Making The Most of Free Education

I'm taking advantage of two six week courses currently being held at my local Comprehensive School. One course is to help parents / grandparents / carers help their children with homework.

Methods have changed so radically since I went to school that it's already apparent I'm no help at all to my granddaughter if she asks me questions about maths for example. If I try to show her how I would tackle a problem I just confuse her because she doesn't understand the way I try to work things out. I've just had one lesson so far and it's been a real eye-opener. There's terms such as Mode, Mean, and Median that are totally new to me - so it's good I've made a start but I've got a lot of catching up to do..!!

The other free course I'm looking forward to begins next week and it's about making the most of my digital camera. I'm hoping to be instructed and inspired to improve the quality of photos I take. Watch this space for some improving pics...!!

Both these courses are taking place literally on my doorstep. One takes place during the day, the other is an evening course. But, isn't it great that they're absolutely free - for anyone, of any ability. I'll update this post as the weeks progress to let you know how I get along.

Benefits of being over 65 (or over 60 if you're a young age pensioner)

Free local public transport (well free rides on the buses....)
I'm still a novice at finding my way around using my local bus services - but I know I'll be taking advantage more this summertime than ever before. I've been making plans during the dark days of winter of journeys I want to take to Durham, Newcastle, Barnard Castle, Richmond, Bishop Auckland and into the Dales. It's all possible with a bit of planning to travel to some lovely spots all free of charge. Who knows how long this benefit will continue into the future so I think it's important to enjoy to the full while it exists.

Free swimming sessions provided by local authorities for over 60s and 18s and under (in Durham) under 16s elsewhere
Later today I'm taking my granddaughter and one of her friends swimming. I'll have a dip in the pool too then retire to the viewing gallery to keep an eye on them for a while. For all of us our swimming will be totally free of charge - what a fantastic bonus. The schools are breaking up for half-term for a week tomorrow - so I think there'll be more swimming in the coming days.

Winning Ways - I can't afford a life so perhaps I can win one...!

I've been entering competitions for some time now and have enjoyed occasional small wins. I'm living in hopes of winning big-time but it won't be the Lotto as Lotto tickets cost money. The competitions I enter are free - although I have gambled the price of a Lotto ticket very occasionally when there's a particularly big prize on offer... £113 million is just about enough to tempt money out of the bottom of even my pocket....!

But..... back to earth..... I recently won a meal for up to eight people at a restaurant in Newcastle and gave this as a present to my daughter so she could have and evening out with her boyfriend and their combined children. Yesterday I got a lovely recipe book and calendar in the post, that was a nice little surprise.... but where's the BMW or the SAAB convertible, the wonderful holiday in Florida with £1000 spending money and the new kitchen..?? I'll keep on trying.

There's lots of competitions of course but the best are those where there's fewer entrants as there's a better chance of being the winner. So.. I look in local newspapers and check out local stores and businesses that run competitions now and again. These, more local competitions, have been quite lucrative and the prizes I've won have included a under-counter fridge and a wonderful weekend at Slaley Hall complete with luxury pampering and a round of golf. So... I'll keep on trying and who knows..... I might soon be blowing the dust off my passport and driving to the airport in my brand new SAAB convertible to catch a flight to Florida, Florance, Paris or Sun City in South Africa.

Freecycle.... great resource for FREE stuff.....

For info regarding Freecycle in full.... go to http://www.uk.freecycle.org

The worldwide Freecycle Network is made up of many individual groups across the globe. It's a grassroots movement of people who are giving (and getting) stuff for free in their own towns.

Freecycle groups match people who have things they want to get rid of with people who can use them. Our goal is to keep usable items out of landfills. By using what we already have on this earth, we reduce consumerism, manufacture fewer goods, and lessen the impact on the earth. Another benefit of using Freecycle is that it encourages us to get rid of junk that we no longer need and promote community involvement in the process.

Cotton and Wool (and how to turn them into something beautiful and useful)

I made a couple of (relatively) expensive purchases while I still had a salary as I knew I wouldn't be able to afford to buy them once I'd retired.

One item was a bicycle the other was a sewing machine.

I love my sewing machine - I bought one that was especially adapted to cope with machine quilting. I have a long way to go before I can say I have mastered the art of quilting - in fact it's very safe to say I'm an absolute beginner - but it's one craft I would like to master.

Another craft I'm beginning to study is crocheting. The mother of a friend of mine is an expert and I'm arranging to have some lessons with her so she can get me started and give me advice as I (hopefully) improve.

