Wanting to be debt free BEFORE retirement!

planning_ahead_2

Debt diary day 29

Oh well - it had to come sooner or later - that unexpected BIG expense. My car needs lots of money spending on it:( (about £800), and it's going to have to go onto a CC

Oh, well - I have £230 of sales from Ebay this week - so that is part way to the cost. Just have to rummage and find some more!

See - news of expenses and I am not feeling down;) (but have succumbed to chocolate to get over the shock:rotfl:)

maman

planning_ahead wrote: »

Debt diary day 29

Oh well - it had to come sooner or later - that unexpected BIG expense. My car needs lots of money spending on it:( (about £800), and it's going to have to go onto a CC

Oh, well - :eek:I have £230 of sales from Ebay this week:eek: - so that is part way to the cost. Just have to rummage and find some more!

See - news of expenses and I am not feeling down;) (but have succumbed to chocolate to get over the shock:rotfl:)

Bad news about your bill PA but that's cars for you. Great news about ebay, well done you!! Just wanted to say how well you're doing. Just think when you're debt free and retired you'll be able to afford a decent car that won't give you big shocks like this. It'll be worth it in the long term. Onwards and upwards!!

planning_ahead_2

maman wrote: »

Bad news about your bill PA but that's cars for you. Great news about ebay, well done you!! Just wanted to say how well you're doing. Just think when you're debt free and retired you'll be able to afford a decent car that won't give you big shocks like this. It'll be worth it in the long term. Onwards and upwards!!

Thanks. The gutting thing is that it is a beautiful & very decent car. I waited years to get my Jaguar (not DH's jaguar, not our Jaguar, but MY jaguar :rotfl:) and I can honestly say I never used any credit for it - no loans, no CCs....it was all my money - saved. The thing I never realised at the time is that because I did have loans and CCs and didn't pay them off with these savings that I was really, in effect, still using borrowed money. There was no exisiting car to sell that had been bought on credit either because at the time I didn't need a car for work and so we managed with just DHs car....it really was just 'my money' (if I say it often enough I will believe that my savings SHOULDN'T have paid off some loans and CCs:o Alright...yes I know better now, but I didn't then:(

I did think about selling my beloved car and getting a cheaper one. When I did the SOA I guessed the value of the car at £6k because I have had it for over almost two years now (the car is almost 3yrs old now - she was just a one year old kitten when I got her). DH tells me it is still probably worth £7.5 to £8k now:eek: I know, I can hear the shouts over the internet now.....SELL, SELL, SELL;) just like that trading places film:rotfl: Sorry guys, I will work as hard as possible to clear my debts, but whilst I can pay the debts and make inroads into the total without selling the car I will.

Anyway, we talked about putting the garage bill on a CC and we are both devestated about it. So we decided we would use a CC - only because it gives us more protection if we need it for some reason - but we are determined to clear that from the CC before the end of this month. Not quite sure how just yet....but watch this space because I am one determined DFW. I refuse to see our debt total go back up after working so hard to get it down:)

turfy6

Dont be too hard on yourself PA everyone has a guilty pleasure and yours is your car. Cars are expensive when they go wrong but hey ho so is everything.
Im sure you'll find the money and clear the cc again you are so determined, well done on a great start.:j

elsie52

Hi PA,:wave:

Just popping in for a quick coffee and a chat.:coffee: Sorry to hear about your car needing work. I know what you mean about having a flat sort of day, that happens to me too. I think its because I am so focused on paying our debts, and sometimes it just feels like everything is going so slow. I want action now.!!!!.:mad: We have also got an expensive month ahead, and I resent having to pay for things like car tax and dentist bills,:rotfl: don't they realize that I need to get rid of my debts, and that is just not helping matters.

Hang on to your car, we all need some little luxury. We have a holiday booked to Spain in April, only for a week, and yes, perhaps we shouldn't go, but I feel we have cut out everything else and just focus on our debts, we deserve something to look forward to.

Right off to do some baking now, its cheaper and far nicer........see I can be a good DFW;)

Cialilerin

Hi PA,
Don't stress over the car - I wish I had lovely car. Sadly I have an old banger that drinks petrol and has cost a fortune in repairs recently and would love a new car but can't afford to replace it! I'm sure it feels easier to spend money on something you love!

Overall, I have no doubt that you will raise the money to pay off this bill judging by how motivated you've been from the start. Good Luck

yummymommy

Oh Hon, really sorry to hear about your car news. Things certainly come to test us dont they!!!:mad:

Stay focussed, you are doing really well xxx:beer:

planning_ahead_2

Debt diary day 33

Well...the car is STILL in the garage....I am going to dread the bill when that comes out:eek: They are under strict instructions not to do anything to it without discussing costs first with us.

On the positive side, I have sorted out a few more bits to ebay (it's amazing what we have that we just have hardly ever used....why on earth did we buy it in the first place:o) Whatever I manage to sell will hopefully go straight off the car repair bill.

Still, it could be worse. I thought the washing machine was blowing up last night. It was making the most god awful noises, and DH made a comment about the bearings having gone or something. Turned it straight off because I thought it was going to a) explode, or b) jump around the room, or c) go through the floor:rotfl: Anyway, opened it up to get the washing out so DH could look at it, and it appears that the underwires of one of my bras had popped out and were jammed inbetween the door and the rubber seal and that was causing the problem. Can't believe that could have been caused by that....the noise was so loud....but apparently it was. Bra ruined by the way:rotfl: but I would rather it was my bra than my washing machine:rotfl: Anyway....washing machine now running almost silently thank goodness.

Anyway, off the DFW subject, I am really struggling with the thing called a DIET. I am sure I am allergic to them.....they make me swell up (for that read 'put on more weight'). Seriously, I go on a diet and become obsessive about food in totally the wrong way. The more I think I can't have something, the more I want it (chocolate is the worst thing for that). I am trying to think how to programme my brain to get motivated and actually lose weight.

Cialilerin

Think I must be leading some sort of parallel life with the cars and the washing machines Only wish I was doing as well as you with the motivation!!:)

maman

At least a new bra is loads cheaper than a new washing machine planning_ahead:rotfl::rotfl:I've had that happen and always use one of those net bags these days, seems to help.

On the diet front, do you meal plan? I find the best way to avoid unsuitable food is to plan a menu/shopping list and stick to it. I only buy 'treats/junk' for OH and make sure it's biscuits/crisps that I don't really like so no temptation. Of course it doesn't stop me making too large portions but I've cracked it with the meat, don't care about the veg and now just need to work on the potatoes/carbs.