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

shaz_mum_of__2

Just a quickie

Anyone haing log in trouble at spending diary? i can't get in

I might switch to a pen and paper if it is a permanent issue !!

Wish i had made copies but happy in the fact i did save money

Had a busy weekend erecting and fitting out new shed and pottering in garden it wa lovely here

Uni today so better make a move

Shaz

lyndasharp

I'm back from Northern Ireland, had a lovely time there. H2B had a cold most of the week I was away, but decided to fix my car, paint his flat, do the garden... surprisingly enough, he's still feeling ill. He's under orders to do absolutely nothing today!

Had a cheap week in Ireland, as it's almost all on expenses, but made up for it by spending lots of money on a desk and a dressing table - well, £40 for the two. I'd better get back to the huge stack of work emails now - that's the worst bit about going away, it's returning to the full intray!

Frugaldom

Good morning frugaltonians

Apologies for falling behind with the posts, appropriate responses to all, as I did manage to read them all at some point over the past day or so and just a reminder to those doing the £1000 in 100 days mini-challenge that we're now three quarters of the way through. As usual, I'm failing miserably because of start-up costs for my frugaldom project out-weighing anything extra I can make. OK, I'm spending it quicker than I'm making it! :rotfl:

Off to an exhibition in the library in town, it's being held by the local LETS group, which I have just joined. Should be interesting seeing what can be bartered in our area. :cool: After that, we're heading back out to the farm to collect the new hen (or possibly 2 hens). Hopefully a frugal day, although I may stop into Ald!'s since we'll be passing the door en route.

Edited in: Didn't get to the exhibition, I had the wrong times and library doesn't even open on a Monday morning. Didn't go into Ald!'s on way home because we were given more eggs from the farm when we went to collect 'Mrs Grey', and these had to be kept warm. Mrs Grey is now sitting on them in her new home. She's a pretty little hen (They are mini-hens on accounts of their being crosses between ordinary sized hens and bantams.)

slowlyfading

:hello: everyone, i'm back! Will update properly later xxx

lilac_lady

Still catching up with the recent posts. If you miss a day it takes ages to read them all (a good thing - shows we're still trudging along frugalising).
I spent yesterday afternoon at DD's helping her with her garden.

If you'd told me she'd love gardening when she was a TT (troublesome teenager) I'd have laughed till my sides split. She wants to start growing herbs, lettuces etc so I'm very proud of her. She cooks a lot from scratch, bakes and shops frugally (at last).

She's also working hard on her credit card balance because she's had her lightbulb moment.

My banging on about "needs not wants" seems to have been a bit of a success so those of you with spendthrifts in the family - don't give up!

candygirl

Hi peeps:hello:
I'm still with you, but busy sorting DD's house and waiting for the baby so will add up my totals soon and add them to my siggy:D
Hope you're all ok xx:A

skint_chick

taka- OH and I both just upgraded our Halifax accounts to the Reward ones and they don't care how you pay in your £1000 as long as you do - OH is weekly paid and I have a mixture of weekly and monthly income. He has no dd's anymore so it's fine to just pay in and take out - and to the last penny because OH does every week!!

I never thought about using it for savings - I'll maybe open another one now:D as I have savings in a faster payment bank I could whizz around every month:T

I want to do my PhD in history and I've already picked my topic - well I have several ones in mind but one main one - the only thing holding me back is I got a 2:1 in my BA I missed a first by 6points :mad: and the majority of funding goes to ppl with firsts. Although I got 68% in my MA and have fab references as I was top of the class I just don't have any balls to apply in case I'm rejected for funding and get accepted to the course- although then I would have the full-time/part-time decision made for me I guess! Think I should wait until next year and get settled in to new job/lifestyle first. Plus I want to have a family before I get much older -I'm 32 this yr and I'm not sure a small baby and study go together. But I don't want to miss out - I'm soooo indecisive

taka

skint_chick wrote: »

taka- OH and I both just upgraded our Halifax accounts to the Reward ones and they don't care how you pay in your £1000 as long as you do - OH is weekly paid and I have a mixture of weekly and monthly income. He has no dd's anymore so it's fine to just pay in and take out - and to the last penny because OH does every week!!

