Taking my finger off the self-destruct button

EssexHebridean

Absolutely the right decision with the cottage - well done you for making it! :T Never mind the toilet - the additional warmth and security will be worth the rent alone, and, as you said, the rent is extremely reasonable.

Looking at your list of achievements from your first post this month, it appears that you have done better than you are giving yourself credit for? Debts paid off, a decision made and working well regarding the office space, and you're off Choklit! :eek:

Wordsmith

Thank you for kind words. I’m sure come mid winter I will be happy to be in the cottage, but at the moment all I can think about is the cost. Nice future landlady doesn’t want a deposit, though, so that’s a big plus.



Pluses

• Did a survey today and earned 75c. I now have in my account €30.75, which is great. Unfortunately you can’t take it as cash, but one of the rewards is for Amazon vouchers. Useful for presents though. And, um, books. You know, if I needed any for research or anything.:o
• Got a fair amount of work on over the next few weeks (bye bye day off).
• Have started a book swap at the shop. This is for the good of the community, of course. Not once has it crossed my mind, until this very second, that I might be able to borrow the odd one or two myself. When I say started, I mean today. We needed some books to start us off, so I had a look on my shelves, got two big boxes and one little box ready – the little one for the books I wanted to keep, the two big ones for the ones I was going to give to the swap. I rapidly filled the little box and so transferred to the big box ... several times. So now I have two big boxes of books in the back of my car and a measly number of books on the shelves to start the swap – and if someone doesn’t come and swap them soon about half of them will find their way back into the boxes in my car. Other people have offered to donate books and I am going to have to be very strong and not just “borrow” them all, leaving about five on the shelf for swapsies.
• On the subject of being strong, this evening I was so, so strong. A farmer came in about seven weeks ago and said his dog was due to have puppies. He asked if I wanted one in which case he would keep one for me but gas the rest. :eek::eek::eek: I persuaded him to let the mother rear them and arranged for a lovely lady I know to collect them when they were old enough. She has connections with a rescue organisation in Wales (http://manytearsrescue.webs.com) and they will be sent over there. There are three pups – mum is a golden Labrador and dad is a red setter (let’s hope they have the brain of the Lab!) and they are beyond gorgeous. Way, way beyond. They’ll probably be on the web site in a few weeks. Anyway, guess how I was strong. Go on, guess! All right, I’ll tell you. All three puppies are in the back of lovely lady’s van, and not one of them is in my office. However, I have to say that my strength largely came from imagining favoured friend’s reaction if I turned up at his house with a puppy.

Unpluses

• Still not got money back from hire car company. :mad: And just in case you were wondering, it is Alamo (now part of Europcar, I believe). I have sent emails and made a number of phone calls about this. Today, at last, they realised that I wanted my money back. Yes, unbelievable as it sounds, somehow I didn’t make it clear to them that as I had paid for a car I didn’t use, I wanted my credit card to be reimbursed. Silly me! Questions like “When are you going to put the money back on my credit card?” and “Why has it taken so long for you to put the money back on my credit card?” and “Why is it taking so long to resolve this matter?” didn’t alert them to the fact that I WANT MY MONEY BACK. Now they realise, it will take another seven days before it is refunded. It took less than seven seconds for them to take it from me in the first place – 28 days ago.
• Did a second survey, which refused to give me a Next button 65% of the way through, so I can’t claim on it. Grrrr. This has happened to me on a survey I did a while ago for the same company. Which, incidentally, just like Alamo and Onepoll, isn’t bothering to reply to my emails of complaint.
• Favoured friend has not got a job yet. At the end of this month he isn’t going to have a house either. So he will probably move into my rental for a month until he sorts himself out, but as he’s had half a century to sort himself out and hasn’t managed it yet, it doesn’t bode well.

