It's a Cat's Life

 

They drove me all the way to Wales*.

I didn't like it so I yowled all the way, it was hard keeping it up for two hours ... but I managed it.

They let me out to play in what appeared to be a hayfield of tickly proportions.

Then just when I had gotten used to, it they cut it all down.

Luckily they missed this super big bit of grass, so I had a lie down in the shade and had a snooze.

Then they called me over.

I came very willingly, after all I am a very good boy.

But I suspected they were going to load me into that basket again, so I needed to go and have a drink to lubricate my vocal cords for the return journey.

It's a Cat's Life.  😺

Ginger xx

* We needed to go to the Welsh flat which we have not been able to sell due to lease problems, and so we were getting it ready for renting it out again, happily after a nice twist of fate, to the son of the lady that lives in the upper flat.  Ginger came with us, we thought he would sleep for the journey ... he didn't.  We were all glad to get home!!

Sue xx

A Good Week for Books

 

It's been a brilliant week for books.

Over the course of a couple of visits to Booths I have managed to pick up all the the books in the photo, for just £1 each off the charity book table. There has obviously been a few people around town sorting through their reading matter.  It definitely pays to say yes, when Alan asks me if I want a coffee with him when he's going for a bacon bun for his breakfast.  😃

Especially when he's getting more shopping than me and pays for my three items as well.

Yes the total sum of my shopping this week is a tub of ice-cream, to go with the rhubarb from the garden, a pack of brown buns and a lovely little lavender plant.  I have just about enough space to squeeze it into a gap in the flower bed.  ⚘

I also have ten pounds to add to my purse after successfully selling the two pans and the steamer that I no longer needed on Facebook marketplace.  A nice simple transaction, and to someone who was really pleased to get them for that price.

A successful week.

Have a good weekend everyone, now I'm off for a read.  😀

Sue xx

Wild Ramblings, Statistically Speaking

 

I was checking for comments that might have gone into the Spam folder yesterday after writing a blog post ... happily less and less 'proper' comments are ending up in Spam these days ... while I was rootling around I decided to have a look at my blog statistics.  It made for fascinating reading.

While 44 people at that time were reading the current post, a grand total of 333 people were reading various posts on the blog at the same time, and from all over the world.  Interestingly someone was reading their way through Blogmas 2024, at the same time as five people catching up on the previous days post.  One person was reading about my challenge last year of living on £100 a month for all my shopping and one person was reading the very first post of this blog.

I like doing this occasionally but it can be dangerous, as I tend to click on the posts that someone is reading to see what they are reading about and how wildly I rambled on and on at the time, and I usually end up losing an hour or more down a rabbit-hole of my own making.

If you're a blogger have you checked your stats recently?

Sue xx

Sorting The Pan Drawer

 

It's hard to believe that all this fitted in the one drawer ... but it did. 

Some things get used over and over again, and some things are simply moved out of the way over and over again.  I am one person and one person does not need three frying pans.  I chose the two that I actually use often, and it turned out that the one that's leaving home came 'free' with my oven and hob when I had the kitchen fitted, and it's just too big and quite heavy.  So, even though it's new I forgive myself for it having to go, as it's not something I went out and chose to buy.

Of everything here, two pans are going, the steamer and the large tin of cookie/pasty cutters.  They are all listed as a job lot on Facebook Marketplace.

The drawer was given a thorough clean and wipe out and left to dry in it's own time, before I put the things that have earned their places back into it.  Leaving things to dry in their own time means that I can have a cup of coffee and go and read for half an hour.  😁

Although I forgot to take a 'before' photo, I can assure you that it now looks so much less cluttered and everything is more accessible.  I now have what I use and what I need in this particular drawer and nothing to excess.

Tucked away in the Le Creuset casserole pan are my measuring cups and cookie cutters, but they were there before so I'm not hiding anything.  😄

Now it's time to start on the bottom drawer.

Sue xx

Buying, Selling, Sorting

 

We both needed some bits of shopping this week, so first we nipped to Aldi where I bought this lot.  It came to a total of £19.40, I didn't get the receipt so I don't know the individual prices, but I do know that it was the wine and fish that bumped up the cost of my shopping.