Of course, to sew and to crochet I need a supply of materials and I've already collected beautiful cottons and many balls of wool all courtesy of Freecycle. Freecycle is a fantastic on-line resource and I use it regularly.

The clue is in the title.... Freecycle is a FREE resource and there are Freecycles throughout the country. I am a signed up member of Newton Aycliffe, Middlesbrough, Bishop Auckland, Darlington and Durham so I can cast a wide net when I'm on the lookout for something in particular which I think may be on offer. See my post on Freecycle for more details on how to benefit from the service.

Meanwhile..... sewing, knitting and crocheting are all crafts I hope to master over the coming months - they'll keep me busy until it's time to get out into my allotment.

I'll keep a record of articles I make (don't laugh too loudly at my early attemps..!) The picture here shows my first attempt at creating a scarf from crocheted squares and it's a bit clumsy, I'd make smaller squares next time...... now.... how do I make circles...????

Exchange is no robbery

I am very lucky to have some wonderful friends and neighbours living close by and I'm often reminded how rewarding it is to be able to help one another and how we all benefit.

I occasionally give one of my immediate neighbours a lift to our local supermarket and perhaps once a month give her and her elderly mum a lift to an out of town shopping centre, as neither has access to a car. It's a win, win situation for us all. I enjoy their company. They get to visit shopping centres that would normally be inaccessible. I get some help towards the cost of the petrol. But perhaps the greatest benefit has been I've become friends with my neighbours. My immediate neighbour regularly cooks me a meal, sharing something she has prepared for her family - lovely broths and casseroles. Her mum is going to teach me how to crochet. I have access to the internet which they don't so I can often help them buy and sell on-line, access information and make theatre bookings, travel arrangements etc.

When I worked I infrequently saw my neighbours... and didn't really know them other than 'good neighbours'. But by helping each other in various ways we have become good friends and I'm sure we'll continue to help one another in many ways in the years to come

Household Tips

(1) To remove tight jar lids ........ after buying a selection of 'tools for the job' I find the best way is simply to put on a pair of rubber gloves then twist.... and Wallah.... the job's done! Try it...

(2) To keep pictures 'square' on the wall..... stick a piece of blu-tac on the back of the picture frame, behind the bottom right-hand corner for example and press gently onto the wall when the picture is hanging straight. The blu-tac will keep the picture in place and you won't need to constantly straighten it up..... easy-peasy

(3) Best tool in my DIY tool box... without doubt, is a small tube of Super Glue..! I've mended toys, zips, shoes, jewelery and even patched up dog-chewed corners of furniture.. It's amazing how many uses I've found for this ever-so-sticky-stuff

(4) Next best tool in my DIY box is a large tube of Hard As Nails high powered adhesive - Brilliant at sticking back up curtain rails that come away from the wall and repairing drawer fronts that drop off.... but please note: buy from Pound Shops (don't pay Supermarket prices) as it'll only cost £1 of course.

(5) Keep a small plastic milk bottle in order to fill up from a larger bottle. The larger plastic milk bottles are heavy to lift in and out of the fridge. If you keep a smaller version then it's easy to decant milk from the larger into the smaller.

(6) I also decant concentrated fabric conditioner into a larger bottle. Fill half a larger bottle with concentrated fabric conditioner and dilute with water. Use the diluted liquid. This way you get more washes from the concentrated liquid.

Learning how to survive on next to nothing..... and have a good life

I'm in the process of learning how to survive on next to nothing whilst still having a life, an interesting life and a reasonably comfortable one...! So far so good, but it's early days and it wouldn't take much to shake the foundations of my fragile world and for the walls to come tumbling down. So... I thought it might be interesting to record how I cope with life on a daily basis, resolve problems, face new challenges, get out and about, improve my level of fitness, embark on new adventures and have some fun time.... all on a basic State Pension. I think there'll be some challenging times as I try to juggle soot.... ski uphill in a bucket.... play ping-pong in a wind tunnel.... ! I'd love to exchange ideas with others in a similar position... perhaps we have valuable tips we can give one another.... lets see where this post leads... (the picture shows what's left of a tiny hamlet called Riseburn, which consisted of 41 houses and a 'tin' chapel, near Middridge. My Great Grandparents lived there and my paternal Grandfather was born there in 1892, one of eight children. The hamlet was demolished in the 1940s except for this one building which was left for a farm worker - part of it was converted into a pig sty).