You can never have enough...

[Lilith7]

It takes courage to challenge management, they will always defend their own position and try to whitewash - it is immensely frustrating.

As for the hard decision thing, I have been there too. It became impossible for me to maintain a property once I was dealing with physical limitations and a reduced income, and while the process itself was really difficult, once I had done it the relief from ongoing stress was fantastic. The 2am wake ups were much easier to cope with, and the nightmares stopped. I wish you the best getting through it popeye, and I hope you have someone trusted who can help with it.

As for the crafting, I am really enjoying the denim play. My test pieces are great fun, my stitching is improving, and I think soon I will be ready to start on the jacket itself. I showed a very talented friend my pieces today and she was delightfully supportive of my efforts, but I am still suffering tui envy I'm afraid. So I hope you finish it so I can turn a really good shade of green!!

---

Did the dreaded groceries this morning - $5 for half a cauli! The Scots ancestry damn near had conniptions, & needless to say, they're still in the shop.

Most of us probably wouldn't think that changing an entire supermarket layout in the middle of a pandemic is an especially good idea - but someone, somewhere clearly did because that's what's they're doing. Trying to find things is interesting to say the least & people are wandering around looking bewildered & asking strangers if anyone has sighted the soap powder, or catfood.

I do though, approve of their having moved the bread to just inside the door rather than at the very furtherest point from the entrance, where it previously was.

I only hope it stays there....

My usual budget for a week of groceries was around $70 to $80, depending on the meat buys but since Spring it has been rising noticeably. Today I cut back on the meat, bought frozen fish instead and a chook, and the total was $123. Including that half a cauli and two heads of broccoli, ten bucks for those three. Thank goodness for my vegie garden, even though it is pretty tiny, it sure helps fill the gaps. Bearing that in mind, I have winter planting in mind now, lots of greens to replace the tomatoes, which are still producing heavily. Soon I shall have to start freezing pasta sauce to go alongside all those peaches!

I tend to buy fresh fish from the supermarket, then egg (with a bit of ginger & lemon grass added) & breadcrumb it & freeze it. Last lot was approx $10, & I got enough for 5-6 meals from that. I no longer eat read meat so that's an expense I don't have now.
But my grocery shopping has risen too, & I wish the garden hadn't got away from me quite so much this year thanks to the heat followed by copious rain - more weeds than anything else.
Although the tomatoes & runner beans are doing well & there's at least one pumpkin out there.

[popeye333]

It takes courage to challenge management, they will always defend their own position and try to whitewash - it is immensely frustrating.

As for the hard decision thing, I have been there too. It became impossible for me to maintain a property once I was dealing with physical limitations and a reduced income, and while the process itself was really difficult, once I had done it the relief from ongoing stress was fantastic. The 2am wake ups were much easier to cope with, and the nightmares stopped. I wish you the best getting through it popeye, and I hope you have someone trusted who can help with it.

As for the crafting, I am really enjoying the denim play. My test pieces are great fun, my stitching is improving, and I think soon I will be ready to start on the jacket itself. I showed a very talented friend my pieces today and she was delightfully supportive of my efforts, but I am still suffering tui envy I'm afraid. So I hope you finish it so I can turn a really good shade of green!!

---

My usual budget for a week of groceries was around $70 to $80, depending on the meat buys but since Spring it has been rising noticeably. Today I cut back on the meat, bought frozen fish instead and a chook, and the total was $123. Including that half a cauli and two heads of broccoli, ten bucks for those three. Thank goodness for my vegie garden, even though it is pretty tiny, it sure helps fill the gaps. Bearing that in mind, I have winter planting in mind now, lots of greens to replace the tomatoes, which are still producing heavily. Soon I shall have to start freezing pasta sauce to go alongside all those peaches!

I tend to buy fresh fish from the supermarket, then egg (with a bit of ginger & lemon grass added) & breadcrumb it & freeze it. Last lot was approx $10, & I got enough for 5-6 meals from that. I no longer eat read meat so that's an expense I don't have now.
But my grocery shopping has risen too, & I wish the garden hadn't got away from me quite so much this year thanks to the heat followed by copious rain - more weeds than anything else.
Although the tomatoes & runner beans are doing well & there's at least one pumpkin out there.

