The Off Topic Thread #2
- Thread starter ianvestor
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DH just bought me a beautiful 1ct Diamond solitare ring.Have wanted one for ages. But I must admit I cann't stop thinking about how much money that is and what else I might have done with it. Oh well, lets just hope nothing happens to it before we list it on our insurance policy.
Just consider it a investment
Congratulations rugrat. I know how beautiful it is .
I am not a girly girl, nor do I like bling, but I always feel a million bucks with two gorgeous rings I am lucky enough to own...... even when I am in paint spattered rags.
Insurance was a tricky animal. Instead of cluttering up this thread, I have sent a PM with my journey regarding insuring them.
.I am not a girly girl, nor do I like bling, but I always feel a million bucks with two gorgeous rings I am lucky enough to own...... even when I am in paint spattered rags
.Insurance was a tricky animal. Instead of cluttering up this thread, I have sent a PM with my journey regarding insuring them.
Vincenzo, when you say Murdoch has arrived, I pressume you mean a baby? If so, congratulations!
Ergh, at least football is only boring, car racing is torture. I can hear the Grand Prix outside... how can anyone choose to listen to car racing???
I love the sound of loud cars and car racing, but they get annoying pretty quickly in an everyday driver. Watching car racing, like any sport, does get boring after little while, and this happens very quickly when watching it on tv.
Here's a photo of Murdoch btw
http://www.shop.thomasrocks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=515
Murdoch is our newest and much loved member of the household
Here's a photo of Murdoch btw
http://www.shop.thomasrocks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=515
Murdoch is our newest and much loved member of the household
That's hilarious, I was wondering why no one else was congratulating you! Ahhh yes Thomas, I was the best aunt in the whole world last Christmas when I bought my nephew the Thomas at Action Canyon set.
We, being the eternal cheapskates, sport a pair of reasonably chunky sterling silver rings, purchased for about $20-30 each off ebayI am not a girly girl, nor do I like bling, but I always feel a million bucks with two gorgeous rings I am lucky enough to own...... even when I am in paint spattered rags
Probably will be yeaaaaaaaaaaaaars before we get around to upgrading them, let alone *shock, horror* getting married. If I sell my old house, then upgrade car and furniture as planned, that'll actually get rid of the vast majority of the assets I had when I met him and everything will be joint! Scarey stuff. 5 year anniversary looming on his 30th too. Getting old!
Don't worry Rumpled..... I would not actually like to PAY for my nice pieces. One came from my mother. It was a stone she bought for investment purposes (Pffffft!!!), tried unsuccessfully to sell a couple of times, and finally left it to me in her will.
About ten years ago, I said to her "I'd much rather get it out of the bank safe where nobody sees it, have it set and enjoy it rather than be reminded that you are gone every time I look at it it if comes through your will".
She was fine with that, and so I have worn it for nearly ten years. She did pass away two months ago, and I am so glad that I don't have to look at this beautiful ring and mourn her each time I do so, which would have been the case.
The other lovely ring I wear is made up of several diamonds I had in my original rings and earrings, so in each case all it cost me was the price for the settings.
I'm a cheapskate too. I know that nobody knows if these are real or not, as Shhhhh!! and places like that have gorgeous rings that are not real diamonds, but that does not really concern me. It is the memories and love that is poured into these pieces that mean so much to me.
About ten years ago, I said to her "I'd much rather get it out of the bank safe where nobody sees it, have it set and enjoy it rather than be reminded that you are gone every time I look at it it if comes through your will".
She was fine with that, and so I have worn it for nearly ten years. She did pass away two months ago, and I am so glad that I don't have to look at this beautiful ring and mourn her each time I do so, which would have been the case.
The other lovely ring I wear is made up of several diamonds I had in my original rings and earrings, so in each case all it cost me was the price for the settings.
