A Very Nice Man!

Sometimes I can't believe my own stupidity and tonight was one of those times

Whenever I have a home delivery of groceries I immediately set up a new basket ready for the next delivery, usually a month hence.  Then over the next three or four weeks I can see what I need and add or deduct from my basket.  Usually the system works well and my £40 minimum basket is very carefully chosen consisting mainly of cleaning materials, heavy stuff and frozen food, all of which I am only too happy for someone else to carry for me.

I had such a basket set up for tonight and had kept amending it over the past four seeks since my last delivery.  Unfortunately I had forgotten to re-check out the basket and I suddenly remembered at 23.50 last night.  Last amendments are at 23.45 so tonight the man arrived with about ten pounds worth of groceries to which would be added £1 for delivery and £4 because my total shop was below the £40 limit.  Not a very sensible way to shop.

But the delivery man was very sympathetic and said, he'd take the whole lot back "because he had been unable to deliver it" and I will get a full refund.  How's that for a nice man?

And how's that for a dozy shopper?

Crazy pricing!

I had a great (and slightly crazy!) day out this week.  I'd always wanted to travel the East Coast Main Line north of York,  I think Michael Portillo's programmes have inspired me but I didn't want to get off the train: it was the countryside I wanted to see and besides, I rather like train travel.  My journey was (sort of) free but I decided to look at the pricing.

My nearest station to this line is Newark and usually I would drive to Newark and board there.  I wanted to travel first class because I need leg room and it is fun to eat at one's seat.  Meals are complimentary in first class on this line.  So I started to look at prices.

An open first class return ticket is £366 !  No way!!

So the first trick is to advance book.  The train I chose (which was the cheapest that day) was £45.50 each way.  

Next apply my Senior Citizen Railcard and the fare drops to £30.50 each way.  Suddenly the cost of my day out is looking much more reasonable at £61, less than 17% of the full fare.

But let's take it a step further.  Tesco vouchers can be swapped for Red Spotted Hanky vouchers.  £5 Tesco buys £10 Red Spotted Hanky.  My fare is now just £30.50!

What else can I trim?  As I said above I usually drive to Newark and pay £14 for a day's parking on top of the cost of the drive.  However, I have discovered that a connecting train from my local station is free if I have booked main line travel so I saved £14 plus the cost of the drive as someone drove me to the station in case I needed help boarding at our unmanned station

And it was a wonderful journey.  I had booked disabled assistance at Newark and Edinburgh so my transfers were easy.  I had a delicious breakfast, a tasty lunch and an unending supply of coffee, all included in my fare.

So my trip cost me just £30 in Tesco vouchers plus £2.50 for ticket postage and booking fee.  Not bad for a great day out.  

PS  Tesco vouchers can also be used to purchase a railcard.

In praise of slow cookers.

I love salads.  I love fresh fruit.  I love all the wonderful flavours of the summer.  But regardless of all that, there is something wonderful about the first rice pud of the season.

Today I realised that action needed to be taken to avoid wasting some milk so I found rice, sugar and butter from my stores and I dragged the slow cooker out of the cupboard for the first time for several months.

There's something magic about cooking in a slow cooker.  Bung in a few ingredients, switch on, leave it for a few hours and voila! dinner is served.  Tough meat becomes tender, flavours meld together, and the electricity meter is scarcely troubled.  Good, wholesome food is on the table and there's always some left to freeze for another day.  I even bought mine in a Tesco Clubcard boost event so it has always been a bargain!

Truly it is one of the joys of cooler days.

Tesco delivery saver

I'm feeling a bit miffed about Tesco delivery saver as they have sent an e mail saying that from 23rd July the minimum spend will be £40 (not £25) and the surcharge for a too-small basket is £4.

Now I have to say that I have wondered how Tesco could be making a profit on the previous set-up but it is still a blow to me. 

A single person (pensioner) household does not use £40 worth of groceries each week.  There are some weeks when I don't have an order at all.    I have sometimes made my order up to £25 by buying postage stamps but even I don't write enough letters to make £40 weekly orders feasible.

However, I think it would cost at least £5 to visit my nearest supermarket so I don't think I shall be taking up their offer of a refund. I may just have a delivery once or maybe twice a month.  Some things I need to buy weekly (salad springs to mind) so during the summer months I shall be visiting the small greengrocery stall which sets up in Caistor twice a week.

And whatever I decide it makes good stock control even more imperative.