Then we went over to Booths as Alan needed a bacon roll. 😄

I of course joined him and had a cup of coffee.  Then we picked up a few bits from the shop on our way out and I spent another £15.90.

While Alan paid for his shopping it would have been rude not to browse the charity book table.  So I spent £1 on this.

When I got home someone came to pick up a purchase from my Facebook Marketplace sales, so at least I got some money back in.  At the moment I am in the middle of having a clear-out of kitchen things that I simply don't use, in a bid to make space for me now in my tiny kitchen, and also as I am feeling the need for less possessions. 

It's going slowly but I'm not in any great rush, I just feel a real need for more simplicity in my life.

Sue xx

2x2x2x2x2x2x2 = Omelette

I was out watering the vegetable corner early in the morning the other day, before the sun scorched the soil any dryer than it already looked.  Pulling a few weeds with one hand while the other held the hose trigger thingy.  I pulled up one weedy looking potato shoot that looked like it was doing nothing, and up came two tiny potatoes, it lead me on to pick a couple of other things once the watering was finished.

Two of the reddest tomatoes, two little courgettes ... pick and you shall get more as the saying goes ... and I want more.  I came in and added to the twos with two eggs, two slices of onion and two little cubes of 'Feta style' cheeze, and decided on an omelette for my breakfast.

While the thinly sliced potatoes, onion and courgettes were cooking I decided to add some chives.  It had to be done ... just two were snipped and then finely chopped.

Ten minutes later I had a lovely fresh omelette for my breakfast, and it was all the more satisfying for being slightly home produced.

Sue xx

Gorgeous ... and Almost Free

 

My new plants.

Last year I bought one of these 'Sunfinity' plants from Booths and it lasted me all the way through the Summer, flowering prolifically as long as I deadheaded it regularly.  So when I saw them outside on the plant racks when we called there for a coffee and a bacon bun on Saturday, it was a real no-brainer to pick myself another one up.  

It's friend the gorgeously coloured Dahlia joined it in the shopping trolley and now they live happily together at the end of my garden path.

I still had the final £20 voucher off shopping at Booths in my bag so it made sense to use it for the plants as I had no need of any food shopping this week.  The two plants together came to £17.50 and as I had gone 'ooh' as I passed by some stationery on the way in Alan said why don't you treat yourself to the notebooks to make the total just over the £20 mark.

I did not need persuading very hard!!

Two new plants, three new notebooks and all for 45p ... it's been a good weekend.  💖

Sue xx

Books at School

 

I loved the part of a school day when the teacher asked us to 'just read quietly', either while she did some marking or went out of the classroom for something.  

It happened frequently at junior school, sadly not so often at secondary school, although I lived for our twice weekly double periods of English literature and language.  Even then I could lose myself in the reading.  The reading out loud for the class, taking it in turns to read paragraphs was not fun.  It broke the stories up too much and made remembering them more difficult as I got nervous when it was almost my turn, purely because of the anticipation of jumping in at the right time .  I prayed for short paragraphs and easy to pronounce words ... and rarely got them.

These days of course I can read as much or as little as I want, indoors or outdoors, and indoors is always preferable on a hot day.   I don't have to read out loud for the benefit of anyone else, occasionally I'll read a poem out loud if I'm enjoying the flow of it, but with only Ginger listening in there's no worry if I stumble over a word.  😄

Sue xx

Let the noise of the day soften ...

Art by Sophia Love Storey

Slow down. 

Let the noise of the day soften, the urgency fade. 

Take a moment to simply be, not to do, achieve, or strive, but to exist with gentle awareness. 

Breathe deeply, and with each breath, allow yourself to arrive more fully in this moment. 

Look around you. 

Take in your surroundings, the delicate play of light or the quiet grace of a passing breeze.

Notice the small things: the texture of a leaf, the distant hum of the world, the way your body feels when you let go of tension. 

These are not distractions, they are life. 

The richness of your existence doesn’t reside in distant goals or constant motion, but in the quiet, often missed spaces in between.

