An Afternoon on Sanibel Island

By way of a show of support for all of the people currently recovering from Hurricane Irma, I'm posting this post that I wrote about part of our holiday in Western Florida a couple of years ago. It never got published at the time and has sat in my drafts box as a reminder to me of our wonderful holiday. What better time to post it and show the beauty of the this part of the world.  My prayers and good wishes are with everybody affected both in Florida and the Carribean and I wish everyone well in aftermath and with the forthcoming clean up efforts.

The first Sunday we were in the US, we visited a very beautiful place near Fort Myers called Sanibel Island.  It is one of a number of islands off the west coast of Florida, and part of it is a nature reserve.

You have to drive over a long bridge to get to the island, I think there might have been a small toll, there are quite a few toll roads and bridges in Florida, but it was well worth it.  The island is beautiful, definitely worth a visit.  At the end of the island is a lighthouse which we drove up to visit.

The beach here was beautiful.  A mangrove beach with beautiful white sand and clear water.  As soon as we set foot on the beach we saw dolphins frolicking in the water, I think there were two or three of them, but I didn't manage to catch a photograph and anyway my phone camera probably wasn't good enough to pick them out.

We settled down in the shade of some mangroves, taking in the view, reading our books and swimming in the ocean for the afternoon.

A sea anenome washed up at my feet. I'm not sure if it was still alive as it didn't seem to cling to anything and kept getting swept this way and that by the ocean as it lapped at my feet.

Apparently this is good place for shells, I saw the odd interesting one, but didn't take it off the beach.

There was also a small fishing pier and lots of families spending Sunday at the beach. A beautiful place, we were glad that we'd taken the time to visit.

Visiting places like this and seeing the wildlife and nature are one of the things I love most about the US and other places we have visited. It costs very little to spend the day somewhere like this, but when you do it is magical.

Getting Back in the Swing Again

It's been a bit of a roller coaster of a week at the CS since I got back from holiday. I had good days and bad getting back into the swing of things on my return. I still am having bad days, especially this week as a couple of issues have arisen, that are testing my patience.

I had my first mini meltdown last week on account of frustration over the non co-operation and team spirit of some members of the staff.  A similar situation with regard to the same members raised it's head yesterday as well and I'm starting to tire of trying to deal with the same issues over and over. It is so time consuming and makes it very difficult to get on with any actual work.

I have to try to keep everything in perspective, difficult as it may be, especially as my Manager is off next week and I will be left to run the shop on my own.  I'm not particularly looking forward to it, I have to admit and it will mean working quite a few more hours. I'm just going to have to get my head down and get on with it.

Talking to other shop managers when they call on the phone regarding different things, it seems like everyone in the area is stretched at the moment, so we're all in the same boat.  It's not much compensation, however, when you're in the thick of it.

I'm trying to stay positive though and just do what I can.  It's all you can really do at the end of the day.  If some things don't get done and sales targets aren't met or surpassed then so be it. I'm not super human and can only work with what I've got, both in terms of resources, hours in the day and manpower.

As a consequence of the above, I might not be posting too much in the next week or two.  Sorry about this, but normal blogging business will resume as soon as my hours get back to normal.

Loving Lately

Well, I thought I'd do one of these posts, as I haven't done one for a while, mainly because I haven't been buying all that much lately (save for since I've been working and have had a little more income).

The first thing I've been enjoying is this perfume that I bought from Primark.  The packaging is a little bit 'Jo Malone' ish, don't you think? Nice and simple anyway. This one is Mandarin and Basil and smells pretty nice.  It's just to wear for work really and at £8 for this 100ml bottle it was a bargain. (I know, the natural product preference has taken a back seat for a while, until the overdraft is paid off!)

The second thing is also from Primark and is this rucksack in pale grey PU. My previous rucksack that I've been using every day for the past six months was from here too, it's similar but is black and is starting to show serious signs of wear and tear.  As they don't do a black one anymore, or not in the store I looked in, I thought I'd have a change and go for grey this time.  At £10, it was also a bargain, especially if it lasts 6 months again. It's a great size for me as it has enough room in it to carry my lunch and water bottle to the CS and has several good pockets inside and out to allow quick access to all my bits and pieces that I carry around with me every day.

Talking of water bottles, I'm liking my Klean Kanteen too, which I bought from the CS. I don't use it all the time though, as I don't want it to get all dented and bashed around. I will probably use it for the gym when my current bottle, which is one LB doesn't use anymore, has given up the ghost.  The only thing with the Klean Kanteen, is that if you try to drink from it on the go, the neck of the bottle is so big that invariably water splashes out and down your clothes.  I found that out to my cost. Not ideal, but it's only water.

