Resourcefulness: The budgeter's friend

foxgloves

@Cheery_Daff - I know! I think the customer service person was surprised just how many things had gone wrong with it, lol x

Humdinger1

DD has some hearing loss in one ear (cause currently unknown) that may reverse of its own accord.   Hearing aid is indicated.  All plans in place to return to Uni in Sep and restart Year 2; forms filled in.  Apparently there are students with far more profound hearing problems on the same (acting) course doing well so all my catastrophising was indeed a complete and utter waste of time...but we knew that already, no?! Onwards and upwards love Humdinger xx 

Blackcats

Your home shopping delivery sounds like a shocker but at least it's been resolved now.  It's always surprising just how far a spillage travels and how much damage it causes.   The cat knocked my bedside water over at about 4am a few days ago (I think he was trying to have a drink from the glass by hooking water out with his paw) anyway it seemed that there was water everywhere and at that ungodly hour I was not impressed.

Makingabobor2

So glad you finally got the shopping catastrophe sorted out. We found that one delivery we had just before Christmas was nowhere near up to standard, with mouldy veg and stuff nearly OOD. I think that may have come from a different store, or maybe just temporary pickers at that time of year. Was instantly resolved though once I messaged through their FB page and even gave us extra £3. 

milann

The shopping delivery sounds awful. Pleased you got compensated 👍

PennysIntoPounds

Excellent work on the handbag, I wish I had any practical skills!

That is very poor indeed on the shop, glad it for resolved. So, what will you be using your bonus tenner for?!

Sun_Addict

Glad you got compensated for the dire grocery delivery. I often wondered why my Mr M delivery drivers kept complaining about traffic on the motorway when our nearest store is about 3 miles away and why the drivers all have Birmingham accents. Apparently it comes from a fulfilment centre rather than a local store. I believe Mr M share the centre with Mr O. The bags the shopping is delivered in and the apps are identical. On a recent order a couple of items were Mr O brand. 

Good news for you @Humdinger1, so pleased it’s nothing sinister. 

themadvix

You are quite right Sun addict re fulfilment centres (I have insider knowledge) - not all Mr M comes from fulfilment centres though, some are store picked. It depends on location as the centres don’t cover the whole country. Definitely prefer mine to come from a fulfilment centre though - much better stock control and robots don’t breathe germs on the food as it’s picked 😉

Suffolk_lass

Personally, I prefer click and collect from my local MrM, then if a want an alternative I can pop in and collect something. The staff there mostly know me and are always surprised if I accept any subs! I think I must be unusual round here as I only shop there 1-2 a month. 

I made the effort to go to the same SM that sells their OB 5k of sugar as I am guessing that delivery came from @foxgloves. To get the offers and the nec-tie offers I scanned to save but then they chose me to rescan everything so that was a right waste of my time. I think I might have picked up two packs of something that were stuck together as there were three packs in my bag, where I thought I had two. So to be fair to them, there was one item. They removed a yellow pepper though, no idea why as it is in my bag

foxgloves

@Humdinger1 - Well that is sounding more positive, isn't it, especially that it is possible that the hearing issue may resolve itself in time. I wonder if it was some kind of inner ear infection. They can make one feel very peculiar indeed as well as affect hearing. If all the uni stuff is ready to go for September, it's a case now of your daughter getting back to normal & deciding how best to spend the intervening months. I wonder if there is any volunteering she could do which would help with her acting course.....maybe assisting at a youth drama class or theatre or something? So glad it doesn't seem to have been anything sinister, what a worry.
@PennysIntoPounds - I was pleased I managed to mend my handbag as there is nothing else wrong with it. Yes, I am a practical person, but sewing jobs are often more of a bodge, as I can mend things, but am not a natural sewing person. The worst thing about stitching my bag was having to hold it in an odd position to access the ripped areas. I have arthritis in my hands & my thumb was really complaining by the time I'd finished. Still, it's deferred spending out on a new one for a while longer.

And now for today's very unexciting post with all those little budget-helping things. Hello everyone. Isn't it cold? Garden still frozen solid despite sunshine since mid-morning. Cats still tucked up over the radiator, though Soot did move when he heard the cat biscuits come out of the cupboard.
*Did my regular mid-month budget check-in. No nasty surprises. I came out at £4.66 less than I expected, but reduced this shortfall to just £2.59 once I'd factored in small increases in milkman delivery & Labour Party & Instant Ink subs. The surprise really, was that despite budgeting £50 less for groceries this month, as we had loads of leftovers plus all the batch-cooked stuff I made from l/o turkey, we still have £114 in the grocery budget, & that's not counting the £10 supermarket voucher we received for that shoddy order. I was intending to pay for our fish box from Feb's budget, but it is looking as though I will be able to cover Week 4's grocery shopping as well as carry forward a decent amount towards the fish. 
*Made a batch of bread rolls - there's a decent amount of sourdough left in the bread tin, but this could dwindle fairly swiftly if Mr F suddenly fancies some toast. Having rolls & garlic flat breads in the freezer is such a useful stand-by.
*Did a round-up of use-it-up veg & half a leek & half a red onion will be incorporated into tonight's kedgeree.
*Made tomorrow's packed lunch & breakfast.
*Did a few surveys.
STILL TO DO:
*Pick a week's worth of meals from the master plan.
*Write grocery shopping list.
*Nab a few free steps trotting down to the post box, as wrote a long letter to my sister this morning. 
Right, off to do those outstanding tasks,
Love to all,
F x