Seasidegal's Scrimpy Retirement Diary!

Seasidegal58

@milann - it's a bit of a trek to the Highlands from where I live - just over an hour each in the car to the airport, plane journey and then drive from Inverness airport to DD and OH's house. But I wouldn't miss going there to see them for anything!

Yesterday was a nice afternoon as a friend and I popped over to see another friend and her husband who live about a twenty minutes drive away and whom I hadn't seen since before Christmas. The weather was lovely and warm and we sat in their garden and drank Prosecco  in honour of my retirement. 🍾

Today I ran  a few errands and then did some of the 30 day cleaning - I sorted out and cleaned the fridge and the shelves under the kitchen sink and gave the bathroom more of a going over - scrubbed out the bath and the tiles around the shower and all around the base of the toilet. 

I made a coconut dhal and had this for dinner with some broccoli and rice. 

Scrimpy MSE Retirement Things
Budgeted stuff was my monthly grocery delivery last night, visit to the greengrocer today and also to our little Co-op as the Jorg oat milk was on offer for £1 per carton - I like this as much as Oatly and saved myself 85p per carton!

I took a bag of clothes that I had sorted out from under the bed to the dress agency and I got £17 back on some previous sales. 

AND - I won £25 from my Premium Bonds!  The first time I have won since I was about 13!  💷

Verbatim

Congratulations on your retirement  I'm envious of your forthcoming trip to the highlands; it's decades since I was in Scotland anywhere.

HairyHandofDartmoor

Your retirement sounds like it's shaping up nicely 🙂. It must be lovely to plan visits to family and friends now that you don't have work commitments and with restrictions being loosened. Seeing your work laptop being taken away and dismantling your other work paraphernalia must have felt strange but good. How lovely to finally be able to visit DD in the highlands 😁.

doingitanyway

A lovely new diary. Congratulations on your retirement. It is what we all want to arrive hale and hearty with enough income to pursue whatever we want and spend time with family and friends. As you know I LOVE the Highlands. Very much hoping to go to Ullapool sometime in the future. Yes it is a journey and a half but worth it

Seasidegal58

Thank you @Verbatim and @HairyHandofDartmoor. 

Yes I love the Highlands and am lucky that I have an excuse to visit via DD and OH.  Hairy - I hope you get up there later in the year to see your sister. 

The weather is very warm today - it's currently overcast now, but earlier on I had Sunday brunch with my friend sitting outside the cafe and it was lovely and sunny. No jackets required!😀

I'm taking it easy at the moment with some coffee and diaries, but later I'm going to clear out and check the freezer and the junk drawer and hoover all round, giving the bedroom a proper wall to wall vacuum. My friend mentioned the good old push/pull carpet cleaners that we used to run over our carpets daily back in the day and then have a good once a week vacuum session. I haven't seen these in years!  Maybe because so many people have hard floors all over in their homes now. 

I've got the rest of the coconut dhal for dinner - with some little naans this time. 

MSE Scrimpy Retirement Things
it was my friend's turn to pay for brunch this time so I left the tip. 

On the way home I stopped in Superdrug for my L'Oreal face serum that I use as my moisturiser- it was on special offer 2 for £30 so I bought two and saved £20. It's a good buy as I use it all the time. 

I also popped in the Factory Shop - I bought a suit bag in order to store away my gift bottle bags and non-Christmas wrap etc. I can keep this hung up in my wardrobe with the Xmas wrap suit bag - it saves so much space. 

I also bought some new vacuum storage bags and a new ironing board cover.
 

The whole lot came to £8.49 which isn't bad. 😀

joedenise

That's a good idea for keeping wrapping paper together without taking up loads of space!  Going to pinch that one - at the moment it's stored under our bed but I think it would get less crinkled hung up in a suit bag.

Seasidegal58

Hi @joedenise - yes I pinched the idea for the Xmas wrap from the fly lady thread a few years ago as I don't have much storage and it was taking up room under my bed. It's only just occurred to me that I might as well store all the other sorts of wrap that way as well!🤔😀

redofromstart

The storage of wrapping paper is a great idea.  I also like the one about the winter duvet under the mattress.  
Happy new diary!

joedenise

Sorry, meant to say Congratulations on your retirement.  I've been retired for about 10 years now and have loved every minute of it.  DH retired  just over 5 years ago and since then we have got away in our motorhome for loads of short breaks as well as much longer ones.  This last year has been hard but brilliant now we're allowed to go away again in our self contained accommodation!

Seasidegal58

Thanks both @redofromstart and @joedenise for your good wishes. 

joedenise - I'm so pleased you and your DH are loving your retirement- it's very positive to read this and also others' posts lauding the joys of finally throwing in the working towel!  I hope you have some lovely times to come in your motor home catching up with your travels!😀