So, that’s my quick update.:o

I was in the shop all day, partly working on my editing job (but not nearly as hard as I should have been) and partly handing out pensions. The post office bit hasn’t worked out too bad. The pensions are OK, but handing over some (note the “some” – I know there are a lot of genuine people who have no choice) of the benefits has been a struggle. Had arguments with a couple of Irish mammies at the beginning because they couldn’t understand why I wouldn’t give them their sons’ Jobseekers’ benefits. Why couldn’t they collect it themselves? Because they were at work. And then there are a few people who come really early or really late, outside office hours, because they can only collect their unemployment benefit on their way to work or on their way back. I also had an argument with a woman because I wouldn’t let her forge her partner's signature. This is a long story ... which I had made shorter but then deleted altogether ... suffice to say that these two fully employed people admitted that the €13,000 odd they got each year was not exactly above board. Jaysus! When I think about how many hours I have to work to earn this much ... However, at least I can rest easy when I go to sleep at night (when I’m not worrying about the bills, that is). And of course not everybody is on the fiddle. Not everybody. Still, it’s not my business. Not at all. The pensioners are getting worried because the rumour has it that pensions are going to be cut in the next budget. :mad: I really don’t know how some poor souls will manage, and how they will keep warm if the winter is as cold as is predicted.

Must do better

Normally I pretty much get on with my work. This week I have been all over the place – I just seem to have lost heart. So, I have to concentrate on making every minute count. I have so much to do that I can’t afford to slacken. I really don’t know why this has happened. At least I am still on the straight and narrow as far as money and chocolate are concerned. Lack of time and not making use of the time I have are my biggest enemies right now. Well, after myself that is, but that's a given.

beanielou

Take care of yourself.

Wordsmith

Am working in the shop today. No customers yet, the lazy lot. Last few days:

Pluses:

• Did a €2 survey.
• Paid weekly amount towards repaying loan from friend.
• Transferred money from business account to personal account so that DD for credit card will go through on Monday.
• Got my new debit card so I can put some cash in the bank on Monday.
• Get to read the papers for free because I’m in the shop – I see it as a necessary part of my job, so that I can converse with customers about the hot topics of the day. Although mentioning the weather (or at least agreeing with whatever the customer says), running down the government or damning the bankers will see you through 95% of conversations.

Unpluses:

• £106 less than normal from letting agent because of a boiler repair, which reminds me ...
• Still got to find a way of paying for new boiler.:(
• Dad physically getting better, but mentally not great and he’s lost a stone in weight in the last month or so.
• Still no email from car hire company or credit into my now over-limit credit card.:mad:
• Got reminder from storage company that I owe them for an invoice. Had to transfer money from business account to UK account so that I can pay this next week.

Drive in was lovely today. Hardly any other traffic on the road. It was dark when I started out, but light by the time I got here. It wasn’t raining (always a cause of celebration in Ireland) and the mist was just settling in the valleys. I started out at the seaside, drove mostly down country lanes and past a lake. Beautiful.
Blast - a customer. Gotta go.

Wordsmith

Our book swap has been going for less than a week, but it has really taken on a life of its own. We’ve already had a number of donations of books and already have a couple of hundred. Lots of people have said they will be bringing in books, and a few people have been in to do some swapsies (one 84 year old lady – another of our favourite elderly residents – said that people kindly keep giving her books, but they are always rather tame and so she came in and picked up a couple with a bit more “spice”!). I don’t think I am going to have to buy a book for a long time. Mental note to self: this is not my personal library and I must allow other people to take books. It has become a real talking point for customers coming in and I’ve had lots of conversations with people about reading, favourite authors and so on. It's been lovely.



Pluses

• Book swap means I needn’t buy a book for ages (although for some time now I have limited myself to buying only when I go to the airport).
• Big invoice to customer got paid into my bank account today, when I thought it would be at least another three weeks. :j I can’t stop looking at my balance as it has never been that big before. It will soon all be going on my tax and VAT bills, but for once I have it to pay them – or at least go towards them. (Unplus: haven't yet sorted out my accounts for last year.)
• Favoured friend has got a couple of interviews lined up. Both in the UK unfortunately. But even though it means he will leave I hope he gets one of the jobs.
• Got a new proofreading job in. Now I have to find time to do it.

