Six months till I officially retire

 I'm now counting down the weeks until I receive my state pension and bus pass. I have so many plans for that bus pass.  Although I've been  semi retired for a few years now I haven't struggled financially as I don't have huge outgoings.  My savings and invigilating earnings have kept me contributing to the household running costs. Growing virtually all the veg that we eat for a large part of the year keeps food bills low.  My friend retires next month and will really struggle financially.  She likes to have her eyelashes/eyebrows dyed, gel/acrylic nails perfect and her hair salon cut and coloured. The cost makes me wince but I've never been interested in that sort of expense. I'm getting quite good at cutting my own hair and haven't dyed it in years.  My idea of a nice social evening is to cook a meal for friends and have a good catchup. I love to cook something that I know they'll enjoy. We had a gorgeous leg of lamb last month and it was a perfect meal with friends. Goodness knows what it would have cost if we'd had an equivalent meal at a restaurant. I'm keeping an eye on lamb prices and intend to buy a few legs as soon as the price drops.