Live on £4000 for a Year, 2009 Challenge, part 1

lyndasharp

The boiler and gas fire had their service yesterday, was very impressed. The guy was half an hour late, but was very capable and well worth the £55! Some insane kitchen designer has built the cupboards around the boiler in such a way that you can't get the boiler front out of the cupboard... so he was working in a very awkward space. Apparently the boiler is from 1986!!!!

I was naughty today and drove into work - having cycled in every day this week my legs are just too tired! So I've now spend £1 on parking. I think my aim is to get fit enough to cycle in 5 days a week... Having a spending day today - we're going for a pub lunch as someone is leaving, but that should only be around £7, and I am well under budget this month.

Myself and H2B have a £75 per month budget for food each, and after our shop yesterday we're still a few pounds under budget - despite the fact that we are having a housewarming on Saturday and are cooking for 30 people, plus have bought drinks for the party!

2NDTIMEROUNDER

Hey all. A quick word to ask if there is anyone living around Bristol? Even cookery books!:D Oh well, next time for us....



Thousands in scramble for free books after Amazon supplier abandons warehouse http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1156973/Thousands-scramble-free-books-Amazon-supplier-abandons-warehouse.html

lingojingo

just collected my Qype voucher, and didn't have to sign for it (reason it wasn't delivered on wednesday - it had to be signed for).

Also, got notification that TV licence will be £12.01 per month from March.

cw18

Looks like I'm going to have to make sure I'm well stocked up on groceries by the end of March...... so my accounts may well look slighly off target by then !!!!!!

Heard today our S'flds closes (in that name) at the end of March -- and will be closed for 8 weeks (!) before it re-opens as Mr M. Current speculation round the 'school mums' is that they'll be extending the building, as no-one can see it taking that long just to replace signs and fittings -- but I've not heard or seen anything about a planning application. One Mum who worked in a store that had a re-fit says it took the team under a week (and her DH worked in another that had this done in a similar time-frame).

So for 8 weeks I have nothing 'local' apart from A!di and L!dl (ours don't stock half the things I use regularly) and a small and over-priced C0-0p (who can't fill much more of my list) :eek:

If the weather's OK then I can (and will) walk to Mr T for a few non-bulky and lightweight bits, but I don't want to have to use the car a couple of times a week because I've forgot odd heavy/bulky things !!!


Have sorted myself a new bank account today. Was going to open one with TSB as they're just up the road, but I have to have an appt to do this -- and they couldn't even get me an appt until next Thursday (which I must now phone and cancel).

When I nipped out later I was near N'wide (who I have my mortgage with) which isn't the next closest, but still much easier (and cheaper) to get to than my current bank.

Asked in there about opening a current account, filled in a form while there which I left with them, and got a call this afternoon to tell me I've "scored" enough for the account with a debit card (which I got the impression from TSB I wouldn't, but is essential if I'm going to close my other one). Think it was probably easier as I have my mortgage with them as I was told they didn't need identification as I already have an account with them. They also offered me a c/card, but I said "no thanks, I'm currenly closing down the ones I have due to a change in circumstances", and was told she'll tell the system not to send me one without having any more pressure put on me (which I'd expected as soon as she asked if I wanted one).

So that's another job I can tick off the list of things I want to get done this year

Frugaldom

Good afternoon frugaldonians

Just having a quick catch-up whilst dinner's heating.

1274, the only way I can see of cutting your list to £450 would be to cut the haircuts, entertainment and clothing and, perhaps, the griceries, depending on how many that feeds. I can see where you're coming from with the business costs if you are self-employed working from home, as my £4,000 budget includes home-based business associated overheads - we may get them back but we still need to find the money to pay for them first. I also noticed that you have no allowance for gifts, insurance, misc extras - are these counted into a different budget? Good luck with the fitter not fatter aims! Running 5 miles sounds ultra fit to me! Well done on being fit enough to even contemplate it! (I must be getting OLD!)

