Moving on

Cherryfudge

It's been as hot here in Yorkshire today as it was in Rome a month ago. Mid twenties. I went down to do the church cleaning and water some plants, then on to the supermarket. I was going to get chicken, but there was none on discount and I decided it was too expensive (despite getting various other bits and pieces). On the way back I called into a charity shop and spent £2 on a small book of recipes (culinary, cleaning and medical) from the early years of the twentieth century. I've only read a bit and some of the food looks good, but I'd be cautious of dosing myself with some of the concoctions.

I didn't start cleaning till after lunch so it was around 4 by the time I got home. I found cooked chicken in the freezer so added that and a few new potatoes to the rest of yesterday's curry for tea. We're watching the Sewing Bee now. Afterwards, DH's hay fever was tolerable so we went for a walk for an hour or so, up the hill and and through the fields. So much elderflower, Queen Anne's lace, buttercups and flowering grasses, as well as a few butterflies.

I've accepted the invitation to lead the group I mentioned earlier. The current leader has offered to help with the transition, and I have an idea I also need to chat with the people in charge of children's and youth work, as it's children's work and I have a couple of ideas of how to take it forward. I've also been doing some prep for the Tuesday evening group but wasn't getting anywhere fast, so I picked DH's brains and he came up with some good discussion starters.

The ink we ordered a couple of weeks ago never arrived, so DH emailed them and they're sending some more, but I doubt it will arrive in time for tomorrow. If not, the notes for the group will probably be in blue! Or I could write them out - oh, revolutionary thought!

One of my purchases today was a small bunch of basil, reduced to 39p, which is now in a glass of water in the hope it will grow roots. I find basil stems tend to curl up, I've no idea why. However, if they also develop roots, I'll enjoy nurturing the plant(s).

Expenditure:
Book £2
Housekeeping £6.80?

Cherryfudge

Another warm, sunny day, though we have hazy cloud. DH has a day off so we might go out for a coffee later (using the 'free' drinks from the garden centre membership).

I'm really not getting far with anything: one of the clients has cancelled for tomorrow, which is a bit of a relief and the other one is uncertain so I could take a gamble and not try to read the training materials tonight, but save them for tomorrow. However, there could be other people through the doors and I know that once I've engaged with it, it won't be such a big issue.

So there's something of that to do.

I'm also going to try to pull together the material for this evening and write it out by hand - shouldn't actually take long but needs to be organised. I've told the current team leader with the children's work that I'm going to be really busy for a couple of days so that will have to be on the back burner. I've realised we both have most of Friday free so we will probably treat ourselves to a trip to the Walled Garden, as we have season tickets.

Cherryfudge

We had lunch then a walk out to the garden centre where I can get a couple of free hot drinks with my loyalty card. It's about 45 minutes each way so we were glad it had cooled down a bit. DH succumbed to lemon cake too but I waited till we got to town on the way home to buy sweets. We looked at hoses too - what a life we lead - I don't think I mentioned that the hose is one of a number of things that have 'died' on us in recent days? I've cut off the unsquashed end and reattached it to the outside tap so we can water nearby plants or fill buckets, but a longer hose may eventually be necessary again. Other than that, the handle of my favourite breakfast mug broke (I'm keeping an eye on 3bay in case another comes up for sale) and a jar of marmalade smashed when it tipped out of a cupboard.

Also while at the garden centre I discovered they recycle plant pots and I can take broken or excess ones in, clean, for them to deal with. I have far too many small ones and not enough larger ones so that's great, especially as the notice says to help yourself if you want to take some, and I found three of around the size and shape I can use right now.

We haven't chosen a hose - a highly technical thing like this means research! Also spending £70 or so requires research.