When you slow down enough, even the simplest moment becomes meaningful. 

In that awareness, you reconnect, with yourself, with the world, and with the quiet, lasting peace that comes from simply being where you are.

Written by Spirit of a Hippie 

This really resonated with me, so I'm sharing it with you. 💝

Sue xx

Well Knickers to That!!

 

All of a sudden lots of my knickers have been getting holes in them, and one by one have been put into the bin instead of the washing basket after a day's wear.  After I had gotten down to just four pairs, rather than the initial twelve that I had, it was time to order some more.

I used to always by my Sloggis from Debenhams, but now that is no more, both last time and this I have had to buy via Amazon.  It's never my first choice if I can help it, but sometimes needs must and when I went down to just three pairs left, next day delivery was suddenly very appealing.

I was shocked to find that Sloggis are now £25 for three pairs, it doesn't seem horrendous until you put four boxes of three into your basket and suddenly it's £100.  For some reason I got a £5 reduction which took it to £95.  While I was ordering I checked the date of the last time I ordered them and it turns out it was August 2022.  

So, overall I think that almost three years worth of wear for £95 is a good price.  I could work out how much per wear they have cost me ... but I won't my brain has gone to sleep.  😄

Pare down yes ... but always have enough knickers.  😁

Sue xx

The Garden in June

 

The garden is looking particularly lush at the moment, just enough colour to satisfy Alan and enough green to satisfy me.  

The tomato plants are filling out nicely, with more of their little green fruits appearing each day, the blueberries are coming along brilliantly ... although why we chose to move the pots directly under the bird feeding station I have no idea.  I am going to have to keep my eyes firmly on my fruits for any signs of them turning blue before the birds spot them.

The stars of this year are the Lupins, although I have just been snipping off the finished flower heads and they were teeming with greenfly.  A light spray of washing-up liquid in water has been my first line of attack.

The rhubarb is magnificent and is ready for a good first harvest.  The fern that is behind it will be happy to see the light of day!!

The path to the shed is just about still passible, but the tomatoes, potatoes and courgette plant are putting in a bid to block the way.

With the sunshine filled days of April, closely followed by the heavy rains recently it's been good for the garden this year.  Somehow though my green fingers feel as though they have been slipping, and nothing is coming as easy as it used to.  Perhaps I don't care as much, which is a shame.  But I just don't love the pottering around the garden as much as I used to, maybe I should read some of my gardening books, of which I still have quite a few, and see if that reignites anything.

If it doesn't I feel that more perennials will make it into the current courgette bed, giving me even less work to do next year, but still providing food for the bees and the lovely insects that call my garden home.

Click on the link to see the little bee that was buzzing around me while I read in the patio. 🐝

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DK6pvT8oSfm/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Sue xx

I apologised and moved it ...

 

Ginger, looking at me as if to say 'Why did you put the book on MY little seat?'

I apologised and moved it ... honest I did.  😄

Sue xx

Happiness is letting go ...

 

I just had to share this meme after yesterdays post.  😄

I think it's a lesson we all have to learn at some point isn't it.

The plans we make that go spectacularly wrong, fail to materialise or just vanish halfway through.  Whether it's our fault, someone else's or no-ones, it's always best to just move on.  There are always new plans ... or no plans.

Times change and so do we.  I've always just embraced the changes and run with them, it's made for interesting times for sure, and experiences gained, learned and passed on.

Sue xx

Counting the Pennies ... and Cutting it Fine

I had a bit of a shock this month, a couple of annual payments came off my credit card.  Nothing too outlandishly expensive compared to years gone by, but added together they took my balance to an amount that has virtually wiped out my current account.

Not too bad a total really for a month with a couple of largish payments and food shopping ... oh and there might have been a couple of books.  😉

The money in the bank before I paid the credit card off in full ... and YES I always pay my credit card off completely each month.  In the years I have owned it I have never paid any interest, M&S Bank must hate me.  😁

Oh well, I have the grand total of £24.21 left until my next £25 repayment from my son and next months little pension payment.  I'm not worried in the slightest, but I am going to be super careful this month and for the next few months to build up the account again.

