FRUGAL LIVING CHALLENGE 2010, part 1. (Living on £4,000 a year)

Jules

Oh dear - Just went to add my spends into my budget and I've lost everything and have to start again, its just blank. I'm sure I saved it but I always leave it open and put laptop to sleep but when I came home it had gone! Not the end of the world as its only the 4th Jan but lesson learned, save save backup save!

Just sums up my day really: car park wouldn't take my card this am to pay my monthly charge took 3 attempts with everyone behind me getting impatient and probably thinking I didn't have the money to pay it (i did though), had to order oil @ £220, boiler on the blink and have had to arrange for the engineer to call, busy day in work and the heating wasn't working, ran from work to shop to get curry sauce for tea and they were closed had to go to another one out of my way for it! So I suppose I shouldn't be surprised my budget is playing hide and seek!

Spent £9.98 on 3 gallons of screenwash for the car, hopefully that will do me during this cold spell - never had to worry before so it must be cold!. Spent £7.51 on foody things.

Irish stew in the slow cooker for lunch tomorrow and wednesday, just the thing for this cold weather.

skintjenny

wow FINALLY got to the end of the thread! you guys sure know how to chat!
well am sat on the couch under a blanket with a hot water bottle, 2x socks, 2x jumper, scarf and hat (and jeans!) on and am surviving. I have night storage heaters in my flat and refuse to use them as im normally out during the day- they just seem like such a huge cost! however, the temptation then is to spend all the time im at home in bed (under my 2 duvets...mmmm) but this is really bad for me as I suffer from depression and if I'm in bed I will just sleep all day and avoid everything else. So today was an attempted NO BED day! I did ok apart from a couple of hours this afternoon when I was woken by my greyhound licking my face and asking to go out!

Am slightly panicked as have spent my £20 petrol budget for this month driving back home to carlisle from manchester after xmas, but have a dentist appointment back in manchester on Monday, and will have to drive as can't leave dog on her own all day! The petrol dialathing is already pointing at red, and I have a full weeks worth of driving the 2 miles into town and back. I know I should really walk, but the walk involves a couple of steep hills and the pavements are just like ice rinks at the moment, add to that a heavy laptop in my bag, a greyhound that likes to pull on the lead and me with no balance and you have a recipie for broken bones! oh dear, I sound like a little old lady, worrying about broken bones, but am only 23!

I'm going to queue up at CAB on Wednesday to find out what they advise about my situation, my mum thinks bankruptsy may be my only option. Really scared that they will agree!

Is it the same with all CAB's that you have to queue at 8.45 on the day to apply for an appointment with an advisor that day?

CW- really glad to hear that your dog could come home, and that there might be something to help, don't know what I will do when mine gets old, im not good at making horrible decisions!

Loads more that I wanted to say to everyone but its taken me so long to read through the thread that ive forgotten it all- I hope it slows down as predicted!

grandma247

rozeepozee wrote: »

Few others questions. I have a nightmare-to-heat huge stone apartment (large windows, high celings, and no wall insulation!) In this kind of weather, it never gets much over 18 degrees if we're lucky even when we have the thermostat on 21 or 22. When my LO was born I couldn't seem to get his bedroom above 16 degrees :eek:. Sadly, I think much of our heat goes to the upstairs flat! I live in long johns! Anyway, is it better to turn the heating off all together or leave it on low overnight or when I go out. ATM, I turn it off but have never known what's best. I can't wait for the Spring so I can turn it off.

We have an end terrace stone built victorian house and we leave the heating on low 24/7 I turn it very low before bed and turn it up a bit when I get up. If we go away for a few days and turn it off it takes 5 hours on high to heat it up again to a reasonable level so I know it saves us money to leave it on. Most nights it costs £1 a night and £2-3 during the day depending on how cold it is.
Second question, in the absence of a find on Approved Foods, does anyone know where I can get strong 100% wholemeal bread flour from cheaply? I don't mind buying by the sackful as we eat a lot of bread around here.

If you have access to an asian shop sacks of chappati flour makes good bread.
TIA

See answers above in green hth.

LilacPixie

rozeepozee wrote: »

nyk, and was it LP (too many to remember on this thread!), how do you monitor what Approved Foods and Food Bargains stock? Do you just check daily? I have no issue at all about out of date foods (as I say, I don't really take much notice unless it's way out of date, like two years!!! I just examine it, sniff it or taste a little bit) so these sound right up my street.

Few others questions. I have a nightmare-to-heat huge stone apartment (large windows, high celings, and no wall insulation!) In this kind of weather, it never gets much over 18 degrees if we're lucky even when we have the thermostat on 21 or 22. When my LO was born I couldn't seem to get his bedroom above 16 degrees :eek:. Sadly, I think much of our heat goes to the upstairs flat! I live in long johns! Anyway, is it better to turn the heating off all together or leave it on low overnight or when I go out. ATM, I turn it off but have never known what's best. I can't wait for the Spring so I can turn it off.

Second question, in the absence of a find on Approved Foods, does anyone know where I can get strong 100% wholemeal bread flour from cheaply? I don't mind buying by the sackful as we eat a lot of bread around here.

TIA

My local tesco does 1.5kg for 100X wholemeal stone ground bread flour for 99p. I use 400g a loaf. For approved foods/food bargains I just check whenever i remember. Postage is quite high so I find i need to buy alot to make it worth it.

