Escape to the country & living off savings

Skint_yet_Again

It was horrific Suze. He also refused to remove my thyroid and it was only when he left I got a new lovely specialist who was shocked it had been left to get so big it affected my swallowing and speech. I then had half removed and he told me it was the size of a cricket ball! 

Thanks penny_less, I was totally knocked out last time I had it done just over 6 years ago so I don’t remember anything & hopefully will be same this time. 

Skint_yet_Again

Sunny breezy day here. Towels washed including aqua towels and blowing on the line. Picked up pj’s and joggers from asd@ & just given a quick swish in the machine and also hung out. 

Remaining butternut squash in the slow cooker for soup. I should have enough food left in the freezer for next week. Out visiting family every day sun - thu. Not going to aquafit on Tuesday but may go on Friday before I go away at the weekend for Christmas 

Skint_yet_Again

Breezy dry day so one load of washing out on the line. Kitchen tidied, dishwasher unloaded and kitchen floor swept & mopped. 

Current account £80.79. Out to lunch with niece & baby today. Out to visit my cousin and family tomorrow then lunch with DF at nearby mr T

christmas presents on credit card £111.75 to be paid from Christmas pot (£159). I just need to pick up some Christmas crackers to take to Dsis. They all are full of tat so I am going to get the cheapest ones from mr T tomorrow & maybe put a £1 scratch card in each. 

Skint_yet_Again

We didn’t get to my cousin’s today as he has fallen ill with a bad cold (covid?) so he didn’t want to pass it on. Instead we called in to 2 of my uncles houses (DM’s brothers) and exchanged Christmas cards. 

Then began the Christmas cracker hunt. We tried mr T but they were cheap & nasty so went to asd@ and got nice ones with £1 off on the app so only £4, plus a few groceries. Then I won £1 on the app 🥳 

Back home & scoffed more chocolate 🤦‍♀️ so I made myself walk round the village for 40 minutes, calling off to drop off 2 books in the community phone box library and picked up 3 more. 

SuzeQStan

Hear you on the Christmas cracker hunt - I’m dreading the Christmas when my 5 boxes of w!lkos crackers I vulture shopped in the closing down sales run out!! Putting a scratch card in them is a good shout tho! 

Sorry your cousin isn’t well - hope they recover enough in time to enjoy Christmas xx

Skint_yet_Again

Thanks Suze 😊

I have written the Christmas cards for the neighbours and posted them through their doors today. Had another walk round the village after lunch. Wrapped presents for my friend and her husband and took them round this afternoon together with a gingerbread muffin each 😋

No plans for tomorrow so I am going to start wrapping and packing. It’s supposed to be sunny & windy so I will get a load of washing done & hung out. Haven’t decided yet whether to go to aquafit on Friday. Feeling a bit knackered to be honest. 

Tresinia511

Hi Sya, sorry to hear about your cousin. You sound as though you are proper getting in the festive mood now,  with pressies and gingerbread muffins.  We are away visiting friends until January and were wondering what to pack, as weather can be so changeable.  We've never been away for Christmas before and so have done no shopping , wrapping or gift buying.  Given cash to the kids and asked them not to buy gifts or cards for us as we won't be there.  A bit strange in one way,  but a bit liberating in another! Have a great Christmas and look forward to see the diaries for next year!

Skint_yet_Again

Thanks Tresinia. Have a lovely Christmas with your friends ☺️

House insurance renewal has arrived. Up to £189 from £168 last year. Quick phone call and dl reduced it to £176.02 ☎️

Not sure I can be bothered to get other quotes. Not very mse I know. Renewal not due until 20 Jan so I might look after Christmas. They are keeping the new price for me. 

Very sunny and breezy day so load of washing drying on the line. Popped up to see DF for a cuppa. Getting my hair done later. 

badmemory

Just to provide you with a mixture of wow & giggle & OMG.  55 years ago when I had my first mortgage you had no choice but to insure via the mortgage company & bearing in mind the mortgage rate then was heading from 7% to 17%.  My insurance then was three times yours now.  

It was also very unusual to have fixed rate mortgages & if they did it was for the term of the mortgage.  My then H's uncle had fixed his at around 4.5% & everyone laughed at him for being a mug.   In the early 70s they had stopped because we were paying almost 4 times that.  We would get a letter in mid July to say your August payment is going up, then one in Sept to say your Oct payment is going up.  What was not happening then was rents were not going up as they are now.

Skint_yet_Again

I remember similar when I was a first time buyer late 80’s & 1990’s badmemory. Mortgage started at 6.99% and they rose to about 15%. We were tied to our mortgage company for house insurance and the earliest bill I have is £523.23 😳 When they changed the rules and you could insure with anyone it dropped to £195.04 !!