Live on £4000 for a Year, 2009 Challenge, part 2

bails

I'm hankering after the country cottage too Nyk but am still holding out for the real thing....got to think positive and all that eh? SFTs is beautiful and very inspiring - in fact I may see if I can squirrel some more money into the Dream Pot from somewhere once I've finished this post

Lovely to see a long post from you Whitewing! Hope talking about spending is enough for you, unless it's something you really want. Freecycle here often has dishwashers too so definitely keep your eye out. We actually got ours from the free ads as we needed a slimline one but it was cheap and has been a godsend. I've been giving it a lot of thought recently and I'm definitely from the 'quality of life' camp - I'm serious about making my money work as hard for me as possible and also enjoying life to the max. Unlike Nyk and others who are reducing their outgoings to reduce their earning requirements, which I salute completely, ultimately the job I love doing will pay well (how well depends on how much I can/want to work of course) so my plan is to weigh up how I can use that money wisely enough to give me the best quality of life. Does that make sense? So if, for example, using some salary paying a cleaner leaves me time to spend with family/friends/my animals then I'm doing it! I think I'm very lucky to have a career I love where I get money and job satisfaction. I'm looking forward to finding a balance that works for our family :j

On my dog walk this morning I met a couple of women out riding - now there's another ambition right there, although how I'll ever afford a horse is a mystery right now...I like a good challenge though!

I feel like I'm having the summer of dreams at the mo - a very special time indeed which I fully intend to make the most of :j After our amazing weekend we're now getting ready to head off to Glastonbury tomorrow - we're packing lots of food but the culinary diversity is part of the Festival so I will be taking some money to indulge in some yummy vegetarian delights (and a few ciders no doubt ). With my financial goals still firmly in mind, I am also appreciating every day of freedom I now find myself with and am living life to the full! I am so happy!

Right, off to hang the washing out and then off for a swim, after increasing the Dream Pot of course . Have a wonderful day everyone, you deserve it xx

ps just saw your post CW - sympathise entirely with you, the system is so flawed when it comes to helping people who are trying to help themselves, I just don't get it

whitewing

Goodness me, bails. your bubbliness is making me smile. Obviously the happiness is catching. Have a great time at Glastonbury.

bails

Yae, I'm glad Whitewing! Hope you have a lovely day x (Dream Pot now increased - cob house here we come:j)

cw18

nykmedia wrote: »

How do you know? (Paranoia sets in - please don't tell me you're my bank manager :eek: I don't NEED a loan, how often do I need to tell you? :rotfl:)

just spotted this bit you added -- OK, so I don't "know" know, but from what you say I kind of gathered you have a lot less "spare" money than I do for saving (or spending on stuff not included within the challenge)

PS: I could be a secret millionaire just doing this challenge to find out who is most deserving of my spare cash that I have to burn. :rotfl::rotfl:

what a lovely thought

Frugaldom

I wish I was a secret millionaire, but then again, if it was a secret I wouldn't be able to spend for fear of the truth being discovered. Hmm... in that case, all of us here can be secret millionaires if that's what we want. That's so in keeping with my trainee eccentric status that I think I'll attain to that, too I blame Bails, her exceptionally cheery disposition is highly contageous.

I've been into town to pick up bread & milk plus some of the Aldi 49p fruit and also went to the hardwear store to get some garden canes as extra support for the peas that all got blown down. I think I'm turning into a 'pea head' as I'm going to plant loads more into tubs so I can keep them out of reach of my feathered friends. Apparently I'm safe for planting right into July, so a pea-planting I go, just as soon as I've had my coffee and whoopsied snowball cake

CW, en route home, HS and I concocted a plan for your future, hope you don't mind. We counted the cars on the road that passes the weird wooden chalet atop old smithy house... will reveal the finer details as soon as I get back to the computer.

cw18

Ooooo.... totally intrigued Must admit that of the houses (as opposed to businesses) I've spotted, that one is still my firm favourite too

cw18

nykmedia wrote: »

Hmm... in that case, all of us here can be secret millionaires if that's what we want

But we ARE all secret millionaires.....

We have each other for support through this challenge, and that's worth much more than the money to allow us total freedom of spending (in my eyes anyway) :beer:

patchwork_cat

Our tomato still has no flowers, the one that did have was decapitated by my DS whilst cutting the grass. Grrr. We don't have any flowers on our chillies or peppers, does everyone else?

Vixstar

Finally had a bit of time to start thinking about my 101 in 1001 list and its really inspiring me and challenging me too. Would it be a bit optimistic to add tasks that are related to an abode I haven't even bought yet (but will hopefully have got by the end of the 1001 (actually I'd like it a bit sooner than the end of the 1001 days as it would definitely help me have what I consider a slightly more normal life))?
Unfortunately haven't really got much on topic to discuss except for the fact that I need to sit myself down and have a little chat with myself about my clothes spending habit. And I need to work out more ways to make this year's holiday cash neutral.

lingojingo

patchwork_cat wrote: »

Our tomato still has no flowers, the one that did have was decapitated by my DS whilst cutting the grass. Grrr. We don't have any flowers on our chillies or peppers, does everyone else?

tomatoes have had flowers for a few days, and just spotted 2 tiny flowers on peppers and the first buds on spuds :rotfl: