Swapsies

I am well aware that at the beginning of next year I am going to be fairly hard up. There are a number of things contributing to this, and I will likely discuss these at another time, but for now I am trying to prepare as best I can for a bit of scrimping and saving.

I am trying to go out less after work, and when I do have evenings out I am attempting to eat either before (at my desk) or after (at home) to cut costs. This means depriving myself of one of my favourite pastimes, restaurant dining, but I realise how lucky I am to have ever been able to indulge in this with any frequency. That is not to say I have stopped eating out entirely, but I am thinking twice before turning to the menu when out having drinks or planning meet ups in close proximity to favourite restaurants.

I am also trying to find the simple pleasures that bring me joy at home, so that staying in doesn't seem quite so dull. I am a telly addict with (I like to think) a preference for great films and dramas. I have been gorging on True Blood, House and Spooks of late but I won't deny the amount of entertainment X-factor and I'm a Celebrity are bringing me.

On top of that I am trying to spice up day time eating, hence the poached eggs and the scotch pancakes I made today. Treating myself to freshly baked goods at tea time and a proper breakfast goes some way to making it easier when I walk by one of my much loved dinner time haunts.