Ruby's "Stop Spending, Start Saving" Diary

InaPickle

ruby_eskimo wrote: »

Probably saving it hehe.

:A Well done! :A

ruby_eskimo

Well I don't really have much choice. Been seriously thinking about the future today and I need savings behind me to get to where I want to be.

ruby_eskimo

Well it's been a 'mare of a few days! Been in work non-stop from Thursday to Monday, they've cut back on bank shifts at work because of budget cuts so we have to all muck in and do overtime which people aren't too happy about. Oh well.

Had a couple of days with The Boyfriend which was nice. He's found a new flat to move into which although is better for him, it's going to be more expensive in the long run. Given him a couple of lessons in budgeting so hopefully he won't get out of his depth. Went for dinner to Wagamama last night, with a 2for1 voucher so very MSE!

Lost 2lbs this week, think it's due to the green smoothies. Today I had pear, banana, blueberry and spinach and it was rather yum. They really do fill you up so you don't feel the need to snack during the morning. Even The Boyfriend's housemates commented that I looked really good, and they are a bunch of guys who just about manage to have a shower once a day! I need to try and get my hair cut at some point next week, it's really starting to look a bit ropey. But that might be because I'm desperately trying to use up all the half opened bottles lying around the house and not all of them agree with my hair! Will post my use up list at the end of each month. It's pretty impressive really!

Sorry for the rambling post, will try to update more regularly!

ruby_eskimo

Well I've transferred some money accross to pay off my overdraft and withdrew the last £30 I had in credit. Plus my mum gave me a tenner she owed me for paying for her train travel to see BC! So £40 to last me till Wednesday isn't such a big deal. I think cash is the way to go really. I'm not tempted to buy things if I know I only have the money in my purse.

Been invited out to a BBC radio recording tomorrow night with a couple of girls from uni. It's the first time we'll be seeing each other outside of uni, bit nervous about it really! But the tickets are free and I only have to pay for a travelcard and a drink or 2 so all in all a cheap night out really!

Hope you all have a good weekend!

ruby_eskimo

I am absolutely seething at the moment and just need to vent.

*takes a deep breath*...

Today was my first day back at uni this semester, in my optional health psych module. I have never done anything relating to health psych so it's important that I do a lot of background reading. Went to take some books out the library only to be told that I had a ban on my account till the 1st March! Now my uni doesn't fine you for overdue books, they ban you for taking anymore books out. I though the ban only lasted till you brought the books back, but turns out that for example, if your books were overdue for 10 days, then you have a ban for a further 10 days from the date you actually return the books. Now I had some overdue from the 25th November and COULDN'T return or renew them till the 12th January. Reason for this is I live and hour and a half from uni, I work shift patterns, I get one day a week for uni during term time and over christmas I was making up my hours from taking time for uni and I was extremely ill (2 bouts of flu and a kidney infection) The uni are telling me that I need to submit Mitigating Circumstances to get the ban lifted but this is very rare. I am so annoyed because I only get one day in uni and by the time I've finished lectures I only get 4 hours till the library closes to do work for my rather intense course. If I can't take books out then I'm pretty screwed really.

I am so annoyed that there is no understanding that I couldn't physically get to the bloody place to hand the books back or renew them.

Please tell me if I'm the one in the wrong (rather lost sight of what's going on really, still not completely right, have to go for a blood test tomorrow).

InaPickle

ruby_eskimo wrote: »

I am absolutely seething at the moment and just need to vent.

*takes a deep breath*...

Today was my first day back at uni this semester, in my optional health psych module. I have never done anything relating to health psych so it's important that I do a lot of background reading. Went to take some books out the library only to be told that I had a ban on my account till the 1st March! Now my uni doesn't fine you for overdue books, they ban you for taking anymore books out. I though the ban only lasted till you brought the books back, but turns out that for example, if your books were overdue for 10 days, then you have a ban for a further 10 days from the date you actually return the books. Now I had some overdue from the 25th November and COULDN'T return or renew them till the 12th January. Reason for this is I live and hour and a half from uni, I work shift patterns, I get one day a week for uni during term time and over christmas I was making up my hours from taking time for uni and I was extremely ill (2 bouts of flu and a kidney infection) The uni are telling me that I need to submit Mitigating Circumstances to get the ban lifted but this is very rare. I am so annoyed because I only get one day in uni and by the time I've finished lectures I only get 4 hours till the library closes to do work for my rather intense course. If I can't take books out then I'm pretty screwed really.

