Making Good Use

Bit of a B*gger

Yesterday, whilst perusing one of the local charity shops with Mum, I struck what I thought was vintage gold.

Three really 'groovy' 1970s M&S cotton bedcovers - one double and two single, each in a different colourway.  There was no price on them but when I asked I was told they were £2.49 each.  That seemed a very fair price to me and I bought all three.  My plan was to resell them on ebay - hopefully for a nice profit.

This morning I thought I'd give them a whirl through the washing machine and get them out on the line whilst it wasn't raining - which I did.

As I was hanging them out I realised each and every one of them has been used as a dust sheet whilst someone had been painting with white emulsion.  They are all peppered with tenny tiny spots of white paint.  B*gger, b*gger, b*gger!!  Not quite sure what I'll do with them now.  Apart from the teeny paint spots they are in lovely nick and the print is amazing - perhaps I'll try selling them at 'The Travelling Flea' as picnic blankets or maybe I'll try and get rid of the paint spots somehow - anyone got any good tips for that?  B*gger, again!!

Whoops, There Goes Another One

Soooo, there goes another week in the blinking of an eye - where does the time go?  In some ways it seems like only yesterday that P set off to Hong Kong but it has in fact been almost ten weeks - yay, only another 14 weeks to go 'til we can see each other again - though in other ways it seems like forever since I watched his taxi disappearing down the hill.  I think we're both still in a state of shock that we've actually had to be separated for six whole months in order for P to find a job in his field of expertise - really, when I take the time to think about, it seems unbelievably ridiculous - and unfair - that we've ended up in this situation.  But there we go, it is how it is and we're both trying to make the best of the situation.

Anyway, I've been keeping myself busy making some cards for the 'Travelling Flea Market' in a few weeks time.  I must say, putting the cards into cellophane envelopes makes them look an awful lot more professional.

I went to a local table top sale on Saturday and found quite a few nice bits and bobs, including a rather pretty Paperchase laptop case for £2.00.  I would like to keep it for myself but as I never take my laptop anywhere outside of the house it'll no doubt end up on ebay.  Despite the lack of boot sales at this time of year (and in this area), I've managed to keep finding reasonable items for reselling on ebay - which is good.

One of my best sellers recently was this vintage gent's Tootal dressing gown which I found at the local Sally Army charity shop.  Unusually for this type of dressing gown it was pure cotton which may be one of the reasons why it sold so well.

So I'm trying to pass the time as usefully as possible and, luckily for me, it does seem to be passing pretty quickly.  Still no reply to my job application ten days ago - why am I not surprised! - so I may put a 'work wanted' ad on Gumtree and see if anything comes from that.  If I manage to get some paid work, hopefully the next 14 weeks will pass even more quickly.

 

Where Has The Last Week Gone?

Cor blimey, the past seven days have just flown by.  Not sure exactly what I've been up to but the last week has included two very full days of having builders in the house who were insulating and boarding out the loft.  It is all done and dusted (literally) now and it is very comforting to know that P's ginormous collection of law and chess books are now safely stored away in our new, dry, secure loft. 

Initially the many many boxes of books were being stored in the garage which, unfortunately, turned out not to be as weather-tight and rainproof as we had hoped and, knowing how very important his books are to P, it was imperative that the loft was boarded out and the books moved ASA-flippi'-P.  It's very comforting now to be able to look out of the window and see the rain lashing down and not have to worry that all P's precious books are getting damp or, even worse, water damaged because of a leaky garage roof.

In the main, I've left most of my boxes of 'stuff' out in the garage (though carefully placed to avoid damp or rain) so that I can sort through them and hopefully get shot of a lot of the cr*p I've been carting around with us for the past 17 years.  There's still plenty of room up in the loft so anything I do decide to keep hold of can be stored up there too.

Saturday afternoon I went to a (fairly) local jumble sale, didn't come away with much but it was nice to get back in to the swing of ploughing through other people's cast offs in the hope of finding a thrifted nugget or two - which I did.  There's a (fairly) local table top sale this weekend which is on a direct bus route so I might check that out as well.

For the first time in well over a decade I applied for a job!!  I saw it advertised on the local Gumtree site and as it is only a temporary, non-office-based vacancy I thought I'd give it a shot.  Needless to say I've not heard anything at all - not even an acknowledgement of my e-mail - but after watching P struggle to find a job for two years, and the outrageous rudeness and lack of civility he encountered, I'm really not surprised!!

