The Quest - 2

Lula-Hula

Good morning to all & hope everyone had enjoyable weekends.

Mine seemed to whizz by but I have accomplished a lot. Saturday my sister & I met up with a park warden to confirm the location of the memorial bench for my mum. We're both happy with the location & he remembered our mum which was kind of nice too .

We then went visit my grandmother & took her out for tea which was lovely as the weather was really nice & although she does make sure she goes out for short walk each day if the weather is fine, she wont venture to a cafe or the like unless accompanied. *note to self - try harder to visit more often *

I spent the rest of the afternoon waving the hedgetrimmmers about until I again managed to slice throught the cord - fortunately not until I'd nearly done, but I do now have to repair the cable again so my Dad doesnt notice & then bans me from ever using them again.

DD took her first trip alone to the shop to buy some sweets ( well, I say alone but actually she was being surreptiously shadowed by my friend ) we made a delicious curry for dinner & somehow 3 spots of red wine have appeared on the new floor :eek::( . Never mind, it had to happen at some point :rolleyes:.

Yesterday after a very lazy start because I just couldnt tear myself away from a book - "small world" by Matt Beaumont - read it , it's great we went to the allotment & I atoned for my long absence by doing about 3 hours of weeding & then we escaped with a bag full of beans, potatoes, courgettes, rocket & apples .

I always enjoy myself when I do get there but I still have this nagging feeling that I could grow exactly what we want to eat at home in a much smaller & more easily accesible space :think:. It's that ENTP personality kicking in again

We had a huge fire in the garden in the afternoon to burn all the clippings that have been hanging around in bags for weeks., & I've resolved to do this more regularly & thereby avoid trips to the dump which burns fuel. I've now managed to plant all the cuttings that were given to me & all the garden really needs now before we go away is a good 'lawn' mowing. I use the word lawn loosely. After weeks & weeks of nagging & moaning I finally got DD to sort out her room by saying that the sleepover at Bessfriends would be cancelled :eek:;).

This morning I have dropped DD off at playcamp, removed £200 from the holiday savings fund - going to change it on wednesday - hoovered the entire home, hung the washing out, paid £50 to the 0 % CC & I have just received my card reader form the co op bank . apparently this device allows for greater security when using my online banking. It looks like a little calculator but I should now go & read the instructions. More gadgets that I will never fully understand how to use :rolleyes: but it has reminded me that I do need to alert CC provider of my taking the CC abroad ... :eek: dont panic, it really is for emergency use only. I intend to convert £350 into euros, to try not to spend anymore than that & then have £150 left for when I get back :rotfl:.

Off to play with my new gadget now ...
lula
xx

Lula-Hula

Yes, I have finally got around to updating my sig to reveal the truth :eek: So, to all those who only a short time ago were congratulating me on getting the debt under £5,000 ... you may freely beat me around the head with a wet fish. In my defence; half of the £965 that is on my 0% CC is actually down to helping out DD1 & the remainder [STRIKE]should[/STRIKE]will be cleared by December when the 0% deal runs out. Because of this plan I never intended to include this amount in my debt total however, the fact remains that it is debt :mad: & it is unlikely that I can clear the full amount in time & even if I do then it will be at the expense of overpayments on the other CCs :doh:

Other news is that I have deposited DD at Bessfriends after having finally cut the grass :rolleyes:. That I needed to empty the collecting box 4 times as opposed to the usual once is very telling . What I cant explain, is why the extension lead no longer reaches to the end of the garden .

I've withdrawn another £200 of the holiday fund & will remove the final amount tomorrow morning which will leave my savings acct with a whole 37p in it :rotfl:I intend to now have CB paid into the ISA & then save this towards next year's hol. although I can transfer the funds to my current account, there is no easy cash withdrawal facility so temptation should be avoided.

I will probably use the lloyds acct for saving towards car tax, gas & electricity bills etc. Have just remembered why I wanted to save £700 for my time off work - no wages means no money into the funds . Needless to say, that inspite of having sent a letter to the Powers That Be ( as instructed) saying when I am off work, I have not had a reply :mad: so assume that there is no rent reduction. Funny how quick they are to send a letter out if they feel that they are owed money though :rolleyes:.

I'm going out for a meal tonight so should go polish up those red shoes

bye for now
xx

makeup

Lula-Hula wrote: »

Needless to say, that inspite of having sent a letter to the Powers That Be ( as instructed) saying when I am off work, I have not had a reply :mad: so assume that there is no rent reduction. Funny how quick they are to send a letter out if they feel that they are owed money though :rolleyes:.

