Food Waste Friday

Every friday I link up with Frugal Girl in an effort to reduce to food waste.

As I mentioned I am away this afternoon to London for the weekend to stay with my good friend S, but relocating to Surrey on Sunday.

I have made an concerted effort to eat up all my perishable food items this week, which has led to three days of homemade tuna fishcakes.

So one would think I had nothing to report again today. Not true :o(

One tablespoon of baked beans left in a can from my tea on Sunday.
I do need to do a big shop upon my return on Thursday. As the cupboards are remiscent of Old Mother Hubbord here at W Towers.

I think I can sleep easily with such a small amount of waste to report this week, though I cannot polish my halo.

Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend. Hope the sun shines and you enjoy your friends and family.

Frugally yours
Abigail
x

July Debt Repayment.

Good Afternoon!

Firstly Hello and Welcome to my new follower Rainbow Child. What a wonderful name! Thanks so much for taking the time to visit little old me.x

Pay Day today and my goodness it has seemed like an eon in arriving.

This month has been slightly different to previous months in terms of debt repayment.

This month I have only paid slightly over my minimum payment as savings need to be drastically increased between now and September.

So My Debt was last month standing at a combined total of £562.71.

DEBT REPAYMENT
Credit Card 1     Was: £0.00     Paid: £0.00    New Balance: £0.00
Credit Card 2     Was: £262.71  Paid:£30.00   New Balance: £232.71
Overdraft          Was: £300.00   Paid: £0.00    New Balance: £300.00
Car Loan           Was: £0.00     Paid: £0.00    New Balance: £0.00 
Starting Debt in January - £1990.80
Debt By the End of June - £562.71
Debt Paid This Month - £30.00
New Total Debt - £532.71
Percentage of Debt Paid July – 1.5%
Percentage Paid to Date – 73.25%

This month has been very poor for debt repayment, but as I have written about before, this month I have taken the decision to concentrate on building up my savings.

So I have put £300 into my savings account and shortly will be adding my Ebay money to the funds which hopefully will pay my utilities bill and for a new garage door. (a bit of good news Ebay has now increased my allocation to 100 items per month or £3500). The selling has increased now too!.

I have now managed to clear so much of my debt I am not going to feel guilty for concentrating on my financial security for 2 or 3 months. For me having savings is just as important as being debt free.

I am also up to date as always on all of my bills.

Additionally, this month, I have allowed myself an extra £80 spending money to cover petrol to London / Surrey and for a couple of lunches out whilst I enjoy my week off work and away from home.

Thank you to those who responded either in comments or directly to yesterdays post. It is so interesting to have another point of view on this delicate matter.

I think pride plays a large part of it. I am too proud to let him pay off my debt.

Frugally yours
Abigail
x



Hmmmm...

I have been considering writing this post for a few weeks, and have waited as I thought about its contents.

Rather cryptic am I not?

I talk about The Chap on a regular basis. We were introduced over a year ago by a good friend with whom I attend evening class.

I am very happy with him, and I hope he is happy with me.

One issue that we actually rarely talk about, but I am constantly aware of is money. Namely the discrepancy between our incomes.

I have also mentioned before, that up until recently I was earning a very healthy salary that enabled me to drive a fancy excecutive car and go on long haul holidays every year. The advent of the recession stopped this as most of my spare cash was in commission form.

The Chap’s attitude to cash and mine differ, primarily as he has no debt and has expendable income.

I want to be just like him when I grow up!

I plan for everything and budget my weekly cash allowance. TC has no need to do this.

So I do get very embarrassed at not being able to do things. I cannot afford dinners out very often, and will suggest an alternative if TC suggests a take away for dinner as I know I do not have the money to pay my half or my turn.

I also often have to buy special food when he eats with me as I cannot bear to serve him my frugal fare.

TC is oblivious most of the time for the reason why I say No, as it is not his problem and therefore I do not mention it.  But, I find it tricky as I always insist on paying my way. I have never relied upon anyone else for money and am scrupulous at paying my half of everything.

It brings me to a dilemma, TC has offered to pay off my debt of £562 as he knows how much it bothers me and also I think he gets bored of hearing me discuss it with him.

I am absolutely not letting him do this, but I suppose I sometimes feel I am standing in his way of enjoying of our time together. Why should he be frugal because I have to be?

I believe as a salary earning individual my money is to be spent as I see fit and of course the same is true for TC.

So it causes me some discomfort to see my situation impacting on him.