I've also started a bit of knitting in preparation for 'The Travelling Flea Market' where I've booked a pitch.  If anyone is in the Bristol / Bath area, the 'Travelling Flea' will be at the Fear Institute, High Street, Keynsham on Saturday March 9th from 11.00 am - 4.00 pm.

At the moment I'm knitting pure cotton waffle-weave facecloths in some lovely variegated yarn I found for 50p per ball in a local charity shop.   I've got a box of various handmade bits and bobs that I'll also be taking with me - pillowcase tote bags, vintage fabric coasters and handmade cards.  Plus, I'll be bringing some of my lovely vintage bits and bobs that I'll (hopefully) be unearthing from the boxes in the garage - I just need to search through them all first!!

Toasty and Thrifty

Though it is considerably easier dealing with cold snowy weather in this lovely warm and cosy little house compared to living in a one-hundred-year-old drafty hole with single-glazed ill-fitting french windows and no heating in the kitchen, it is still nippy at times.  Plus, I try and keep the heating off as much as is humanly possible.  So it's lucky that I have a couple of really toasty thrifted wooly items to keep me warm.

There's my £2.50 charity shop crocheted shawl which is lovely for keeping my shoulders and upper back warm in the house - though the fringing has developed a dreadlock-type finish .  It even doubled as an ultra-warm Baboushka-style headgear on Friday when I had to go out and it was snowing heavily.  I may have looked a trifle daft but at least I arrived at my Mum's warm and dry.  Unfortunately, Lily (Mum's highly nervous cat) took an instant dislike to my shawl and refused to stay in the same room with it!!  No idea what the problem was but I've had to leave it at home ever since.

I've also got a really really thick (possibly hand-knitted) polo-neck jumper which I rarely wear but which is one of those items that are invaluable when it's uber cold.  I can't remember exactly how much I paid for it (maybe a fiver) but it was definitely a charity shop find.  It does make me a look a little like the Michelin man when I'm wearing it but, hey ho, who wants to look chic when the temperature is below freezing!!

Thank you for all your replies about local recycling 'laws'.  I may be a bit of a geek but I find the whole subject of recycling quite fascinating and it's amazing how much difference there is between various local authorities and, indeed, between different countries.  I know when I first moved to Essex, I spent some considerable time haranguing the local council about their lack of wheelie bins (all those black sacks ending up in landfill is quite horrifying,) and the shocking lack of kerbside recycling schemes.  Thankfully, that all changed during the time I lived there though we never did get a wheelie bin for household waste.

 

SeVen

It's a good job I'm pretty keen on recycling as now that I'm a resident of South Gloucestershire I have to contend with seVen (to be pronounced a la Len Goodman on Strictly Come Dancing), yes, seven, different containers for my rubbish.

There's the green box for glass and cans - to be strictly separated in carrier bags left untied so that the collectors can see what is in each one (as if any council operative wouldn't know the difference between cans and glass!!).  A large green bag for paper, another large green bag for cardboard only (and as they are identical that can make sorting out which is which in the dark tres tricky.)  Why you can't get rid of cardboard and paper in one bag, heaven alone knows - surely they're recycled in the same way.

A large white bag for plastic bottles only - though I do have to confess that I'm putting all plastic in - not just bottles - as I really can't see the point of stating plastic bottles only (and it does all get collected so I'll continue doing that.)  A food waste bucket which I have started using (though I know a lot of people round these parts won't use these on priniciple) for fruit and veg peelings and for 'dry' waste like mouldy bread.   Anything meat or fish related gets chucked out onto the garden for any local cat or fox to enjoy.

Then there's the huge green wheelie bin - strictly garden waste only, though goodness knows why you can't add fruit and veg peelings to this bin as presumably it will all end up as the same compost.  Finally, the black wheelie bin into which non-recyclable waste is chucked (mine is only ever about 1/4 full - which I'm quite pleased about!)

To add even more fun to this mix, there are alternating fortnightly bin collections - one week cardboard, paper, tins and bottles, and the green garden waste bin  - and the next week plastics and the black wheelie bin.  The food waste bucket is collected every week (thank goodness.)

Having come from a council where there was just a pink sack for all paper, cardboard, plastic and tins, a green wheelie bin where you could bung any garden or kitchen waste, an orange box for glass and black sacks for any other rubbish - most collected weekly, I'm finding this somewhat draconian approach to recycling a little hard to get my head round.  Plus, Basildon council would take any amount of black sacks you cared to put out (and when we were moving there were A LOT of black sacks for a few weeks), here if you dare to have your black bin lid open by even half an inch then that baby ain't getting emptied. 

