Category: Journal

Before the weekend it had been ages since we made the trip up the M62 to see Andy and Rachel in York. Fortunately a window in our busy schedules(!) gave us the combination of free weekend and good weather that we’d been holding out for and it made for yet another good visit.

Straight after we arrived on Saturday afternoon (via Leeds because I took a wrong turn) we made the short walk to the local pub and its beer garden. Rachel, who is doing a few shifts at the pub before she starts her new job, was working there up until five, which was a bit of a shame because she was missing out on a lovely, sunny afternoon. Still, at least she serves a good pint – complete with comedy patterns in your Guinness if you ask nicely. ;o)

Richard had joined us at the picnic table by the time Rachel finished her shift and, despite some noisy kids nearby, it was good to be outdoors enjoying the nice weather and having a good laugh. Elisha had been reasonably well behaved too, observing the other kids running around and being her inquizative self.

During the course of the afternoon Andy had been texting away on his phone by way of inviting us all to a barbeque at Helen and Aaron’s place. With that ball rolling we left the beer garden, headed back to Andy and Rachel’s place to pick up a few things, then made our way to Helen’s place for the promised feast.

Once there we settled in to a sunny spot at the back of the garden, while Elisha got to meet Helen’s hyperactive granddaughter, Ella, and enjoy some interaction with another small person. Ella was quite entertaining, actually, and hard work too – it’s both funny and scarey to think that Elisha will be running around like her in a couple of years.

By the time the barbeque was fired up the sun was setting and it had gotten a bit chilly, so the tail end of the evening involved either standing by the barbeque or inside the house to keep warm. The food was good when it arrived, though – chilli sauce on cheeseburgers is hard to beat!

By careful driving and not going anywhere at the weekends this month, I managed to string a tank of petrol out for nearly four weeks. That’s a whole 27 days of journeys to and from work, with the lunchtime trips to the tennis centre a couple of times weekly thrown in for good measure. I reckon I could have gotten another day out of it, too, but I’ve yet to endure the embarrassment of running out of fuel and it’s a streak I’d like to perpetuate.

After watching an episode of Top Gear where Clarkson managed to drive an Audi from London to Edinburgh and back on one tank of fuel, I thought I’d see if I could apply the same techniques and improve my mpg. Smooth acceleration and minimal use of the brakes are key, along with keeping the revs nice and low.

Our Honda Jazz has a ridiculously low first gear, which I imagine was designed for when the car is fully laiden. When there’s just me in it that low first gear gets you off from a standing start like a shot. I’ve burned RX 8’s, Porshe’s, you name it, off the line. Granted they usually fly past me once I go for second gear unless I let it rev pretty high in first, but it’s fun while it lasts!

Due to that, it’s quite hard to resist the temptation to blast away from the lights, squandering untold mpg in the process. A month or so ago I discovered that pushing the little knob on the speedometer cycles through the trip counter to a miles-per-gallon-o-meter, giving instant feedback on how my right foot is affecting my wallet. The challenge of keeping the number in the mid to high 40’s actually makes econical driving quite good fun, comparitively. I mean, if I had to wait until the fuel ran out and then check the trip counter to calculate how far I’d gone on one tank then that would be pretty dull. Watching it rise and fall as I drive gives instant feedback on how’s my driving?

Due to paying off the car & home insurance and our holiday all in the space of a month, my bank account is running on empty for the first time in ages. So, to help cushion the fall into overdraft territory we decided that May 2006 would be a budget month.

In order to cut out the unnecessary expense of multiple short trips to the supermarket we went and done one mega shop at the end of last week. It consisted of things like a bag of pasta so large we can go camping in it after it’s empty (some time circa 2008, most likely), and other odds and ends that were two–for’s or own brand items that aren’t that far removed from their more expensive counterpart.

Disappointments so far have included the Asda own brand apple shampoo, which is pretty average as far as washing goes, and the apple fragrance is so weak it just washes away. The own brand fun size treats are pretty grim, too. I’d agree that in a budget month we shouldn’t have any fun size treats at all, but I like to have a couple in my bag to eat with my lunch at work, plus they were two for one, so they seemed like a steal. A couple of them are alright, but the caramel and peanut variety are disgusting, so I wouldn’t get them again.

Good buys come in the shape of the Asda own brand coconut bubble bath, which certainly does the trick bubble wise and it was a three for two offer, so that’s a result. I also got a whole bunch of decent bread rolls, too, but since our fridge has started playing up again I’m afraid they probably wont last long enough for me to eat them all.

I’m happy that my beer and wine sacrifices saved a around ?20 from the get–go, and I’m sure we could have made more effective cost cutting measures if we’d thought more about it. If June ends up being another budget month I’m certain we’ll be better prepared for picking up cost reducing items.