With regards to heating. Pass. We are the top floor flat also in a stone building we switch heating off at 10pm and according to baby monitor the kids room is 17 degrees at the moment, I did have it was 20 just as the heating clicked off. We switch ours on and off but I have no idea if that is the best way. We both work though so it seems silly to be heating an empty flat.

Paulgonnabedebtfree

candygirl wrote: »

I've got eggs with sell by date of 30/12/09.Is it worth risking them?what's that test you can do in water to see if they're ok?ETA I found the egg test online after remembering google lol

I don't know about any water test but I've used much older eggs than that and am still alive. I just wouldn't use them for mayonnaise or anything cold though as they can attract salmonella.

bails

jtb2412 wrote: »

Bails lovely to hear from you - did you have any luck with your flights? I might have missed your post so apologies if I have . I hope you managed to get sorted xx

Thanks jtb, yes we managed to get another flight (£832 each :eek: *insert fainting smiley) so we fly home tomorrow morning for 2 weeks now.

grannynise wrote: »

YES! Unless you aren't actually in work at the moment? Sorry, I know I shouldn't shout, but as a headteacher I feel so strongly that everyone who works in a school should have the protection of a union (not pushing you to belong to the NUT but to any union that you feel will support you if needed)

I've been involved in several situations where people have needed this support and it has been invaluable in all cases.

Sorry - it sounds all pushy and dictatorial but I mean well!

I agree entirely with Granny (lovely to see you over here, didn't know you'd joined :T) - helped me through a very difficult situation and were priceless. I'll definitely be signing up again when I'm back to work.

Aril wrote: »

Hello fellow frugallers [I do so love being part of the challenge rather than just a lurker- why did I spend 2 years dithering:D]

:T Glad you're enjoying it Aril

SO far behind, the thread is moving with lightning speed at the mo so about 15 pages to catch up on I think...

bails

Brighton_belle wrote: »

Good point granny re things like NUT subs- I think it important not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. To me, being frugal is about cutting back where we can, to give us the life choices we want, be that cutting work hrs, repaying mtg early or more travel or funding life enhancing holidays or regular lunch out with friends. It isn't about miserly living, but rich living. I think I would see the such things as NUT subs, as an example, as another 'quality of life' insurance.

:T:T Great post BB! And it's fine peeps to skim read when you need (like now when the thread is so busy) - everyone understands - and know that good ideas will come round again.

CW, just read about your dog's fits, so sorry. Are they old age or Epilepsy? My parents' dog has the latter (and the dog here) and we've had no problems with the other dogs etc. Apparently they aren't suffering as much as we are looking at them Thinking of you xx

cw18

bails wrote: »

CW, just read about your dog's fits, so sorry. Are they old age or Epilepsy? My parents' dog has the latter (and the dog here) and we've had no problems with the other dogs etc. Apparently they aren't suffering as much as we are looking at them Thinking of you xx

Vet says it could be epilepsy, could be brain tumour, or could be a 'lesion in a space in the brain'

Only way to tell if it's the latter two (not sure they're not practically the same thing) would be a referral for a very expensive CT scan, so - partly due to her age, and partly my finances - we're trying the meds which are more for epilepsy and monitoring. The 'cognitive' meds will help a bit alongside those, but will also help if it's the last on the list


House doesn't feel as cold this morning - despite the thermostat telling me it's colder than when I went to bed. But I've just heard the system kick in for the hot water, so I think there's a fault in the sytem somewhere :eek: Guess I can't say for sure until I get to the boiler and check the pilot light though - so I will be finishing work promptly today (not something I normally do on a Tuesday, as the next person isn't due in until an hour after I leave) and coming home to dig my way through the garage !!!

ETA: Radiators are now warming up, so looks like a valce in the pump has gone again. That's the third time in 4 years !!! Leaving the water heater on will bump up my gas use, but at least we can have heating

knithappens

well just ot a text rom eldest dauhters school, school cancelled today, not sure about my sons primary school yet, we live on the road behind it and can walk, but depends i teachers can make it in. Ahh well , will put her to good use today, she can help me inventory a bundle of baby clothes to put on ebay, I am lucky really, she is a great kid ( saying that as i sit typing this with a piece o carrot cake she baked yesterday yum yum)

ooh talking about NUT union subs, they are tax deductable, i read it on here somewhere with a note to get my tax code changed to take this into account so well worth having. when i find the going again will post it as that is part of my todo list.


just remembered i read it in my NUt mag they send me , but just looked it up on HMRC, going to ring my tax office later and see about this.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/incometax/relief-subs.htm

list organisations
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/list3/list3.pdf

and the NUT is on there

how to get relief
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/incometax/how-to-get.htm

Just been onto tax office, i anyone needs to do this, you need to write to them by the end of this month, can calim upto 6 years, so from 5th april 2005, no prro needed aty the moment, just how much youpaid each year, and they wil adjust tax code to take this into account, and pay back from previous years, so could expect a nice little check well worth doing. going to mine today.

rozeepozee

grandma247 wrote: »

See answers above in green hth.

Thanks for that grandma. When you say you turn it down very low, how low is that? And what do you have it on during the day> If we don't have it on at least 22 degrees in this kind of weather we can hardly feel it.

Very excited about the chapati flour info - as you would have seen from my earlier posts we have occasional access to a very cheap Asian supermarket (it's near my parent's house and I go when I visit) and I bet their chapati flour is cheap as chips!

Off to see what surprises are coming out of my bank accounts this morning....