NST No!vember 2024

dizzyblnd

Nsd #14 today and two more items sold, which I will parcel up and post tomorrow. That’s 5/10 sold this month. 

Tomorrow I need to go get some small Christmas bits from a shop so I can hide them where little eyes can find them. I would love to start wrapping stuff so the task isn’t so big closer to Christmas. I find wrapping presents like ironing. If it’s too big a task, too many to wrap at once, I put it off. So rather wrap as I go this year. 

Shrewbie

Morning turtles 

Thank you for your good luck wishes!

The speaking exam yesterday started off terrible, but got better. I have the written/reading/listening parts early tomorrow morning. Just need it all to be over now.

I'm stuck on NSD 11 but today should be 12. Lost the NSDs the last two days but only due to very small spends of bread and hand gel. I will no doubt treat myself to a pastry and coffee tomorrow after the exam.

Stay warm everyone! 

KajiKita

Hi All,

I’ve been a bit absent but have been cheering you all on from the sidelines 😊

Not made any progress on the recipe books …. Sigh …

Got the excess payment back from previous mortgage company and spread it between house savings and my own personal savings (the latter to refund the new TV, fridge and random wood delivery I had to pay for …). 

Tried doing a £2 OP but can’t see yet if it has gone through …

No progress on the will. I’m wondering if Mr KK would be willing to do a statement of wishes to supplement the will and we keep bequests to charity out of the will itself … 🤔

I have stage two interview next week for a short commute role. I’ve started the presentation for that and tapped up an ex colleague to review it with. Need to email that over shortly - once Chloe-cat has released my lap 😊❤️

Shrinking - slow progress here. Bit overwhelmed last week with everything and all the calorie counting and tracking was becoming stressful, so I let it go for a bit. Still doing physio and stretching though, which is making me feel a bit fitter and stronger. 

Garden - limited progress due to wet and cold … 🤷‍♀️ I will be saying No! to two motorbike tyres that have been lurking on the drive for months, when I take them for recycling shortly 👏😊

A mixed picture but some things are moving forward 😊

KK

laura_lau

@Shrewbie you are almost there! I always found the speaking parts of the exams the most difficult and daunting for how I am, so I would say the worst part has gone, it will be smooth sailing from here! Fingers crossed for tomorrow!

@KajiKita also good luck for your interview next week! Sounds like a good job, short commute is the best (apart from no commute, of course!) so I am sending hiring vibes your way!

Finally Friday, very happy about it, with a slow weekend ahead. Tomorrow I'm resuming my volunteering, after about 2 months where I had absolutely no time, so I'm feeling quite good about it. I hope the weather is not too bad, it's been nice and sunny for the past 3 days, tomorrow is supposed to be raining all day, but I really hope not! I will be there until 13:30 or so, then I will make my way home and do some deep cleaning and tidying, in preparation for big decoration day on Sunday. Sunday I will get myself in full festive mood, with songs and movies, while I decorate (apologies, I just love these activities, even if I am doing them alone as OH hates it, but I know not everyone does, so I will keep it short). 
We finally received the wooden panels I ordered a while ago to put on the back of the bed as headboard and sound proofing from the neighbour's kitchen, they are easy installation so I really hope we can get them done quickly today, but I need to wait until OH is home, as they are not exactly small and I want to get them right the first time. After that most things have been done, there's just general tidying to be done, and a few things still to bring down to the garden shed or to the garage. I want to declutter the kitchen a little bit, but I think I will postpone it to December. 

Next I am going to put down a rug I crocheted a while ago, I will need to bring it back from Italy after Christmas, and then I need to take some of the prints and frames from the garage to hang a couple of things, and then the bedroom will be looking nice and cozy! I was also thinking to move one of the floor lamps from the living to the corner of the bedroom, for a better ambiance light at no additional cost.