Unpluses

• Still have not got refund from Alamo. :mad: What is wrong with that company? If it’s not there tomorrow, I have quite a head of steam built up and will phone them again.
• Short fuse client has got a VAT audit coming up, and the year end accounts on one of the businesses are causing some problems for the auditors, so I have to go in to tomorrow so we can do some work on it all. He is going to be majorly stressed and will majorly take it out on me. Somewhere along the way I am going to have to shoulder some of the blame so my confidence is also going to get a battering. I am so not looking forward to that meeting. I usually quite like Thursdays, but not tomorrow – and I had to do quite a bit of shuffling round to be able to get to see him (not that he will be grateful, although I suppose why should he?). I haven’t had this much sense of foreboding about work for a long time. I do tend to lurch from crisis to crisis, but I have lot on my plate right now and this has tipped me over the edge a bit, particularly since I am behind with the shop accounts as well. As for my own accounts ...
• Have to work late tonight. Got to finish editing job and then do some preparation for tomorrow’s meeting.

There was a bit on the radio news today about a man who has taken his driving test 16 times and not yet passed and this was considered to be some kind of record. Well, they obviously haven’t heard about our Paddy as we reckon he must have taken his test at least 25 times. He still comes into the shop every day, sometimes more than once, and has a bit of a chat with whoever is serving. It’s such a shame for society that village and corner shops cannot keep going – they are about so much more than buying a pint of milk.

Wordsmith

Today turning out not to be good. One of the other ladies in the shop has had to rush off because her sister has been taken into hospital. Other lady coming in to cover but has to go later to go to her other job. Lovely boss man has to stay at work because there is a big announcement about redundancies. I am doing pensions, but later will have to do pensions, serve in shop and somehow find time to prepare for meeting. :eek: Something is going to have to give and it will have to be prep - for me the most important thing today but the one I am least able to do. And I have to put off a private teaching session this evening because of having to go to stressful meeting. No one's fault, of course. This is not of interest to anyone and nobody can do anything, but I needed to do some fast typing to let out frustrations!

Oh, and Alamo still haven't bloody well refunded my credit card. Am now fuming, but won't have time today to phone them.

Ah well, deep breath and crack on.

Wordsmith

I have a need to type fast – really, really, really fast.

Alamo – after another email and another phone call from me – have at last responded and said that they will refund my money ... “sorry for any inconvenience caused” ... “could take ten days”. I typed (very fast) an email to them asking, for the third time, for the name of their director of customer services so that I can lodge a formal complaint.

I should be glad, I suppose ... I have had a very stressful couple of days and it is useful to have someone I feel I can legitimately vent my frustration on.

And it is hammering down with rain here.


Pluses

• I am counting my blessings, of which there are many, but have nothing of note to put here.
• Just thought of one! Short fuse client wasn’t in the happiest frame of mind yesterday and spent a lot of time swearing, but at least it was aimed at the accountants and the Revenue and not at me. I am trying to look on the bright side of this, but it is difficult as I have to go in again on Monday and he may choose a new target – that would be me, then. Still, it is a bank holiday here so hopefully he will be rushed off his feet with cooking and won’t bother me too much. What hope?

Unpluses

• Incompetent car companies. (There is only the one specific company, but I have never been shy of magnifying a problem should the opportunity arise.)
• Busy, busy, busy. Oh, I forgot - this is a good thing. Ah, well, typed here now – can’t be bothered to cut and paste.
• Favoured friend “forgot” that he was supposed to move out of his house on the day that he is due to come back from UK. There is a slight matter of who is going to pack, and move stuff and clean house from top to toe (well, side to side – it’s a one storey) to enable this to happen. “Plenty of time” he said airily and then told me he’s got three days’ work, which neatly slot into the time between now and when he flies out. I’m glad about the work, of course, but just couldn’t resist making mumblings about how he’s been home for four weeks with sod all to do and perhaps a little bit of preparation wouldn’t have come amiss.
• Lovely boss man is very down in the dumps as the firm he works for is getting rid of over a hundred people and those that do stay on will be working in very different conditions. If he does get made redundant he is likely to want to throw himself into the business. Thing is, the business can only just afford the three staff as it is, so if he is taking a wage out of it, it won’t be able to afford the three staff, of which I, of course am one. It is early days yet and he doesn’t know what is going to happen, so I have had to refrain from crying “But what about me? What about me?”, as I don’t think this will help the situation much.

Methinks I am coming across as a tad grumpy today. Is this what happens when you give up chocolate?


