The Quests for the Guests

My credit card is lying on the floor, twitching with the most awful spasms after an afternoon spent acquiring things.

First up I was on a quest for blow-up beds - not the kind that explode on drifting off, but the kind you inflate. Sold out in shop one - but did get kid's Xmas goodies there. Next shop - no luck, but bought one duvet inner and two pillows. Next shop - nothing, thank goodness, 'cos the queue for the tills was stretched right across the shop. And it's a BIG shop. One furniture store - nope - and one bedding place - not a chance - , and I ended up at an outdoor/camping place, where I finally threw the credit card at the till one last time for the day, and came away with two single mattresses and a foot pump. The latter is cheap and rubbery, but we ain't gonna use it that much. The kid is all enthusiastic about seeing how they work, so perhaps I need to use that and get him to blow them up a week early before all enthusiasm dissapates? :-)

Other than food and petrol, we're sorted for our guest's now. And any other folk who turn up to overnight (and don't want to share with either the kid or me). That will make (next week) 4 people, 2 dogs and a fish in a one-bedroom apartment! Thank goodness for ground floor, garden, and a Landy that can take a few more if need be. It's going to be a nice squash! :-)

Also this afternoon I stopped by the mechanic who serviced my car last week, and he reset the timing which was completely out. Unfortunately he also diagnosed the source of the horrible rattle I've heard while accelerating - my viscous fan is wobbly, needs replacing... I can see the credit card cringing already. I think it's something I can tackle though, early next year when I have the cash. The diff backlash the mechanic can handle.

To tell the truth, our current finances scare me. I still have some put away, but we're running way too close to the edge at the moment, digging increasingly into credit limits to simply survive. Not the way I want to see in the new year. I'd like to have a buffer zone of cash - something I'll be working hard for in the new year. The thing is, you can only work with what you're given, and I don't get much. I'm below what one news reader reckoned was minimum pay in a squatter camp!

Anyway, somehow this got completely off topic. The kid is blowing up a mattress at the moment (the foot pump sounds like a mix between a donkey braying and a giant farting...), we're sorted for bedding, and don't need to go near the madhouse they call the mall until well into the new year.

Bring the guests on! :-)