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I'm getting up slowly this morning but I'd really better get a move on as I'm supposed to be meeting DH and the grand daughters at just after eleven and I'm still in pyjamas. The washing machine is just finishing: I've put the new duvet set in to soften it a bit, and we can start using it tonight.
Encouraged by DH, I've also been back to the piano a couple of times, though I'm not making any resolutions about continuing with it. I had lessons for years but I'm not a natural and I've forgotten a lot. I stopped having lessons when I broke my arm, then during the pandemic I just stopped playing. I think the language learning took its place. DH has more than kept the piano going: he plays by ear but he's been studying jazz piano on YouTube and in the last few months has gone from 'doodling' to making much more sophisticated sounds. He has a good ear (which I don't) and a good voice too, though he keeps his singing and his piano playing quite separate.
I also started a reading journal for New Year and haven't added anything since about 2nd, so I'll write a few lines there to keep it up to date.I think a bit of sunshine is good for frugal living. (Cranky40)
The sun's been out and I think I’m solar powered (Onebrokelady)
Fashion on the Ration challenge, 2025: Fabric 2, men's socks 3, Duvet set 7.5= 12.5/68
2024: Trainers 5, dress 7, slippers 5, 2 prs socks (gift) 2, 3 prs white socks 3, tee shirts x 2 10, 6 prs socks: mostly gifts 6, duvet set 7.5 = 45.5/68 coupons
20.5 coupons used in 2020. 62.5 used in 2021. 94.5 remaining as of 21/3/223 -
With your hot chocolate I would say the company took a reputational hit with the contamination & decided to do a little bit of PR In hopes people would notice.
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badmemory said:With your hot chocolate I would say the company took a reputational hit with the contamination & decided to do a little bit of PR In hopes people would notice.
Geek alert:
The 'new' package is actually worked out on a serving of 18g per 200ml milk and the old one uses a 14.5g helping to the same amount of milk, and there's a consequent apparent calorie increase. Quality-wise, it's dropped from being vegan (but 'may contain milk'?!) to being vegetarian, and from a minimum 31% cocoa solids to a minimum of 25%, suggesting they've increased the sugar content, which is probably cheaper, though it costs more. That might also explain why they've dropped the 'be treatwise' warning.
It does go to show that the size of the container is an illusion (I proved this with another product a year or so ago: the boxes for a1pen original and the no added sugar version looked identical in size but the price per 100g was markedly different - though I've just checked and that doesn't seem to be the case at present).
My reading of it those details is that the quality of the product has been reduced and the price increased so I was wrong before - it does indeed look like shrinkflation.I think a bit of sunshine is good for frugal living. (Cranky40)
The sun's been out and I think I’m solar powered (Onebrokelady)
Fashion on the Ration challenge, 2025: Fabric 2, men's socks 3, Duvet set 7.5= 12.5/68
2024: Trainers 5, dress 7, slippers 5, 2 prs socks (gift) 2, 3 prs white socks 3, tee shirts x 2 10, 6 prs socks: mostly gifts 6, duvet set 7.5 = 45.5/68 coupons
20.5 coupons used in 2020. 62.5 used in 2021. 94.5 remaining as of 21/3/222 -
We had an enjoyable day with the kids: DH did the usual morning stint taking them to toddler club and we all walked back to their house for lunch and an afternoon of playing. I think I was still tired from the meeting on Sunday as I was falling asleep after tea (fishcakes and cous cous from stores). I really couldn't bring myself round so I went to sleep for two hours and am now awake but slightly spaced out. However I do need to be awake as I have a client call in the morning for the Wednesday job and want to look up the records tonight so as to have a good run up to it.
The manager wants to have a chat with me and we've arranged that for Thursday. She's couched it as 'to catch up on things with the centre' so I'm not sure quite what it's about. We are down a member of staff for a while (medical reasons) but I know about that. It's perhaps more likely that she has a client or clients for me to work with. I'm not sure why but this role still leaves me feeling I'm not 100% sure what I'm doing - possibly it's because I'm the only one in my role so it's about making it up on a person by person by basis, and it's hard to draw a line under something so nebulous and say 'I reached this goal'. I keep going in the hope the penny will drop and I'll feel I really know what I'm doing but the reality is people's situations don't stay stable and often they have too much else to deal with to make an optimum job of something that looks easy on paper.
Other than that, I didn't organise a proper packed lunch for myself today so I whisked together some mayo, curry powder and sultanas and intended to get chick peas to mix with it. I ended up substituting tuna as DH bought some to replace his lactose-free cheese which he asked me to bring, but I couldn't find it. It was a novel taste as tuna and sultanas is a new one on me! I also got custard slices and cappuccinos, and DGD asked for her 'red milk' as usual. I know she's tiny and they are supposed to have higher fat milk, but she likes the red so she gets it for a treat and an exception.
