Frump to Fab 2022 - The Big One

sugarbaby125

Hello Ladies,

Yesterday, I finally received my rent rebate of £809.89. I started the application to have the credit sitting in my rent account on 28th April 2022. After various phone calls and emails, I finally got approval for the rent rebate from the finance department in my Housing Association. I had to persevere and have a lot of patience, but I got the result I wanted. 

I went to visit my brother on Friday as I had bought him an Adidas tracksuit and wanted to give it to him and see how he was doing. He was not feeling good when I arrive, but by the end of my visit, he was feeling more positive. I went over all of the cost of living payments he would be receiving this year with him and he was amazed that he would be getting this help. He has found the energy increases the most difficult, as he is receiving his state pension and has no other income or savings. I had such a laugh with my brother, as he is a natural storyteller and he has such a great sense of humour.   

maman

Both Amsterdam and York are lovely places to visit @Wednesday2000. We visited Amsterdam in November 2019 which was our last trip pre Covid. I'd recommend the a boat trip as the canal side buildings are fascinating. Book early online if you want to visit Anne Frank's House and, if art's your thing, I'd recommend a visit to the Rijksmuseum, even the building is beautiful before you start looking at the artworks. 

We were treated to a free Killer's concert last night!  🤣 It was being held at the football stadium which is 3 miles away. It was incredibly loud here so must have been deafening at the gig. Definitely not my thing. 😉

I'd suggest you apply for your new passport immediately as there seems to be a massive backlog. I was really lucky as I did my application in late February and the new passport came in 2 weeks but things seem to have gone haywire since then. 

Those master classes sound rewarding but very demanding @sugarbaby125. Are they always held on Zoom or do you ever get to meet in person? 🤔

Great news about getting your rent credit back. I think we're all taking a tight control on our finances at the moment. Yesterday I had an Ocado delivery as there's a good offer on for new customers at the moment (£20 off a £60 shop) so I stocked up on some good value store cupboard items and meats. 

Are they working on the loft extension this week @chanie? It'll be good when the mess is over and you can concentrate on the fun bits. Do keep us posted on how your house sale is going @helensbiggestfan. I spend quite a bit of time on Rightmove, particularly seeing what houses in my road look like inside. It's interesting to see what people do with the same basic layout. 

I had my hair cut yesterday and I'm very pleased with it. I also did a manicure myself as my nails were getting far too long. Tomorrow I'm off to have lunch with an old friend who has a big birthday coming up while I'm away. It'll be lovely to catch up and get dressed up a bit. I plan to wear my Zara spotty dress if the weather is good enough. 

Have a good day.😊

sugarbaby125

Maman, yes all of the Masterclasses and Saturday session are on zoom. As Covid-19 is still an issue, it was felt that zoom meetings were the safest option. zoom meetings are not my preference, but I just have to get on with them. I am learning a lot and really enjoying the whole process. 

chanie

Our loft extension is progressing well and much of the heavy works have been completed.  

We’ve decided to get someone in to tile the bathroom in the extension.  OH has tiled before, but he hasn’t tiled a shower and we are a bit nervous about water damage, so thought it best to leave it to the experts. Otherwise, we will be doing the decorating ourselves to keep costs down.  We found a carpet shop that had a large selection of off cuts, so we are hoping we can find a bargain, plus I’ve been looking for second hand furniture, as DD wants a rocking chair.  

I treated myself to a bottle of perfume this week, from PenhaIigons.  I have wanted a bottle for ages and put a bit of money aside for it, hoping it would go on sale at some point and it went down to half price.  I also found a voucher code for a free gift, so I’m pleased with my bargain.

helensbiggestfan

Agree with both York and Amsterdam to visit. Bath is gorgeous too.  And of course as I'm half Belgian I can thoroughly recommend both Bruges and Ghent. 😉. All excellent choices for mini breaks, without the need to fly. 

If you want to fly then Dublin, Prague, Tallin are all fabulous and only a short flight. But my absolute favourite is Barcelona. It's got the lot.  I've been 3 times now and still not seen it all.  Not been to Berlin or Budapest but my son loved both. 

House went live on RM today. 2 viewings booked already. Here we go. 😁. Excited.  I've been trawling RM tonight. Nothing jumps out at me. I'm not worried, if push comes to shove I'll rent. 

Chanie. think you are right to leave tiling a shower to the experts.  Showers are tricky to get really watertight.  

Wednesday2000

I've been extremely unlucky with concerts this year as I missed one as I had Covid in March, one was too close to my house move so I gave someone else my ticket, one I felt ill for so I only stayed for the first half, then I couldn't go to The Killers because of my dog and my husband's Aha concert was cancelled as the lead singer was ill. 

All I have for the rest of the year is a Jordan Peterson talk, that ghost play I mentioned and tickets to Harry Hill.

I have been to chazzers today and yesterday. I bought three wooden cat doorstops for my house and a couple of dresses and a couple of tops.

I would like to go to Barcelona as I've never been and someone I know moved there back in 2019 so I could see her while I'm there. My cousin lives near Dublin too so I would like to go there too and see him.

There are lots of street parties around here and the roads are going to be closed off this weekend. I'm not going to any as I am going to the 02 Saturday. I suppose we could go to a street party on Sunday. Is anyone on here doing anything to celebrate?

sugarbaby125

Hello Ladies,

After my first week of health eating and daily exercise, I have managed to lose 3 pounds in weight.  I am really happy that my weight loss journey has begun. 

sugarbaby125

Hello Ladies, 

I took the time to type up my notes from the last Saturday session with Ola for Neghbourhood Voices. The word processed version is 6 pages long. 

I have not yet even started to type up my 1st attempt at playwriting, as I had underestimated just how many pages of notes I had hand written. I am hoping to get started on my play tomorrow and see what progress I make. 

chanie

 @sugarbaby125 how did you get on with starting your play?

we had our street party, which was fun.  We got to meet neighbours that we hadn’t met before and sampled foods from around the world.  We had music and games and everyone enjoyed themselves. We had a forecast of rain, but it was a lovely sunny (albeit, windy) day.

sugarbaby125

Chanie, I have not had time to start typing up my play, I have laundry and other housework to do today, so again, I might not have the opportunity, I have to make time soon though, as I have tickets for quite a few events this month. 

Your street party sounds like it was fun for all.