I never thought about using it for savings - I'll maybe open another one now:D as I have savings in a faster payment bank I could whizz around every month:T

I want to do my PhD in history and I've already picked my topic - well I have several ones in mind but one main one - the only thing holding me back is I got a 2:1 in my BA I missed a first by 6points :mad: and the majority of funding goes to ppl with firsts. Although I got 68% in my MA and have fab references as I was top of the class I just don't have any balls to apply in case I'm rejected for funding and get accepted to the course- although then I would have the full-time/part-time decision made for me I guess! Think I should wait until next year and get settled in to new job/lifestyle first. Plus I want to have a family before I get much older -I'm 32 this yr and I'm not sure a small baby and study go together. But I don't want to miss out - I'm soooo indecisive

If you have a 2:1 + MA (especially as you were top of your class :T ) then surely you will be a very, very good candidate grades wise. It'd take the best part of a year to sort out funding anyway if your field is anything like mine... most funded places would be advertised in the Autumn then time till an interview a month or 2 later. If you are applying for funding directly to a Research council or equivalent the chances are it'll take ~6 months minimum anyway so you would have a bit of time.

I have a 2:2 and my transcript makes painful reading but have loads of yrs relevant experience so am hoping that will help me... Some funding bodies will not even contemplate funding someone with a 2:2 but the main research council (one of the least well paid :rolleyes:) will do as I have directly relevant experience. Whether I can out compete someone with a first (especially if they have experience too) and actually GET the funding is another thing (either in departmental competition or by being a named person on an application). Who knows but I'll give it a damn good try...

I was asked recently about what I had said 10 years ago (ie in 1999) about what I wanted to do in 10 yrs time (ie now)... the only answer I could come up with was to have done a PhD and be working in research! :rolleyes: I don't want to go another 10 yrs and be too scared to find out if it is possible or if I can actually do it!

Children would cetainly complicate things but it is possible to go on maternity leave and return to FT or switch to a part time at a later date. I think you get ~7yrs max to compete and hand in if you are full time. I am in constant awe of one of my friends - she started a FT PhD within a month of her youngest being born! :eek:

I might just wander past HBOS tomorrow morning on the way to work...

Blairweech

Hello my frugalies!

Good
Spent today knocking all the old grout out of the patio ready to put sand and cement in tomorrow. In exchange, my Mum is paying for my haircut tomorrow Everyone wins

Bad
Tomorrow I will be spending £200 on (4) tyres. Out of savings but still...
Ugly
Brother and I took my old compy apart and the hardrive is making a horrible clicking sound when you move it, suggesting the insides have come apart. Miraculously, by holding it at a certain specific angle, we managed to get brother's compy to read it and copy my files. Have ordered an external HDD to move it all onto (another £60 ) but only time will tell if the files are all still in tact...

So, thats my news for the day. My signature is actually up to date, and as you can see...not doing so hot.

skint_chick

Taken on a few more mystery shopping assignments to keep some spare money coming in even though I don't really have the time anymore. But definitely in a month's time I'm going to give it a miss unless it's only one non food assignment at the weekend. I can't eat any more fast food because I know what it's doing to my insides :eek: There's audio typing overtime at work that I can do at home so I think I'll volunteer for a couple of hours of that for weekend mornings when OH is sleeping.

Talked to OH today about expanding our food stockpile - our local supermarket sent us a voucher as they were doing building work so if we spend £40 we get £8 off. So we're going to do a rejig at the weekend to make some space for more tins/cooking supplies/basics and organise my cooking stuff better so it doesn't all fall out when I take something out.

I'm off tomorrow because I've been doing overtime so I'm going to have some creative time in the morning and then exercise in the afternoon. I got an appointment through from the fertility clinic today - they must have heard me thinking about PhD's :rolleyes: I'm excited but nervous that it will be bad news and put me back in the stressful place I just got out of