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

cw18

Wow! SM kept quiet about her trip 'up norf'' !! I can see I'll have to pay her another visit and get all the news from her in person


My 'teenager' will be 18 in July - and is about to finish his first year in college, so I've got him here until at least the middle of next year. He's always talked about Uni, but I'm not sure if it will be one close enough to live at home (I imagine this is more than likely if he can get a course he fancies locally), or one when he only comes home [strike]when he wants his washing done[/strike] for the holidays


Well, I've been out and bought my smaller/lighter/cheaper electric mower (and new strimmer). Just taking a break after doing the three patches of lawn out front before tackling the largest one (out back). It's definitley lighter than the one in the garage, and the loss of swivel wheels is also a huuuuuge benefit :T My only niggles would be it doesn't cut out when the grass box is full (all previous mowers have), so I suddenly find I'm leaving a trail of clippings, and they've not actually balanced it properly. If it's facing any direction other than down-hill when you let go, then if it's got the wire wound round the handle and/or a half full grass box the things tips over (like a buggy with shopping on the handles when the child clambers out :rolleyes2 )

I can still feel it in my back, but not as badly - so with a bit of luck it'll start to improve if I do it regularly (which would mean exercising/strengthening the same muscle group)

Off to make a brew and mow the back lawn - then I think I'm going to put the old one up on Freecycle. It would possibly go on eBay for a few quid, but it would have to be someone local and I don't actually like selling second hand electrical gadgets in case the buyer comes back complaining it doesn't work properly :eek:


The new strimmer's not bad either - another definite improvement purely due to the different handle positions (and lighter tap to feed the wire)

cw18

sophiesmum wrote: »

Hope OH didn't talk you to death (cw has had a taste of that:rotfl::rotfl:)

:rotfl: but I give as good as I get

lingojingo

Just got my dual fuel bill online, having entered my readings this morning - they are reducing my monthly dd by £19!!!!! and refunding £92 :j
I'm over the moon - couldn't have done it without all the support and encouragement on here, so thank you all :T

sophiesmum_2

lingojingo wrote: »

Just got my dual fuel bill online, having entered my readings this morning - they are reducing my monthly dd by £19!!!!! and refunding £92 :j
I'm over the moon - couldn't have done it without all the support and encouragement on here, so thank you all :T

:T:TGood result lingojingo:D

savingfortravel

Hi Everyone!!
CW-Well done on the lawnmower solution. Great financial sense and I wouldn't have expected anything less from you.
Nyk/SM-Sounds like a wonderful morning together. Wish I lived closer to you guys. I'm in the South East and I think BB in Brighton is closest.
I would love to see what you've achieved Nyk and of course all the beautiful countrryside around you. Great to hear about the birds nesting, esp Wrens, one of my favourites.
Congrats Lingojingo on the fuel saving. That's great news and I agree with the money saving through this thread (and forum) as well as the community spirit.

Well yesterday we just lacked the energy for our walk so popped round to see my sister. Ended up staying for a delicious dinner/great wine. She is going to sell me her paper brick maker (I'm sure it has a posh name, I'm just not sure what it is) for £5 so that will help when/if we get the cottage.
Today I've tackled more school work...felt a bit gloomy on a day like this. Back tomorrow. Children back Tuesday. Then late this afternoon we went to a bluebell wood. Thought we'd be too early and I wanted to spot the wood anenomes but the bluebells were already out in higher spots..just carpets of them and walking around on such a beautiful evening was just bliss and my mood lifted tremendously.

Must try and get out on brighter evenings, especially in the countryside.

Ebaying is going well. Sold some sandals (I just couldn't get on with) and 2 more dresses are being bid on. Hoping to use the money towards a new bed for the cottage.

Hope everyone had a lovely weekend.

Bails....Any News???????????????

SFT

Blairweech

Hi folks :wave:

Hope you are all well and happy etc

I have had a lovely weekend, went to Lydford Gorge on Sunday with frugal beau, was a really fantastic walk and a beautiful day. Saturday I went to F0cus, to buy a new washing line (I checked mine, and one of the struts had snapped ) and some bits for the garden.

However, it was quite an expensive weekend. National Trust membership is only £21 for the year (as I am under 26), which I think is really cheap and I am very tempted by. However, frugal beau is going to be working weekends during the summer and I work weekdays, so I would not have anyone to go with...
The price of the snacks there was astronomical! :eek: <

---

My face. £2.50 for a slice of millionaires shortbread (the clue is in the name, obviously). Next time, we will take a picnic, definantly.

