Things that have made you happy today 2025

Got my car insurance renewal and it was £10 lower than last year, went on line and got one £100 cheaper than my renewal.
Rang my existing insurer and miraculously they managed to bring my renewal down £90.
Bunch of rip off merchants. I almost felt like dumping them for trying to rip me off, but it was easier to just renew.

 

Got my home insurance renewal. £12 cheaper than last yr! Suits me!

 

Agree with @ViewAhead and @pete we do need to question the renewals. We have managed to reduce home and contents insurance FOR THE SAME COVER by some hundreds of pounds. However it is all very time consuming and you can only do all the work if you have time and have health on your side. It does though make a happy day when you do manage to achieve a good result. Every penny counts.

 

Not just happy, but absolutely grinning from ear to ear. Mrs Mallard, (see previous page on this thread) has managed to incubate and hatch 14 ducklings. Not only that, she did it next to a public footpath, and then managed to guide all 14 of them about 100 yards across a steep slope, covered in fallen branches and twigs, through dense brambles and other muck and mess, to the safety of our garden pond.

And here they are, with the proud father in attendance

 

That’s completely wonderful @Tidemark

 

Oh wow, incredible! I wonder why she doesn’t nest in your garden and save herself the dangerous commute.

 

Wonderful. How exciting for you. I am pleased they all made it safely to your pond.

 

With 72 plug plants on their way, OH informed me that we don't have sufficient number of pots in which to grow them on.

Okay, she ordered the plants. She also insisted that we get rid of a load of pots not long ago.

So where's the thing that has made me happy today!??

I took a walk (with a bagful of Maltesers), and enroute passed the front gate of a neighbour round the corner. He happened to have a pile of pots just the right size sitting next to a sign, encouraging people to help themselves.
So I did!
We now have a pile of them in the conservatory.

 

It rained overnight, and is raining now.

 

I have travel insurance through my bank and because I have to declare pre-existing conditions it doesn't autorenew. I called them yesterday and went through the long-winded palaver of listing medical conditions and medication, although everything I advised them of doesn't carry any additional cost. The only additional cost last year was my hip replacement (£60) which I didn't think excessive. We got to the end of the process and the lady I was speaking to asked if there was anything else she could help with. I said she hadn't requested payment for cover on the hip replacement. She replied that there isn't any cost as the replacement was due to arthritis. I explained I had been charged last year so she asked me to hold while she checked. She came back confirming what she had though - no additional charge and told me I'll get a refund of last year's payment.

 

Wow! That doesn’t happen very often, @KT53!

 

@Ergates That's very true. What makes the whole thing even better is that I used the bank's travel insurance for a long time until they messed me around. "Cutting off my nose to spite my face" somewhat I paid for travel insurance for a number of years. Then a letter arrived informing me that their travel insurance covered me to age 80, and there was only one item (the hip replacement) which wasn't on the list of conditions which don't need to be declared. I'm now saving a fortune each year.

 

The postperson has just been and I got an Easter Greetings card from Beryl (late partner) 's cousin, how lovely, I haven't heard from her for a while so it was very nice to receive this card.
I'll phone her soon

 

Love watching my virginia blue bells and the daffodils together, a slight wind is awesome as I have my morning coffee.

 

New life is lovely to see.

First Mallard chicks are out and judging by the Mama Coot's face, also her chicks will hatch sooner rather than later. Or she'll make them to hatch- I never knew Coots are so aggressive until we observed one grabbing a poor Moorhen by the neck and practically drowning it!

Here are the Mallard-lets, supervised by a Canada Goose who apparently took them as KFC snacks but fortunately the ducklings escaped.