I'm a cheapskate too. I know that nobody knows if these are real or not, as Shhhhh!! and places like that have gorgeous rings that are not real diamonds, but that does not really concern me. It is the memories and love that is poured into these pieces that mean so much to me.
I had all my jewellery stolen from my old house a few years ago and you're right on the sentimental thing. All the pieces that had meaning (except one) were with me in Adelaide, the one remaining was a fake pearl necklace I got as a bridesmaid at my aunt's wedding. When I told my parents it got stolen the first things they asked about was the two great-nana's necklaces - both safe and sound!
I ended up replacing all my jewellery with newer and nicer stuff that was similar to the stolen stuff - costume jewellery, bronze, leather, silver, enamelware, onyx, amber, wood, that kind of earthy hippy stuff. I wear a lot of brown and green 'boho' stuff and I think everyone but the inlaws have noticed. For the next few years I was *really* easy to buy presents for at birthdays and christmas - cheap earth toned jewellery!
This message typed while sitting around in a very flattering chocolate brown not-maternity-dress that has a great big wooden buckle thingy on the empire waist. Ah, empire waists. Makes you look pregnant if you have even the slightest pot belly but brilliant for those of us who really are pregnant
I ended up replacing all my jewellery with newer and nicer stuff that was similar to the stolen stuff - costume jewellery, bronze, leather, silver, enamelware, onyx, amber, wood, that kind of earthy hippy stuff. I wear a lot of brown and green 'boho' stuff and I think everyone but the inlaws have noticed. For the next few years I was *really* easy to buy presents for at birthdays and christmas - cheap earth toned jewellery!
This message typed while sitting around in a very flattering chocolate brown not-maternity-dress that has a great big wooden buckle thingy on the empire waist. Ah, empire waists. Makes you look pregnant if you have even the slightest pot belly but brilliant for those of us who really are pregnant
Had my tupperware party today. Apparently I have 5 friends, although one was my mother, so I really only have four.
It was fun, and I will just ignore the fact that I got a bit carried away and spent a fortune. LOL. Oh well, tupperware lasts forever.
Until your hubby or child takes it to work/school and ooopps...left it there.."will get it tomorrow", by which time it has mysteriously disappeared...
Cheap plasticware only in this house, coz it always seems to disappear one way or another...or lose its lid...
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there would be a market for a tupperware swap siteUntil your hubby or child takes it to work/school and ooopps...left it there.."will get it tomorrow", by which time it has mysteriously disappears...
Cheap plasticware only in this house, coz it always seems to disappear one way or another...or lose its lid...
lady with three bottoms seeks gentleman with cereal container lid
In her last year at the old school I lost count of the number of lunch or snack sized containers The Child left at school. Practically cleaned out the plasticware cupboard. Never saw them again, labelling them didn't help. Gave up and ended up just shoving a wrapped sandwich in the outside pocket of her schoolbag.
In a school with 18 students and 5 staff you'd think I'd actually have chances of getting all the plasticware back, but no ... best I got was her 20 or so jumpers back out of the lost property at the end of the year. Yes, she had more than 20 gorgeous enormous fluffy hand-knitted jumpers that she'd wear for 2 minutes waking to school and then immediately strip down to a t-shirt whether it was above or below zero that day.
At the new school she lost 2 school uniform jumpers (yes, its summer at that time of year), her brand new lunchbox and a hat in the first week but I got them all back. She lost the hat again later in the year, we gave her a wide-brimmed work hat from the bowels of the cupboard and she hates it with a passion but it conforms to uniform policy so she HAS to wear it.
She's so good at losing things and just grabbing something new from the cupboard now I have a policy of just simply not OWNING more than 2 or 3 of anything losable, other than socks and underwear. She actually notices things when she can't just reach into the cupboard and grab a new one, or gets banned from playing outside because she has lost her hat. That, and the uniform sweaters are $60 each and the hats are $30 so I can't really afford 20 of each of them for her to use up like they are disposable.
I also need to mend the two enormous holes torn in her $75 school dress because I am NOT buying her a new one. She's worn it maybe a dozen times. It looks like someone has pulled on the belt with some serious force.
Earlier this year it turned out she had left so many underpants at other people's houses at visits, sleepovers etc as well as having underwear under her bed, behind her desk etc that she went down from about 30 pairs (don't ask) to 6 and I was completely confused why I suddenly had to do her washing more than once a week as she kept running out ...
And you should see my odd sock basket in the laundry. Sorted it yesterday, matched up 2 or 3 pairs of our socks and the baby's socks and now it only contains maybe 15 or so brightly patterned pink/purple/green socks of The Child's. Again, being a Horrible Parent, I'm just throwing the damn things away and buying her bulk packs of identical navy blue socks. Horrible Parent Syndrome is extending to buying her BLACK shoes this year and no pink. She hates black, I might get more than 6 weeks wear per shoe if they're not pink. She goes through about 5 pairs of shoes per season and if you don't keep an eye on her she goes through the socks too - once the shoes are worn through at the sole (she draws with her feet by scuffing so the right shoe wears through really fast - record is about 2 weeks) she also wears through her socks. You only find out about the massive holes when socks turn up in the wash, dark brown with holes in the bottom - she doesn't complain about shoes with no soles. Unbelievable.
So far, other kid has only trashed one pair of shoes and they were still intact and wearable albeit very battered - Child Elder likes to play in the dirt heap out back, Child Junior copies, next thing you've got two horrendously filthy kids and shoes don't take kindly to being washed almost daily.
I wish Kmart (or is it Target?) sold our school uniform. They have an "if they outwear it before they outgrow it you get a refund" policy. The only clothes in this house that get outgrown are the pretty ones that look good on (you know, the kind you feel you've wasted your money on because it got worn twice), everything else gets worn to death and ends up in the bin in pieces. THIS year Grandma has been banned from making her clothes, and she's getting a bare minimum wardrobe secondhand off ebay, her uniform, and NOTHING ELSE. A 9yo child doesn't need 60 or more garments (excluding socks and undies and uniform), of which she's only going to wear half a dozen.
Putting my foot down. Horrible Parent Syndrome indeed.
/rant
In a school with 18 students and 5 staff you'd think I'd actually have chances of getting all the plasticware back, but no ... best I got was her 20 or so jumpers back out of the lost property at the end of the year. Yes, she had more than 20 gorgeous enormous fluffy hand-knitted jumpers that she'd wear for 2 minutes waking to school and then immediately strip down to a t-shirt whether it was above or below zero that day.
At the new school she lost 2 school uniform jumpers (yes, its summer at that time of year), her brand new lunchbox and a hat in the first week but I got them all back. She lost the hat again later in the year, we gave her a wide-brimmed work hat from the bowels of the cupboard and she hates it with a passion but it conforms to uniform policy so she HAS to wear it.
She's so good at losing things and just grabbing something new from the cupboard now I have a policy of just simply not OWNING more than 2 or 3 of anything losable, other than socks and underwear. She actually notices things when she can't just reach into the cupboard and grab a new one, or gets banned from playing outside because she has lost her hat. That, and the uniform sweaters are $60 each and the hats are $30 so I can't really afford 20 of each of them for her to use up like they are disposable.
I also need to mend the two enormous holes torn in her $75 school dress because I am NOT buying her a new one. She's worn it maybe a dozen times. It looks like someone has pulled on the belt with some serious force.
Earlier this year it turned out she had left so many underpants at other people's houses at visits, sleepovers etc as well as having underwear under her bed, behind her desk etc that she went down from about 30 pairs (don't ask) to 6 and I was completely confused why I suddenly had to do her washing more than once a week as she kept running out ...
And you should see my odd sock basket in the laundry. Sorted it yesterday, matched up 2 or 3 pairs of our socks and the baby's socks and now it only contains maybe 15 or so brightly patterned pink/purple/green socks of The Child's. Again, being a Horrible Parent, I'm just throwing the damn things away and buying her bulk packs of identical navy blue socks. Horrible Parent Syndrome is extending to buying her BLACK shoes this year and no pink. She hates black, I might get more than 6 weeks wear per shoe if they're not pink. She goes through about 5 pairs of shoes per season and if you don't keep an eye on her she goes through the socks too - once the shoes are worn through at the sole (she draws with her feet by scuffing so the right shoe wears through really fast - record is about 2 weeks) she also wears through her socks. You only find out about the massive holes when socks turn up in the wash, dark brown with holes in the bottom - she doesn't complain about shoes with no soles. Unbelievable.
So far, other kid has only trashed one pair of shoes and they were still intact and wearable albeit very battered - Child Elder likes to play in the dirt heap out back, Child Junior copies, next thing you've got two horrendously filthy kids and shoes don't take kindly to being washed almost daily.
I wish Kmart (or is it Target?) sold our school uniform. They have an "if they outwear it before they outgrow it you get a refund" policy. The only clothes in this house that get outgrown are the pretty ones that look good on (you know, the kind you feel you've wasted your money on because it got worn twice), everything else gets worn to death and ends up in the bin in pieces. THIS year Grandma has been banned from making her clothes, and she's getting a bare minimum wardrobe secondhand off ebay, her uniform, and NOTHING ELSE. A 9yo child doesn't need 60 or more garments (excluding socks and undies and uniform), of which she's only going to wear half a dozen.
Putting my foot down. Horrible Parent Syndrome indeed.
/rant
Oh, you're such a horrible mother!
I wish i had about 60 garments, come to think of it though i probably do. I just don't wear three quarters of them, and it annoys me because i've got none. Unlike your 9 year old i don't have a mother to buy my clothes
I now have to put up with all my cr@ppy clothes, they're all very cheap, and i don't like them. I especially don't like my work clothes, because they are such bad quality
Maybe one day i can afford to buy something nice, like anything! Right now i'm craving boots! I want boots damnit!! I like boots, only problem is the nice ones are expensive! Although i have noticed some nicer things coming up in Target and Kmart, only sad thing is i can't even afford that
I wish i had about 60 garments, come to think of it though i probably do. I just don't wear three quarters of them, and it annoys me because i've got none. Unlike your 9 year old i don't have a mother to buy my clothes
I now have to put up with all my cr@ppy clothes, they're all very cheap, and i don't like them. I especially don't like my work clothes, because they are such bad quality
Maybe one day i can afford to buy something nice, like anything! Right now i'm craving boots! I want boots damnit!! I like boots, only problem is the nice ones are expensive! Although i have noticed some nicer things coming up in Target and Kmart, only sad thing is i can't even afford that
Hehe ... also when you're 9, you only wear clothes for 1 season before they get too small so 60 garments is massive overkill. We're talking a dozen if not more each of tops, pants, jumpers, dresses, the works - and this is only for after school and weekends. My mother overproduces something severe, I say we could do with two dresses and she gives me a suitcase full of brand new homemade clothes. Its her hobby, she does it to relax.
I figure 3 pairs of jeans, half a dozen tops and a jacket or two on top of her uniform is more than enough to get The Child through winter. She wears much the same clothes all year round despite the weather ranging from 5-35 degrees. Those HUGE fluffy handmade jumpers I mention get worn in summer. She still has several from last year that fit.
I've just had to buy myself a complete winter wardrobe from scratch (which is why I have a clothes fixation at the moment) and my wardrobe reads much the same for the same reasons - nothing in my cupboard fits now and this lot won't fit more than 1 season. 2 pairs of jeans, a few tops, 2 jumpers and this crazy kneelength sheepskin jacket that won't do up at my size but is fantastically warm. A bit sparser than her wardrobe but it'll do over winter. I can steal the other half's clothes as winter maternity tops
Also I have this strange urge to buy this for the toddler but am still scratching my head. Should I do it or is it going to be frivolous waste of money?
