Turning £2 into £100, Lack of Rain.....

 Thank you to everyone who left a comment on my last post.  I definitely felt a bit better after venting my feelings and, it seems, a lot of you are in agreement and feel exactly the same about the current system of pensions and benefit payments. Unfortunately, we are powerless to change things.

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Changing the subject entirely....

 I was running out of card blanks which I use for my charity cards and, in fact, I had just 4 left and lots of ideas still running through my head, but very little money in my purse. On Saturday I risked my last £2 on a scratchcard and won £10 !  That was the exact amount required to purchase another 100 card blanks from Hobbycraft so I'm back in business as it were 😀  That is potentially a £2 outlay which will turn into £100 for the Hospice because I already have stocks of adhesive, mirri card, display bags and embellishments etc from my craft fair days.  I dropped another batch into the shop this morning and noticed that there were just 5 cards left in the basket.  Apparently, a lady had just been in and bought 6 of them 👍As long as I have materials I will carry on making them 😊

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The promised rain never materialised here at the weekend and today (Wednesday) has been very hot again.  Everything in the garden as well as the allotment is bone dry.  We are saving as much water from the house as we can to water the pots with because our water butts are empty.  We don't want to use the hose as water is so expensive and we need to cut back, but we can't let our food crops die.  

Do you think there will be veg shortages due to lack of water for the farmers?

This was our basket last year.  Not sure it will be as good this year.....

Thanks so much for popping in. Stay safe and well wherever you happen to be,

Angie 💗

A Rant...and BREATHE !

 I don't know about you but the state of the countries finances are so dire that I'm feeling very uncomfortable right now.  I saw the statement below and felt cross in the extreme.....

DWP minister Torsten Bell responded: "The previous Government made the decision to freeze the income tax Personal Allowance at its current level of £12,570 until April 2028."

He added: "At our first Budget, we decided not to extend the freeze on personal tax thresholds."

Bell highlighted that over 80 per cent of pensioners were already subject to income tax in the 2022/2023 tax year.

He stated: "This Government is absolutely committed to supporting pensioners and giving them the dignity and security they deserve in retirement."                               

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I highlighted the final statement in bold because it beggars belief! How can it be true when they, themselves, confirm that over 80% of pensioners already pay tax!  And more will be dragged into the net over the next 3 years including me with my meagre Old State Pension.

We do NOT feel secure and there is NO dignity in old age if you struggle to feed, clothe and keep yourself warm in Winter, never mind having any kind of life.

Not only us oldies are worried.  Are we letting our young people down too? My Grandson is an apprentice welder.  At 17 years old he earns a paltry £6 odd per hour for doing a man's job.  He works more than 40 hrs a week and pays tax.  He has day release at college one day a week and sometimes his boss makes him work instead.  Personally, I think it's diabolical.  We are letting him down by not protecting him at work.  How many other young people are in a similar position?

I don't like making political posts but I'm fuming 😟😡

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Thank you for letting me get this off my chest 😔

Stay safe and well wherever you happen to be,

Angie 💗

What Could £25 Buy in M & S?

 With my voucher tucked safely in my bag we tootled off to M & S to spend it.  I was a bit disappointed though when I was unable to buy either sea bass or the chicken I wanted.  The fish was tiny and quite pricey at £5 for two fillets and they had absolutely no cooked half chickens.  In fact, there were no cooked chicken portions of any description. 

 This is what we chose in the end.....

The pizza meal deal was £12 for 2 decent sized pizzas, a pack of halloumi fries with  sweet chilli sauce and a pack of mixed salad with french dressing.  Graham's favourite King Prawn Alfredo ready meal fell into the basket along with 2 lemon iced buns 👀  I let him get away with it 😅There were potatoes, British strawberries, tomatoes, and a pack of strong cheese too.  The total cost was £25.55 therefore I just had to part with 55p cash.....