I think today is NSD #11! I will spend the rest of the day finishing work for the week, hopefully installing the wooden panels later today, and I would like to list 3 more things on Vint*d. I had an offer for a fascinator I wore once earlier this morning and I accepted it, I hope they complete the purchase so I can just drop it off today. I do not understand when people send me an offer and then they do not purchase the item, even if I have accepted the offer! It is quite annoying, as I feel I am in stand-by for shipping, but then it doesn't happen. The evening will be spent cozy in front of the (fake) fire, crocheting the tiny trees I am preparing for the local pub Christmas market later in December. They are actually very cute, so if they do not sell, I will bring them with me and use as additional presents to some relatives and friends. I also have to finish a poncho with sleeves I am making for my aunt, which she requested and I promised for end of year, and then I need to start knitting fingerless mitts for DSS, who just got his license for a small motorbike and has specifically requested those, which makes me very happy as he's very knit-worthy.

Happy Friday to all, and hugs to anyone who needs one!

f0xh0les

laura_lau said:!

 Sunday I will get myself in full festive mood, with songs and movies, while I decorate (apologies, I just love these activities, even if I am doing them alone as OH hates it, but I know not everyone does, so I will keep it short).

We all love it really Laura, we just try really hard to enjoy it at the end of Nov/ start of December, not at the end of August  when the supermarkets tell us to, and not if it gets us into debt! 
 That doesn't mean we aren't prepping - the fruit for the cakes will be soaking in booze this weekend in my house!  Advent starts next Sunday (not this Sunday, the next one) so  I am getting Cmas out of the loft this weekend. The advent calendars need to be hung and probably restrung. 
Nobody in my house gives a stuff (men! pah!) but they enjoy me enjoying myself ( they humour me cos I feed them).  They can fa-la-la-la-la off. 

ditty1234

Hi I fear I have spent more time zonked out on the couch than updating here.
No work today so have 
- sent last document to ds1 Un1versal Cred1t review - 6 weeks later!
- had both of  my tax appeals rejected, so am now moving on to HMRC tribunal!
- have cleaned the whole house 
- sent a UPS parcel to other country for a mini Christmas exhibition. It was a bit of a faf but got done, not terribly expensive - and they came and picked it up!
- Will go wash floors and buy some cauliflower for dinner in a bit
Oh and I updated my signature to reflect a slightly more current outlook. 

Happy Friday everybody. 

grandmanerd

I was feeling really stuck. On Wednesday I took all the pills + eye drops and ear drops, using stuff I have on my skin and lips and the lavender sleep balm to help alleviate the headaches. Mostly vegging on the couch to avoid getting cold (and spending the next hour getting myself reasonably warm - a bath towel, spare cardi and a throw have been added on top of my clothes).

The snow melted but it's really cold and as soon as it gets dark the frost and ice set in. Thought it was a little bit better this morning but DS3 (who's great at walking on snow and ice) went to little Arseda and said he'd 'nearly died' six times.

My world has shrunk - I can't get to the bins, I can't put washing on the line (I threw one sheet over the nearest end yesterday and then pulled the 2 sides level without stepping off the doorstep). Any buckets from the sink are thrown towards the grid (again without stepping off the doorstep). DS3 did some washing - I have washing in the dryer courtesy of DS3 (but he didn't set it going), their wet washing is wedged in the WM (I could only get it part way out and then he said it needed more washing/ spinning). My pile of dresses finally went in around midnight and I'm wearing a skater dress (it does come roughly to my knees) which was the only thing left in my warm clothes pile. This morning I've pulled out 2 dresses from the WM and hung them on hangers and put them on the middle door.

Nothing has gone to the cs (piles are waiting) and I've been so ill that things are going backwards - I've been plugging away at getting the rubbish in the bin bag and cans and bottles in the green rubble sack. However my toilet rolls arrived today so all is right with the world. I had to decant all the emergency toilet rolls into the bathroom bin (they were bought when my regular ones were unavailable and I've been adding them 2 at a time with each 9 pack of the good ones (septic tank/ caravan ones with no glue so much less chance of them gumming up the drains). Every time I go in the bathroom there's a pile of loo roll middles - 4 this morning which they must have got through overnight. Grisis averted, I have toilet rolls.