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280480936872&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT
Oh, and as to boots - google Pleaser boots. They work out way cheaper getting them from overseas and they have some really cool Goth ones, we know someone who imports them and if you can convert your size to Yank I'm sure he'd love another customer.
I figure 3 pairs of jeans, half a dozen tops and a jacket or two on top of her uniform is more than enough to get The Child through winter. She wears much the same clothes all year round despite the weather ranging from 5-35 degrees. Those HUGE fluffy handmade jumpers I mention get worn in summer. She still has several from last year that fit.
I've just had to buy myself a complete winter wardrobe from scratch (which is why I have a clothes fixation at the moment) and my wardrobe reads much the same for the same reasons - nothing in my cupboard fits now and this lot won't fit more than 1 season. 2 pairs of jeans, a few tops, 2 jumpers and this crazy kneelength sheepskin jacket that won't do up at my size but is fantastically warm. A bit sparser than her wardrobe but it'll do over winter. I can steal the other half's clothes as winter maternity tops
Also I have this strange urge to buy this for the toddler but am still scratching my head. Should I do it or is it going to be frivolous waste of money?
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280480936872&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT
Oh, and as to boots - google Pleaser boots. They work out way cheaper getting them from overseas and they have some really cool Goth ones, we know someone who imports them and if you can convert your size to Yank I'm sure he'd love another customer.
I was going to suggest that "someone" must have bought her those 90 pieces of clothing, and then read further down that your mother makes them.
Lightbulb moment...... when your mother continues to send new clothing when you have asked her to stop sending so much, why not keep some and sell the rest on ebay.
Lightbulb moment...... when your mother continues to send new clothing when you have asked her to stop sending so much, why not keep some and sell the rest on ebay
.
Oh well, tupperware lasts forever.
I thought it was only Diamonds!
Actually The Child wears the worst home made stuff (requested by child to be enormous, frilly, pink and floppy) the most. My mother makes a lot less clothes for her these days, we've managed to get the flood down. I can't make the excess clothes vanish before they get worn as The Child has requested them and knows they are there. Fortunately she is so hard on her clothes I disappear them pretty fast as she rips holes in them - long frilly skirts don't last long when you are a treeclimber. Reason #237 to convince her that denim really is an acceptable fabric to wear ...Lightbulb moment...... when your mother continues to send new clothing when you have asked her to stop sending so much, why not keep some and sell the rest on ebay
I've just ebayed all the excesses I had collected - I had no trouble at all selling the really nice commercial stuff that we buy or that other people give us. Some are quite expensive brands, we get a few Target/Kmart/Best&Less items hoping one day she'll notice how much better the commercial stuff looks when it is on. We have to literally force her to wear them. The rare few homemade things that don't get worn to death are hard to sell secondhand, even if they are unworn. Older children just *don't* wear huge floppy pink frilly clothes, and the lack of exact sizing makes it hard too.
The irony is my mother made my clothes when I was growing up as they had no money (my mother used to be a tailor) and I got teased mercilessly because I never had anything out of denim. Now I am blessed with a child who REFUSES to wear denim
The irony is my mother made my clothes when I was growing up as they had no money (my mother used to be a tailor) and I got teased mercilessly because I never had anything out of denim. Now I am blessed with a child who REFUSES to wear denim
Lol!
A few years back i didn't own a pair of jeans, now it's basically what i live in or maxi dresses. I like keeping my legs covered more times than less, unless i'm at home then it's PJs all year round
I'm not very happy today, it's raining, not raining like sprinkling, raining like i think the skylight above me is going to smash again! I did my dark washing yesterday, and hung it out - it included all my work bottoms, i'm now stuck wearing the only long dark skirt i could find, it's old and yucky! Stupid weather couldn't of held out this morning so i could get them in before work!