I've washed our scruffy trainers today, and when they came out of the wash, gave them an extra scrub, then put DH's, which are leather and worse off than my fabric ones, another cycle in the washer. It looked too much like rain to leave them in the garden, where drying conditions were at that point ideal, so now they will take a few days to dry. I was quite pleased with how they all turned out, but I might have to do a few bits of cosmetic stitching to repair places where mine are wearing through around the top edge, and I'll be sure to blast DH's with leather protector. I was reading in the book I bought recently about household budgets of working families a hundred years ago, and the author mentioned that in twenty years of accounts, there was no mention at all of buying clothing or shoes. Things must have been patched and mended and handed on to a point we can't now imagine.

I've also done an experimental bit of 'making do' to get maximum use out of salt deodorants! I had a couple that had worn down to a stump - and they last months so I'd had my money's worth - but I could tell there was quite a chunk of each embedded in the plastic holder. I had to soak them for a few hours to get the salt bit out, but the stubs were harder to use with no handle so today I glued the flat edges either side of a short lolly stick, so there's a salt deodorant 'lolly'! I'm pleased to say they didn't immediately fall to bits, it's now easy to use and it's likely to mean I don't have to buy a new one all summer. There's five or six pounds to spend elsewhere.  

I had pizza dinners with my friends this evening and managed to get through the first part of the study though we got side-tracked into discussing how you would manage a herd of 2,000 pigs. I am none the wiser, especially as none of us knew whether the local free-range pigs require sun cream in sunny weather or if rolling in mud is enough.

I've got the books out for the debt advice centre tomorrow and must remember to take my laptop too. I've read the first double page spread of the course booklet, so I can at least say I've started.

Expenditure:
Gift £5.99
Housekeeping £3.44
Entertainment £3.

Cherryfudge

The debt advice centre was really quiet this morning, client-wise (hopefully people are out enjoying the sun or earning money?) but there was a fair amount of staff activity, and those people are such a good laugh! Of course that didn't help me concentrate on using my time to work on the training materials, but I did have an informal meeting (and scheduled a 'proper' meeting) with the person who co-ordinates the children's work.

I've bought veggie sausages for tonight (yellow-stickered) and a few things from Sains that were on offer and which we eat a lot, then on the way home I remembered to look through the window into L!dl and saw they had some £1.50 boxes so I got one. It's been a while since I've done this and it's always a bit like Christmas, discovering what treasures are in there! I always think there will be some bruised or overripe things but this one was nearly all good. /Here's what I found:
Savoy cabbage (a bit yellow on some outer leaves)
bag of ready-cut iceberg (not so easy to use up)
6 apples (not ripe so I've sat them in the sun in case it has an effect)
net of 9 satsumas
4 red chillies
1 Conference pear
bag of coriander
bag of basil.

The herbs weren't perfect but I've put them in water to freshen up and now I suspect a batch of carrot and coriander soup is on the menu.

I've also got over a litre of yogurt despite having some at lunch, as yesterday's batch is now in the fridge. Red chilli and savoy yogurt with lettuce topping, anyone?

On non-food matters, it turns out that completing my DBS application isn't enough - I have to send it. I thought I had but something didn't work so now I'm going to give it another try.

I've also heard of three people with operations booked for the next few weeks. I'm glad they won't be waiting around but it's a lot.

Cherryfudge

The DBS is sent and this time I think it's gone. I made a sausage pasta bake for dinner: two portions left for another day and a bit of room in the freezer where the sausages were (unless I fill it with the remaining portions).

We walked down to town for a business meeting at church this evening (I might as well move in, I'm there a great deal just now) and it was a bit cooler walking back. We stopped for sticky buns at L!dl. A plan is forming for the veg box treasure...

Expenditure:
Housekeeping £8.33

Cherryfudge

Last night I felt fairly wide awake and didn't want to go to bed. I think I was 'avoiding' today as I'd not got it sorted in my head. The result is, of course, that I'm tired now and I'm going to try a nap before work.

I walked down to toddler group and spent a bit of time with H and the girls but explained that the house is a tip and I had emails to write and tomorrow is promised the DH, so we just had a catchup chat. Back at home, I finished the ricotta for lunch then spent about two hours marshalling my thoughts into an email which I've now sent, preparatory to my meeting about the pre-school group.

