Moving on

WelshmansDaughter

Jeez at least wait until halloween is over before starting on the Christmas schedule 🤦

Cherryfudge

LOL, the difficulty is that other people's diaries are getting congested! And I hope to be making the cake soon, mostly so it can mature. However, I've not done anything else towards it, unless you count a discussion with DH on who in the family is going to be where, and a couple of bought-during-the-year presents.

in_need_of_direction

I’ve agreed with some friends to do a January meet up. Pre Christmas just left us all under too much pressure.

Cherryfudge

Ooh, that's a good reminder thanks, @in_need_of_direction. We used to do that in various settings in the past but somehow it's not come up this year.

No decision made on the dates... the menu that was posted looked good, but somehow it feels like something I don't need and don't really want to do. I had coffee with this group a few weeks ago and enjoyed it but I still feel 'all peopled out', just wanting a quiet life.

I've also remembered we said we'd invite our former neighbours for a meal... slight feeling of 'eek' even at that level where there's no commitment to a date.

The takeaway from this might just be not to overstretch myself, because pushing the boundaries in a couple of aspects (job interview and weekend away) is what's triggered this. It's also raised the mirk from the things that anger and upset me about the previous job, and that's going to take a little while to settle, though I did 'talk shop' with someone on the weekend who's in a not-unrelated role, and which brought back some of the positives I'm missing from it.

amber03

A couple of years ago my DH’s work colleagues decided to go out for Xmas the end of the following January. We went for a Chinese meal and drinks. Truthfully it was a great idea. Everybody was busy in December and trying to get things organised for Xmas. Come January everybody was looking forward to a relaxing evening out. Would recommend people meet up in January instead of December. It’s so much more relaxing.x

Cherryfudge

I've said 'no' to the latest invitation. DH has encouraged me to hang fire on others but at present I feel one can stay and one must go if I'm not to get worried about it.

I had my turn on the church cleaning rota this morning then DH made tuna pasta for our main meal. We had planned to go out for the afternoon but put that off till tomorrow as there was rain in the air. Instead we went to the garden centre for our 'free' hot drinks (still 'out', but less 'out' than planned). Today's saving was £5.10. I might renew that membership next year as it works out about 50p a drink if we use them all, and last time I got a free packet of seeds worth about £3 or £4 too. We have to remember not to go for our favourites as they aren't particularly to our taste there, but there are others we like (and the cakes are good, but they don't come free). It's been nice having our regular 'coffee date' and nothing to distract us from each other.

While I was leaving the shop I remembered to check their recycling/rehoming bins and picked up a small planter which happens to be about right for the little camellia I have. The planter is a bit grubby but intact and should clean up enough for my purposes. I also got a free bag of coffee grounds to add to the compost.  The compost worms will be hyper.

This evening DH has gone to the first meeting of the Christmas choir and I got three hours at work and a couple of unwanted polystyrene (?) boxes which could be used for craft or to cover with hypertufa and use for small plants. They are so light I am thinking they would be nice on the roof of the bay window as an homage to those wonderful balcony gardens that city people have.

My tea was the rest of the ham slices and cream cheese on oatcakes and yet more tiffin. I'd better start making something less calorific or that I don't like.

I've not spent anything today but I know DH has as my phone tells me 'my' nectar points have been added. He's also renewed my library books and paid the fine, so I suppose I have effectively caused that money to go.

badmemory

The company I used to work for always had their Christmas do at the end of January.  That way people from other divisions would attend.  Otherwise everyone always said that they were too busy & it would only be locals.  It also meant we had a better do because the December prices were so inflated.  They were also paying for rooms for those of us who were not local so those were cheaper too.  More to the point, it also made what is normally a very long January seem much shorter.

Cherryfudge

amber03 said:

A couple of years ago my DH’s work colleagues decided to go out for Xmas the end of the following January. We went for a Chinese meal and drinks. Truthfully it was a great idea. Everybody was busy in December and trying to get things organised for Xmas. Come January everybody was looking forward to a relaxing evening out. Would recommend people meet up in January instead of December. It’s so much more relaxing.x

Hi @amber03, sorry, I must have been writing while you posted. I agree it's nice to have something to look forward to in January! I expect restaurants are glad to have the custom as well.

Cherryfudge

Another gorgeous autumnal day, though the leaves were falling about us when we were out so I think this is the best of it and I'm glad we were able to be out in it before the trees are bare. A few are already.

A machine load of washing has been on the line all day and is nearly dry.

I had my flu and Covid jabs this lunchtime - the surgery was a regular production line with a one way traffic flow and the car park was the same, but the nurse was very good so I hardly knew I'd been jabbed, and even now it's just slightly sore. All the same, I'm glad I'm not in charge of tomorrow's children's activity!

Dinner was fish in breadcrumbs with Moroccan cous cous, peas and tomatoes, then after DH dropped me off at the surgery (he had his flu vaccine yesterday and is trying to decide whether to get the Covid one), we drove to Helmsley. It was such a beautiful drive, sunny and full of autumn colour. We went for drinks and a scone in the favourite café then used our annual passes to go round the gardens, which were an utter delight. I paid special attention to the chickens as I'm still intending to get some. If the weather is okay tomorrow, DH is going to help me look over the chicken coop, which needs some TLC.

Before we left, we got some of the apples and some iris rhizomes from their 'donations' stand. DH had one of the apples later and I had a bite: so full of flavour. The irises were pot luck so I'm hoping the four I selected aren't all the same as my purple ones, but even if they are, free irises aren't to be sneezed at. The secret hope is for one of their tawny ones but if I don't get one this year, perhaps I will next time around.

After this we popped into the two charity shops and came out with a tee shirt for Dh and an assortment of books to put in each other's Christmas stockings.

On the way home I had a text from D to see if he could stay over tonight after a party. His bed was covered in clothes of mine and papers, so I had to do a quick clear up, but that was overdue so not a bad thing. My suitcase and two bags of scarves are back in the loft. We saw D briefly before he went to the party and he's just returned, dressed as a glow-in-the-dark skeleton.

I've been shopping this evening and cleaned the fridge. Four jars have been emptied as overdue, and chucked out, and a box has gone in the recycling from my stuff in D's old room. 

Expenditure:
Parking - unknown
Entertainment (café) £11.30
Donation £2.50
Clothing £1
Gifts £8.95
Housekeeping £20.08

P.S. Chorizo is now £2.25 instead of £2 when on offer, as well as being a smaller pack than a couple of years ago. And a bag of three lemons (organic, unwaxed) is £1.90!!! However, it was yellow-stickered so I paid 67p. I did manage to get various promotions and discounts, so I saved £7.06 on the full prices. And I've discovered our local Mr T doesn't do any dried beans. What?! Not a bean. Only tinned ones.

Honeysucklelou2

That sounds great - being able to get apples and Iris rhizomes! It’ll be fun to see which colours emerge!