 Ive always wondered how fish goes if you crumb it before you freeze it.. I started buying fish a couple of years ago, mainly cos your not paying for bones to throw away. Have to say tho I really prefer my fish battered lol

[Lilith7]

I tend to buy fresh fish from the supermarket, then egg (with a bit of ginger & lemon grass added) & breadcrumb it & freeze it. Last lot was approx $10, & I got enough for 5-6 meals from that. I no longer eat read meat so that's an expense I don't have now.
But my grocery shopping has risen too, & I wish the garden hadn't got away from me quite so much this year thanks to the heat followed by copious rain - more weeds than anything else.
Although the tomatoes & runner beans are doing well & there's at least one pumpkin out there.

 Ive always wondered how fish goes if you crumb it before you freeze it.. I started buying fish a couple of years ago, mainly cos your not paying for bones to throw away. Have to say tho I really prefer my fish battered lol

it goes pretty well really. I don't batter it mainly due to I can't be arsed - its enough mucking about just egg & bread crumbing it

---

Morning everyone

Its overcast and not hot, Yay

Yes Kiwimade I get an accommodation supplement. And yes I have debt. MrP was one who if he wanted something, he wanted it yesterday and didn't care how much debt we had or how I got it. And Your right it is time I faced things and went to the budget advisor. I need help.. Wow I said it ..

I sold some jewelry yesterday so I can go to Pukekohe this morning and get some more magnesium. Its my pain life saver and thankfully my cheapest supplement. I asked the Dr if you can get it on prescription, but sadly you cant. Not only has it stopped all the cramp but my muscles are far more relaxed so I dont get as much pain now.

Your right Mica the hourly rate in doing alot of pour crafts makes it prohibitive to make for others..

MrP had a terrible sleep on Tuesday night so was very tired and snappy yesterday, but I think hes starting to learn that its not all fun and games out here either.  Finally

I better rattle my daggs want to be out and back before any sign of it warming up cos I imagine it could get humid again.

Have a fab day everyone

Good luck with it all Popeye - I think Kiwimade's right. I've heard nothing but good about the budgeting advice people, & its likely they can help you sort things out & improve the situation.

[kiwimade64]

morning ladies Another lovely cool morning and fine day coming up.

Yesterday I weeded the neglected garden and sprayed out on the main road. Hopefully that will stop the convolvulus creeping under the fence for a while. The new plants are in the ground and looking happy. The poor lantana was so root bound even after a night soaking in a worm wee solution still wouldn't come out of the pot. I had to cut the plastic to get it out.

I sewed a mask for MrK in the afternoon and have a couple more almost finished. Just need to add the elastic so will do that today. Then I'll restart my tui I think. I don't like admitting defeat lol.

Housework first though. At some stage I need to do the windows inside and out. The cyclone has left some of the windows barely see through thanks to the dust and the insides have fly spray over them. It won't take long to do with the Karcher window vacum and at least I won't be dragging a hose around with me while outside.

Happy crafting

[Mica]

Morning all
Another fine day

Made 6 dribble bibs yesterday.
The bamboo fleece fabric is very wide and I bought a meter so lots spare. Will have a bit in  my reusable nappy fabric stash

Food hunting ting this morning  and get the spare BBQ gas cylinder filled so thats the morning taken care of.
Not sure what will do this afternoon possibly look thru scraps see what  an be used for DGD possibly a tshirt to match one of her mums

Have a good day

[popeye333]

Morning everyone

Loving the cooler starts and even the days aren't too bad at the mo.

I enjoyed my time out yesterday.. Chemist warehouse didn't have the magnesium Ive been buying but had another on special and it worked out a little cheaper for 20 less, and capsules and not so Huge as the others lol. My god they were big lol

Im off to see MrP this morning. He's a lucky dude, I got a couple of packs of bacon pieces yesterday only $2-59 for 350 grams. And what i thought was slices ended up being very thick pieces. And I dont like thick bacon or ham.. Think its cos I like my bacon crisp lol. So Im taking him a bacon buttie, Might take one for Bobbie too. And the rest can be made into soup for them in the winter.

Listed a few things on FB yesterday. Will see if anything went. But I need to use the marketplace I think, Ive been trying local first.

Cant wait to see your Tui Kiwimade.. Being that we are both Taureans I know you will either finish it and be totally happy or give up totally, lol we dont seem to have a middle road on that at times lol.

Have a fab day everyone

[Roma]

Good morning.

Certainly enjoying the cooler mornings now.  Another sunny day ahead.

