£120 yesterday and today in supermarkets, butcher, cheese shop, fancy bakery and greengrocers. Have acquired delicious things which I thought would be more than adequate to get DH and me through Easter weekend, but he has decided he wants to make cassoulet tonight and has gone off in search of confit duck leg (good luck with that one, now that the butchers have all closed) and Toulouse sausages. I’m expecting we will need to pivot a bit.
£100 to DS who has gone to Manny for a week - his housekeeping. DH bought some posh chocolates for him and GF so he departed happily provided for.
Spent yesterday taking mum to podiatrist, shoe shopping and sitting with her over my laptop helping her choose some wide fitting shoes that she could find acceptable. The podiatrist was very helpful- removed infected tissue from a toe, dressed it, measured her feet (size 6, not the 5s that she has been squeezing her feet into for years and damaging skin, joints and tendons; and 125mm wide, so wide or even extra wide) and advised on foot care and shoe selection. Of course, the shoes he recommended (sort of trainers crossed with boats) are completely unacceptable to her; but I had brought some chunky flatform sandals with me (Marni! They’re the most expensive thing in my wardrobe! Please stop sneering at them mum! I am not the person who has wrecked my feet wearing crap shoes!) as she wasn’t able to get her own shoes back on. With cosy socks and her (my!) chunky Marni’s she looked quite the edgy GenZ and she certainly relished the comfort.
it was a long day, lots of driving and nannying, but a useful one. With luck the shoes we have ordered will be comfortable and acceptable to her. I think she has been pleasantly surprised by the range of styles available, and that there are things that she can do to improve her foot health- urea cream! Toe separators! Shoes that don’t cripple her! I sometimes think it is the curse of her depressive nature (which she has always refused to acknowledge) that she finds it easier to sit and catastrophise than act logically.
£120 on a ring for niece’s 18th. I am havering about buying tickets for an opera - I should wait until I get paid but performances are limited and I might miss out. So may raid the housekeeping account and pay it back after the 11th.
Today is a lovely domestic one with DH and dog. I am cleaning, sorting beds, reading, listening to podcasts. The ironing pile is vast, but can wait a bit. Tomorrow I am tied up with parents again, but after that, Sunday and Monday for gardening and dog walking, I hope.
have a great weekend everyone- and yes, just hunker down and ignore the market turbulence. Investor horizons are much longer than those of politicians, who have to seek re-election in short time spans.