Yup, it really is just as well I'm keen on recycling with this lot to contend with and all these various bags, bins, boxes and buckets have cluttered up my lovely patio something wicked!!  What are the recycling 'laws' where you live?

 

What a Twerp

Although I was really delighted with the lovely bits and bobs that the previous owner left behind, there was one rather important item that was inexplicably missing.  No washing line, no poles to attach a washing line to, nor no post to put a rotary washing line in.  I can only surmise that as a single bloke he didn't worry too much about putting washing out to dry but was happy to have it festooned around the house.  For the last six weeks I, too, have been forced to festoon wet washing around the house, after having futilely tried to dry it on the pation on a clothes airer.  It doesn't work well at this time of the year.

I'd managed to get a post-hole concreted into the grass well before Christmas but actually getting hold of a rotary washing line - nah.  What with Christmas and New Year I couldn't really be bothered to get organised.  Finally, I ordered the cheapest I could find on Amazon.  It arrived early on Friday morning - a lovely dry and sunny day, ideal for getting my washing properly dry for the first time in ages.  I unpacked the box, fitted the various bits of the pole together, put it in the concreted post-hole and prepared to open it all out.  I huffed and puffed (and swore a fair bit) and couldn't get the darn thing open.  I wasn't totally surprised as I'd always struggled with the rotary washing line we had in Wickford.  Totally p*ed off by this time, thinking of all the lovely sunny daylight quickly ebbing away, I phoned my friend's husband who's a very practical chap. 

Within an hour they'd called at the house and within seconds it became apparent why I'd been unable to open the spokes - it had been tied round the middle with a bit of spare washing line!!  A quick untangle and the whole thing was open and working and I was feeling quite the fool.   Next time I can't get something to work I'll check all round that I'm not missing something really obvious and simple.  Seriously, what a twerp I am.  I can find myself quite scarily dense at times!!  Anyway, huge thanks to A and C for all their help (again!!)

One Man's Idea of Junk....

.... is my idea of treasure.

When we were going through the process of buying this house we had the usual fixtures and fittings list sent on to us from the vendor via our solicitor.  We were a little surprised to find that the cooker in the kitchen was not going to be staying.  As we'd assumed it was an integral part of the fitted kitchen we got onto the solicitor lickety spit.  Turns out the vendor thought he would be doing us a favour by taking out not only the cooker but the under-worktop fridge and freezer too and taking them to the tip!!  WHAAAAAT!!!!

As we had no cooker, fridge or freezer of our own we asked if he wouldn't mind leaving them in situ for the time being.  He said that would be no problem as it would mean he didn't have to hire a van to get them to the tip.  But were we sure we wanted to keep them as there was a bit of rust at the bottom of the freezer door!!  WHAAAAAT (again)!!  When you've lived without a freezer for eight very long years, believe me, you do not mind a teensy bit of rust on the door.  And, can I just say, it is sooooooo wonderful to be able to lob things in a freezer once again.  Really, I'd forgotten just what a useful (and thrifty) bit of kit a freezer can be.

Turns out all three appliances are in excellent condition and the only thing that is even a little bit broken is the heat-proof handle on the grill pan - and, with the judicious use of an oven glove, that has proved to be no problem at all.  And to think someone was going to take that lot to the tip and dump them - scandalous!!

He also left behind all the light fittings (very posh jobbies they are too), blinds, curtains (lovely quality) and curtain poles - except in the front bedroom where, with a wonderful piece of luck, our old living room curtains have turned out to be a perfect floor-length fit.  They even match the bedroom decor perfectly - bonus!  So far all I've had to buy is one lampshade which cost me 99p from a charity shop.

 

 

An Unexpected Act of Kindness

Mum and I had a small foray to Redfield yesterday.  It involved some light thrifting in a couple of charity shops (though I rather annoyingly hesitated to buy a pretty red top in one of the charity shops until after lunch - only to discover it had then sold!!).  This was followed by an extremely tasty lunch in Wetherspoons (Thursday is curry day and Mum had been fancying having their sweet potato curry for ages) where we were joined by my nephew and brother-in-law, who were both on fine form, and a rare old time was had by all.  My nephew, though only 9, is a real comedian and I foresee a lucrative stand-up career somewhere in his future.