Although, I have already been shopping and added the following to next months credit card bill.  I meant to use cash, but just didn't get myself organised in time!! 

Booths shopping £11

Just the very basics ... and a treat.  💖

Eggs - £5

Bread - £3

Wine Spritzers - 2 x £1.50 = £3

Sainsbury's shopping £8.51

Some fruit and vegetables ... and a treat.  💖

Tomatoes - £1.90

Apples - £1.70

Beetroot - 2 x 65p = £1.30

Bananas - 31p

Lemon - 30p

Chocolate Bars - 2 x £1.50 = £3

Too many treats?

Nope, but I will be a lot more careful for the rest of the month and use some of the cash in my little wooden box and the notes that I have in my purse.  I also have the back up of a £20 rewards coupon from Booths and over £17 of Nectar points.

And now that I have sorted through the food cupboard, as shown on the last post, I know exactly what I have available to use.  So really there's not much I need to buy at all is there.  😀

We'll see how it goes.

Sue xx

Checking the Food Cupboard Out

 

Over the weekend and in spare moments ... mostly while waiting for the kettle to boil for cups of coffee, I have been going through my main food store cupboard and checking dates.  Not because I have felt any desire to throw away any outdated foods ... although I did find some that were very out of date, luckily mostly tins ... but my reason for the sort out was because I wanted to get the top half and the bottom half of the cupboard organised so that I can use up the oldest items first,  and have the things to be used up at eye level, where they stood more chance of being chosen.

I rarely get down to the bottom cupboard as it means getting on my hands and knees to find things, but I do stash away new purchases when there is no room anywhere else.  It had been literally packed to the gunnels at the start of the year, but now after my minimal shopping for a while there was space, so actually getting on and doing the sort out that has been on my mind for a while, seemed much more practical and less off-putting. 

It was nice seeing surfaces and finding things that I didn't know I had.  The best find was two bottles of Aldi mayonnaise ... I had no idea they were at the back of the pasta basket.

At the start of the weekend it was cupboard chaos, but by the end of Sunday afternoon the top cupboard now housed items that need using up this year if possible.  So things with a date sometime during 2025 or earlier.

And the bottom cupboard has things with dates beginning in 2026 and further into the future.  

Well there's one exception, I seemingly have far too many tins of chickpeas and all the tins down here have either a 2023 or 2024 date on them.  They will move up to the next level when I have used the last of the 2023 tins from the top cupboard.  Happily the hummus that I made the other week used the oldest of the tins, dated even earlier.  😄

I was feeling really good about my efforts to streamline my food cupboards, and I have been enjoying using things up and then I read this report this morning.  UK households urged to stockpile tins of food as soon as possible. Oh well, at least I have made some space for a few more tins of food in the bottom cupboard.

Are you a happy prepper, or do you prefer to live from week to week, or month to month?  I was trying to be the latter after years of being the former, but it seems I have just been way ahead of my time ... for once.

Sue xx

Miniscule Shopping and Miniscule Harvests

 

I really didn't need  any shopping this week, and I do actually have some bread rolls in the freezer, but when we went to Booths for a coffee and a cake for Alan, he wanted to pick up some bread, so I picked up another pack of bread rolls for me.  

The ones in the freezer can stay there for another day. 🥶

I also got a packet of those 'Melting Moments' biscuits, they are lovely on their own with a nice cup of coffee, or crumbled onto these little dessert pots that I bought the other day HERE.  Which turns them into an instant crumble.

I had to snap into action yesterday and harvest the kale, well what was left of the kale.  

There were suddenly caterpillars everywhere, and the greedy little blighters were all over it, chomping on my leaves.  I got all the best leaves that were left and blanched them ready for the freezer.  There's no where near as much as I would have liked, but four portions of my five a day to be added to soups or pasta dishes was just about worth the effort.

Art by Aziel Illustrates

Now on this chilly and intermittently rainy day it's time to go back to my book.  I hope you're having a good weekend.

Sue xx