Incoherent Ramblings of a 40 year old...! My diary, my words.. 29 June 2009 at 12:18PM in Debt free diaries 51 replies 2.2K views

TIME2GROWUP_2

:hello:Ok, now where to start... I am yet another DFW.. I have been lurking around the world of mse for a while now, have poked my nose into many a diary and joined some challenges. I have done my SOA and will post it at some point.
I am in LOTS of debt... but have taken my head out of the sand and am now in the right place in every sense of the word to deal with it.

I am going to give myself 6 months 1 July - 31 December to reduce my total by 10%... that's approx £3500...!!! (that's the 10% not the total debt figure..) :eek: Assuming I achieve this (which of course I will.. ) I am then on a mission to beat my current DF date which is 2015... If I don't then I shall re-consider my options such as DMP etc.. I spent it, I shall repay it.. ALL of it..

So my own personal challenge -

• DO NOT USE CREDIT CARDS
• RAISE ADDITIONAL £200 + to throw at CC (haven't decided which one get's it yet, I know it should be highest APR but I may choose the largest balance)
• Succeed in targets for NSD and AFD challenges.

Keep checking the boards for more ideas....!

I am lucky that I am able to earn overtime at work, I also dabble with Ebay/surveys and do competitions to win treats and things to sell. I have a good credit record, no missed payments, CCJ's etc, but I can't keep running.. its TIME2GROWUP....

debt.b.gone

Hi there and welcome.

10% seems like a good goal to start with. If you are anything like me it is suprising how much money gets wasted a month so who knows maybe you will suprise yourself and pay even more off!!

I have subscribed to your diary now so will be checking in and seeing how you are getting on.
Good luck. :j

TIME2GROWUP_2

Hello debt.b.gone,

Thanks for you support, funnily enough I read through your diary today... you are doing fantastically well at cracking through your debts, don't think I can keep up at the rate your going, I wish you well on your journey as well. Lovely bunch of people on this site, the fact that we are singing from the same songsheet probably helps...

I shall subscribe to yours now, maybe I can steal some of your ideas when your not looking...!:rotfl:

Off to do DD's tea and fill in my overtime sheets to make sure I get paid it in July...

TIME2GROWUP_2

Right Jobs for tomorrow -

Post HSBC letter
Finish Tax Credit Form and post
Complete Overtime sheets
Check Joint account - any savings to be made?
Make a good start on outstanding work project
Find Ebay stuff and list 3 items

That will do for starters...

ClootiesMum

I love incoherent ramblings - if I can work out how to, I will subscribe....

Good luck

CM

Lemon_Tree

hi and welcome to the boards, i'm sure you'll achieve your 10% as you sound so determined, when you post your SOA there'll be lots of good folk around to try and help you.

TIME2GROWUP_2

Right I'm in a pink mood today, and that's without going in the sunshine...!

Today...i've

Post HSBC letter - done
Finish Tax Credit Form and post - done
Complete Overtime sheets - done.. and signed off...
Check Joint account - any savings to be made? - done, but no change
Make a good start on outstanding work project - not done..again.. its too hot... although I have sorted some photo's out.. so its a start..! still not done...
Find Ebay stuff and list 3 items - 5 items listed.... took ages...

So I almost set out what I wanted to achieve and there's plenty of hours left in the day, if I don't turn into a sweaty puddle between now and bedtime....!

The bills are slowly dribbling in for the month, I won't be updating my sig until the next bills arrive as I will have to see what 'natural' reduction occurs from the minimum payments that I make and the amount of horrid...:mad: interest that gets added... still slowly, slowly, catchy monkey... hoping to have a little extra to chuck there way and despite birthdays.. lots of them.. (not all mine...!) hope to not use cards AT ALL... next month I'll get the overtime and mileage i've put in for.. I also have my own birthday... my treat ... chuck the cash at the CC....:T

Major achievements for me.. used cash to pay for petrol and new school uniform.... very strange.. would always have been card previously without a thought about how much it's really costing me...:D

Tasks for this week -29/06 - 3/07

get moving on work project
complete at least 2 overtime visits - only 1 done this week
sort items for ebay - minimum 5 - 10 items listed
daily entry competitions - 20-100 daily.. time allowing..slow progress
do meal plan from freezer for 3 -10 July - done
pay £1 a day money into bank for cc payment - done
sort childcare - summer holidays - in progress - done
purchase DD's b.day presents....... ouch...well at least order the one's online that I required...! - partially done

no doubt i shall think of more and be back later...

TIME2GROWUP_2

Hurrah its July, new month.. time to get started....

First overtime visit for the month done... despite the heat.:j
Other than above not very productive so far today.. this forum keeps slowing me down.... its too interesting...!

