  Flooding didn't really effect me at all, other than delaying my train to work by an hour or so due to a fallen tree somewhere else.  

Hi, @Slowdown. Isn't the blue sky today delightful?  What a dreich old couple of weeks it has been.

Well, it has been a difficult week so far as my anxiety has been sky high and the black dog had been plaguing me.  In some ways this is entirely my own fault as I know what I need to be doing to stay mentally healthy, and I got complacent and let things slide.  However, I am also trying to be kind to myself and accepting that sometimes things happen, and not all of it was within my control, and now I need to focus on feeling better not self recrimination.  

I know this is only a blip and I am now doing all the right things and slowly starting to feel bit calmer and happier.  I genuinely have no idea how I managed to live feeling like this for over a decade and just thought it was normal.  Thank goodness that isn't the case any more!  

As part of feeling awful I have had a yearning to run away and live in a shack in the woods somewhere, where I can just be and don't have to do anything or see anyone.  Of course, then I remember I like hot showers and baths, and painting my nails, and checking Pinterest, and various other things like you know, being warm and eating, that a wild lady of the woods would struggle to do.  

So I must focus on the life and home I have.  And they are not bad at all - I know this even when I want to hide away and not exist in the real world.  I have quietness and privacy in general, and my weeknight social engagements have been cancelled this week for various reasons so that has given me a bit of time to just exist and regroup.  And even though I haven't been able to face to doing much I have been able to keep the basics ticking over, so I have food and clean dishes and the animals are looked after. In fact, other than some household chores that can wait, home and hearth are holding together well.  I have always been a functional depressive at least, for a given definition of the word anyway. 

So in all this internal turmoil, has there been any moneysaving? Well, I was due to have a smart meter fitted on Monday but they cancelled and gave me £30 onto my account as a goodwill gesture.  As my electricity use is a solid £55 a month, that's over half a month's free electricity which I can't complain about at all.  I also hear that there are some changes being looked at in the background which will reduce standing charges hopefully by next Spring.  So even if the unit cost goes up, that will save me money as over half my bill is standing charges.

I was really feeling the cold at the weekend so I put the heating on, but during the week a combination of my new fleecy leggings and warm clothes has meant I haven't felt like I needed it on again.  I have been tempted to light the woodburner just for the mental health benefits of watching the flames, but although I have a couple of 25 litre bags of coal in the garage I haven't ordered the wood for the winter yet, and am loathe to light it until I have.

I did have the chimney cleaner out last week which was £50, but that was £30 less than I budgeted for so that was good.  He has booked me in for next September as well, so one less thing to worry about.  

I got my flu jag this week, and only had a sore arm - no other symptoms, so that's another good thing.  No dates have come out for the Covid jags though, which is annoying as it seems to be doing the rounds rights now.  

I managed to get up the motivation yesterday to do my end of month totals for September. It wasn't hard as I had written everything down as I spent it on Notion, but finding the motivation to do it wasn't easy in my current dip. Anyway, I had overspent on my personal allowance and food budgets, and underspend on pets and travel.  None of which was a surprise to me.  Due to the lack of motivation to do very much I didn't get to Ald! at the weekend to do my shopping, so I had to do a T£sco order instead as there were some things I desperately needed like cat food and litter.  So that arrived last night, and now I just need to cement my food plan for the month and then make sure I do it.

I haven't really been feeling like healthy eating this week, but have only really been very unhealthy one night - on Monday I bought a pizza, and had the best part of a packet of triple chocolate cookies.  I wouldn't really say I am sticking to my fasting, no white carbs and UPFs diet though.  A lot of that takes motivation and inspiration in the kitchen which I haven't been feeling.  Still, I am being gentle with myself and accept I am doing the best I can right now, for example I was craving chocolate yesterday and bought an 85% dark chocolate bar, which was the healthier option.  

Now I am out of the worst of it though I will make a meal plan and post it on here when I have.  I was thinking though that while the muesli I am making up is no doubt fantastically healthy, it is quite expensive. Maybe I might be better making up porridge and then adding a couple of tablespoons of the mixed fruit, nuts and seeds separately, thereby using less of them and saving some money.  I'll try it out when my current batch is finished.  

Oh, and in great news, due to a house move my boss has decided we don't need to be in the office once a week after all, and has sent out the office day dates until May 25.  It averages out as being on twice a month, which is much better for my budget, tiredness and stress levels. So that's a small weight lifted as well.

Right, I need to do some real work but I do feel better for offloading a bit on here!  I know I am so very lucky - I have enough money to keep my home warm and pay all my bills and have an enjoyable social life, and when I read some diary entries I know that many people struggle with that.  Sometimes our brains just go on the fritz though and need to be nursed back to good health.  I hope you are all warm and cosy this sunny, but chilly Autumn day.  

foxgloves

Anxiety is just awful, @Elisheba. I am thankful never to have suffered with depression, but have certainly had a spell of GAD quite a while back now & I wouldn't wish it on anyone. It did improve. I was able to go back to work before my sick pay was reduced & apart from it having left me more claustrophobic than I was before, I have been able to keep a lid on it coming back. I have always been quite an organised person, but one of the things which most helped me through that period of anxiety disorder was becoming super-organised. It was as though keeping to all my plans & routines, having everything in place, etc, cut off a few things potentially to be anxious about & gave me a much greater feeling of being in control of the situation. With just the occasional lapse, I have maintained all my planning & I think it has probably been one of the most beneficial things in staying anxiety-free.
I was sorry to hear that you also have bouts of depression. It must make the anxiety harder to deal with if it saps your zest for doing activities.
Sending sympathy & best wishes for feeling better soon.
F x

Elisheba

Thanks, @foxgloves. In general, through a combination of medication and lifestyle I manage the depression and anxiety pretty well these days. The last time my anxiety was really bad was when I was served notice on my house last year, and it took months for that to settle down.

