Have you had a ? day? Are you worried, scared etc?

Oh, Jaffacake2, prayers for you both. I might have complained a bit, but I won't now.

All this talk about lighting candles to keep warm sounds very Dickensian. I would Have to be very desperate to get that bad.

I will only light candles if there is a power cut.

I'm taking shorter and less full on showers. I have a power shower and now turn the flow to much less and also not as hot. I've started collecting the shower water in the bath instead of letting it go down the drain. I am never that dirty and take a daily shower. The water actually heats the room( my ex who was an architect told me this tip years ago) and also instead of using new hot water I use some of it to wash some undies by hand, which I then rinse in cold water and let them drip dry on the line outside. In winter this will need to be spun. Also I've started going by bus or walking if it's at all possible. Some destinations do need the car. Its amazing all the things we are now doing!!

Saggi, you will be able to spend as much quality time as you like with your husband in the care home. They should feed you as well, this is what most of the care homes willingly do here. They are so glad for visitors who often help with feeding and more. I hope your husband has settled in well, it is hard to let go specially after such a long time. Thinking of you.

I put warm water in the bathroom sink. Then soap myself all over. Then turn on the shower and rinse off. Very quick.
Regarding what to wear I have 2 pure cashmere jumpers really old and tatty. I wear them as a base layer in winter with something smarter on top. It’s very snug. I’ve also got what is effectively the top half of a dressing gown and wear it round the house on top of clothes. I can quickly take it off if someone comes to the house.

Saggi I am soo sorry about your predicament please get any help you can, food banks, warm daily warm hubs. If you lived near I would offer you daily warm place. Take care

My husband has just gone into full time care because of a diagnosis of cerebrovascular dementia and altzheimers! I’ve been caring for him for 26 years since his stroke …he’s always cold and we always had to have heating on for at least 12 hours a day from September onwards. Horrendous bills before this debacle started. But now I know he’ll be warm I intend NOT to turn my heating on at all. With having to pay for his care now I will not have enough to eat 7 days a week let alone heat my home. But he’s ok now so the rest doesn’t matter.
I suspect many more will be doing the same.

Oh merlotgran it really is a b*****r.
Will be thinking of you and all those touched by this horrid disease as we prepare for the annual MacMillan coffee morning.

Our community Hub is opening it's doors one afternoon a week for free refreshments and heat, as the building is being used in the morning so warm already. Churches and other places have already said the will follow this brilliant example. You will find there will be places offering this in all areas without a doubt. It is hard for people who cannot go out, are ill and need the extra heat, we need to look out for them more than anyone.

merlotgran .

As others have said on this thread, I’m really worried about the winter fuel bills. We cut down on usage last winter but, of course, energy cost is much higher now. In preparation, I’ve bought a reasonably priced air fryer - not intending to use the fan oven. We’ve also put a TV in the bedroom and bought hot water bottles so, if the worst comes to the worst, we can turn the heating off in the evening, snuggle up in bed and watch telly. On one hand, romantic; on the other hand; sad

Having a s>.y day, going for a colonoscopy on Friday so I am on this awful diet, no fruit or veg or fibre and nothing red all to see why I have had anemia for so many years, and then I can have a transfusion. So roll on Saturday for a proper meal. At least I haven’t got the energy to worry about energy prices.

Got up on a low. Thoughts of DH who died 3 months ago together with thoughts of DD who died just pre Covid came surging together. Gave myself a shake and started to get on with the day. Then wanted to print something but drat machine missing bits of print. Tried to change catridges. Never having done this before used YouTube for help but couldn't get the old ones out. Think I pressed tok hard and fingers covered in ink.decided I needed help and went to neighbour, again! I found it really difficult to explain the problem apart from showing him my hands covered in ink. I just wanted to cry and cry but didn't. Took quite a while and a lot of cleaning up but with my wonderful neighbour printer is working.I went out to do some gardening to try to perk me up. Did the jobs but, I'm bubbling now. Real s..t day!

I’m so sorry, Katiecat. My reaction is not helping you and your worries.

I’ve had the shittiest of shit days because sodding bastard cancer has struck my family once again ? I’m sorry but I make no excuses for my language.

This time it’s my younger brother. We’re very close and he was my rock when I lost my DD and DH to this f***ing disease.

I was on a bus when he phoned with the news so had to control my emotions until I got off.

I’m angry. I’m so, so angry.

Katiecat and Witzend, our troubles small compared to those you love having such a diagnosis. You can be there for them as they want ?
The rest of us, we will get through, everything passes.

I shower over a bucket! Whilst waiting for the hot water the cold goes into the bucket and is then put on the garden, I then turn off to soap. same with hair wash, and the rinse goes down the drain.

