Progress is...

badmemory

I have a serious meal scheduling problem.  A couple of weeks ago my friend gave me 4 Wiltshire FF frozen meals she did not want.  DS & I had one each & we are left with 2.  DS is saying you have them both.  As he rarely comments & just eats this is a problem.  Trying to force myself to say okay feed yourself, your problem.

Amazing what a diffence it makes writing it down.  Decision made he will have 2 meals where he can fend for himself.  Restaurant closed!

rtandon27

@badmemory - Writing it down makes a HUGE difference!  I've found weekly meal planning to be the only way for us!  OH does all the cooking, but I do the budgeting, grocery order & meal planning.   He'll turn his hand to just about anything I fancy, but the background prep work is my domain.  We do however always allow for flex as life happens and plans can go to pot! 

I was surprised yesterday when I put one of his favorites on the plan, and he turned it down saying that it was no longer good value for money!  So I guess he does listen once in a while to my ramblings about cost of living and in particular food costs. 

We very rarely throw anything away and the only scraps we have are fruit & veg peelings and occasionally chicken bones once I've made a VAT of bone broth.

rtandon27

So thanks to the train service going to pot this morning, I have an unexpected day working from home!  Much of what I need to do is stuff I've been putting off, so I'm eating the frogs one by one and tackling the personal small jobs in between!

First off - let's bring that list of mine into a manageable shape for this week & that way if I do have time I can tackle the bits...

looming tasks...
❗ renew passports - one is expired - the other will expire soon - this is the next big frog that needs chomping
💡 do bus pass application - once blue badge is on it's way
🔱 check date for home insurance renewal (Aug 16th) & diarize optimal price date (This week! starting July 19th! - thanks to past me for setting up an auto-reminder)
🔆 never ending paperwork filing!
🔆 my savings need juggling - OH's done

routine tasks...
none until the weekend

not routine...
🔱 set up digital planner - WIP
🔱 check when current energy fix ends (Oct 3rd) & diarize 49 days for switch (Aug 15)

medical follow-ups...
🔱 follow-up on OT recommendations for work assessment
🔱 follow-up on eye specialist - two separate appointments - one NHS & one private
🔱 have a look at nutritionist through healthcare - during the week sometime

never ending garden things...
❗ get gutters cleaned - may have to tackle this one ourselves, window cleaner is on his hols - weekend downpours have proven that this needs to be ASAP
🔆 finish taming climbing jasmine & add more supports for it to grown on - mostly tamed - but not supported - needs to be pruned again first!
🔱 new trellis needs to go up for the climbing rose in the front - OH has acquired the hardware!
🔱 trim down and rehome butterfly bush - sigh - after it stops flowering!
* once lavender is dry from rain make lavender bundles for drying - a whole month early!!! - next weekend 
❗ find solution to counteract Mr Plastic grass dumping his spent soil behind my shed - this will involve a solid barrier! 
* start getting quotes for new felt for flat roof & summer house & shed (needs doing in autumn)
* transplant baby trees into their new pots
* transplant sale plants into the vacated medium pots
* order some cactus & succulent soil for indoor plants - these get neglected for years on end and thrive!

Secondly a bit of a reminder about the social calendar...
💖Friday - leaving drinks for a dear colleague
💖Saturday - date night with OH - brewery & food truck
💖31st - visit friend & her sweet new baba
💖7th - lunch with work 'auntie'
💖14th - ladies who lunch summer edition
I need to remember to budget energy & recovery time for these things!

badmemory

So 2 things.  Thanks for the reminder re the gutters, it made me realise that what I thought was leftover rain is actually a gutter drip.  I have already had an extra down spout added front & back but it seems there must be a block somewhere.  4 terraced houses with only one down spout between houses 2 & 3 & I am house one.  The neighbours I used to have never cleaned their gutters & it all built up in mine & nearly brought the lot down.

Second are you sure you want felt rather than rubber.  Guarantee 20 years rather than 10 years.  Costs a little more.  I found the felt bubbled in the sun & then eventually cracked when someone stood on it.

rtandon27

@badmemory - Thank-you for suggesting rubber as an option, in this instance we will definately be going with felt partially due to our budget constraints and partially due to the age of both the shed and summer house. Both structures will be replaced completely at some point in the forseeable future but the roof repairs are just that, repairs rather than permenant solutions!  For the flat roof extension, there are a few other repairs that also need to be done to that extension of the house so again, felt replacement is a temporary solution rather than a long-term one.  My goal is to prevent leaks and water damage!

So my good news for today is that Blue Badge renewal has gone through and will be with me in 10 days!  So it will be a seemless transition from the expiring one to the new one & hopefully another three years before having to go through the h3ll of renewal again!  That means that for this weekend, I can start the bus pass application and move on to passport renewal! (Insert happy dance 🕺 💃 emojis here!)

Cherryfudge

Yay to the blue badge finally coming into existence!

beanielou

Good news on the blue badge renewal.  They are a nightmare now.  I fail to see why you have to prove who you are each time you renew.
Bus pass is straightforward apart from the picture.

rtandon27

@cherryfudge & @beanielou - thanks for joining in the happy dance regarding the blue badge!

It's been a week of good news!

Wednesday, I was appoved for a nutritionist through my fancy taxable benifit healthcare!  I'm well impressed as it is one of the things I've been struggling with since my medical diagnoses in 2022.  I spent a lot of time on a liquid diet and then another length of time on a soft food diet & my body did not react well to the dietary changes and poor nutrition.  I've started my daily homework for the nutritionist & am really impressed with the structured approach that is being taken.

Yesterday's good news is that my manager is on leave for 3 weeks!  Such a releif to be able to work without the stress she causes day-to-day!

Today's good news is that our cost-of-living adjustment came through that also acknowledged that we were being underpaid for our sector so it's also been adjusted for the 50th percentaile!  (Some kind of fancy Mercer calculations! which equal 6%)  The adjustment takes place in July and is retroactive to April so not only will this month be higher than the last by a decent amount, I'll be getting a lump sum for the past three months as well!  I can almost forgive MsMM for contacting me at gawd awful o'clock this morning to ask for the info to go out before noon to all of our staff!  Lots of happy folks on a Friday is a good thing, and makes for a nice celebratory weekend.

Sadly I will have to knock of drinks today & date night tomorrow from the social calendar as OH is currently very unwell & kept me up all night tossing & turning & coughing.  I'm too tired to commute into the city for the evening 😭 - he also won't be up to driving tomorrow so we will be eating at home rather than treking out on the country roads to the brewery.  I'm thinking a take-away might be ordered as two new places have opened up in town, one we had during my birthday week and it was gorgeous food & the other is a wing place with good reviews.  Sometimes celebrations have to be had where you can find them & if in the comfort of our own home is the flavour of the day then so be it!

KajiKita

Sounds like the nutritionist knows their onions … 😉 (Seriously though, I hope working with them helps.)

Maybe manager will come back with a refreshed and relaxed mindset after her break … 🤔 Okay, maybe not … 🤷‍♀️ Enjoy the three weeks of freedom 😊

Yaaaay and 🥳🎉🎊 for the pay rise. Really pleased for you. Hope you enjoy your takeaway 😊

KK

beanielou

Great news on your pay rise.