Thanks so much all of you who left kind and considerate comments on my last post. I still feel heavy of heart but you are all so very kind. I do need to pull myself together so here's a roundup of the last couple of weeks......
A week ago we woke up to no hot water. Not cold water running from the hot tap but NO water AT ALL from the hot tap yet plenty from the cold tap 🤔 It was a real mystery. Everything was fine the night before and, thankfully, we had heating. I spent 40 minutes in a queue on the phone to the boiler insurance company and a repair was booked for 5 days hence 🥶 You don't realise how much you depend on hot water on tap until its not there! Carrying hot kettles about at my age is not a great idea either. We were so lucky that I received a text informing me that the appointment had been brought forward a couple of days to Sunday last, although even 3 days without a shower was too much! Anyway, back to normal at last 🙂
In other news:
TV licence renewed for another year £159
Christmas haircut in the village £16 (much cheaper than the £32 my last hairdresser charged)
(Daughter says I look miserable in the photo but my excuse is that I was really tired 😂 I'm not sleeping well right now)
Gifts are all wrapped and labelled, ready to be taken to DD on the day.
Sainsburys food delivery arrived this afternoon. There were a couple of substitutions which were not suitable so we popped to the local Sainsburys to try to get the items. It was manic, hard to find a parking space, and the store full to bursting at 2pm. Apparently, a queue had formed by 5.40am with the store opening at 6am! There was not a single egg to be seen 👀 I'll have to make do with the half dozen I already have. That's the very last shopping trip this side of the big day.
Are you receiving cards through the post this year? I posted mine really early due to the postal strikes and most have arrived (although not all) but I've only had 1 card through the post. Postal workers are striking again today and tomorrow so nothing else will be delivered until well after Christmas. There are at least 4 cards in transit to us. It's so sad to think that some lonely, housebound people might not get the cheer of a card this year.
In addition to that, the NHS workers have been striking. Firstly nurses and then Paramedics/ambulance drivers. The Government response has been " Don't do anything risky whilst the strike is on! " In some areas they won't even attend women in late stages of labour or stroke victims. Our NHS is definitely broken....
Happier notes:
This little penguin group has appeared in the village 😀 So cheerful!
As I've finished my Christmas food shop, I can feel a 2023 challenge coming on. It will be the usual low spend/ no spend January but I want to extend it to February as well and record it on my blog for posterity. Anyone interested in the nitty gritty of what I buy? You might be thoroughly sick of reading about these things so:
Vote NOW!!
😂
Reasons to be thankful:
The weather is very wet but much milder so the heating is not on so much
For DD who is cooking for us on Christmas day
For a well stocked fridge & freezer
For the good fortune to win £100 in vouchers
Thanks so much for popping in and stay safe and well wherever in the world you happen to be x
You do look tired, but your hair looks amazing. I'm glad you got the water sorted out sooner than expected. We have had a few cards through the post, but not as many as usual. We were so lucky with our timings today, we were just leaving the house to get the last couple of things that we had forgotten yesterday, when a hamper arrived for me. Then in Sainsbury's it was beautifully quiet (around 9.30am) and we were only second in the queue for the checkout. As we left streams of cars were pouring into the carpark. Then we got a parking space right outside the coffee shop, so we had a coffee and a sausage roll for breakfast. And then just as we arrived home another delivery arrived.
ReplyDeleteWell done on the vouchers, £100 is not to be sniffed at!! As for the nitty gritty of what you buy and a 2023 challenge ... count me in. In fact if you don't share I will be so disappointed. I will be having as low a spend 2023 as I possibly can, I need to count the Cash Stash and then make a plan. My full-to-busting larder should see me through at least the first two months of the year and then some.
So my vote is a great big YES!!
Nice surprise to get in the post, and they will help at this time of year as everything is so expensive, I love your hair cut, mine is very similar, you don't look grumpy, we don't have to smile all the time.
ReplyDeleteGlad your hot water was restored sooner than later! It's hard to be without hot water on tap, especially in the winter! How wonderful to receive those two gift vouchers! I'm voting YES for the nitty gritty details of what you buy and spend, next year! I always like to see what others are buying and spending on groceries!
ReplyDeleteThat's wonderful. Your situation in the hospitals sounds dire. Ours are overcrowded and understaffed right now. I did send several Christmas cards, and I believe they all arrived. It's lovely to hear from friends this time of year. So glad you now have hot water.
ReplyDelete