RIP Alan Rickman

One of my favourite actors, in all sorts of films:

Colonel Brandon in Sense and Sensibility with Kate Winslet and Emma Thompson.  I watched that again last week whilst I was ill.  Possibly my favourite role for him.

(image from fanpop.com)

Emma Thompson's husband in Love Actually - we always watch it at Christmas, and so that has been on recently too.  Brother-in-law to Hugh Grant's Prime Minister, you'd think he would have known better than be tempted by this little minx!

(image from thesundaytimes.co.uk)

Kids everywhere will remember him as Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films. 

(image from independent.co.uk)

He starred as Louis XIV in A Little Chaos, with Kate Winslet, which I also watched last week on Netflix whilst I was ill. He directed this film as well as acting in it, and I hadn't seen it before - I liked it.  

(image from radiotimes.com)

Another great talent lost - but we have one last film to look forward to, I understand, as Eye In the Sky will come out later this year, also starring Helen Mirren.

End of 2015 finance review

I finally found some time last night and the review of last year's savings got made up to date. Contrary to my expectations, it seems that we ended the year just over £5K better off than we had started the year - wow!  We spent quite a lot of money last year - repairing the fence, turning the chicken run into lawn, installing a shower over the bath, putting a new cam belt on the Skoda, painting, acquiring new-to-us furniture for the EF girls' room, a holiday to Sheringham in the October half term - so I am really pleased to have hit the £5K again.

As for this year - well, we can hope!

I have five more months of income from the EF girls, and we have decided that we are not going to have any more for the 16-17 academic year, as it is the YFG's A level exam year, and her application to uni year, so we may need to be going on some open day trips, as well as recognising the need for her to have peace and tranquility for studying.  I shall think about having more in the future....but they are leaving mid June, so we will have a spare room for the summer - I may have to have thoughts about that.

There is the vaguest hint that there may be some more hours at work in the offing - I shall snap those up if they do come through, as I am loving the job and would welcome the extra time to do more of it.

I still have a workshop with some beekeeping equipment lurking therein - this has to be the year to get it shifted, and bring some cash into the coffers again.

(image from bbc.co.uk via Facebook and boilerjuice.com)

On a positive note, the price of oil is so low that I am keeping the tank topped up - would you believe that the oil I bought earlier this week would have cost me over 60p/l a couple of years ago? Shocking how the prices change so no sense in letting it get too low in these economic times.  We have a good load of wood in stock, and UJ has almost finished cutting up all the rough lengths of wood that there were about, so we have several winters' worth of wood in there.  As good as money in the bank in many ways.

I am going to spend a bit more time strategising my plans and money this morning.  It all means that my plans for the future continue to look secure for now, thank goodness, and I won't need to sell the house just yet....

Back to the beginning

Nearly half way through the month, and I still have yet to get to grips with the year's finances. What with the new job, the EF girls, the EFG being home, the flu and all, I just don't seem to have had the time to sit down and review things the way that I used to.  If we are to continue to spend wisely and save money in areas, I must get on top of this!

I made a start yesterday when I had a look at the current price of home heating oil.  It was triggered by me seeing on Monday night that Tesco were actually selling diesel for less than petrol - 99.7p/l compared with 99.9p/l - I know that that is a tiny amount, but I couldn't remember the last time I had seen diesel cheaper than petrol, and thought that perhaps the oil price had dropped again.

(image from which.co.uk)

I went through my usual price comparison procedure though - check Boilerjuice first and then, with that information, call my local supplier [because I like to support local businesses, but I also don't want to be taken advantage of by them...].  The Boilerjuice price was 25.37p/l and the local company quoted over 32p/l at first. Then I mentioned the other price I had, and all of a sudden, they could bring the price down to 25.10p/l.  So 600 litres at the new price was £46 less than it would have been if I had accepted their first price.  That is quite a reduction, and a bigger one than I have had from them before.  It still makes me mad that some people will accept the first price that they are quoted - just don't do it!!

On a separate note, we are waving good-bye to the EFG this morning as she makes her way back to Aberdeen for the start of term on Monday.  She's been here for nearly a month, and we have had a lovely time with her.  Weirdly [and perhaps some of the Scottish readers can comment] she has lectures on both Good Friday and Easter Monday and will not finish for her "Easter" break until the 1st April, so we will not have her home actually at Easter although she will come down afterwards.  I shall be looking forward to that. The YFG went to Aberdeen last February half term but has decided not to do so this year [at the moment] as she has mock exams looming this year.

Have a good day - and keep warm!

I'm back....

Yesterday was the first day that I actually spent more time up and about than in bed, and it meant that I could go to sleep at a more reasonable hour because I hadn't been napping all day - but I was quite shattered by 10.30pm last night.  Up at 8 am this morning, and dinner in the slow cooker already - planning ahead!  Saves work later when I think I will be more tired.

The EFG is back to uni on Wednesday so one of my helpers will be gone and I will need to get to grips with the laundry again....she's been a treasure these past days, and I shall miss her tremendously, not only for her help but for the way she makes me laugh so much!  Not long this year until Easter - thank goodness, and we see her again then.

Not going to chatter on long, as I just really came to say Thank You for all the kind messages xxx

Bleugh

I've been able to function for only about 5 hours today - I'm admitting defeat and acknowledging that I have got the flu. I've had several hours bundled up in layer upon layer in front of the fire, but I am in a sweaty phase now, so I'm not going to go to bed until I cool down a bit........

Quite a night

I collapsed into bed at 4pm yesterday afternoon and here I am just emerging, freshly showered though, just over 18 hours later.  I felt increasingly tired until just after I served our meal, and then I just had to give up and go to bed.  I was sweating and shivering, dreaming about the filthiest holiday cottage I have ever seen, and then there was something weird which went on for quite some time about bagging up sleep and only being allowed to put an hour's worth in each bag........I ran out of bags!

I still feel a bit queer this morning but nowhere near as bad as last night so I am taking the day slowly. A load of washing has just gone in the machine and I am sitting here with a cup of tea.  My two girls are in York for the day, and so it is just the Danish girl and I at home. She is busy catching up on homework ready for school tomorrow, so it is quiet - just perfect!

I hope your start to 2016 has been healthier than mine!  Here's to a happy, frugal, 2016 for us all xxx

Happy New Year!

Despite celebrations being cancelled around Europe because of terror threats, the London fireworks have just blasted off [and yes, there is a small part of me that wonders how much food could have been bought for the food banks or blankets for desperate refugees for example with that money, but it is also a poke in the eye for the terrorists that it went ahead, so I'll overlook that this year!] and we are sitting here watching Bryan Adams blast out some rock music!  Neighbours are letting off fireworks here too.

The EFG is knitting a monster from a kit that she was given last Christmas and thought she ought to have a bash at - she's making a good fist of it and is just stuffing it and sewing the last seams closed.  I have had an evening attacking my first sock knitting project with some gusto - I have had to frog it back a couple of times over the last few days, but I have turned the heel and I am decreasing along the gussets now, so I hope that it is going to continue in the right direction and be finished soon. In the interest of not getting second-sock-itis, I have knitted the second one first :)

I haven't had too much time to get the new year's budget or resolutions sorted out this week, so I might spend some time in thought over the weekend......  I hope you are ready for a cracking year, and wish you all the best for 2016.  I've got all those flooded-out folk in my prayers, and know that you will join me in wishing them a drier year ahead when they get all the damage sorted out - it is terrible that the same properties keep getting flooded, so I am praying for some respite from this dire weather.