Katiecat13. Sorry you must think I am rude - I am so sorry to read your news. Life can be so hard at times.

Jaffacake2 - Yes, I feel just the same and I think back to my childhood and WW2 - that was soul destroying.

Katiecat13 Sympathy & comiserations I hope you can find some pleasant thought every day.

My worry is for all the ultra-protected children who haven't learnt to say boo to a goose. Without the resilience of facing difficulties from birth, how can they learn how to cope with the problems life will inevitably throw at them?

I live in one of the smallest towns in Wales, a village really, we only have a mobile library so that's no help to keep warm, I will be getting my pension in November and we manage quite well but I'm very concerned for some people so I'm lobbying the Town Council to heat a couple of rooms in one of our community buildings which has wifi, tables, a few arm chairs and am going to ask my WI members and others to volunteer to be there, make warm drinks etc. Will ask people to bring craft projects, board/card games etc or just chat and push for volunteers so people can come as that and not feel embarrassed that people will think they can't afford to heat their homes.

Tree lights only this year and led not slurping power. Actually I'm quite looking forward to a Christmas like we used to have, just 3 days of being greedy/ boozy/ slouchy then decs down after New year's in! It's time we all got back to the tradidional british Christmas I think! You know- pulverised sprouts, bronnley soaps, Tia Maria(just the one!) And lumpy white sauce , then a cake that needed a jackhammer to crack icing and lasted up to Easter,,,.....aah happy days..... And ONE present!! And I'm afraid I'm not going back to the American way of outdoor lights either , national lampoon's Christmas vacation is soooo 1980s dahling...... It's classy not trashy for us nowadays!

shower . . . turning the water off while soaping ourselves.
I love these posts. If I turned the water off while I soaped (how long does it take?), I waste more water than I do leaving it on. When we turn the shower off even for a moment the water that comes out when you turn it back on, is cold again. So unless I want to stand under a cold shower, I have to waste water till it warms up. DH and I simply follow each other immediately to avoid this.
We do what we can, but turning the shower off wouldn’t help.

Katiecat13

Am very worried and sick at heart and know it won’t help. Brother (18 months older) has just been diagnosed with terminal cancer, told he has ‘months, not years’ by the consultant last week. He lives alone, an hour’s drive from me and doesn’t want any fuss. Am just ‘being there for him’ and going to appointments with him, which is all he will let me do. Feel so helpless and hopeless. Also scared to lose him….

So sad to hear your situation Katiecat . You know best how to support your darling brother, be there and be just yourself, stuff happens that we can't avoid just manage our way through , bless you both just keep loving him and being his sis.

I work at home. Last winter I did not have the heating on until 4.30 until about 9pm and an hour in the morning and on 18/19 degrees. It gets cold in my 'office' and I get no extra from my employer for internet etc or working at home as they now have an office - which is really too small for the whole team to work in and as I have been shielding I am reluctant to go into crowded places. Even our mileage is being pared back. Like many of you everything is switched off and I try to batch cook and use the slow cooker. Not sure what to do about Xmas lights as we usually decorate the outside of the house and have several indoors. It is quite depressing and what a state our country is in. And I do appreciate that there are many a lot worse off than us i.e Ukraine and Pakistan.

FannyCornforth

Re the bloody energy charges.
I read on the ITV website that we should try do just one load of washing a week.
So we’re going to be sitting by candlelight; cold, hungry and grubby.
What on earth is happening to this country

Unless you are a very large household one load of washing a week sounds reasonable enough to me.

I admit I used to do two, but now do the cool cycle - shirts, t-shirts, socks one week and tea-towels, dish-cloths, bed linen,towels and underpants the next on the hot cycle.

We wash ourselves daily and shower three times a week, turning the water off while soaping ourselves.

We feel and smell clean and our clothes are no dirtier than before when we change them.

Well, I'm having a bad IBS day today, have only just managed to escape the bathroom for longer than 10 minutes. Just very inconvenient as we have house guests. But it hasn't been this bad for months so I can't really complain. It will pass - pardon the pun!

Whitewavemark2 Hope you feel a lot better now

Trying not to think about energy bills etc. This week we have 10 family members staying with us, so 2 electric ovens, 2 microwaves, 2 coffee machines, the kettle, dishwasher, washing machine and tumble dryer all in use at least once a day, and of course the immersion heater for plenty of hot water for all those showers! It will be interesting to see what difference that makes to our monthly consumption. But it may be their only visit to us this year so we'll enjoy our time with them and just afford it somehow.

I keep reminding myself that whatever is happening here at least we're not being bombed as the people of Ukraine still are. My Mum used to say 'There is always someone worse off than you'. So to all those suffering illness, pain, worry or loss