I have some sewing  to do ... adjusting sleeves on a top and then baking muffins for the freezer. 

A grandson's first year of high school has been disrupted by omicron,  waiting for the younger grandies' schools to also be affected ... just a matter of when. 

OH and I planning to visit our parents this weekend while we are still able to. 

Have a good day.

[Oh_hunnihunni]

Sadly, my second baby punkin went soft and died on the vine so it will be just the one bright orange success this season, but so pretty I will definitely save seed for next year. Bit hot yet to transplant the seedlings for my winter greens but the weatherman will come through I'm sure over the next week or so.

Our corporate landlord tells us our range hoods and bathroom fan units are going in next week, so I am waiting to hear if they approve my request to upgrade mine to a 3 in 1 heater combo - at my expense of course. Seems they think the power burden on our old wiring might be an issue, but it is worth a try. Our sixties bathrooms have louvre windows that never seal properly and winter can be a miserable shower experience in a freezing bathroom, so I am happy to throw a couple of hundred at a solution, if they let me, seeing with luck I'll be here for another decade or so. But we'll see. Going to love that range hood though, it might help keep the kitchen easier to clean...

[kiwimade64]

I knew I had forgotten to say something lol. The Great British Sewing Bee is on tonight, TV1, 8.30pm. or on demand

[Lilith7]

Its supposed to get to 27 here today so went out while it was still cool & plaited the garlic. Well - I say plaited, & I did once know how to do it properly but have long since forgotten so just do it as best I can. As long as it doesn't fall to bits I'm not bothered how it looks.

And decided to take the dog for an early walk so off we went over to the park - apparently the council in its not even slightly infinite wisdom has decided that removing all rubbish bins from parks wasn't sufficient, so now it seems that the lawns aren't to be mowed as often as they were, & its an excellent idea to simply mow along the edge of paths about once fortnightly, leaving the rest to grow as it likes. And to hell with the weather.
Which means rain makes it grow quite fast & it becomes slightly more difficult to walk on especially when being towed at speed by an enthusiastic dog. Mind you, she does slow down now & then to investigate interesting scents - rather more of those now thanks to the idiot who decided to remove the rubbish bins, since not everyone picks up their dog's mess.

Good luck with the heater Hunni, hope they see sense.

[kiwimade64]

morning ladies Big black clouds out there so am expecting some much wanted rain.

Oh_hunnihunni, I hope the bathroom heater you want is put in. My sister wasn't allowed to change any of the plans until she moved in. Which to us seemed silly as it would have been cheaper for her to pay any differences and they do the installation as they built. But seeing as they buy everything in bulk for a bunch of houses, they refused to budge. So when some delivery guys scraped her brand new flooring, she was delighted as they had to pay for the flooring she originally wanted through the body corp insurance lol.

I sewed MrK's masks yesterday and must admit they do look really nice. He hates loops over his ears so I sewed elastic to go around his head. A weird thing happened to my machine the other day when sewing his 'prototype'. Was debating which stitch would be the strongest to hold the elastic and my machine set itself to the right stitch. I wasn't touching my machine at all and it has never done that before or since. I probably sound nuts, but I firmly believe my grandmother who is long gone got fed up with me dilly dallying lol and chose the stitch. I could feel someone with me at the time watching. As I said, weird and a little nuts but thanks Nana lol.

This morning I'm going to clean the outside windows, it will be nice to be able to look through them properly lol. One of my sisters-in-law says you just look passed the dirt but I can't do that. It won't take long with the Karcher anyway and I have the extension poles so don't even need to get a ladder out.

I have redrawn my tui and downsized it so there won't be so much stitching. After I've done the windows I'll transfer it to the fabric ready for embroidering. Our boys are skiing in the half pipe this afternoon so might even make a start while waiting for them to do their thing.

I watched the Great British Sewing Bee last night and what an eclectic group of people there is this time round. The woman who cried (sobbed!) during the last challenge drove me nuts. Crying was just wasting precious time when she could be sewing. Have your meltdown when times up. In saying that, she's braver than me to be sewing on international TV. I think the secret to the last challenge is choosing your fabric carefully and having a plan in your head as to how you are going to tackle it. And use the practice time at home. It will be interesting to see how the series progresses.

Time to get cracking. Happy crafting

[Mica]

Morning all
Overcast  and a breeze 

OhHunnihunni I hope you get your heater.

