The Week So Far and a Flylady Update

Well, the week got off to a bit of a surprising start when OH decided to buy us an air conditioning unit. Now, we are usually the last people to do such a thing, I hardly ever use the air conditioning in the car, preferring to open the windows and our house tends to stay pretty cool even in the summer, but the recent heatwave was taking it's toll on us, (32 degrees C here on Monday) even though we weren't spending much time outside in the heat of the day.

OH, who was feeling particularly uncomfortable in the heat, decided to have a splurge and invest in a mobile AC unit for use around the house. He ordered it online on Monday morning and I picked it up from B&Q on my way back from the gym.  It was interesting to note that virtually every customer I saw in B&Q was buying some sort of fan and they had sold out of the remaining AC units, so we obviously weren't the only ones suffering. Anyway, the unit was a little larger than we expected and quite heavy too, but now we've got it up and running, we are really appreciating the benefit of it.

It supposedly costs 12p per hour to run, but we'll call that a conservative estimate, as it probably costs more. At the end of the day, I'm not going to argue. OH works from home every day, so he's the one who suffers most when the house gets hot in a hot spell.  If he wants to splash out, let him I say. I'm sure that we'll all benefit, especially me being a woman of a certain age who gets very hot these days and the dog, who is also struggling somewhat to keep cool. On walks we're having to go out as early as possible and stick to the shady side of the street/park.

On Monday afternoon, I did the last little bit of work I needed to do at the allotment to bring it up to scratch for the inspection on Tuesday. It was looking pretty tidy and fully cultivated when I left it, so at least it should be easier to maintain now. Please note the bare soil allows space for large plants and perennial fruit bushes to grow. Here's a final photo:

As it was still forecast to be in the 30's on Tuesday and Wednesday, I decided I would wear my cut off jean shorts to the CS. (Please note they're not short cut off shorts, just knee length).  It made such a difference not to wear full length jeans. (I can't wear a skirt as I cycle to the station on my bike which has a crossbar) and I felt more comfortable all day, although still way too hot.

The manager came back from his holiday and I didn't mention cutting my hours, as I didn't want to bombard him on his first day back.  I'll try to speak to him next week.  One funny thing this week, was that someone left two bottles of Cava outside the shop for us on Wednesday.  A strange donation, but very welcome.  We will enjoy drinking it at an upcoming staff party, for one of the volunteers who has been there for 10 years later this year.

Anyway, on Thursday it was nice to stay home and be able to get on with my own stuff.  I did my usual class at the gym and then afterwards, used the morning for an Errands and Anti-Procrastination Day. (Flylady speak!) I did a couple of jobs I've been putting off for months i.e. taking some rubbish to the tip and dropping some bags and boxes off at a local CS and then I had to take my library books back and pick up a parcel from the Post Office Depot.  It felt good to get these things done.

This afternoon, I harvested some petit pois from the garden, pottered a bit and then did some financial stuff that I've been neglecting lately. I'm currently trying to get a statement on a couple of preserved pensions, that I earned whilst employed for a few years in the Civil Service and the NHS. I've been making enquiries with the relevant bodies, so that I can calculate what I need to put aside in the next 15 years pension wise, in order to ensure I've got enough to live on in retirement. I'm hoping to get a response soon.

Friday, I had another stay at home day, it's the cheapest option when I'm on a tight budget.  If I go out, I will spend money. I made it my Flylady day and cleaned Zone 4, our Master Bedroom. I focussed on cleaning the shelves on OH's side of the bed and found a few things to donate. I then wiped down all surfaces, vacuumed and mopped throughout, before working my way down the stairs and through the house for my Weekly Home Blessing. I did it a day early this week, so I'm free to go to the Give and Take today. I still need to clean out the linen cupboard on the upstairs landing, but should find time to do that tomorrow afternoon.

This month's Give and Take event is in a park near to a popular local Saturday market, so we're going to drop all our donations off when it opens at 11am and then go for brunch at the market.  I will then return to the event after 12 noon, when you can help yourself to items that have been donated, have a look around and hopefully take some photos to show you what these events are like.

I'm so looking forward to giving all this stuff away, but sometimes, in my enthusiasm to offload all of the stuff I've decluttered, I forget to take any photos, so please bear with me if I fail to do so again.