TC is very a very easy going individual to be in a relationship with. I just wish I could afford to pay my way to visiting fancy restaurants having lovely days out and booking extravagant holidays together.

Money is the primary cause of relationship turmoil and I am determined that with us this will not be the case.

Pay Day tomorrow.

Frugally yours

Abigail

x

A Bit Of A Ramble

Evening

Been a bit of a strange day. I am 48 hours away from Pay Day and looking forward to being back in funds for 4 weeks.

With a few days away planned next week I am really looking forward to the break.

In my effort to make life simpler I am trying to ensure that I spend it on frugal / free activities and so far I am succeeding in my planning. My theatre ticket was a birthday present, and the few nights I am away are being spent with my good friend in central London and then my sister in Surrey.

I have a sewing competition at the end of July so when I get back on Thursday I will be spending the last few days concentrating on completing my entry so it is done in good time.

I also want to do some cooking for The Chap and I, so that he comes in of an evening to find dinner ready.

A lot of people will consider these pursuits a little if not a lot boring, not I!

The last few months have been very tricky and now with some plans afoot I need to really start saving as much cash as possible for a big change around September time.

I have to have a new garage door and a new hob by then. Total cost ? about £600. Plus the car will need an MOT and our holiday is booked for September. It is a shame, but between then and now I cannot see myself being able to take too much from my outstanding debt of £562.

So I am looking to raising some cash through Ebay to achieve my goals.

I have a few items to put up to auction over the next few weeks, having already made c. £65.

But, I seem to be stymied at every turn as now Ebay will not permit me to list more than 10 items per month, and I have reached my allotted allowance for June. I have had to request a postal letter to ensure my allowance will be increased. It all takes time… sigh.

On a pleasanter note I had my summer dinner out with Book Club last night and £10 gave me 2 courses, a drink and tip.

I have been invited for dinner this evening too, TC’s father’s birthday so the 4 of us are at a local restaurant.

I will waddle in by the end of the week!

Frugally yours

Abigail

 x

The Weekend That Went.

Hello and welcome to my new follower Lucy. Thank you for your kind comments. x

You made me think with what you wrote about having a simpler life.

So this weekend I tried to just enjoy the simple pleasures.

So, I got home Sunday lunchtime after spending the weekend with The Chap and decided to spend the afternoon doing paperwork and baking.

275g plain flour 215g caster sugar 3 tbsps golden syrup

3 level tbsps cocoa powder 1½ level tsps bicarbonate of soda

1½ level tsps baking powder 3 large eggs, beaten

225ml sunflower oil 225ml milk

For the icing - 450g plain chocolate (I used tesco value choc) 200g unsalted butter (I used utterly butterly as it was on special offer a few weeks ago)

To finish - 50g white chocolate and plain chocolate, coarsely grated

Pre-heat oven to 160 degrees C (Gas Mark 3). Grease two 20cm deep, loose bottomed tins, then line base of each tin. Sift flour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder into large bowl, add sugar and mix well. Make a well in the centre of dry ingredients and add golden syrup, eggs, oil and milk. Beat well until smooth, then pour into prepared tins. Bake for 35 minutes or until well risen; then leave to cool in tins for a few minutes before turning out. When cold, cut each cake in half horizontally. For the icing – break chocolate into pieces and melt in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Remove from heat, add butter and leave to melt into the chocolate. Sandwich all layers of the cake together and pour remaining icing over the top, smoothing evenly over top and sides. Leave to set, then decorate with grated plain and white chocolate.

Not entirely a frugal recipe, but I made it cheaper by only using tesco value chocolate and syrup. All the other ingredients i had in stock.

Sitting down on Sunday evening to watch the football (lets not talk about that!) knowing that all the paperwork in the flat had either been shredded, recycled or filed gave me peace of mind. Plus the cake sitting in the fridge made me feel that I had something to show for my 48 free hours.

Making something, whether it be sewn or baked, gives me a sense of satisfaction unparallelled to anything I could buy.

I took my cake to work and the set it in the common room with a big sign saying help yourself. It was demolished within 2 hours. Now it cannot have been to bad can it?

Frugally yours
Abigail
x

DEATH BY CHOCOLATE CAKE

Food Waste Friday

Every Friday I accept Frugal Girl's invitation to link with other bloggers in an effort to reduce food waste.

A very good week of no food waste. This may have something to do with the fact that I have no food and my cupboards now consist of dried /long life /frozen food. I do actually currently only own one extra large mushroom for stuffing and a drawer of potatoes to last me a week.