Other than that, two of the three pairs of trainers washed the other day obviously didn't dry fast enough as they suddenly turned cheesy, despite having been fine before washing! Spraying with vinegar didn't totally cure it so I've washed them again and they're now out in the garden where there's a breeze, and have towels stuffed inside to draw out some damp.

I was going to do the ironing and make soup but those can wait.

Cherryfudge

Payday is tomorrow and it's as well I still have a float in that account as this month my pay won't cover the outgoings set against it. We are paid in arrears, though, and were away a week in May. As I'm relief staff, I only get holiday pay according to actual hours worked, so that and the fact they thought I only wanted the shorter shifts, led to the decrease. I've been filling in my claim form for this month, though, and it looks healthier.

All that said, there's also DH's oncome and plenty in savings, so we are okay (apart from a guilt trip over not keeping up to date with my spending notebook and spreadsheet).

Nothing spent today - I resisted trying for another L!dl £1.50 box as it would be ridiculous and greedy when I've just got one and there's nothing we need.

Pollie

If the odour in the trainers persists, try putting cat litter into an old pair of socks, stuff into shoes and leave overnight. You could also sprinkle baking soda into shoes but remember to shake out before wearing! 

Cherryfudge

That sounds like the purr-fect excuse to go and buy a cat, @Pollie. I have plenty of baking soda and thanks for the reminder as I'd forgotten I could use that. Shoes are currently in the airing cupboard in the hope that dries them faster.

So last night we had a spot of rain, the first in a while, following what felt like unseasonably high winds, but which the forecast described as a 'fresh breeze'. Today has been cooler but still sunny.

DH and I had our day out as planned, and used our season tickets for 'free' access to the Walled Garden. We were very good and took a picnic, despite the café being one of our favourite eateries, but succumbed to hot drinks and a scone mid-way through the afternoon. The gardens were glorious, in full bloom, scented and an inspired mixture of plants, and of course I took lots of pictures. I also picked up an apple twig that the wind had broken off - I don't know if I can get it to grow. I nearly stopped a gardener to ask if I could get some cuttings off the any fruit prunings in his wheelbarrow, but by the time I got my nerve, I couldn't find him. If the apple grows, I'll give them a donation as they have a system where surplus can change hands like that. Later we had a wander round the town: DH found a book he'd like for his birthday so that's bought and will be put out of sight for now. We also found the art shop was open, which doesn't always coincide with our visits. They has some absolutely superb stuff which has set me wondering, not for the first time, whether I should buy some with the money I was left. There were two pieces I was very drawn to, but the house is fairly full of DH's art purchases so even if I did buy something, it would have to have space made for it! Anyway, I didn't, because I'm not going to jump into a decision like that unless there's some urgency.

I had two and a half hours at work this evening - I really rushed to get everything fitted in the three hours was allotted, as I find the different hours on a Friday throw my timing out and I wanted to leave enough time at the end to check the days I'd worked and be sure to claim everything. Anyway, my timing mechanism broke down again and I finished half an hour early, then realised but actually couldn't find any more to do as that building had hardly been used today. At least I had time to check my hours, so now I can finish and send off my timesheet.

DH made tea - tuna pasta seems to happen every Friday now! - so I've not had chance to cook today but am hoping to do some over the weekend.

Expenditure:
Gift £5.99
Entertainment ?? (tea, coffee, scone, paid for by DH).

Cherryfudge

Financial bits and pieces:

CC account checked and because they took out a DD for an amount I'd just paid, I'm actually in credit.  

Timesheet completed and submitted.

Small current account has been checked, main one is still way behind but I have started to catch up with it. Noticed an odd thing where an unexpected payment was taken out then refunded so I need to see if DH has any memory of it. I assume it was a bank error that they spotted themselves and put right.