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Archive for July, 2009

Review of My Daily Living Allowance for June & July

July 29th, 2009 at 10:18 am

It is time to review my daily living allowance for the next two months of my 2009 budget.

These are the categories for this challenge.

Items ==budget==spent

Eating out= $67==$82.25
Groceries=$271.00= = $134.77
Non-Food=$33.00= =$9.48
Clothes =$67.00==$25
Grooming=$25.00==$32.45
Gas=$50.00 ==$33.27
Pets= $98.00 ==$41.66
HH items=$83.00==$31.72
Fares= $17.00 == $22.20
Entrainments= $25.00 == $4
Garden =$17.00==$3
Gifts & Donations =$67.00= =$8.50
Medical Prescription =$30==$82.20
Misc =$17.00 ==$0
Personal Allowance =$168.00 ==$125.69

No Spending days over the 56 days = 32 days in total.

My eating out in this period included a few restaurant meals so its over budget but not a great deal this period. Grocery came in under by about 50% but I am cutting back so I can use some of my stockpile and near out of date stock. Pets were another one that I am under this period by about 57% but will be restocking some items over next few weeks. Medical is out of pocket medical expenses more still to come in this period too! Eye specialists are expense I hope to get the bottom of my problem soon!

On personal allowance front I am still ahead but this does include books which is my weakness as 65% were books. Some were new and some old antique ones that I found last month.

As for next period my Gifts & Donations will skyrocket as I do have a few birthdays coming soon.

Need to cut back on my stockpile

July 18th, 2009 at 10:17 am

It is coming close to the end of my 56 days cycle in reporting my review on my daily living allowance.

I have had a quite two month so far just kept spending as I see fit. I will need to cut back on my grocery spending as I do have too much food both in my freezers and pantries. I have food stored in a number of places around my home. As one of refrigerators broke down as in not as cold as it should be and I hope I can learn not to need it any longer as it was an old second fridge and freezer combo. I have empted out the freezer section so far and put bottles of water in it to see if its still works for now as the fridge part looks to be still working for now. Items I do store in this refrigerator can be store out side a fridge but needs to be kept safe from vermin.

We will need to keep a close eye on my grocery spending for the next six months to see if I can get it much more lower and use some of my stockpile so that get my refrigerator stores into the freezer which is full the moment. It is a chest freezer only 160 L size so it is a small chest freezer suitable for a single household but not suitable for what I wish store in it.

Wartime Economical Sponge Sandwich Recipe

July 14th, 2009 at 10:22 am

1 tablespoon (4 teaspoons) dripping or butter
1 egg
1 level teaspoon soda
1 cup of milk (8oz)
1 cup sugar
2 cups self-raising flour

Beat dripping and sugar
Add well-beaten egg.
Sift in flour.
Add milk in which soda has been dissolved.
Bake in a moderate oven for 20 minutes.

Variation: To make good Ginger Cake.
Omit the egg but add 1 tablespoon of treacle or golden syrup and 1 teaspoon ground ginger to this mixture.
Note: 1 tablespoon (Australian) = 4 teaspoons, 1 teaspoon = 5ml and the cup at this period were an 8oz cup.

Original recipe only had dripping but butter or margarine can be used instead.

This recipe won a weekly prize for an economical recipe competition during WW2.

This is the recipe typo - 1 kevek teasoiib sida that was in previous blog.

Day out in history

July 12th, 2009 at 10:21 am

I went to a re-enactment of an event that happens here 150 years ago. It was a ship coming up the Brisbane River to Government house at the time Newstead House on the bend of the river at Newstead Point. SEPARATION on its side, this year we are celebrating our 150 year of separation from New South Wales.

This was most economical event for me to attend, I would have loved to ride the steam train around the state but cost was prohibited.

This was a moment in Queensland history, and they went to a lot of trouble to re-enact it with style.

It was an Community Garden Party with the re-enactment of the ships coming in with Queensland Scottish Volunteer Corp of about 6 men all dressed in soldiers uniforms of the day and fire a Feu De Joie as the ship arrived who are from Queensland Scottish Association, Orimiston Heritage Pipes and Drums which performed for the waiting crowd. Over 40 people dressed in period costumes of that time. There were three groups who dressed in period, The Australian Costumes Guild,Dance Kaleidoscope is group performing and teaching the traditional dancing of England and Wales of 17th, 18th,19th centuries in costume. They performed Grimstock , Shrewsbury lasses, Waltz Country Dance, and Ballroom Lancers - Quadrille which danced to Gilbert & Sullivan music, many of these dances were danced in drawing rooms of this historic house 150 years ago. Many people would have seen them danced in the Pride & Prejudice movies.

I did have a look over the Newstead House for gold coin donation. Very beautiful old house, and I did find the their gift shop spending $7.00 on cookbook that they had put together. It made a very interesting read as it was on a collection of WW2 recipes and memories of Victory in Pacific, August 15 1945. One recipe had a very bad typing error in this cookbook. What do you think this line 1 kevek teasoiib sida should read?

This wasnt the only typing error I found, in their program for the event. It was printed with the date error now if only I could attend then 11th July, 6009.

Give that I went by bus & bought food, cookbook and donation for princely sum $18.50 for a memory.

Newstead House

Text is link and Link is http://www.newsteadhouse.com.au/
link

The Australian Costumes Guild
Text is link and Link is http://www.australiancostumersguild.org.au
link

No Spend Days

July 5th, 2009 at 06:34 am

No much too write about at the moment. I have only been out once since I last wrote on here.

It now been 7 days of no spending, so other than a day in the city for a medical appointment and I had Lunch at the casino on my own for $10 a main meal, cake & coffee, when I buy this I keep someone in a job and I dont cook that night too! If I went to a fast food restaurant it would cost about $8.00 so I get no junk food and real services. Its bit of a walk to the casino but it worth it.

I hope to spend very little this month; it time to start the ball rolling to get some painting quotes as the outside of the house need painting. I just hope its not to cost too much.