One pizza has been frozen for next week and we ate the other for tea the same day.  The halloumi fries, and mixed salad were eaten yesterday alongside a small jacket potato each from the bag. At least we have enough potatoes, tomatoes and cheese to last a while and we might even have cheese and potato pie over the weekend sometime.

Meals: 

Pizza x 2

Halloumi fries, salad & jacket pots

Cheese & potato pie

Ready meal (Gray) toasted cheese sandwich (for me)

Therefore at least 5 meals for 55p

It was a shame not to be able to get fish or chicken but I still have cod fillets in the freezer and a tin of red salmon too.  I should have enough food to last until the next online shop next Wednesday (14th) which means I have saved the £55 allowed in the budget for this week. 

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With the weather about to warm up again, we are trying to decide what to do with ourselves.  Our Daughter is coming to visit for lunch today 😊 but apart from that we have no plans.  Our monthly adventure for May is towards the end of the month (shh....I'll let you know what that is soon!) but it would be nice to have a cheap day out somewhere before then.  Must have a think.....🤔

Thanks for popping in.  Do stay safe and well in this turbulent world, wherever you happen to be,

Angie 💗

Weekend Doings, May Meal Plan....

I hope you all enjoyed the Bank Holiday weekend in the UK 🌞

It was bright and sunny on Saturday here which saw me batch cooking, including making a slow cooker beef stew for hubby with leeks, onion and carrots, as well as a pan of veg soup to last a couple of days.

 Sunday turned out to be chilly but bright.  As usual, I took advantage of half price electricity to get a couple of loads of washing done, tumble dried the towels and pegged the other stuff on the line outside.  It dried beautifully.  Our Sunday lunch was lots of veg served with the addition of a portion of beef stew for Gray.  This utilised the last of the cheap Easter potatoes,  parsnips and swede (which I had cooked and frozen earlier) and a few peas to add protein to my meal. I costed my own meal out :

a quarter bag of the 8p parsnips 2p

a quarter of the 8p swede 2p

2 small potatoes from the 15p bag 2p ?

Peas 10p?

And a drop of gravy made from a tub of granules costing 49p

This makes it infinitely cheaper than eating out, when I would probably have had the same thing in a pub or restaurant .......

Graham had a portion of beef stew on his......

Followed by homemade rhubarb crumble (allotment rhubarb) and custard....😋

We had both worked hard on Sunday: Graham in the garden and greenhouse and me in the kitchen, so we were both hungry again by 6pm.  I plated up some homemade quiche, following Tania's (Living on a UK State Pension U-tube) idea of using a wrap instead of pastry for the base.  I wasn't sure how it would work out so I used just 2 eggs, milk and grated cheese poured over cooked (previously frozen) leeks.  It was cooked in the air fryer at 180 for 20 mins and turned out really well.  Next time I will use 3 eggs to make the filling a bit deeper.  The couscous was homemade too, just flavoured with a bit of garlic salt, a stock cube and lemon juice.....

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As I mentioned before I've already had the first shopping delivery of the month and don't want to order again until next week.  The cupboards and fridge/freezer reveal:

Beef stew

Frozen cod portions

Pasta

Eggs ( another quiche?)

Bacon

Quorn pieces

I'm lucky enough have another £25 M&S voucher to use.  In view of the cyber attack and shortages on the shelves last week we'll wait until tomorrow (Tuesday) then go shopping there.  I'm planning on buying chicken, sea bass fillets, cheese, potatoes, tomatoes, and whatever else takes my fancy with the voucher.  I don't really want to spend any cash this week so will carefully add up the cost as I go round the store.  I'll show you what I get.

Thanks so much for popping in 😊

Stay safe and well wherever you happen to be,

Angie 💗

'Free' Nectar Shop & Picking Up The Protein

 I had a comment on my challenge post regarding the apparent lack of protein in our meals.  It was by no means taken as criticism but I would like to explain that we do, in fact, eat some form of protein every day, just not at every meal. I really don't like eating meat and Gray hates beans...any beans other than tinned baked beans or green beans.  He won't eat lentils and my IBS means that I have to limit the amount I eat too.  We both like fish, Quorn, eggs and dairy so that is mainly where our protein comes from.  I do buy some form of meat for Gray but he only likes a small amount these days. For example, the pack of beef shown below will be slow cooked with mounds of carrots and onions, and will serve him with 3 portions, either on a jacket potato or with fresh veg on the side.......