A week today I am breaking up for a weeks holiday and going to see my friend for my birthday theatre treat, I then hop in the car and drive to my sisters to stay 4 days with her before heading homeward on Thursday morning.

I get paid on Thursday and until then only have the barest of cash enough for my £5 lunch out tomorrow and our summer book club meal on Monday (£10 3 courses) before breaking up for 2 months.

The car is full and save my £15 cash in my purse, that is June's pay spent.

After having had about £80 out of my ebay auctions these last few days, I spent yesterday evening loading up another 6 items - books, shoes and Dum Dum Dum.... 4 items I bought wholesale for a price of £1. I am trying to see if they will allow me to make a little extra cash each month.

Watch this space!

Have a great weekend.

Frugally yours
Abigail
x

Rest In Peace x

These are my work shoes. Bit grim are they not? The back stiffening has completely gone and until recently when I armed myself with a tube of superglue, they used to let water in through the soul of the left foot.

They are scuffed at the back and have been re-soled about 3 – 4 times. If I was being scrupulously honest I would admit they had a slight aroma too.

I only have these one pair of work shoes that cost me about £50. Normally work shoes last me about 6 months being worn from 7am-7pm 5 days per week.

These little babies have lasted about 3 years so I feel I have had my money’s worth.

For the last 3months I have been keeping an eye out for some new work shoes. They had to be smart and in leather that were comfy enough to wander around town, a lower heel to my current shoes and in black. Oh, and did I mention cheap too?

Since joining Ebay, I have put in a number of bids on slightly worn shoes with no success.

Until I won these. £8 incl P&P from Wallis in black leather. Worn once apparently (they look unworn to me!)

They arrived last night and are currently gracing my feet as I type and are very comfy.

Very pleased, they suit my limited budget and for £8 if they can last until January then I feel I have had my money’s worth.

My old shoes? Well they walked themselves out of W Towers and committed Harri Kari in a black wheelie bin.

Rest In Peace.

What was your best Ebay / Freecycle bargain?

Frugally yours

Abigail

x

Ebay and Eggs Again.

Firstly, Hello and Welcome to my 2 new followers Lisa May and Compost Woman. Thanks so much for visiting and taking the time to comment. 

2 Ebay Auctions ended recently.

I sold a pair of shoes on Thursday and yesterday one of the Yves Saint Laurent make up palettes went too. The combined cash received should have been £43.74.

Note the “should have been”.

The lady who bought the shoes has not paid and despite repeated emails never responded, so today after warning her yesterday I referred the matter to the Ebay Resolution Centre. A few hours later I received an email from her stating her account had been hacked and she had not meant to buy them.

I do not think I believe her as she only has 3 feedbacks and 1 of them was bad saying she never paid. So I am stuck, I do not know what to do. Any ideas?

The make up palette buyer paid within a couple of hours and I will post it tomorrow.

It is all good news as it is money from my debt, and after checking my buyer is happy I have decided to knock it from Credit Card 2.

Still 2 items left which finish later today the Madonna catsuit and another YSL lip gloss palette. Both seem to be attracting little attention, but most of the bids seem to be in the last few minutes. Yesterday’s auction was at £7.50 until the last 30 seconds.

Once these are done I am going to have another rummage and see if anything else can be auctioned.

On a final note, I seem to have caused much debate with yesterday’s Egg Post. So many readers made very valid points and I do feel guilty at buying cheap eggs. No one local to me sells their own eggs from “back garden chickens” but I will keep a look out.

I would point out that until about 2 years ago when money really started drying up I always bought happy eggs.

I think it comes down the following decision, I will switch back to buying happy eggs, but in all honesty if it is the end of the month and money is very tight I probably will buy cheap eggs again if desperate.

Debbie, you made a very good point. When / where does ethical shopping end? I would happily always buy organic chicken and fair-trade but it so much more expensive.

Well, I can only do my bit I suppose when I can.

Frugally yours

Abigail

x

Eggs, A Moral v. Frugal Dilemma.

I had a good weekend albeit it a little quiet. I saw The Chap on Saturday / Sunday. I did have to go and do a little food shop spending £17.20 but apart from milk, I should be done now until the end of June.

Unusually, I bought some soft bread baps because they were reduced to 40p for 6. My shop was expensive, but I did buy some items that rarely make it onto my shopping list – namely 5 bars of chocolate and a jar of golden syrup.