Ebay items doing nothing.. i'm so impatient that's probably why me & ebay don't get on very well...;)

Have sorted 4 out of the 30 school holiday days.. aaahhhh....

Ordered 3 presents for DD using Debit card not Credit... well done me...

Meal plan.. hummm... well friday Oh is cooking so that will be a takeaway then.. which he also pays for... Saturday think i'll do homemade pizza's i have all the ingredients for that...so just the rest of that week to sort.. will come back to that one later..

Few comps entered last night, will aim to do at least 50 this evening, instead of watching the mindless drivel on tv...

Right off to peel potatoes and then collect DD from school..

TIME2GROWUP_2

:eek: I'm melting.. gave in and bought a fan today...not very mse I know, but its been one of those days... also had to buy batteries so not a NSD for me, and tomorrow i'll be doing a food shop so that rules out the first 3 days of July.. Hopefully next week will be better..

Have achieved... childcare for school holidays.. fingers crossed all sorted. :T

I have also done meal plan for next week, mainly from freezer, still eating our way through my food order from the 20th May.. I started doing a very big shop.. £200 ish with small top up shops each friday, my thinking originally was it would last 4 weeks, well the first time I did it, it lasted 7 weeks and this one's still going.. i've got enough food to last at least another 2 weeks... so just top up shops still then.. not sure if this is cash wise, but have saved all the top up shop receipts since 20 May so will tot it all up when I place next order...certainly stops me popping into the supermarket so regularly and spending £20 when i've only gone in for one item.. :rolleyes:

I feed different quantity of people each day sometimes 2/3 or 4.. DD has her own meal as she's really fussy... so from Friday, OH in charge of TA, saturday homemade pizza, Monday homemade taco's (weightwatchers recipe) and Thursday sausage, egg and chips... the other days I eat leftovers out of the freezer or bulk cook and freezer more leftovers.. endless meals.......:D

Did some comps last night, need to win something, haven't had a win since May as I slowed off doing them, although received a prize from a March win so didn't feel too left out...! Maybe tomorrow, I plan a tv night tonight...

So no movement on the 10% front yet, but i'm building up to it slowly... I think I won't see any results until August so I shall just ramble until then.....no overtime today, too hot for extra work.. now where's that fan gone...... oh funny that, DD's got control of it..:rotfl:

TIME2GROWUP_2

Hurrah its nearly the weekend and its cooler today.... double joy... not that i don't love the sun, but like everyone else its hard to work in so hope to achieve something today.. anything... :j

ok. have transferred £1.88 from otherwise empty savings account and £0.52 the odd amount sitting in my girls weekend fund, which I still pay into as a girls got have some sort of life.... and have transferred that - £2.40 into bank account and am going to pay in my £31 from £1 a day into bank and have done online payment to include minimum payment of £69 - total £102.40 off My NW mastercard.. this is the one i've decided to hit, as its got a reasonably high interest rate.. 21 apr ish.. and I don't like it...:rotfl:As its current balance stands at £3050 it fits quite nicely with my 10% goal.. ish.... so that's the one I want gone by Christmas...

Yesterday did a survey, only need 2 more to get my £25 M & S voucher, I already have a £10 one and these will go towards Christmas... I also have been saving £50 a month, so have £300, will be reducing the amount I put in for the rest of the year, smaller christmas for everyone this year me thinks....

Have sorted out a few items for Ebay, nothing I've put on has sold yet, find it all a bit depressing really, but will see how it goes..

No big spends needed this weekend, will do small food shop today may do some overtime tomorrow.. could really do with kickstarting the month, main aim to try and stay away from the shops, even though I don't buy much/anything.. it still costs me in petrol/parking and usually mcd's lunch.. so will avoid if I can... Will also try and get head into work project this would really help me financially, must try, must try, must try.....;)

TIME2GROWUP_2

Very non mse... have booked 2 flights .. couldn't resist as Easyjet have put out there flights for winter and on the good mse sense, they do go up in price.. these are 3 times cheaper than the same one's when we went away in May...! And I would have been booking some at some point.. I do save throughout the year so can pay back CC later in the year..

So one large mountain, and little steps to climb it.. today I have listed another 4 items on Ebay and thankfully already got one bid..:j, I've also saved £6-04 from the food shop which has gone into another pot.. and decided to finally cut back my smoking.. so have been puffing on my nic-assist this afternoon.. If I can even halve my smoking it will save me £100 a month... wot an incentive...

So ... must do's for next 48 hours..

complete 1 work project - sunday - not done again...
big attempt to reduce smoking - good attempt made
Have at least 1 NSD - sunday hopefully... success..
Enter a mass of comps - no time
overtime visit/s - saturday - not done