De cluttering - in reverse

When is all this going to end! More stuff in the skip, this time all toys. I've given myself a massive job here, I'm going to be like Santa Claus dishing this lot out. Another car load, my three bed semi is fast filling up, and all because I hate to see useful stuff thrown out. The man said, 'I'm glad you've come, there are a lot of good things here.' I think I ought to set up a house clearing business, I could call it Robin Hood Recycling, taking from the rich to give to the poor :o))

It's a good job I took some empty boxes with me, I had to climb into the skip to retrieve lots of small dinky toys, which had been put in loose. Some of the plastic toys are for very young children and come with batteries, they played a tune automatically as I picked them up. 

Everything is going to take a while to sort out, lots of bits of coloured plastics from different toys, all mixed up. I hope to get it all sorted by Christmas, then some kids can have some extra toys. A lot of it will go to charity shops. 

It's been a busy days today, what with cleaning the house, doing some washing, feeding cats, skip diving, loading and unloading the car. I still had time to make a dinner though. Three dinners in fact, enough for two more days. I had some straight pasta that I wanted to use up, it wasn't enough so I mixed it with curly pasta. The topping is the usual, potatoes, runner beans, courgettes from the garden, plus some frozen peas and Quorn mince, and a couple of cooking apples which my neighbour gave me. Curry powder and garlic powder to flavour it.

Someone asked about the Tesco Veggie burgers I get. I buy the Value ones, four in a packet, usually about �1. I don't buy them very often, they are there just to add a bit of variation to the mounds of steamed veg I eat.

Kitties all tucked up in bed tonight, at my house and Janet's. Think I'll get off up the wooden hill as well. Goodnight.

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I do look after me teef

Hello me hearties. My nice lady dentist Emma has had a good prod around and given me a clean bill of health, me gnashers are good for another year. She asked me lots of questions about my lifestyle, drinking, smoking, how often do I brush my teeth, how often do I floss, and which toothpaste am I using. I have very low risk of tooth decay, gum disease, and oral cancer. I have scored a zero, meaning I have healthy gums. Whooopeeee. My teeth are not perfect by any means, with two crowns, a four teeth bridge, and several fillings this is as good as it's going to get, and I am hanging on to what I have. If anyone overseas is interested in how much a dental check up costs here, it's �18.50. My practice has both private and national health options. For most things I pay the cheaper national health rate, mind you, I haven't had anything done for ages. I went private for the bridge, opted to pay more for a better colour match, and shorter waiting times. They offer the services of a hygienist at �35 a time. I have never been to a hygienist in my life, I have never needed to. 

So, what's for dinner tonight. The usual steamed veg, all out of the garden except the spinach which was on a yellow sticker. I thought I would give these Tesco chicken style strips a try, they are the size of potato chips. I'm not very impressed by them, not much taste and a bit rubbery. I much prefer their veggie burgers. 

I thought you might like some kitty photo's. These are Janets cats, I'm feeding them for her while she is away, a sort of favour swap if you like, she will be feeding mine next week. There are seven cats,  I've got five of them here. This is Teddy, Janet raised him from a tiny kitten when he came into rescue, then she kept him.

Mr Beasley or Mr B as we call him, wouldn't stay with his owners when they moved home he kept wandering off. After picking him up and taking him back several times they had to admit defeat and he was put up for adoption. You can see where he ended up. We are not supposed to keep our rescue cats, but sometimes we do, ha ha.

I can't remember the names of the others, they are written down on a menu plan, each one has their favourite food.

I sat and watched the tele with them tonight, they are all lovely.

Because I was at the dentist this morning I missed what they put into the skip. By the time I got back, some traveling people in a van had stopped to ask if there was any metal. The owner said they could take it. But, they not only took the metal they took a load of other stuff as well, cheeky beggars. Anyway, after they had gone, the owner put a large box in the skip, and it was full of soft toys and dolls, so I nabbed it quick. These will be ideal for selling on the stall at the Christmas market.

I put some of the bulky items in my car this morning and after I had finished at the dentist I went to Lindsey Lodge Hospice shop with it. They were chuffed to receive it.

It's late so I am off to bed, it's been a busy day. Sewing has been put on hold for the moment, I must start getting a few things together for my adventure. Catch you tomorrow.
Have a laugh with Pam

Toodle pip

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Saved from the tip, a new lease of life

Hello. I bet you are wondering if I got anything else out of the skip. I surely did. I had a chat with the owner of the house, they are downsizing and moving to a small bungalow. The skip has cost them �200, I think they could have saved that by getting a charity to come in and take the bulk of it, and then taking the rest to the tip in their car.

There is too much stuff for me to take, so I am pleased that other people are taking things as well. As long as it can be used by someone it doesn't matter who gets it. Here are some things which I had. 

A nice coffee table, will keep it for a while and might find a use for it, but might give it away. 

Fancy a game of footie. Charity shop for this I think.