I am entering a baking competition at the end of July and am making a cake called “Death By Chocolate” so I wanted to practise beforehand. My work colleagues are so excited!

I also had to buy some more eggs. I get through a lot of eggs probably about 18 per month, with baking and eating – I seem to recall someone telling me “They’re fast food and good for you.”

I normally buy eggs 10 at a time, but yesterday I just grabbed a box of 6. 3 years ago I always grabbed eggs from happy chickens, but yesterday I bought Tesco value eggs 6 for 85p.

I have seen all the information, that battery chickens are confined 5 to a cage with no sunlight and their feet never touching the ground. I also know it is cruel, but with money so tight in these stricken days I am afraid I do buy them. It is a small economy and I am not entirely sure it is justified. I also know that the UK is a nation of animal lovers and this will be an emotive issue, but I am interested in hearing everyone’s thoughts on this hot topic.

Back to the £5 Challenge today, only spending £5 in cash between today and Friday. A no spend day today, so £5 left for 4 days.

Frugally yours

Abigail

x

Food Waste Friday.

Well, everything could have gone better. There I was merrily mooching along in my daily life until I was poorly at the end of last week. Everything got stuffed and the result? 2 large items to chuck First of all three quaters of a homemade quiche

Then I found a whole carton of NCG tomato soup that went out of date a week ago. Would you rish it? So easy to have frozen it, but it escaped my notice until too alte.

Just rubbish.

Money is still tight- I managed to make the £5 I had in cash last until the end of today when I have 30p left.

I spent £40 on petrol on Thursday morning and am rather hoping it will last until I am home on Tuesday. But, that is rather unlikely.

Some good news, the shoes I had on Ebay finished yesterday and after a last minute flurry went for £22 incl P&P. So hopefully I can use that extra cash to either see me through to Pay Day in 13 days time. If I do not need it then it is being knocked off Credit Card 2.

Still got 3 auctions active, so more good news early next week - fingers crossed.

The Chap is out tonight with his cousin, so I am in by myself catching up on rubbish tv and still trying to munch my way through the freezer, Yum ribs! On the down side that is the end of the nice stuff. Back to pasta and the ends of boxes e.g. 2 fish fingers.

Gosh it is boring eating!

Frugally yours
Abigail
x

One day At A Time

Firstly, Hello and Welcome to my new follower - Jessica. Thanks so much for visiting!

Thanks to my blogging friend Frugal in Norfolk for your wise advice yesterday, I do hope you do not mind if I copy it to a post

“Sometimes you can run, others walk and occasionally crawl or come to a complete stop. Things can only get better .....”

You are absolutely right. I thought about what you wrote and realised I was obsessed with paying off my debt. Do not misunderstand. I am pleased to be debt obsessed, but realised that this was not a competition. Paying off my debt, is a marathon not a sprint.

It is just as important to feel financially comfortable. By this statement I do not mean it is ok to go clothes shopping, or splash the cash on some overpriced knick knack.  I mean not to be worried about the next utilities bill etc.

So I took a big breath and gave myself a pat on my back for paying off so much in 6 months (71.7%) and gave myself permission in July to pay back a minimal amount. I believe it is important to keep the momentum going.

I also went and put a few more items on Ebay, another YSL new lip palette and then I took a deep breath and fetched out the Madonna Catsuit I bought a couple of years ago.

For our non British friends the “Material Girl” a few years ago bought out a one off collection at a highstreet retailer. The most sought after item was a knee length catsuit with a diamante zip. I bought it, only trying it on when I got round to my parents.  Once my Mum and I stopped laughing at my fat ass was poured into it, and my sister ceased to call me Edina I popped it away to a wardrobe with its tags still in place.

Anyhoo, it on now, so we shall see. Perhaps all this will allow me to pay some more off the debt or increase the savings.

In the meantime, I am taking everything one day at a time thinking “Well Abigail, nothing I need to buy just yet”.  Today I only spent £1.59 (cola and crisps) leaving my purse cash at £2.11 with 2 days left to go and 15 days until Pay Day.

Nothing I need to buy tomorrow either hopefully.

Thanks Frugal In Norfolk, for you well judged advice”

Frugally yours

Abigail

x

Doom and Gloom!

I have calmed down a bit today, but having such a tight budget to last 17 days (£130) is really praying on my mind.

I spent 99p on a diet coke today bringing my purse money to £3.70.

I put £20 in cash in the car yesterday morning, which should take me through until tomorrow when I can fill up. I am then hoping that I will not have to use the car at all over the weekend.

