"I'll tag along" groceries Money Diary

I think it's all that talk about food and chocolate. 

And there was me thinking I settled into the search of the perfect homemade naan and duet, maybe even trio of  hummus.

Say chocolate and it's like my wolf found an unsuspecting herd of sheep. 

Anyway I'm pondering the craving and see the bottle. It's been there for ages, it's something strong winking at me. 

I'm stalling the next paragraph for as long as I can. 

I take the cap off the bottle and fill it: Dutch courage.

I fill it again. Potent. I glow and the well starts brimming. 

I will not eat the chocolate cause I just wrote down that it wouldn't last beyond 24 hours. So I'm not going near the chocolate. Not before dinner. Not before anything. 

Will I take a break from writing to have a coffee outside?

Yes.

When I arrive at the bottom of the hill there's a pre-Paddy's-Day-party happening including cans of beer. When was the last time I had cans on the street? When was the last time I had shots with a beer chaser? There's a smile on my face and I'm engaged and I'm here. When we're heading off I'm not ready to go so I tag along and end up in Lidl once more. 

It's okay. I was going to get some more vegetables anyway and I'd like more meat because I was talking about meat and chocolate and I'm hungry.

Once I'm in the shop I realize what's happening and I run through the isles. This is not good but there's no way I'm leaving without meat and more chocolate.

I pick up another bar of chocolate. Chicken wings, chicken nuggets, an aubergine and two courgettes.

The vegetables is grand, and the chicken in all guises I could really have done without but obviously it's too late for all of that. I want chicken in the soup I started making yesterday. And the chocolate, well, now I know there really is no way it's going to go for any longer than daylight hours.

chocolate, chicken, courgettes and aubergine

 Type of shop     :            Groceries.

Name of shop     :            Lidl

Items                  :            5

Reduced items   :           5

Total Discount   :           € 0.65 

Total Spend        :           € 4.50

Breakfast: Overnight Oats with Turmeric

 

Overnight Oats with Turmeric

Breakfast today is Overnight Oats with Turmeric from the large batch of jars with all dry-ingredients-just-add-water-overnight-oats I made two weeks ago. They're the best breakfast ever and as cheap and cheerful as you can possibly get. 

This one is a little different in that I added turmeric instead of my normal ginger or cinnamon.

It was surprisingly good. I like turmeric in lentil dishes and dressings but mixed with some coconut and sunflower seeds it's a surprisingly aromatic and fruity rather than spicy experience. And of course the colour is just wonderful. 

I ate mine with no added topping and/or sweetener because I was too lazy to peal the pear I wanted with it. It would have been a wonder accompaniment.

Ingredients:

!/2 cup of oats

1 tbs desiccated coconut

1 tbs sunflower seed

1 ts psyllium husk 

!/4 ts turmeric

Method:

Put dry ingredients in jar and store until needed.

Add water to your liking and let sit for a minimum of 2 hours.

Add fruit, sweetener or any other topping of your choosing. 

Enjoy!

Overnight Oats with Turmeric

Groceries Spontaneous Spend, Money Diary

 Type of shop      :            Groceries

Name of shop     :            Lidl

Items                  :            5

I wasn't going to get anything today but at the bottom of the hill once the feet are going I end up in Lidl. There's money off on chocolate I saw and the sun is shining and I don't buy chocolate anymore because it isn't part of looking after myself (or so I keep saying) and it's half price so I'm going to get it. 

The good news: I'm not carrying a bag so I won't buy more than I can carry.

Spontaneous spend

I walk out with: half a pound of butter, a jar of peanut butter, a net of organic lemons, a bar of fruit and nut chocolate and some coated chicken fillets.

All of it comes at a reduced price because I had a € 0.50 off voucher to start with. The items I get an even better price on are the butter for which I had a 20% off voucher, the chocolate had a 50% off voucher, the coated chicken fillets were in clearance for € 0.90 cents and the lemons were in weekly vegetable deals for € 0.49 cents.

I get away without too much damage. Okay the chocolate. That's really outside of the budget which is: as little as possible. And yes, the meat. Buying meat that has already undergone any kind of process is something I'm trying to get away from. So most of the time I don't buy meat and eat pulses instead. Then there are the days that I really would love to eat some meat. That's how this chicken happened. 

So what am I going to do with all of this?

The butter has no destination yet. The offspring will be home at the end of the week and I'm sure there'll be need for some baking. Butter is good for baking.

Peanut butter: I made a spicy hummus yesterday and am planning to make a mild one by the end of the week. Sesame paste is definitely outside of my budget. However since I'm not allergic to peanuts they can do all the same things and are a whole lot cheaper. So I'll be adding peanut butter into the hummus for that nutty taste in the back.

The chocolate: no plan apart from making it last longer than  24 hours. Right now I think the chances of that are zero.

Organic lemons: will be used for the next batch of hummus and any possible salad dressings.

Coated Chicken fillets: Because they're clearance I'll be cooking all of them later. The chances of me scoffing the lot with some of my home made naan is very likely.

Reduced items    :           5

Total Discount    :           € 0.94 

Total Spend         :           € 5.-

Receipt

Happy Solstice! Anja's Vlog 1 20 June 2016

Oh so proud!

Here's our first ever Vlog!

It's had some feet in the earth, a lot of deleting, not getting it right etc. But here it is...place and time for a some celebrating... Happy Solstice!

Anja

15 Second: It Feels Like Spring in July

15 Second Poem


It Feels  Like Spring in July

Write a bill and a half
weed spinach, cauliflower
and salad leafs
pick through nickers
throw it incarnate thoughts
as the wind and clouds
play chase
over the tower
I give thanks
and affirm
my able.

© theflautingharper

  https://youtu.be/u8RhvGPA3R0

15 Seconds: The Mayor's Walk

Walking guide dog Yeltsin in the mucky afternoon damp we call summer over the Mayor's Walk:

A spit a spat
big dog splat
foot here
foot there
forward
around the sphere
summer shimmers
through greys
on flowering bushes
circle, go
see, spot
give time to thought
then
let go.

The 15 video can be seen at:

The Mayor's Walk: https://youtu.be/8lwEitvKcj4

Today

'Your past is just a story. And once you realise this, it has no power over you.'

Today I say
today
today is the day
I say
today
to do today
today
is to do the day
like the day
deserves to be done
to be today
I say
present today
strong today
here today
to be
today