Expenditure:
Gift - DH bought a trinket for DGD £2.99
Housekeeping £12.37
I think a bit of sunshine is good for frugal living. (Cranky40)
The sun's been out and I think I’m solar powered (Onebrokelady)
Fashion on the Ration challenge, 2025: Fabric 2, men's socks 3, Duvet set 7.5= 12.5/68
2024: Trainers 5, dress 7, slippers 5, 2 prs socks (gift) 2, 3 prs white socks 3, tee shirts x 2 10, 6 prs socks: mostly gifts 6, duvet set 7.5 = 45.5/68 coupons
20.5 coupons used in 2020. 62.5 used in 2021. 94.5 remaining as of 21/3/225 -
I used to work for a food company and the customer service lady regularly received a complaint from a man who weighed his cheese. If it was less than the weight stated on the packet he wrote in to complain.2
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WelshmansDaughter said:I used to work for a food company and the customer service lady regularly received a complaint from a man who weighed his cheese. If it was less than the weight stated on the packet he wrote in to complain.I think a bit of sunshine is good for frugal living. (Cranky40)
The sun's been out and I think I’m solar powered (Onebrokelady)
Fashion on the Ration challenge, 2025: Fabric 2, men's socks 3, Duvet set 7.5= 12.5/68
2024: Trainers 5, dress 7, slippers 5, 2 prs socks (gift) 2, 3 prs white socks 3, tee shirts x 2 10, 6 prs socks: mostly gifts 6, duvet set 7.5 = 45.5/68 coupons
20.5 coupons used in 2020. 62.5 used in 2021. 94.5 remaining as of 21/3/221 -
Wednesday didn't go to plan.
DH couldn't find either his keys or his glasses. The keys turned up on the path and the glasses materialised much later on top of a tall cupboard.
I got myself dressed, makeup done etc ready for the client phone call (as you do) then they cancelled so I suddenly had an opportunity to catch up on various things including washing the sheets and filling in a form for the first session of the course the church is putting me through. I'd nearly finished those when I had a phone call as DGD2 was unwell and they needed a babysitter. H was out at work and A had a meeting that had taken some convening. He came to pick me up and I spent the afternoon looking after her, then he finished early so he could take over and drop me round to my work.
When I reached work, I realised I'd forgotten my badge so I had to borrow one, but the actual shift went okay till the end. The other day I'd turned the lights out on a colleague, thinking he'd already left, and today I did it to someone else, then when I got back to the place where we clock out, I realised I'd forgotten the cleaning cupboard key and my handbag, which I'd left in the cupboard for safety. As we were all leaving, I found the cupboard key in my pocket so I was able to hand that in. I arranged to go back in the morning to collect my bag but I'm going to have to leave it there during the day as I'm now going to be looking after the baby again.
I had run out of snacks so I called in to L!dl on the way home, and tried out using the bank card I'd loaded onto the wallet on my phone. Success! So I now have loads of junk food.... oh, dear.
I've bought H's birthday present, pending delivery.
I've now packed my uniform and lanyard, some biscuits and a drink for tomorrow. Lunch can be the rest of the herrings in sauce that I bought on discount this evening and the custard slice that I'd left in the fridge. The sauce is yogurt, dill, gherkin and apple and the herrings are delicious, but the yellow sticker was over the label details so I couldn't tell how many it was supposed to serve. At least two, I now know. I bought more hot chocolate as the 450g size was available at 95p less than the 500g size... I am not obsessing.
Expenditure:
Gift £37.55
Housekeeping £23.39I think a bit of sunshine is good for frugal living. (Cranky40)
The sun's been out and I think I’m solar powered (Onebrokelady)
Fashion on the Ration challenge, 2025: Fabric 2, men's socks 3, Duvet set 7.5= 12.5/68
2024: Trainers 5, dress 7, slippers 5, 2 prs socks (gift) 2, 3 prs white socks 3, tee shirts x 2 10, 6 prs socks: mostly gifts 6, duvet set 7.5 = 45.5/68 coupons
20.5 coupons used in 2020. 62.5 used in 2021. 94.5 remaining as of 21/3/224 -
I have a plastic box I put all my work stuff in. It just goes back there so I don’t need to wonder where stuff is3
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WelshmansDaughter said:I have a plastic box I put all my work stuff in. It just goes back there so I don’t need to wonder where stuff is
Today A called for me at 8 and I spent the day with the little one, which meant cancelling helping out with the church toddlers group and a meeting with the manager of the Wednesday job later. The day was therefore divided by her sleeping and crying, with a nice bit in the middle where she seemed okay and was playing and smiling. She had a long sleep on me int he afternoon and woke up seeming quite a bit better, then threw up all over the place, including over me. There followed a mad dash for A to get her changed (thankfully she wasn't distressed) and me to change into my work top, then across town back to ours to put on other jeans followed and back into the car to hare off as much as town traffic allows for me to get to work on time and A to get back to the nursery to pick up his other daughter.
I retrieved my bag, which my manager had rescued and put in her office, and arrived home (2 hours' work) to find a couple of people from the church were delivering the bookcase. They were kind enough to handle it upstairs into position. The footprint is perfect but it's so tall! We are going to try in another position before deciding where it goes, then we can't use it till it's bolted to the wall.
Nothing spent today.I think a bit of sunshine is good for frugal living. (Cranky40)
The sun's been out and I think I’m solar powered (Onebrokelady)
Fashion on the Ration challenge, 2025: Fabric 2, men's socks 3, Duvet set 7.5= 12.5/68
2024: Trainers 5, dress 7, slippers 5, 2 prs socks (gift) 2, 3 prs white socks 3, tee shirts x 2 10, 6 prs socks: mostly gifts 6, duvet set 7.5 = 45.5/68 coupons
20.5 coupons used in 2020. 62.5 used in 2021. 94.5 remaining as of 21/3/225 -
Ah sorry I meant that I have a box at home for work stuff2
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