I am trying to see this as a positive experience, if I can live off £130 for 2 and bit weeks then I can do anything, but part of me just says “Stuff it, dip into your savings!

My shoes are due to finish on ebay shortly, and it is not looking hopeful, so yesterday I added a YSL unused make up palette.

Lets hope that fairs a bit better. It picked up watchers almost immediately, and I have another two similar items to put on.  But I am not hopeful that I will be able to pay £40 extra or for that matter anything back off my debt this month. Bum!

In an effort to try and increase my income I have also recently bought some jewellry rolls and am going to try and sell them to make a bit of extra cash.

Have you noticed how it is always around this time of the month that I get most depressed about the debt?

I have, and I am trying to remind myself that it is only natural. I am past the ‘high’ of debt reduction and just on the hard slog through to Pay Day.

I have not had my haircut since January and it is desperate for a good 2 or 3inches to be cut off. I also have a friends birthday shortly, not to mention her twins birthday.

Damnit, sometimes I wish it was just as easy / pleasurable to reduce a credit card as it was to use it!

This is bloody hard work.

Frugally yours

Abigail

X

P.S. Sorry about the whinge, but this blog is supposed to be about the highs and the lows..

PP.S. Before publishing this I double checked my bank balance. That Nil balance on Credit Card 1 still brightens my day. So perhaps it is not all doom and gloom!

Oh Sh*t"

I checked my bank balance today, and had an “Oh Sh*t!” moment. I have £130 left to last me until 28^th June – 18 days away and I have a book club meal and another weekend away to London to contend with.

Breathe Abigail! Breathe!

After spending 20 minutes panicking. I calmed down sufficiently to put the high heels and short skirt away.

I phoned my friend S straight away and asked if we could swop the weekend to the 2th June?

The theatre tickets (my birthday present from her) had not been booked so no problem. 1 thing less to worry about. Phew!

Time to re-budget. I am going to need £80 at least for petrol to get me to and from work. So lunchtime today I visited the cashpoint and grabbed the cash. It is now in an envelope ready for the times I need to fill up, and stuck in a handbag pocket ready to be decanted into a box at home.

That leaves £50. Plus the £4.69 I currently have in my purse which I am going to make last until Friday and will be keeping you updated over the next 5 days to see how that goes. How long since a £5 challenge?

I am not going to visit the supermarket except for milk between now and Sunday.

This really for me is very tight and I am worried.

I seem to have reached the “the wall” at the moment about my debt of £562. I still want it gone but my internal warning light about my savings keeps flashing.

So much so I am currently contemplating making 2 months of minimal payments (say £50) in July and August and redirecting the money into my savings account.

I still would love to get my the remainder of my debt paid off by December, but there are plans afoot for after the summer and by my calculations I need £1000 in my savings account by then to make some changes so I can achieve them.

I do not want to say just yet what those plans are, in case I jinx it. But, I am excited. I will get this damn debt gone, but not quite as quickly  as I initially hoped it looks like and certainly not at the expense of peace of mind of having money saved.

Damn it, today I am a little bit frightened, frustrated and disappointed.

On the plus side I am feeling a lot better, after feeling so sick at the end of last week. My nephew was a delight this weekend, and I bet none of you were being a horsey at 7.30am on Saturday morning!

Seeing my sister is always wonderful, I wish we lived closer to each other. We speak 2 or 3 times per week, text and email, but nothing…..nothing is like having a cuddle with her or talking in our dressing gowns on a Saturday morning about the world, the universe and everything whilst drinking tea and watching her son play.

Priceless!

Frugally (and still a bit panicky) yours

Abigail

x

I’m In The Mood

I am in the mood today for paying off some more debt, unfortunately I have no spare cash to do that.

So I put a pair of unworn M&S shoes on Ebay. Unworn due to the fact the heels on them are elegantly tall and entail me towering over The Chap. I loved them when I got them and still do, but they have never been worn, so go they must.

I really want to try and make some money this month, but am struggling to know what to sell and how much to expect to get for items.

For example these shoes cost me £29.50 a year ago and are unworn, even sporting the labels on the bottom. I hope that I could get c. £10. We will see if that is achievable over the next 7 days.

Then I think I will try to sell some old DVDs and maybe some ornaments that are currently hidden away in boxes.

I want to pay off an extra £40 during June and so far that seems a pretty tough challenge.

Not much writing this evening I am afraid, I woke at midnight and spent most of the night being violently sick only relieved by the stomach cramps. Pretty miserable!