This is just a blip compared to that. I know that, but when the smallest thing sends my heart racing in a panic, and when silly dog is making me more irritable than amused, and nothing really seems worth it, it's hard to hold onto the fact it'll pass soon.

Totally agree with you about being organised. Things I know I need to be healthy - a lot of sleep, and regular sleep hours; exercise; exposure to daylight; doing things I can take pride in; regular social contact; a fairly tidy and organised home; mental stimulation; as calm and drama free a life as possible; keeping alcohol drinking fairly infrequent and to low amounts; regular meditation and prayer; healthy eating... That's all I can think of for now!

The problem is when one things slips, like not getting enough sleep or being stressed, then other things slide like exercise, or healthy eating or overindulging in alcohol, and then it's a downwards spiral. Or it could even be a hormonal trigger because I'm definitely peri menopausal.  And sometimes I'm okay and I recognise the pattern and turn it around, but it's a bit like Russian roulette because sometimes it really doesn't take much and I have a truly sh*ty week like this one. Ah well, live and learn.

I'm back to the healthy lifestyle now, and today was better than yesterday.

Small wins today -
🎈cat litter changed,
🎈upstairs bins emptied,
🎈a really lovely, dry and sunny dog walk,
🎈lit the fire tonight using some of last year's wood that I found - so basically free heat,
🎈have been able to focus and read some of my Frugal Hedonist book,
🎈 dinner was some leftover wholemeal pasta with a mushroom and white wine sauce I made a few days ago and very nice it was too, 
🎈Remembered to transfer my premium bonds over to my main account. Once it has arrived I'll transfer it to my high interest account so it will earn a few pence.
🎈Have posted on this diary 
🎈Set my alarm to make sure I go to bed at 9pm 

That's all for today I think. I'm off to read more of my book and watch the fire for a bit. Sleep well, folks ☺️

Elisheba

Evening, all,

Small spend today on a nice pizza and fancy yogurt from the Coop for dinner. Not particularly healthy but a bit of a treat after a very long week.

I don't think there has been much else money saving (or otherwise) today. My PB money hasn't hit my main account yet so I can't transfer it over to the higher interest account. I took silly dog for a walk after work, and have watched a few YT videos after dinner. The house is feeling quite chilly this evening, but I'm fine with a blanket over my lap, and heading to bed in an hour anyway so no point in putting the heating on.

I'm meeting friends for lunch a couple of hours away tomorrow, which will be a nice break, and I haven't seen them for ages. I was looking at my diary and my Saturdays are full up now for the next month and a half. It's all fun, social things, so hopefully it won't feel too busy and leave me wiped out.

I pretty much accidently saw a couple of jobs advertised today that I found quite interesting. Both very different to what I'm doing now, both very different to each other. I might just mull them over for a bit, and see whether they do actually appeal or whether it's just a knee jerk reaction because I've been feeling rubbish. Neither one would be a career advancement, but they both do some good for the world and would be quite social, and each have their different appeals.

I think that's all from me this evening. I'm just really glad this week is finished at last. Fingers crossed a weekend of fun and relaxation will start the new week off well. Hope you all have lovely weekends and stay dry and warm.

beanielou

Enjoy your weekend. 

Moorviews

I’m really sorry that you had such a dip last week. You work so hard at staying on top of everything and sound very wise as to noticing when you are particularly vulnerable. I can completely relate to that running away to a shack in the woods feeling! It’s good that you have had a short break to take stock of yourself and reinstate what you need. Some of us definitely require that for mental wellness; certainly I do. I’m glad that you lit a fire because they are so comforting and uplifting and not really expensive on the scale of things. 

You wrote a while back about frozen vegetables to avoid waste. I keep my eyes open for them whichever supermarket I am in for different vegetables. Some I use instead of fresh: fine green beans, runner beans, broad beans, sweetcorn, spinach and peas. The quality is often better than the fresh ones and they would spoil quickly in the fridge. Unless you grow your own. Others I like to have just for convenience and quick meal preparation but will also buy fresh, such as butternut squash, sweet potato and peppers. I don’t live close to the shops and won’t pop out for just a few items. I tend to shop once a fortnight. I am going to chop and freeze some leeks and some mushrooms this weekend as I would like to have those handy to put into stews. Frozen broccoli and cauliflower are great for making soup too. I do chop and freeze leftover vegetables whenever time permits but then I no longer work so I have the time. I try to get most of the fresh vegetables used up in my menus the first week after shopping then rely more on staple roots and the frozen in my second week. I can often stretch to a third week. There are just two of us now and I like us to eat a lot of vegetables. I don’t function well if my diet isn’t good. Sorry that was rather long winded!
Hope you have a lovely weekend and enjoy seeing your friends today 😊

KajiKita

I think your response to the job adverts is interesting. How do they differ to your current role? Are either of them closer to home (I think that could be quite important for you)? Why not ask for more details - you don’t have to actually apply. 

I’m sorry you have been struggling. It sounds like you understand yourself well, so do what is right for you. I hope you feel brighter soon. 🌞

KK