Other than that, not much is happening with me. I am feeling unmotivated atm for some reason, think it is because I really want to be outside enjoying the weather.

andromache_2

Hi all! I've been reading but not posting as I've spent the week doing precisely nothing in the company of my textbooks so have had very little to report :rolleyes: On the plus side, I spent exactly £0.00 last week, so that's a little plus

Anyway, it was really lovely to hear from you, Janey, though I'm sorry things are so difficult at the moment. My OH's granny is going through something similar to your mum and it's so difficult. I love that you're approaching things with your characteristic good humour and I'm really hoping that things get easier - hopefully having your sister in the UK will be a help? Nice to see old faces like jumble-bee and mumzy as well

Is that the first time you've called him 'HS/OH' rather than the somewhat coyer 'HS', nyk? Glad things are going well for you, and I'm glad things are going well for you are your 'frugal beau', Blairweech. Loved hearing about the meet with sophiesmum as well.

Back to the revision books then :rolleyes: I'm feeling SO demotivated at the moment and it feels like I'm struggling through it far too slowly. Getting rather scared that I'm going to mess them up. Oh dear. Hope everyone has a nice Monday

cw18

Not much happening here to report.....

My new "baby" (craft gadget) arrived on Friday morning, but all I've done so far is play with the software for a few hours..... the machine is still to come out of the box !! I want to sort a good clean area for it first, as it relies on a sticky mat..... so getting it covered in dust and dog hairs on it's first outing wouldn't be a good move :eek:

Plus I promised myself I'd do some serious dejunking while I had 2 weeks without my GDs - but have done very little :eek:

However, today is a teacher inset day, so I've promised myself 5-10 mins on the laptop for every 30-60 mins I spend clearing out. My car is now full of stuff to take to the tip (cardboard for recycling, and serious junk that no-one in their right mind would want), and the old lawn mower goes to a new home tonight.......

Went to put the mower on Freecycle last night, but scanned the last couple of pages of ads before posting it -- and there was a (repeated) request for one from a young couple who've just got their first garden, but are saving for their wedding in September. Dropped them an email, and the lass got back to me within a couple of hours -- she was sooooo excited to get one too :T

To date I've used Freecycle to offload a tumble dryer, a chest freezer and this lawn mower, and have requested (and got) a push pike for my younger GD and taken a couple of jigsaws - plus I've posted a wanted notice today for a bookcase.

At the moment the books I've got for my GDs are in boxes or on the floor, so I'd love to get proper storage for them - but I could afford what I want if I have to, so actually feel a bit of fraud for asking

Brighton_belle

cw - I've never seen freecycle as only to be used by those with no money/ who can't afford to buy. Freecycle is about breaking the cycle of things ending in landfill and us buying new all the time. It is quite legit to ask for things you can technically afford to buy new - freecycle s about helping us avoid automatically buying new. And you've given plenty away. I mean, technically the couple saving for a wedding have the money therefore to buy a lawn mower, but they are choosing to spend it on the luxury of a big wedding. And very sensible of them too.

Great to hear of the sm/nyk meet:j.

Had great fun yesterday selling cakes for the NT: made them £500 ish:D. All home made cakes by volunteers going for £1 a slice BW - but the site I was at is a very low key sort of place, not an official shop. As someone who has never eaten cake becasue I just don't like sponge, it is great fun selling them becasue you make people so happy. I think I'd like to work in a cake shop:D. At which point sf can bring me down to earth and tell me that actually, working in a bakery is very hard work.

Not much to report in frugal land at the mo. I'm putting a lot of my time and energy at the mo into maximising my health and feel very optimistic about the next 6 months but my mind is more focused there at the mo. I'm also adjusting to a new way of life with OH now at work 5 days a week for the first time since we have lived together. Getting a little slack at times of keeping up the cash book so have given myself a good talking to on that front. Otherwise, everything ticking over now that my accounts are set up properly. Spending a little more on food than I was but eating more protein less carbs is helping me lose weight (5lbs in last month) while still eating plenty and healthily.
I'm not posting uite as much but am reading every day and love everyone's news.

thriftylass

nykmedia wrote: »

:eek::eek::eek: Cover your [STRIKE]ears[/STRIKE] eyes Silkiechick, she's only pretending!:rotfl:The hybrids are just for eggs but the purebred ones will hopefully help make a bit of cash to help pay for the upkeep of the others. I'm a complete and utter woose and could never kill any pet-reared stock for the table. I could rear it for market/someone else to kill but even that, HS/OH wouldn't hear of such a thing, so it isn't worth the hassle.

Sorry, I wasn't sure. Hope they didn't hear that or the next bit :rotfl:. I just assumed because when I was wee my uncle kept chicken and rabbits and we ate them. Although they were really cute I knew they were food and I watched him butcher them and then helped my aunt to cook them. Not sure if I could still do that though