The total spent was £15.34 made up of £15.00 Nectar Points plus 34p cash

I could have done without the apple pies but I had a few pence left to reach £15 and these were on a yellow sticker at 70p.  Gray will be a happy bunny tonight!

I'm quite pleased with that.  We didn't need the eggs particularly as I had had half a dozen in the delivery, but they were on a Nectar price of £1.32 instead of £1.65 and I can make a quiche or frittata for the middle of next week.  Oh, and sliced boiled egg sandwiches for a picnic lunch too.

Have a great Sunday folks.

Oh, yes...almost forgot....  Happy Star Wars Day!

Angie 💗

VE Day Celebrations.....

 We are getting ready for the VE Day celebrations in a small way.  The potted Union Flag will be placed outside on the porch wall to show our appreciation of all the people who served in the Second World war, and not forgetting those who still serve......

Are you celebrating at all?  Are there any street parties going on in your area?

Edit:

The village postbox! 🥰

Stay safe and well wherever you happen to be,

Angie 💗

Challenge Review, What Next? Cyber Attack Worries...

 It's May 2nd and last month's challenge is complete.  The first Sainsbury's delivery has arrived for this month containing all the bulky, heavy stuff I ordered and the total cost in the end was £61.96 including £2 delivery.  There was stuff for the freezer; fish portions, 3 bags of frozen fruit, ice cream and some sliced bread so that I can extract a slice or two as needed. I went over budget by £6.96 due to stocking up on a few tins and frozen goods in case of shortages ( did you know the shelves seem to be empty of baked beans? 😨) It would have been a bit counter productive to leave my stores empty of things I might not be able to get later on.  Now I think it's the perfect opportunity to spend my Nectar points instead of cash and it will save another £2 on delivery each week 😀 

 I have £15 worth of spendable points and Gray also has £5 so a decent amount between us. They will probably be used to buy some form of protein and fresh veg.  I'll share with you how we spend them.

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On the news last night, and all over social media, there have been reports of serious cyber attacks on big companies.  Firstly, there was M & S, which is still struggling to contain it, then close shaves from Co-op and now Harrods. I also know of another big company which was put out of action for a couple of weeks and which has suffered serious financial damage.  I am unable to say which one, but I have been personally affected by having some of my data stolen. I find it all very worrying.  Actually, no....it's terrifying.  I use both Co-op and M & S so my data could be at risk from there too.  Personally, I think this is yet another reason to keep using cash.  We all use online shopping for convenience, don't we, but we  have to be aware of the risks involved.  I draw my personal weekly 'frivolous spending ' in cash so there is always a little in my purse for emergencies such as power outages in shops.  It has happened to me in the past and will surely happen again.  If we become a cashless society how can we teach youngsters how to value money?  As it is, a lot of them struggle to count actual coins....

The Government is now telling us once again to be prepared:

 Keep a stock of bottled water

Stockpile tinned food 

Have an FM radio with plenty of spare batteries.

Hang on... FM? Didn't the powers that be decide to ditch FM radio in favour of DAB? Our little radio is not FM so would be useless in an emergency to listen for Government announcements !

I have plenty of candles so wouldn't be in the dark 😌

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How do you feel about using cash?  Do you use a card for everything?

Are you 'getting prepared' ?

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Tasks for today:

Return my library book

Drop a couple of toiletries off at the food bank collection point

Drop another batch of cards at the Hospice shop

Pop my Brother's birthday card in ( he will be 71 on Sunday 👀 How??)

Pick some rhubarb from the allotment for a Sunday crumble 😋

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Have a great weekend everyone 😎  

Thanks so much for popping in and do stay safe and well wherever you happen to be,

Angie 💗