Dusty's Frugal Fortnights Return!

beanielou

Hope all goes well tomorrow dusty.
I don't know how you do it. I really don't.

dustydigger

Morning all. Hiding from the heat already.23C.

No sign of DS1,DS2 came this morning with GD6,he is babysitting all day since his partner is at work,so he cant help. Oh boy,dont even want to imagine what GD6 could do in the havoc department. Her dad says he can help Thursday evening after work,so its been a case of ''hurry up and wait''.We cant get hold of DS1 looks like he is teaching with phone switched off,could be here ,or across the country,who knows.

Mr Dusty has gone off to the small Morrison shop about half a mile away,to get us potatoes,and his fruit,bananas,pawpaw,whatever. Hope someone is there to revive him when he hears the cost. Mr M is not exactly the cheapset store. ,paticularly the small corner shop sort of thing.Mind you,I dont expect them to have pawpaw anyway,a bit exotic for this small working man community.

dustydigger

No I didnt lose my mind,it got scared and ran away.

dustydigger

2 bags of potatoes,a bunch of bananas,and muffins - £7,. Just like that. Fortunately they had no pawpaws!

2 bags best potatoes,£3.98. Muffins 4 chocolate £2. Big bunch of bananas.Oh look at the monet drain away!

dustydigger

Wow,I found the questions on the Ask an Expert about energy worrying. So many shellshocked people whose payments have tripled. I also found it an eyeopener that so many people know very little about the whole thing. I found so many people who didnt understand price caps or different tariffs. I avidly read all relevant stuff daily and was a bit disconcerted at the number of people without a clue. Perhaps they only come on MSE occasionally,look at the competitions and deals and perhaps a  debt diary. Really keeping up to date and getting any sort of overview of such a huge site as this one is difficult. And outside of MSE unless you are computer savvy and have the desire to do deep searches on the topic,there isnt a lot of real solid advice. I can only think that poor old Citizens Advice Bureau and charities like Age Concern must be overwhelmed,and are completely helpless to aid people. Our govt and Ofgen are a disgrace. Why are the general public having to pay the bills of failed energy companies,apparently to the tune of £98 per household.Oh yeah,we must protect the companies and their shareholders. Good to see there are record profits for those on the gravy train

By my admittedly vague maths estimates the rises are huge and of course compounded. A 54% rise was bad but then a 70% increase on that figure makes it much worse.

No wonder my scared brain just wanys to run away!

beanielou

dustydigger said:

2 bags of potatoes,a bunch of bananas,and a muffin - £7,. Just like that. Fortunately they had no pawpaws!

Blimey.That's steep.

dustydigger

Sad to see the passing of Raymond Briggs,best known for his enchanting picture book without words,The Snowman.It became a famous film,because it stayed strikingly close to the original book. My rough lads of course thought Raymond's Fungus the Bogey Man was hilarious - not my cup of tea!

Another more serious book was When the Wind Blows,a poignant and bleak depiction of an old couple trying to survive a nuclear war. Such variety of style and content,yet having an underlying fondness fo ordinary folk and their little lives.

RIP Raymond.

dustydigger

Hi forumites,been MIA a little. Bad back,so resting mostly,not posting much. Spent today mostly cooking. At one point I felt a bit like an orchestra conductor. Par boiled potatoes roasting in tabletop oven,carrots simmering on hob,frying onions,and mushrooms,while checking the lamb steaks in slowcooker to transfer to hob for light frying ,and then making the sauce. Absolutely boiling there,I kept have to leave the room to as not to faint. Wish I had an OH who would eat salad or cold food in a heatwave,,but no,its 28C outside and probably 32C in the house and I am making full roast dinner! Crazy

Did my back in of course,so spent whole afternoon dozing or binge watching TV. Not up to much reading,but I have managed to  finally read one of my challenge reads,and a third of another. First week of the month I binge read 4 popcorn kindle unlimited books in an  enjoyable lightweight SF series. The fifth book comes out in September,so I wanted to make sure I was au courant with the series ready for the next book.

My son has had a crazy week,his whole work schedule turned upside down,and he hopes to be back home tomorrow and ''make a plan for the decorating''. The way he phrased it didnt sound as if it would be immediate,so I am left with an empty downstairs,and Steptoe and Son's yard.

At least the last 2 days,when not cooking,I have just rested,pulling myself together after 3 or 4 hectic  work filled days. But what exactly is going to happen,and when,is a mystery

dustydigger

Really surprised this morning to receive a letter from the council saying I should take the letter and ID to a Post Office,for a £75 ''household support voucher'' That was very nice,though no explanations at all.

I see that my Scottish Power credit balance is up to £518 now. Every time my DD payment goes in my credit is rising between £60-£100.Last month it was £412. Just shows that last years £16 rise per month was completely unjustified. But I expect by January when my payment is over £320 a month,its going to come in handy.

I have stopped watching cost of living items on the news. So many desperate people,so many depressed and anxious people not knowing where to turn. And the candidates fo the PMship are just completely fixated on their tussle. Its terrible.

beanielou

Good news on the payment.
Your OH is a lucky man as I just  just would not cook to that extent in this weather.