Children's toys. Charity shop for the big ones, cat stall for the small ones.

Dyson, didn't know if this would work, plugged it in, and it does. Amazing. Needs cleaning, it's filthy. Will keep this as a spare, but will give it to a family member if anyone needs one.

Small items can be sold on our cat stall.

Two bags of plastic balls, too bulky to take to a show in the car, will give them away.

This can be folded up and sold on our stall. Child size.

A double sleeping bag, washed and in good condition. I don't need it so I will look for someone who does. It could be made into dog beds.

There was a mucky pair of boots in the skip, I didn't want them but I said to the man, I always wear boots because I have bunions. He went in the house and came out with three pairs of trainers, in my size, and they fit a treat, so I will keep them.

Puzzles and games for the cat stall.

Set of curtains with a pelmet, and matching double duvet cover and pillowcases. The curtains are new and now hang in my front window. The bedding is washed and will be sold on the cat stall.

Anything not sold will go to a charity shop. We don't sell at any events over the winter, except a Christmas Market in November. We don't like to keep stuff for too long and will pass it on. People always give us more stuff in the spring when we start again.

I've got to go to the dentist in the morning, but I will be checking the skip when I come back.

There is great excitement in the village, talk of the two Lancaster Bombers flying right over us on Saturday. It has been arranged because one of our residents played a big part in it's operations during the war. Oooh can't wait. I will be there with my camera.

Toodle pip.

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Free curtains

Hello. Howzit goin? All is good here. Guess who I met tonight while bimbling around the village. Go on, guess, bet you don't get it right. I met George Formby, amazing eh! This guy was the spitting image of him. He was out walking with his friend, Joanne from the 1939 house, remember her? Put '1939 house' into the search and you will find lots of photo's of her house. Of course she was dressed the part, that's how she lives her life, everything about her is 1940's, and her friend George dressed the same, flat cap and braces. He even spoke like George. He earns his living by appearing at events, playing his ukulele and singing just like George. What a lovely couple they made. I cursed because I didn't have my camera with me. 

Here we have a picture of my dinner. I made two portions so it was mixed veg curry for two days. A tin of red kidney beans, grated carrot, chopped up pickled onions because I have run out of big ones, runner beans, sultanas, and courgettes. And very tasty it was too.  

Yesterday I went a ride out to Barton, haven't been there for ages. I had a look round the Ropewalk art gallery. They had an open exhibition on. I must say the paintings were not my cup of tea, only one or two caught my attention, the rest were pretty boring. It looked like very little effort had been put into them, just dabs of paint sploshed about. 

I went to the Waters Edge country park and had a walk round there. There were Canada geese and ducks on the pond, with two swans. I love the colour in the hedgerows at this time of year. 

This is the dead head of something, sorry don't know names of plants, but look how amazing it is.

Several spiders had taken up residency in this seed head. Isn't mother nature wonderful. 

I am following the blue route.

And the Humber Bridge which you have probably seen in my photo's before.

I am keeping my eye on the skip and had another look in today. There is not much in it at the moment but I thought I spotted what might look like bags of curtains. Luckily a young man was just coming out of the house, so I asked if I could have them because I can make shopping bags with them. He said, yes, help yourself to anything you want. I nearly fell in the skip reaching for them, ha ha. I pulled five bags out, and this is what I have.

This is a nice set of curtains, they will fit my windows so I will keep them. 

These look like they have never been used, still in the original wrapper. On opening them I found only one curtain. It's massive though, could easily be cut in half and two shorter curtains made out of it. I won't bother though, maybe make bags with it or take it to a charity shop.

Another still wrapped set of curtains, but sadly only one curtain. It's lovely thick fabric. Not really practical to make white shopping bags, I'll think of another use for it.

The rest are curtain liners, with one set of blackout liners. Amazing that I got all this for nothing. Must keep watching that skip.

Thank you very much to the lovely reader who sent me some beads and sequins. I am already thinking about my next picture, so they will be useful for that.
Toodle pip.

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Shocking !!!

Good morning. I'm bopping away to Sounds of the Sixties on Radio 2 as I write this. Some great old hits to sing along with. Every Saturday, 8 till 10. 

Right, what's the topic for toady. A leaflet dropped through the letter box this week, that reads like a horror story, thought I would share it with you. I hate anything that aims to swindle people out of their precious cash. This is a leaflet from a shop called PerfectHome, it could be from Bright House, they are all the same. They may have a shop front in the High Street, but that is a ruse to get people through the door and get them to sign their life away to a finance company. In this case, Temple Finance Limited is trading as PerfectHome. 

