My Off-grid and need to be frugal diary

AnimalTribe

Foxgloves it's nice to see you here. I started to read your diary a while ago, from the beginning, and I'm up to February this year, so still a long way to go. As well as the wild birds we get large flocks of pheasants and partridges as we border estate lands and they keep game. I love to see such large swathes of birds, but I'm not keen on the people who come to hunt them.

This morning 2 vans and 2 cars got stuck on the ice, fortunately a local farmer was passing in his tractor and managed to pull them out. This afternoon two other vans got stuck and DH decided to do the decent thing and tow them out. Unfortunately, he snapped his tow rope, but had a steel hawser so he managed to free them.

I’ve spent the day doing bits and pieces – a general tidy up, sewing some felt hearts, rescuing some house plants, sorting out a box of crafting items. Little wins are that I made enough savoury rice yesterday to cover today, the last of an unwanted bottle of bubble bath has been diluted and put in a foaming soap pump, and hand washed a couple of items.

The main thing is that my Depop shop is now up and running.

foxgloves

@AnimalTribe - Oh my goodness, you are reading through all my diary-yakking! It should help with any insomnia as I never do anything exciting! I came rather late to the concept of living within my means (ditto Mr F) & my diary is very much a daily account of activities & thoughts which keep us focused on that, allow us to build some savings for the future & importantly, live a more environmentally friendly lifestyle. 
You live in a lovely unspoiled part of the country. We are in a village on the edge of a historic market town in the East Midlands - quite rural so nice & green....though most of the local fields are underwater atm as our village is under yet another flood warning.
I also need to sort out my craft stash. I am mostly a knitter so other crafting supplies tend to get forgotten.
F

AnimalTribe

Foxgloves your diary is not insomnia inducing. I think the day to day stuff is most useful and you have lots of nice people adding comments, so that's helpful too. I'm trying to sort out my garden (despite sheep, deer, rabbit, mice and bird trespass) so I enjoy your gardening comments too.
A fairly frustrating day today. Finally got access to an old online account after ages on the phone. The helpdesk staff were great but it was a complicated problem. I also have a Depop issue, as I had my first enquiry, and couldn't respond - I'm sure it will come right in the end. I bought a big box of butternut squash and had to throw 2 away - I hate wasting food.
Small wins were that DH managed to fix a small area of damaged render outside the house and a parcel DH has been waiting for was delivered despite more snow. 

foxgloves

Well, that is kind of you to say so & yes, I do have a thoroughly lovely regular cohort of readers.
As for the butternut squash, I'd have been annoyed about that too, as I simply cannot BEAR wasting food!
F

AnimalTribe

The last couple of days have been busy doing the small day to day stuff, nothing outstanding. The postie did get stuck on the ice and DH shoveled sand under his wheels which allowed the postie to get traction and drive off. DH and I have told him not to try to attempt to deliver anything whilst the weather is so bad here. There is nothing we are in a hurry to get. A hotwater bottle leaked so the bedding had to be changed, but fortunately we managed to dry the bed before bedtime. 
I've had two offers to buy things that I listed on Depop but because of technical issues at the Depop end I've been unable to close the sales. I've therefore decided to switch to sell on Etsy. Hopefully, they are a more rebust selling platform. To that end so far today I've ironed 12 egg cosies that I've knit, so now they are ready to sew together (a task I hate and procrastinate over). Dinner tonight will be easy it will either be marrow stew (using the last home grown marrow), or veggie mince, yorkshires and veg.

AnimalTribe

When I woke up this morning all the ice had disappeared. It was good to see as DH managed to slip and fall twice over previous days whilst he was out walking the dogs (no injuries thankfully). Now it's just extremely windy - good news for the battery bank, as the wind turbine is keeping them topped up. 
I ran out of lettuce, celery and tomatoes so todays salad was an experiment. Grated raw Brussel sprouts and carrots, home grown onion and vegan cheese in mayo. I was a bit worried about the sprouts having an overpowering taste, but actually, it was very nice. Just as well as I still have sprouts to use up. I have now gone 13 days without having to spend money on groceries. I think I will last until Wednesday when I have to go to town for some other things. I will be trying to spend as little as possible though, as the house is still stuffed with food. 
There is still enough marrow stew for tonight, so an easy evening. I've not done much productive today, other than general tidying and a bit of internet research.

foxgloves

As a fellow knitter, I share your dislike of sewing up finished projects. I love the knitting part & there aren't many knitting patterns I won't attempt.....except steeking, ouch to that! I knitted a rainbow-bright hippyfied waterfall cardi last year & although I did sew it up, I wasn't happy with the quality of the result so folded it neatly & put away ready for unpicking, blocking & re-sewing with a bit more care & enthusiasm than I managed to muster last time. Have I done this? Nope! I have a black dress which would look lovely topped with this cardi with chunky tights & boots so shall have to get myself out of the sewing-up procrastination zone. I think one of the reasons I love knitting socks is that there is no sewing up - just 2 ends to sew in at the end. Fortunately, I know quite a few people who like to receive these as gifts.
F

AnimalTribe

Foxgloves my mum used to sew up my knitting for me when I got really frustrated. Now I stick to small craft items that need very little sewing up. 
It's not been a bad day today - listed a few more Valentine's Day gifts on Etsy, found a recipe for swede and potato gnocchi to try tonight or tomorrow, did my usual tidy round, and remembered to water the house plants. DH is outside positioning mole deterrents - the deterrents make a loud thumping noise - so hopefully that will help. I like the moles, but they are destroying the garden. There are places that feel like I'm walking on sponge. Also, I worry that the dogs will step in a hole and hurt their legs - that would be awful. I have an idea for some Easter decorations so I’ll make up some templates – that should keep me busy for a while.

AnimalTribe

Had a morning out today and stopped at a local cafe for a veggie sausage bun - very nice it was too. DH had the non-veggie version. I've done my first grocery shop of the year £14.62 on some bits and pieces (some needed, some not), but I think I'm doing well on the grocery challenge. Posted a birthday card while I was out, so saved a bit of petrol, and sent it early enough to only need a second class stamp. I must remember to add the birthdays to the kitchen calendar. I find that if I write in the birthdays a week ahead of the actual date then it gives me a chance to send the cards second class.
Passed another shooting party on the way home. I will never understand the pleasure people get from shooting birds for fun. Even though it would never be for me (I'm a vegetarian) I do understand people who hunt for food, but for sport - no.

AnimalTribe

This morning I've done my usual Microsoft Rewards clicks and have made it to my first £5 voucher of the year. I'm not going to cash it in yet though as I'll wait until I've got something I want to spend it on.
I started organising my plant seeds yesterday, but I still haven't finished. I'll leave that for the moment as today's plan is to start a major re-organisation of the bedroom. Two wardrobes, 3 chests of drawers, 1 trunk and an overfull desk - so lots of sorting to do. I think it will take a while, and I need DH to sort through his stuff too (always a challenge to get him to sort through things). Although DH is great in all other respects being organised, and keeping surfaces clear is his greatest failing.