Just want to go to bed if honest.

More tomorrow.

Frugally yours

Abigail

x

Is £100 A Lot of Money?

Occasionally I get shocked at the strangest things. This long weekend for example, I was talking with someone else who has just bought a tablet computer whilst already owning a PC. She mentioned that it had cost her £120 as she had bought it second hand from eBay.

What shocked me is not the price. £120 is cheap for a second hand tablet computer and I am impressed at the saving. What shocked me is that my friend had spent that much money without thinking about it. She had been browsing eBay seen the tablet, bid and paid for it.

It has started me thinking. Nowadays is £100 ($150 for my American friends) a lot of money?

It is all relative, I appreciate that if you earn £100,000s per annum then surely £100 is the same as me spending £10.

A few years ago when times were better for me and this damn recession had not hit. I was earning a lot of money. I though nothing of spending large amounts on useless items. I once bought 2 pairs of Iceberg jeans at £100 each and a matching top one afternoon. Total: £245

But now, £100 seems an enormous amount of money to me. My debt is currently £565 and if you asked me to spend £100 on a luxury item, I quite frankly could not find the money from my daily living expenses. I have savings ready for the next utilities bill, my holiday in September and a new garage door / hob. But to find £100 on top of that would floor me.

Today is a £100 just petty cash to most normal people? Do most people spend that kind of money without thinking about it a few times per month?

I went into M&S over the weekend to buy knickers and food (I know strange combination), the total cost was £19 and I felt a bit fed up considering how little I got for my money. (see shopping pages)

I suppose it made me wonder how much exactly most people put aside for “fun and games” each month. By that I mean money, which is not allocated to bills, daily living or saving. But money put aside just to fritter away on whatever takes your fancy.

If I had to guess, I would say I fritter about £20-30 per month on this stuff – clothes, meals out, ready made food and general knick knacks.

So if I gave you a £100, would you think that I had given you a lot, a moderate or a small amount of money?

Frugally yours

Abigail

x

Just A Quickee

Sorry I have not posted for a few days, but during the long weekends or for that matter all weekends I stay at the The Chap's. His place is not condusive to posting, mainly as his laptop died a couple of weeks ago and he bought a Blackberry pad thingy instead. I do not know how to use that. Hence, no posting.

The long weekend was brilliant. As a die hard Royalist, I found the love pouring out of the country this weekend overwhelming. All the local houses had bunting up and everywhere was red, white and blue. Just phenomenal to see. Shame the weather was so poor.

The Chap and I tended to stay local this weekend and only ventured out to the IMAX to see Prometheus and the local street party.

We had some rather special guests!

Atmosphere was brilliant, The Chap was delighted as I won the raffle. My prize? Dave the odd job man for a day - excellent!

We met neighbours and played with kids and got to know eveyone in a street of circa 60 odd houses.

Spending this weekend was a little erratic. I did a little food shop in M&S, yup M&S! £11 for a dinner for us two and I bought a pack of undies - £7. TC and I were a little under the weather this weekend too so a trip to the Chemists came in at about £10 for various remedies.

I really wanted to post on Ebay this weekend, but time got away from me, so this evening. 1 item on I promise. The effort to cut the debt has to be continuous and even if I can only make £20 extra this month. Well "Every little helps" Especially as I am off down south on Friday after work.

Frugally yours
Abigail
x

Food Waste Friday, Oops!

I donned my rubber gloves yesterday evening and entered the murky underworld that is my fridge, which for the last 2-3 days has been emitting an odour reminiscent of a great dane with a nasty case of gastroenteritis.

Here is the culprit.

The problem seems to be wrapping it in tin foil. I cannot see when the cabbage started to deteriorate. Lesson learnt I guess.

Not a good couple of weeks on the food waste front.

This weekend is The Queens jubilee. 60 years since Elizabeth Windsor ascended the throne in the UK.

For those not based in the UK. Well, the country has gone wild for it. You cannot walk anywhere without being bombarded with red, white and blue.  It is nice in these difficult financial times to find something to be happy about. I am proud to be British, part of a multicultural society and am proud to be Queen Elizabeth’s subject. She has given her life to us the British people. A proper working mother in the times before that term was popularised.

My little corner of the country is celebrating all over this long bank holiday weekend. There are street parties, lunches, fairs, fireworks, choirs and dances set up. Actually a company we share are office with all came in today dressed in red white and blue.

So thank you Your Majesty. God Save The Queen!

Frugally yours

Abigail

x