I'm loving my new domed transparent umbrella that I bought when I was in Yorkshire to replace the one I left in the Nike shop.  With all the rain we've had in recent weeks, it has come in useful.  I like the fact that it is domed and doesn't blow inside out easily, and I also like the fact that I can see through it and see where I'm going.

Finally on a media front, we've just finished watching a Spanish crime series called 'I Know Who You Are' which was broadcast on BBC Four recently.  It was quite complex in terms of the plotlines, but enjoyable. I'm currently watching 'STRIKE - The Cuckoo's Calling' and enjoying that too when I get the chance to watch it.

On a daily basis I'm loving listening to BBC Radio London in a morning, when I'm sat on the bus on the way to work.  It's useful for transport news in London and for just generally keeping me up to date with news stories in the capital. Vanessa Feltz's is great in a morning with her phone in talk show about London, life and topical issues in the news, which is entertaining. I put on my earphones, switch on the radio app on my phone and I'm in a little world of my own for the hour's bus journey. Bliss.

Book Review - The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason

One of the books that I read whilst on holiday in France, was this book that I have heard quite a lot about on YouTube and have always been interested in reading.  I ordered a copy from eBay for a couple of pounds and took it away with me as a holiday read.

It is quite an old book, first published in the 1950's/60's, and is quite small and thin too, so didn't take too much reading, but I'd argue that it's contents are still as fresh and pertinent today as they probably were then. 

The book uses allegorical stories of characters living in ancient Babylonian times, to encourage the reader to take themselves to task over their finances, to enable them to live a good and prosperous life. It is almost biblical in tone, but it was a very interesting read and the main ideas that I took away from it were as follows:

The Seven Simple Rules of Acquisition:

1 - Start thy purse to fattening
2 - Control thy expenditures
3 - Make thy gold multiply
4 - Make thy dwelling a profitable investment
5 - Guard thy treasures from loss
6 - Insure a future income for yourself and your loved ones
7 - Increase thy ability to earn.

The above rules are all pretty self explanatory and Glason goes on to talk about and give examples of how these rules and the Five Laws of Gold can help anyone to accumulate wealth and maintain it going forward into the future.

The Five Laws of Gold

1 - Gold cometh gladly and in increasing quantity to any man who will put aside not less than one tenth of his earnings to create an estate for his future and that of his family.

2 - Gold laboureth diligently and contentedly for the wise owner who finds for it profitable employment, multiplying even as to the flocks of the fields.

3 - Gold clingeth to the protection of the cautious owner who invests it under the advice of men wise in its handling.

4 - Gold slippeth away from the man who invests it in business or purposes with which he is not familiar or which are not approved by those skilled in its keep.

5 - Gold flees the man who would force it to impossible earnings or who followeth the alluring advice of tricksters and schemers or who trusts it to his own inexperience and romantic desires in investment.

The stories that Glason uses in the book to illustrate these laws are interesting. In his final chapters of the book, he uses a story to encourage the reader to make work your best friend.  Do good work, he argues and it will bring you good things.  You will not get ahead by shirking.

Simple words and rules, but they are ones that we can probably all apply to our finances and lives in some way, if we are not so doing already.  I hope you find this review helpful and I would recommend anyone to read this book.

Donated - August 2017

I'm still finding it tough to find things to donate, so once again the list isn't that long this month. Here's the items I have managed to find that will be leaving or have left the house this month.

1) Black collarless jacket - I don't like how this looks on me, so it's time to say goodbye.
2) One pair of size 12 black jeans bought in Yorkshire due to being wrongly labelled - Lets face it, I'm unlikely to ever be this size again, much as I might want to be.
3) One penguin silicone ice cube tray - replaced by regular cube-shaped ice cube trays.
4) One fabric storage basket - a gift that I don't have a use for.
5) One pair of very worn denim dungarees of LB's - recycled for the fabric.
6) One pair of salad servers - I've only kept these for when guests come.  They never get used and we rarely have visitors these days, so they're going. I have some metal tongs we could use for the same purpose should we get any visitors.
7) One book - I've read it, but don't want to keep it.
8) One half empty bottle of conditioner I no longer and will not now use - thrown away.
9) One gym top that I rarely reach for.
10) One lightweight coat that I have now replaced, as it was getting a bit tatty.
11) One DVD I borrowed from the Little Free Library that will be going back there.
12-14) Three plastic storage boxes I don't have a use for any longer.
15) One glass candlestick - surplus to requirement - I'm less interested in excess decorative items these days.
16) One decorative ceramic vase that I no longer wish to keep.
17) One Ryvita tin that I no longer need.
18-23) Several unused toiletry items from a gift set that aren't wanted by anyone in the household.
24) One plastic case - no longer needed, but may be of use to someone.

