Winter is coming

joedenise

I always make soup with the bendy carrots!  There are so many variations you can make:  carrot & coriander; carrot & lentil; carrot & ginger etc.

WinterWarrior

Once they lose their hardness in the salad drawer and start bending I send them to the bunnies. I always have new solid ones in though...I’ve never thought of soup, but I love them in salads or roasted with honey.

cuddlymarm

Hi guys
i think it will be one of the young ones that will win Stictly. I like the way how they seem to become a big family and support each other, but mainly I like a bit of glitter and sequins. My OH says I have reverted to being a six year old girl when I discovered I like wearing sequins after we had our first cruise.
i seem to go through phases of whether I want my soup fresh or canned. Our rubber veg tends to get cooked off and frozen until I’m making mashed potato and then bubble and squeaked.
I was just starting to feel chilly but having the oven on has warmed us up nicely. We only have a very small flat which luckily costs buttons to heat but I think the heating may have to go on in the few days.

WinterWarrior

I do too, but Caroline might stay in for a while. 

I never seem to have room to freeze veg....but the freezer does need a good tidy up. 

cuddlymarm

Good afternoon guys
Today I’ve got Xmas nearly finished. I was amazed how quiet the shopping centre was considering it’s half term, normally you wouldn’t have been able to get a table in a cafe and the shops would have been mobbed. Anyway I got what I wanted so I can relax a bit ( I was worried in case we went into a total lockdown ) 
I feel for the families that were in town and the shop staff, the weather didn’t help with torrential icy rain and high winds. There were a few more shops gone and some of the bigger ones have just not bothered staying open.

Anyway I’m home now and snuggled up in front of the tv and don’t plan to do much more today. 

Tipping point time 

cuddlymarm

Hi guys
The weather here is truly disgusting. Rainy, cold and very windy. I’m so happy that I’m not at work today, I’m not leaving the house at all. I’m going to try and find a nice film for this afternoon and to sit and knit.
My turkey, little sausages and pigs in blankets are now in the freezer. If I didn’t buy anything else now we’ve enough for a decent Xmas. So now I’m going to concentrate on living frugally and getting as much off the credit card as possible.

I’ve given up on the news today, I just need a break from it. It’s enough that the world is being ravaged by a virus, but then for all the added sadness and hate at the moment is just too much.
Anyway time for a nice cup of tea 
TTFN

cuddlymarm

Good afternoon guys
Well I went to work in the rain but I’ve come home in beautiful sky’s, it’s a bit chilly but I can live with that. I feel so much better when it’s sunny. One more shift and then I’ve a week off. We can’t go anywhere or do anything but I might as well use my holiday hours, if we don’t use them we lose them anyway. We are supposed to be going to cruise round New Zealand in February but I can’t see that happening so I’ve agreed with my boss to take unpaid leave if by some miracle it happens.
I’m trying to clear all the odd bits out of the freezer at the moment so tonight’s tea is a pack of sliced sandwich beef ( it wasn’t going to get used in time so I froze it) in gravy with roasted carrots and parsnips and some Brussels sprouts. I’ve had a go at making no knead bread dough so I’ll pop a loaf in while I’ve the oven on.
Now I’ve got most of Xmas sorted I knocked a chunk off my credit card this morning. I get paid weekly so knock as much as I can afford off each week, it also helps me not to spend because if I’ve next to nothing in my bank account I think before I spend.
My boss told me they’re looking at cutting the hours because we’ve got too many staff for what we’re bringing in. It’s a bit worrying but I’m determined not to panic. No point winding myself up, it won’t help anyway. I’ve nice full cupboards and can tighten my belt if I really need to. 

Anyway I better get on

Sarahwithlove

You're so organised for Xmas it's great especially if it's looking like covid is gonna impact your job. Sorry to hear that. Its not ideal but supermarkets are usually quite good at hiring people that bit older if you just needed something to tide you over until your pension age. Do you have a private pension you can take at 60? I know some have raised to state pension age but a lot are still 55 to 60. 

cuddlymarm

Hi Sarah
Thanks for the support. Boris has thrown another spanner in the works with us going into lockdown again on Thursday. All I can do now is see what’s going to happen. Unfortunately I’ve only a very small pension that I took at 55. We haven’t a mortgage any more and our flat costs buttons to run and we can cut our outgoings more if we need to. I was feeling really stressed and gloomy this morning but now I’m just feeling resigned to dealing with what ever gets thrown at us.
Part of me will be relieved if we go back into furlough, not having to serve lots of people every day. But the other part of me worries how many people are going to lose their jobs.
Anyway enough for now
Look after yourselves everyone 

boultdj

How did the bread turn out? OK?