2ndTR - I think it's sad seeing the pictures of all the old books that have been abandoned. No doubt there will be a few more companies will end up doing similar if the banks start foreclosing on loans but my reckoning is that the original company wasn't economically viable, and better off cutting their losses? They do similar here when the bookshops have their annual clear outs, past couple of years they built mazes in the square and one time they had a mass book burning.

Ddraig, how are you able to avoid plastic? I thought about it several times but have always found it impossible, especially since all my freezer tubs are plastic and the margarine, milk and most other things are pre-packed in plastic of some form or another. Must have another look at your thread to see how it's done.

Thriftylass, if it's any consolation, I have spent almost a quarter of my annual budget already! :eek:

I went back to Aldi today to get more fruit trees but there were none. Managed to get some cheap compost then went and treated myself to some other garden-related bits and bobs elsewhere with savings. Hopefully, I'll recoup those spends as part of my cash neutral mini-challenge. Going to look at chickens tomorrow after someone called me back about rehoming. Thought I'd best pick up some feeding for them whilst out and about today, just in case.

1274

Cw and Nyk - you're both sort of right on the business expenses. £135 is a lot and I'm probably overpaying for internet, but I'm stuck in contract for another year. Like Nyk, I count business and personal spends from the same pot, but I can only claim a proportion back when I do my taxes.

Angel at G yes, it looks like haircuts, clothes, entertainment and grocery are the areas to shave tho. I'm really embarrassed to admit the £75 is just for me, I don't even have a pet to share the blame.

Re unfit, I can't run for 10minutes at the moment so I have a lot of work to do . And I have to confess (fellow frugallers forgive me as I have sinned) to drinking loads of coffee today and eating one of my remaining [strike]10[/strike] 9 bags of crisps. For my defence though, I'll plead one of the worst weeks I've had since 1/1/09. Can I start properly on Monday and have one last weekend blow out? Pretty please

Frugaldom

1274 wrote: »

Can I start properly on Monday and have one last weekend blow out? Pretty please

For what it's worth, for anyone who is debt free and can afford the occasional 'blow out', I'd say GO FOR IT. Let's face it, money in the bank isn't going to gain interest at any great rate for the foreseeable and prices for most things are still rising. If I could find a bit of land that would suit my purposes, I'd blow my house fund at the drop of a hat. :rotfl:

Has anyone been reading up on the energy price reductions of 3% :mad: - I'm not even considering these as benefits as all the hikes last year mean they'd need to drop 50% just to get them back there! What a rip off! It's almost as bad as S0merfields advertising £5 halfprice offer for something that only cost £8 full price the week before last. :rotfl:

[STRIKE]I want[/STRIKE] One day, I am going to have my own woodlands and a logburning system for heating, hot water and cooking, that would drop my entire annual budget by over 25% :eek:

cw18

1274 wrote: »

I'm really embarrassed to admit the £75 is just for me, I don't even have a pet to share the blame.

If that includes all cleaning and personal hygiene products (which I assume it does), then I didn't (and don't) think the £75 is really that far off the mark

My budget gives me a monthly average of £54.75 per person for food only

On top of that I have £9.13/month for cleaning products for the house + hygiene products for 2 of us (though DS actually buys about half of his own). So if I were on my own I'd probably make this about £7/month extras.

So my personal budget for 1 person would be around £62. This doesn't allow for any alcohol (rarely drink) or eating out (not even a pasty when out shopping). It also allows for the fact I'm not working, so have plenty of time to go 'Whoopsie hunting', and this makes a biiiiig difference to my grocery costs.

Brighton_belle

Just wanted to share some good news: One very happy BB here:D . OH has finally been offered a job he went for.(it's been a long journey) It's only six months and minimum wage but it's work, mainly outdoors and the nature of it will be good experience on his CV. It won't affect my budget - anything extra will be saved as a cushion against future unemployment of either of us, but it keeps the wolf from the door and may allow the occasional jam.

cw18

:T Congratulations to Mr BB :T