Achieved all my errands yesterday.
Sewing cave got a vacuum so looks a lot tidier
 Drafted overalls and cut them out from scrap denim DSF (dear sewing friend)
gave me playing with different top stitching hopefully they will be wearable toille for DGD

Good news sewing machine tech advised me that the part we have been waiting for arrived late Thursday guess who found one in Sydney on Thursday and it is now on a plane. So I guess  I will have a spare

We have an extra dog he is sweet but having 3 bit like 3 kids. It is likely to be a permanent rehoming. 

Feel like making savoury pinwheel this morning  sewing this afternoon

Have a good day

[popeye333]

Morning everyone

Its dark and a light drizzle happening.

Your Nana was with you Kiwimade. I firmly believe they help from beyond. I think of two of my grandmothers alot when crafting. I had 3 lol.. Im greedy. Dads side Nana I dont actually recall seeing her do any crafts but I know she did as I have some of her Tatting. I wish her fingers hadnt frozen up so she could have taught me. Mums Mum I know knitted cos she never liked doing ribbing so in the latter years she used to get me to do it. She always said I had a good even tension.

My stepgrandmothers talent was talking birds to talk lol.. something that I can do quite well. We didnt visit them often but Ill always remember their birds.

Ive decided to give away one of the single beds. It will give me more room to sort out my stuff. Ill pack plastic crates in the room, as its pretty much doesnt get used. So I can function better in the sewing room. It was given to me so Im happy to pay it forward.

Have to put a load of dishes and washing on first. Thank goodness they look after themselves lol..

Yesterday I had a lovely visit with MrP.. AND he even walked down to the dining room lounge at the other end of his wing to show me where the scales were.. AND Ive lost 7.8 Kilos.... I thought I was losing it but didn't think it was that much... AND he told me he was proud of me.. ANNNNDDDDD That is rare.. lol

I took them both a bacon buttie and both loved them. Rather than the fish fingers they get on a Friday.. I could smell the friers when I went in. long over due a clean too. It stunk.


What kind is your new Canine family member Mica?

Have a fab day everyone..

[Oh_hunnihunni]

I am another one who knows our lost loves can be right behind us at times. I have way too many weird little life stories to be a sceptic on that score. Mind you, it would be nice if one of them could do the Lotto thing for me. I reckon I could do 'being rich' really well. For a week or so!

[Lilith7]

I don't think you're nuts Kiwimade. I've had one or two similar 'visits' now & then.

Indeed Hunni - a really substantial win on something in the region of a few billion, or even million, & I could dispose of that fairly swiftly. Whanau & various charities would be reasonably happy I think.

Never happen though - I just don't win money.

[Oh_hunnihunni]

I never have had that kind of luck, but I have always been lucky in love. I think that is the better kind.

[popeye333]

Kiwimade

I watched the sewing bee for the first time last night.. I thought the same.. Carry on sewing, have ya meltdown when you finish.. They both wasted soo much time.

I enjoyed it tho so will carry on watching.

I loved the brodery Anglaise Dress that won but would prefer it in white. So pleased gathered dresses are back in. Ive always liked them.

The skirt I made for 3rd form sewing was three layers of frills ... My friends skirt beat mine, lol but I had sewn both of them lol

[kiwimade64]

omgg I have hardly any fingernails left lol... so please Nico won the gold.

[Roma]

LOL, Kiwimade ... he did it ... gold! Just back from Hamilton visiting and caught the action on TV   

Time now for a cuppa and doggie walk.

[kiwimade64]

morning ladies Another gorgeous sunrise this morning. The cyclone has blown down quite a few branches from trees on neighbouring farms so we get a lot more light inside now.

This morning I have a few small things to potter with outside and the ironing needs doing. While the ironing board is up I'll iron my tui picture onto the fabric. I didn't get to it yesterday as I was sewing the small pouches my sister-in-law asked me to sew.

We watched Nico win the gold yesterday, it was a very clever move to do his best run first. So many competitors crashed out. The last run by the American was quite scary seeing him in a heap. And even Nico had some falls.

It looks like my sister-in-law's car won't be written off and can be repaired which she is very happy with. The assessor still hasn't seen the car and it's been 10 days. She is far from impressed and is saying she will be changing companies when this is over.

The Furry One is bashing my leg with his tug rope, I can take the hint lol.

Happy crafting