Years ago when I was a child my mum saved up to buy some of our furniture, but most of it was second hand, handed down from family or passed on from friends. For our entertainment we had a small radio, then television sets started to appear in shops. Of course we pestered mum to get one, she went into a shop called Radio Rentals and rented our first TV. A few years later after we had moved house, she went to Boyds, a family electrical shop, and took out an agreement to rent a TV. I have the agreement in front of me, dated 20th June 1974. Mum paid �1.85 a week for a 19 inch mono TV. In those days it was rare for people to buy a television set, because it would have been expensive to repair. Renting seemed the better option because there would be a new one provided when the set was too old to repair. We didn't think about how much it would cost us over a long period of time. Money came into the house weekly and mum was pretty good at budgeting, she wouldn't have got it if we couldn't afford the weekly payments. 

How things have changed. Now everyone wants to own the biggest TV in the street, no matter what the cost is. The PerfectHome shop window in our High Street looks very appealing, imagine all that lovely furniture in your home. You too can have a showhouse like this, but, there's a catch, there always is. Have a look at these figures, they make shocking reading.  

This TV will cost �1,731.99 to buy from this shop. Of course they don't want you to buy it outright, that's not where they make their money, they are a finance company, they want to lend you money at shocking interest rates. They want you to sign up to an agreement to pay �14.59 a week, for 156 weeks, they don't say 3 years, and you will end up paying �2,276.04. So, you might as well throw �1,048.05 of your precious cash, down the toilet. Shocking!

Want a supadupa sound system? Throw away �1,048.05, the difference between the cash price and the weekly payments over three years, and you can have it.

Of course you've just got to have an American style fridge freezer, with a water and ice dispenser, hasn't everyone got one. Errr, nope. On credit it's �2853.24. Shocking!

A nice sofa to sit on? Jeeez, credit price over 3 years, �4,475.64. What a shocker!

We all need to lay our heads down every night, but at what cost? �20.99 per week for three years, or 40p per sleep. That's a very expensive sleep. I would be having nightmares if I slept in this bed.

Only two of you, a small sofa would be ideal, but not at this price. Take out credit on this item and it will cost you �1,613.04 to sit on your @rse.

Ha ha, look at this, a special offer. Buy today and your first weekly payment is JUST �1. WOW, gotta have that, I think not. What about all the other 155 payments, where you are struggling to make ends meet, struggling to buy decent food, can't afford to put the heating on, can't afford to put petrol in the clapped out old car to get you to work.

For God's sake people wise up, get your priorities sorted out. Stop feeding these sharks. You don't need all this fancy stuff, you don't need to get into debt just to keep up with whoever has got more than you. Life is not about showing off, hey look at me, I've got one of those, or I've got a bigger one than you. It's ok to buy second hand, to get the best for your money. It's ok to buy from car boot sales, from charity shops, to skip dive, to take hand me downs, to barter and swap, to go on Freecycle.

Phew, sorry about that, had a Nellie moment just then. She would be proud of me. Joking apart, I know a lot of people who read my blog already know about this stuff, but please pass on your wisdom to younger members of your family and warn them of the danger of taking out such extortionate rental contracts, because it will come back and bite them on the bum, with such force they won't be able to sit down for months. or even years.

Looking good outside, have a nice weekend. Toodle pip.  

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Inventing a picture frame, and finding some free ones.

Hello. At last the picture is finished. After changing my mind about the frame several times, I thought of this idea, and I think it works rather well. I added an extra layer of the green mossy stuff to strengthen the edges and give it a more defined frame, I stuck it on with PVA glue. 

I have had this knocking around in the spare room for years. It's a self assembly shoe rack, though I never used it for it's original purpose. I bought it to add height to my market stall. Positioned at the back of the table as extra shelving to elevate the display. Perfect for this job. Lay the two pieces on a piece of hardboard. It wasn't quite big enough so I cut two of the legs to size to fill the gap in the centre.

The picture sits on the top of it, secured at the top and bottom with a dark thick thread set one inch apart. Along the vertical sides I have used invisible thread. I was going to use the dark thread, but decided that the stitches up the sides would not match up with those at top and bottom. 

Each piece of dark thread is knotted at the back.

I screwed all the slats in several places to a piece of hardboard, which I trimmed to slightly smaller than the picture, so it doesn't show to the front. This makes it super strong.

Then I covered the knots with black tape to tidy it up. A piece of wire from a broken set of Christmas tree lights to hang it. 

And there you have it, finished. Looks nice hanging on the wall, this type of frame is ideal for it, as it's more like a tapestry than a picture. I shall take it down and wrap it to keep it clean, in the next few days. Then try and get it shown somewhere. 

I've been skip diving again. Just down the road they have a skip on the front, looks like they are sorting their stuff out in readiness for a move. The house is for sale. I saw that they had put four picture frames on the ground outside the skip, maybe these are free to take, so I knocked on the door to ask. Yes, take what you want, says the woman. I've cleaned them up, they must have been stored in an attic for years. There are two large ornate frames, 

And two smaller plain ones.

Good find, eh! Need to make some more pictures now. I will keep my eye on that skip in case anything else appears. Love free stuff, ha ha.
Toodle pip.

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