When added to last month's total of 575, I've now donated 599 things this year and am officially lagging behind with regard to the target of 1000 items for the year.  I am, however, hoping to make better headway next month as I am intending to do some more decluttering in the spare bedroom/sewing room, which is long overdue.

I'll keep you up dated on progress.

Back to Work with Flylady

We had a lovely relaxing week in France, beautiful hot weather, great accommodation and wonderful scenery, but when all's said and done, I'm always happy to come home to my own house and get back to work keeping it in order. 

Call me crazy, but we miss our home and our little dog when we're away and it was strictly no dogs at the rental property, so unfortunately she couldn't come with us.  Our dog trainer/carer did keep sending us photos of her, so we knew she was okay, which is always reassuring.

Anyway, once home there was a lot of catching up to do Flylady wise.  I couldn't get started for a few days as I was at work for three consecutive days when I got home, but first chance I got on Sunday, I was back on the Flylady bandwagon doing a Weekly Home Blessing, which hadn't been done for at least 3 weeks. It made a start.

I'll be trying to catch up on a zone by zone basis over the next few weeks, probably doing a slightly deeper clean than has been done in recent months, to get back on top of everything, but it's going to be a busy two weeks as I'll explain in another post.

It was interesting visiting France, the French people do seem to have a very good lifestyle and enjoy the finer things in life. It may have just been the weather, but life seemed very relaxed and unhurried.

In spite of visiting a few of their very nice cookshops, I didn't really buy very much at all whilst there, as there just wasn't really anything that I needed.  I did buy a jam strainer, a pair of steel stud earrings and supply of Marseillaise soaps for general use, in a couple of scents that I really like, but other than this, I spent very little other than on food. Our holidays definitely don't include much shopping for souvenirs or other items.

On the contrary, living out of a suitcase on holiday always inspires me to get rid of more things when I get home and this holiday was no exception. A bit of distance from my belongings always help me to recognise things that are surplus to requirements at home. This mindset was aided by reading Marie Kondo's 2nd book 'Spark Joy' whilst away too, which is helping to inspire another round of decluttering now I'm home. (More in another post)

I'll keep you updated on Flylady progress.

Freebies, Frugal Measures and Frugal Fails 15

After a few splurges, documented in my round up post recently, for the past two weeks I've been quite frugal, mainly as a consequence of working quite a bit and not having any time to spend any money on anything and secondly as a consequence of going away for a week to France.  Here are the Freebies and Frugal Measures from this period:

1) I called London Transport on a day I was due to travel by train again and got them to activate my £7.20 refund on my Oyster card.  I used it when I was invited to a little gathering at my old CS and had to take the train there. The refund covered the expense of going and buying a Big Issue from the seller I used to regularly buy it from when I volunteered at the old shop.

2) I found a five pound note whilst walking the dog.  I always feel a little guilty picking notes up off the street, but I know that if I didn't the next person to come by would. Anyway, I put it to good use topping up my Oyster card for fares to work.

3) I used a £6 off a £40 shop at Tesco to stock up when we got back from France. I've got a couple more of these vouchers to use during the remainder of this month.

4) I got a small pay rise this month so my wage slip was a nice surprise. Part of it was due to the pay rise and part due to working my first full month. (I didn't start work until 6/7th July so my first wage slip at the end of July was a bit lighter)

5) I bought a great Christmas present for LB from the CS yesterday.  It was a brand new copper coloured angle poise lamp for her bedroom, at half the retail recommended price. I think she'll really like it. It will be a surprise for her anyway and buying some presents now  when I see them will spread the cost a little.

6)  Free seeds this month with my Kitchen Garden subscription: Kale and Spring Onion.

7) My passive income from investments and savings increased a few pounds again this month.  It's going in the right direction, but is a very long way from making me financially independent.

Frugal Fails have included:

1) I bought some shares, then the very next day they dropped in price by 20%, when their half yearly trading report was issued, which wasn't very positive.  They were very inexpensive shares, but I lost a small amount of money just the same. Hopefully, some of the other shares I bought will make up for the loss if these don't rise in price again. Such is the nature of buying shares. I just have to be prepared to take the rough with the smooth.

2) I bought a drink whilst doing the weekly shop this week because I was so thirsty and hadn't bothered to fill up my water bottle at the gym before I left.  I don't do this often, but sometimes needs must.

3) I had to spend £3.85 on my lunch for the first day back to the CS after our holiday, as we got home at midnight after a nightmare journey starting out at 8.45am.  We just didn't have any appropriate food in the house, so I bought a sandwich and snack on the way to work. Actually, this was a double fail because I could probably have got better value if I'd got a meal deal instead.