I am so annoyed that there is no understanding that I couldn't physically get to the bloody place to hand the books back or renew them.

Please tell me if I'm the one in the wrong (rather lost sight of what's going on really, still not completely right, have to go for a blood test tomorrow).

Ooh, that totally sucks! I know that my uni library allowed you to either ring up or access your library account online to renew books (if they weren't special collection which were 4 hour loans only, or someone else had requested them). Does your uni have facilities like that, as if not, you could argue the case that it's very hard for people living away (such as yourself) to renew their books. Also, is this the uni that you did your undergrad in? If so, it will be harder to argue, but if you write the letter of mitigating circumstances and explain that you have, with now blinding clarity in hingsight, misunderstood the rules, and that you are extremely sorry, but that if they penalise you to the effect that you cannot take books out before March that, because of your living arrangements, you would no longer be able to continue the course and would be forced to drop out. (There's no way they would want that, so I think they would relent a bit.) Explain that you understand that they are well within their rights to withold your right to withdraw books for a period of time, but that to do so for so long would be a cruel and unusual punishment given the circumstances (living away from uni, working shifts, honest mistake, being ill - and still not being quite right), and that if you could come to some other arrangement (lesser period of time exempt from book renewal and some sort of other 'punishment' like a few hours stacking books in the library or something, to which you would be happy to agree.

If absolutely necessary you could go and weep in your Head of Department's office telling him/her how you misunderstood the rules and didn't know it, and now it will force you to pull out of the course etc., and could (s)he please, pretty please, write a nice letter to the library explaining the situation? They will take so much more notice of a Squishy Hat (PhD), than us lot.

ruby_eskimo

Thanks Pickle, I did say all this to my course librarian but she just said "you can use the books in the library you know" proving she hadn't listened really to what I'd said. I'm going to go in tomorrow (luckily have the day off work) and try to talk to the head librarian, if she says the same thing then i'll talk to my course leader. It's just so pathetic that they are making a fuss over such a small thing.

InaPickle

ruby_eskimo wrote: »

Thanks Pickle, I did say all this to my course librarian but she just said "you can use the books in the library you know" proving she hadn't listened really to what I'd said. I'm going to go in tomorrow (luckily have the day off work) and try to talk to the head librarian, if she says the same thing then i'll talk to my course leader. It's just so pathetic that they are making a fuss over such a small thing.

To be fair, Ruby, that's not a small thing as any number of students could have needed those books for essays/exams etc. for the January examination period, especially if they are 'high demand' books, but if they are going to punish you to the point of it not being worth you carrying on with the course, then that's excessive and unproductive to all concerned. Do you know if they have a web/phone method of renewing books at all? If so, find out the details so that you don't end up in such a situation again as they will definitely come down on you like a ton of bricks in the future. Go in with you best 'I'm so very sorry and I will never do it again face on', and even go so far as to suggest shelf-stacking as a punishment and the head librarian might just take pity on you if (s)he sees that you aren't one of the couldn't-be-bothered-getting-out-of-bed-to-get-my-books-back-to-the-library-on-time brigade. (I doubt they would actually make you stack shelves, but they might take it as a sign of remorse.

Best of luck! :T

InaPickle

Hey Ruby - any luck on the book situation? Hope it is all sorted out and that you can get back to the studying. x

ruby_eskimo

So I finally managed to pay off my overdraft this month! I transferred my £500 house fund back to pay off the overdraft just before I got paid, then transferred the £500 back to the house fund account. The budget this month has kind of gone by the wayside...leant £250 to the boyfriend for his deposit on a new flat. The place is gorgeous, I really wish I could live there myself, but it's not possible at the moment. Also I just decided to treat myself to a few things...I got a wii fit balance board with the original game from Next for £40. It was £60 but I had a £20 gift card that I really didn't know what to spend it on so on it went. It's also not such a bad thing that I now have a Next account, because I have no real credit history to speak of. I am going to cancel the account when I get the next statement but it's making me think that perhaps I should get a credit card to use for the odd thing just to build up a bit of history for myself?

Also going to get a new phone contract in the next couple of weeks (in my name rather than my dad's) and hopefully if Vodaphone can offer me a good deal I could get £90 cashback online!

Hope everyone is doing well.

On the uni front, you really don't want to know what's going on now...