I had a shower and washed my hair this morning (reluctant shower this morning and only washing with a flannel the day before) but everything feels out of control. So I'm dragging myself up off the floor and starting afresh.
:-My plan
One bill paid but going to do another (I don't owe them anything but need DS2 to do the photos and I don't want him doing extra driving in these conditions). I feel weak for caving but I can't cope with the torrent of messages, letters and phone calls, so will pay it if I can (the website wouldn't let me in this morning)

Paperwork for house sale was collected by niece's bf - so far there have been no follow up calls. I don't know when the sale will go through and I'm not worrying over it (must stop looking at bungalows on-line)

Giving up with the things that need scrubbing before taking to the cs. The will all go on the concrete block at the car park entrance and hopefully someone will take them. They won't spoil so I'm going to put them all in a bag and put them outside, then I can tackle all the washing up of things I need and use

I need a skip or waste wizards collection now but I'm going to go for a temporary solution using some items that are to leave the house. I'll make more space in the house, I can delay putting a piece of furniture together and the items can go in the skip we get when the builders come.

I'm going to try shuffling some furniture round. My plan is to move the small sofa in front of the radiator (it isn't on). There are 2 pieces of furniture that can stack on top of it (a footstool and a small table). Then I'll use it as the 'holding centre for stuff to go to the cs (when I can leave the house again). This should give me space to set up my bed on the far side of the room, rather than under the window (cold, cold, cold) and move some other pieces into new positions.

I looked at lots of websites last night and this morning, piled stuff in baskets but deleted/ did not check out in most cases. I have bought some clothes items from a favourite retailer via the bay of e and a dinosaur tree decoration for my grand-daughter. I also need to wrap presents ready for lunch on the 14th. 

I'm not stressing about food - mostly using up supplies but added a few bits for variety, may do another veg curry over the weekend but furniture shuffling is my priority

I've asked DS3 and Bel0ved to collect paper and cans recycling in sacks (they have a lot of empty boxes up there) but to keep the sacks in their room until we can get it outside. Squashing all the unnecessary boxes flat would make a lot of space.

Grateful for toilet rolls, entertaining films and series (struggling with concentration), simple food (especially 'bung it in the oven on a tray'.

f0xh0les

Hugs @grandmanerd / @mothernerd please don't say you have been on a mattress on the floor while not feeling well?

Take good care of yourself, and get well soon.  There is some nasty thing going around at the minute down here, and people have no idea what it is, totally exhausted, sometimes stomach bug /sometime cough/cold symptoms, have no idea which way is up, and it knocks the stuffing out of  them out for about 3 weeks.  Does that sound famililar? 

Hope you can get all that  stuff out of your house soon. You need to be able to  make 'your space' comfortable, and somewhere you want to be, and can invite people in to.   Could you ask for a skip from Santa?  I am sure you are on his 'nice list'. even if he is a fat, judgemental  ****.  

 I am not on his 'nice list' 

I am glad!

ldee2111

I’m staying on NSD9 after OH and I popped to a local shop to pick up some lunch.

We’ve been working through the freezer this week to prepare for a defrost this weekend. I took a couple of the remaining items over to Mum’s for storage.

Today, I’m grateful that OH’s hand hasn’t been too sore after his nasty burn making dinner last night, that we have no plans for the weekend apart from going out just as our wee family of three for dinner at a local restaurant, that it’s the end of the work week, and for the daftness and laughter that goes on in our house.

Have a nice weekend turtles x

apple_muncher

Today I am grateful for Pip having a good day, for collecting some curtains from gumt, for going to the gym (it really does keep me sane (ish 🤣)), for curry for tea, for cutting out and.sewing eyes as I watched utube stuff