I'm going out for a meal tonight so should go polish up those red shoes

bye for now
xx

Hi Lula, sounds like a plan. And don't give yourself too hard a time about the rise in your debts - as you say most of it is helping DD1 out of a hole and that is something you couldn't have expected.

I was just wondering, why would your landlord give you a rent reduction because you are not working? Is there an clause in your tenancy agreement about this?

Do you have a social landlord (eg. Housing Association or Local Authority?) or do you rent privately.

If you are not working and not receiving holiday pay you may be eligible for Housing and Council tax benefit. It is a pain to claim and takes forever to come through but is some extra cash coming in.

However I would have thought you would be entitled to holiday pay even if it is 'rolled up'?

Not long now til you are ensconced on a sun-lounger with a good book in one hand and a cocktail in the other!! :j

[Deleted User]

Hi Lula hun,

I agree with makeup, it's just one of those things and your total hasn't gone up 'that' much just a little bit.

Stop being so hard on yourself and look forward to your much needed holiday.

Tea
xx

Lula-Hula

Tea & makeup bless you both :A

Just a quick entry tonight as I am far too excited to make much sense.

I've just finished my last day of work until 1st September :j. I didnt intend on having such a long time off but since work diminished to a 3 day week & what with the late bank holiday that's just how it has worked out . The clever bit is going to be managing to live on my scrapings until next pay day which is actually going to be a very good challenge for me.

I have the basic components of my new plan but wont declare all until I have worked it all out & done a budget.

As to the possible rent reduction , yes my landlord is social (LA) & since my work hours were reduced I have been entitled to some HB towards the rent. When I had to do the annual form filling in marathon it was then that I was told that as I take unpaid leave, the reduction in my overall income could mean that I get a reduction for that time. It really doesnt matter to me if I dont, I just find it annoying that the relevant department are so slow to respond. I can afford to pay my way & have the skills required to make enquiries & provide all the informatoin required; many people cant pay their way & find it difficult to make the claims for benefits to which they are entitled.

*climbs off soap box, goes to get more wine & also look up the definition of 'quick' * :rolleyes:

makeup

I totally know what you mean Lula. I think you just have to submit everything and then forget about it or it would drive you insane.

A few years ago I had to put in a claim for Statutory Sick Pay. My employer refused to pay it - I didn't even realise I was entitled to it at first !! It took nearly 6 months and many many hours of calls, emails, form filling and was so painful to get the cash - it was about £120 in the end and it got to the point where I didn't care about the money, it was the principal.

And I was thinking the same as you lula, I'm a literate person well used to form-filling and getting what I deserve. A lot of people who have to claim SSP are often on minimum / low wage and they often don't have the skills or time to spend ages fighting with the beaurocrats.

HOORAY FOR SUMMER HOLIDAYS!!!!:j:beer:

Horace

I hate form filling too - my silly council has sent me a form for HB - despite me sending them details of my working tax credits and my NI exemption certificate - now I have to do it all over again:mad: I will have to speak to my accountant to see what she advises. I hate the stupid form as they ask for audited accounts and refer to directorships of companies - I don't think they understand self employment at all (a director is an employee of a company) a self employed person is just that:rolleyes: I am thinking that I shall have to go and hitch my skirt up - up the back of Rackhams:eek:

You have a lovely holiday to look forward to Lula - I only have the new Aldi store opening on 27 August:eek::rotfl:

All I seem to do these days is spend spend spend - Janice Nicholls has nothing on me I can tell you:eek:

Lula-Hula

Hmmmmm it seems to me dear H that the people who have to actually administrate the forms have a collective IQ of about 10 & all the customer service & personal skills of a cockroach. I have actually found one intelligent & mathematically competent lady at my local LA & I always insist on speaking to her & her alone, the rest of them cant even pass on a message .

Keep that silk skirt exactly where it should be, young lady

Shoe_Gal

Lula-Hula wrote: »

Hmmmmm it seems to me dear H that the people who have to actually administrate the forms have a collective IQ of about 10 & all the customer service & personal skills of a cockroach. I have actually found one intelligent & mathematically competent lady at my local LA & I always insist on speaking to her & her alone, the rest of them cant even pass on a message .

Keep that silk skirt exactly where it should be, young lady

Happy Hols Lula :j You've earnt it hun - and don't worry about the small debt increase - you have to have a life too

Lula-Hula

Shoe_Gal wrote: »

Happy Hols Lula :j You've earnt it hun - and don't worry about the small debt increase - you have to have a life too

Thanks sweetie, knew I could count on you for support I reckon you've been watching a bit of footie tonight ?