Mum and I then went on to do a spot of shopping in Aldi (I'd been having serious withdrawal from shopping in Aldi after having one as my 'corner shop' for the past eight years,) where I came away with virtually a shipping order of items for £40.  We'd had a taxi takes us down to Redfield as the bus journey would be tortuous to say the least and it is only 10 minutes away by car.  Whilst we were packing our shopping in Aldi I gave the taxi driver a ring to ask him if he could pick us up again.  Unfortunately, he couldn't do it for half-an-hour but as there was a taxi office across the road that wasn't really an issue. 

A couple of seconds later a woman came up to us and said she'd overheard our conversation about the taxi and could she offer to give us a lift.  Well, we didn't quite know what to say (both of us, it turns out, had been wondering if this was something a bit 'suspect.')  Anyway, she looked vaguely familiar to me and she insisted that as it was New Year she wanted to offer an act of kindness, so we very gladly accepted  and she brought us (and our huge bags of shopping) all the way home.  We did insist on giving her some money to cover the petrol costs - though she really didn't want to accept it.  Both of us were stunned that a perfect stranger (though I'm still sure I know her from somewhere) would be so kind and generous with her time (and petrol.)

The whole thing got me wondering about two things:  1) What a sad state of affairs it is when two adult women feel nervous about accepting a kind and genuine offer of help; and 2) I'd like to be able to pass on that kindness somehow to someone else.  As I don't have a car I can't offer anyone a lift but, hopefully, I can 'pay it forward' in some other way in the near future.  To whoever that woman was, thank you very very much - your unexpected act of kindness went a long way in restoring my faith in human nature.

Twenty Twelve

So, yeah, 2012 - not a stellar year, really.  No great surprise as it followed on from a pretty sh*t 2011 and a nasty end to 2010!!  This time last year P and I were seriously looking into seeing if he could set up as a lawyer on his own and even went to look at some offices to rent in Wickford.  I was going to be his PA / secretary / girl Friday and we were both full of enthusiasm for the idea.  Don't quite know what happened but somehow the whole project never got off the starting blocks.  I don't think either of us ever imagined that the end of the year would see us parted by thousands of miles so that P could, finally, have the chance of working again. 

I hear the b*ll*cks David Cameron is spouting at the moment with his Britain is 'moving in the right direction' speech and I do seriously wonder what parallel universe that over-privileged twerp is inhabiting.  Things are getting better??  Really, not in my neck of the woods and I live in the 'affluent' south of the UK.

Anyway, onwards and upwards.  2013 is just around the corner and surely this year has got to be a bit better for us.   There are a couple of things that are high priorities - intensive internet searching to find a job for P in the UK or, failing that, at least in Europe.  I know how many many hours he put in to find any job so this task should keep me occupied for a while as he just won't have the time to search now he's working again.  (It really is true that finding a job is a full-time job!!)  Plus, I'd quite like to find a part-time job for myself.  I was thinking of doing audio-typing from home but maybe getting out and meeting different people would be a good idea in my present situation.  After nearly a decade out of a working environment going back to work should be interesting for me - to say the least!!

Then there's some work that needs to be done on the house and a somewhat over-grown garden to be tamed (if it ever stops raining!)  Plus, I've still got boxes of 'stuff' in every room that need to be sorted through - but I'm getting there, even if it is at a snail's pace!!

I'm really looking forward to waking up on Tuesday morning with a brand, shiny, new year ahead of me - full of the promise of better things to come.  Hope 2013 is a good one for us all.

Homemade Decs

I'm not much of a fan of Christmas and for the past few years - when both P and I have been away from home over the festive season - haven't bothered to put up any decorations at all.  This year, with the family coming to me on Boxing Day, I decided to splash out and put up a just a few bits and bobs.

Apologies for the cr*p photo - the colours are much brighter in 'real life.'

I'm particularly pleased with the pompom garland I made a few years ago (which has never seen the light of day before, and which I feared had been left behind in Essex at the back of the cupboard under the stairs) as it fits the huge circular mirror in the living room (kindly left behind by the previous owner) almost perfectly. 

And one of my homemade embroidered mini Christmas trees is gracing the living room window sill.  I made a couple of these a few years ago from bits of an old felted cream blanket.  I've got another one somewhere but for the life of me can't quite put my hand on it at the moment. 

There are a few thrifted wooden decorations on other window sills too but the vintage glass baubles have had to be displayed in bowls as the fake Christmas tree I used to have (£1.00 from a scout jumble sale when I lived in Nottingham in the 1990's) had to be thrown out.  We'd kept it in the leaky garden shed and it had completely rusted!!  It was another item mysteriously spirited away by the scrap-metal dealer who lived across the road.  I had no idea there was any scrap value in a rusty fake Christmas tree, but he was very welcome to it!