I can stop typing now as I can feel blood pressure return to normal. And relax ...

ani_26

I hope you don't mind me saying hi, as i have been reading your diary. I think it was a good idea to take the cottage too, i'm glad you have somewhere. I have considered living in a caravan myself, even a tent, if needs be. Not a brilliant option, but better than nothing.

Hugs Nohope xx

poorbutrich

Wordsmith wrote: »

Alamo – after another email and another phone call from me – have at last responded and said that they will refund my money ... “sorry for any inconvenience caused” ... “could take ten days”. I typed (very fast) an email to them asking, for the third time, for the name of their director of customer services so that I can lodge a formal complaint.
..

I don't know if this will make you feel better, but I needed to book a hire car for this week's work trip and have avoided Alamo as a result of your problems.

Hope you're staying dry....

Wordsmith

Am at the shop today. I’m in the office while lovely boss man is serving in the shop and the other two ladies, who don’t normally work on a Sunday and are more artistic and more maternal than I am, are doing face painting for Halloween. The dog is going demented listening to all the hilarity in the room next door while being stuck in here with me and Brian.

I have just spotted that Brian has peed on a pile of invoices, so they are lined up along the window sill in the hope that they will dry out before anyone else notices. He’s normally very clean so I don’t know why he’s done that – maybe it’s in protest to the screeching kids next door. To be honest, they have a similar effect on me.;)

Pluses

• My lovely Dad transferred some money into my bank account (and to my sister’s).
• Haven’t done any private teaching for ages, but last week, without even advertising, I had three people for lessons. So that was an extra €40.
• Alamo at last paid up, but ...

Unpluses

• ... it was nearly €11 less than they took out of the account. I have written to complain, and again asked for the name of the director in charge of customer services. I have had no reply to the email. :mad: I expect they will blame the difference in the amounts on exchange rates, but they took the money in error and so I expect to get the same amount back.
• I bought an energy drink the other day. I hardly ever buy drinks but I have had no energy over the last few days. I tried a banana, but that didn’t work. Nor did the energy drink, but I thought it was worth a try. Cost me €1.55. Hurrumph.
• Quote for boiler is £4,200. :eek: We are waiting (with bated breath) for the second quote.
• Paid electrician for security light. It was €60, but it is money well spent in my opinion.

I don’t understand all this Halloween business. Of course, it could be just that I am an unsociable, frosty, party pooper. Who, me? Surely not. I particularly don’t understand Halloween celebrations in a largely Catholic country like Ireland. How does that equate? As for trick or treat, I see it as teaching children that they can demand goodies from strangers and if they don’t get them they can be menacing. Frosty party pooper, indeed – who could think that? On the other hand, I have been shut away in the office – boss even put a black plastic bag over the post office hatch in the door. I thought it was for my privacy, but maybe he thinks it safer if I am hidden from them? Nah. He wouldn’t. Would he?

Brian is biting my fingers as I try to type. He is becoming less sweet and appealing as the day goes on.

We had a Pink Friday in the shop. One of the other ladies – who is not only more artistic and maternal than I am, but is also a domestic goddess (in my defence, I am better than her at, um, at ... weeeellll, I’ll get back to you on that, but it will eclipse artistic, maternal and domestic goddess, let me tell you) – made little buns with pink icing, which we gave away with a tea or coffee in return for a donation to the tin. She also made a heart-shaped cake covered with pink butter icing and almonds for the raffle. We raised €130, so we were well pleased. I am thinking of introducing a Wordsmith’s Wednesday to boost my funds, but have yet to convince domestic goddesses (yes, they both are) that this is a worthy cause for them to get involved in.

I have the key to my new home. I haven’t had time to go to see it again. I’ve been moving stuff out of favoured friend’s house and into my offce so that I am not cluttering the cottage up, and will move boxes there one at a time so I can sort them out and get rid of the rubbish. If I look at one box at a time, I might not get overwhelmed by it all. I don’t even know what’s in some of the boxes, so I am tempted to just take them wholesale to the tip - except I would have to pay for that. I am now quite looking forward to moving into the cottage. Favoured friend will stay there for a while. In lots of ways I wish that I was moving on my own – I will miss him when he goes so it would be nice to get all the upheaval out of the way in one go. He has, however, given me a roof for quite some time so it would be churlish not to return the favour.