Brands aren't really my area of expertise, nor is swimwear.

cosmictanya wrote:

Do you concur or dissent from my estimations of the department store brands and directions of our great nation?

And exhortations to violence?

No raspberries, so I was told this afternoon by a rude man barely taller than a Bonsai tree. A dispiriting trip to the yellow label section via baked goods revealed three packets, at 49p each. All now in the freezer waiting for the tartness to perfect itself.

Battenberg at £1.60. I thought that was a joke until I got down on one knee and looked again. I didn't buy it. I was going to get a chicken Caesar salad sandwich, reduced from £4.75 to 95p but the label said thigh. I'm a breast only buyer.

I got some baby carrots reduced from £1.15 to £1.02. Not my greatest feat of money-saving ever.

How did you like dem apples?

No deals in Sainsburys on Veuve, but Laurent Perrier down from £38 to £27 which I thought was strikingly reasonable as a saving. Two bottles for a weekend tipple.

I had another bottle of Angostura with my Tesco delivery, and I got it free because the security tag was still on it.

I'll have to devise a way of cutting the wire of course. I think the metal cutter on my oscillating tool would be the thing.

The oscillating tool was no use at all, nor was a hacksaw, or twisting the wire with pincers to try and give it metal fatigue. The problem was that I couldn't apply too much force or torque for fear of breaking the bottle.

Eventually I used two needle files - one behind the wire to hold it rigid, the other to file through the outer casing - and when I'd exposed the inner wire core, I cut it with my wire nippers. Triumph!

They're recalcitrant b*ggers those security wires.

I use a pair or very high quality West German wire cutters.

Still, it takes an effort.

I was just reminded of this time last year, with kitchenwares. I dropped in on a friend to show her my wound, and she motioned to a silver egg which opened to reveal a set of espresso spoons that someone had brought as a brunch offering. She thought it was a pointless present for a caffeine free household but I noticed the mark of Christofle. I was surprised she hadn't. I agreed it was an absolute waste of space, a worthless token, and a liberty and offered to drop it off at a charity shop on my way home. She said no, you can't go out of your way, not with such a gruesome injury. So I said - oh you are sweet, I'll tell you what, I'll give you a fiver for it and that way nobody will feel anyone's obliged to return a good deed.

Anyway I've now got this thing worth £700 in my own caffeine free household. I wish I'd remembered it when I thought we had run out of teaspoons last year.

I saved 13p today because the Co-op lady input the weight of the onion I bought as 10g instead of 100g, and she only charged me 1p.

A Cala lily for £2. My half sister has been apologising for her 2016 lapse in political judgement, so I agreed a couple of weeks ago to make an effort to forgive, but not forget. Today was the first time I'd seen her since. We went to McDonalds and a place called B&M. Everything was unattractively displayed and the signage was hideous, but I thought £2 was a bargain. As I carried it into my flat a woman walking along the pavement said 'what a beautiful plant'.

I've just switched energy suppliers again and will save £12 a month.

I am also owed £44 by my old energy supplier.

My experience of energy suppliers suggests I will never get it.

I got a refund of £297 out of the blue from my phone/internet supplier because they've apparently been overcharging me for the last 18 months.

But - once I was aware of the issue - I worked out they owe me another £61, and have emailed them to demand it.

How did you work that out? I'll have to check mine. Probably a waste of time - I don't think I've ever had an unexpected refund.

It turns out they didn't owe me another £61. I was taking the difference between the last bill, and this month's, and multiplying by 18, but they explained this month's and future bills would be £3.33 lower than before the error started, on account of how they'd switched me to their new offer, which is cheaper by that amount.

ZOM*G!!

I've just had a spectacliar result at M&S.

Through no fault of my own and with no criminality or subterfuge intended I have made off with:

1 bottle of Chardonnay (@ £7)
2 bottles of Pinot Grigio (@ £6 each - reduced from £8)
2 500g packets of posh spaghetti (50p each - reduced to clear from £1.50)

For £7.

Gosh. Was the self-scanner malfunctioning?

I think that the security guy got things mixed up trying serve two people who'd bought booze at once.

I actually got two receipts so I thought once I got home and saw that the first one said £7 that the other would be for the remaining £13, but instead it had all stuff like rice pudding on it.

I hope that security man doesn't get in trouble now.

He's ever such a nice chap.