FRUGAL LIVING CHALLENGE 2010, part 2, April - June.

ifonlyitwaseasier

....................walks to the back of the class and sneaks into a seat.....

hello all, sorry i've been awol, life just got so busy all of a sudden that i just kind of went *!!!!!!* and forgot what i was supposed to be doing here there and everywhere.

on the upside yes i am ok, OH is great, i have a new job i start shortly and the money will make a big difference.
it does also mean i'mm going to be re-jigging out budget predictions, we're aiming to pay off as much debt as possible in the next 12 months and then hopefully (fingers, legs & eyes crossed) be moving to a lovely place of our own(rented but heh)

hugs all round and i'm going to go off and try...... to catch up with at least this part of the challenge

ioiwe

BigMummaF

Kiwisaver wrote: »

....Had a bit of a blow to my personal budget today, with the Government having announced theirs this afternoon. Shame the two of them don't line up and I'm going to have to do quite a bit of number crunching to figure this out. Basically they have whacked our VAT up by 2.5% from 1st October. Bearing in mind we pay VAT on absolutely everything including fresh fruit and vegetable; the only exceptions are rent, mortgages, bank interest and fees. It means everything I purchase will suffer this increase, although there is some cuts in personal income tax that are 'supposed' to compensate. It's not going to be easy to figure out and it's all a bit confusing as to how I deal with this in my own budget. I guess that's part of the plan, how will we ever know if we're any worse or better off?....
Only eight more sleeps to go before I'm off on my travels and I'll have to get very creative with the contents of the fridge over the next few days.

Wouldn't be surprised if our lot doesn't do the same While I can appreciate things are in a muddle, why do politicians think the ordinary Joe can keep finding the money to get us out! Still..that's another discussion
Wow..is it really that close to your coming over? It seems to have flown by. & you & the family must be so excited! I do hope you manage to get here what with the volcanos & strikes

missinginaction wrote: »

....Another downer is that OH and I are "on a break" I personally think we are splitting, he has taken his things and gone to live somewhere else. ((HUGS)) ....I am just at total sixes and sevens and just dont know what to do for the best, feel absolutley paralysed and stuck at the moment and can barely put one foot in front of the other.
....Any ideas I had about going to uni have gone to be honest I guess it is now too late to apply and to be honest I dont feel confident even to fill the forms in when they ask "why do you think you would be a good candidate" dont have a lot of positives to write about right now...Im not convinced Im going to make a good decision any way....Love from L x

I know you said you didn't want tablets but I well remember Claire Raynor, the agony aunt, saying anti-depressants should be looked on as an emotional crutch when times are a little haggard. She compared them to the help you'd expect if you had a broken leg, in that it would only ever be a temporary measure & a little bit of support to get you thru. As for feeling that way in the first place, it is nothing less than you'd expect with everything you've had to deal with; rather like the pain when you stub your toe on the way to the bathroom it's a natural reaction but granted, difficult to accept as such
You may not face uni this year but there's all the time in the world & if it is to be, the way to achieve your dream will become evident I'm sure. Because of your low mood it is wise to put off big decisions but please remember everything you HAVE accomplished on your Life's journey thus far. You are a strong, grounded & capable young woman who has had to take a detour, but I am sure you'll get your emotional compass back on track before too long x

Puddleglum

Missinginaction......:grouphug:.....there really are only two wags to a dog's tail. :grouphug: I can't think of anything appropriate to say except possibly "keep on plodding, you will get there eventually":grouphug:

Puddleglum.

Skint_Lynne

Missing in action,

I hope that you turn a corner soon and things get better. As I've said before, I wish that we didn't have to go through the wringer and have carp times in our lives - it would be useful to fast forward to the good times. OH will come round, and if he doesn't he is not the one, and he will turn up when you least expect it.

My love and best wishes to you. xx

Frugaldom

Hi fruguys and gals,

Welcome back to those who got a bit lost and best wishes to MIA. As already mentioned, uni won't expire, you have plenty of time to study and there's always open learning/distance learning courses available free if you need something to keep your mind distracted from current situation. Sorry that I can't remember if OH is BF or DH but things will work themselves out for the best somewhere along the line and, as for work, if you are off sick, can you, a relative, close friend or even the CAB call them to find out what the situation is with your wages? Surely there's some sort of statutory sick pay available? Good luck, things will get better, you just need to find the strength to show you can deal with the here and now.

Summer sunshine is still with us, so I've been able to switch off the heaters and save a bit on electricity. Chicks & ducklings are almost all hatched and doing well, I'm no closer to emptying out the freezer and the cupboards are still bulging. I just wish my lettuces would hurry up and grow, as it's salad weather and we've eaten every leaf available to us so far. I guess some rejigging is needed to try and get some more salad leaves fitted in somewhere.

Just waiting for the arrival of the tax return forms so I can get accounts done - with the lower tax rates being what they are now, it doesn't look like there'll be anything to pay this year at all. I guess they'll get their share from me in council tax, TV licence, Vat, fuel tax and all the stealth taxes that we tend to overlook most days.

Erme

missing - Having suffered mental ill health for about 20 years maybe all you have to concentrate now on is staying alive and eating (helps with the staying alive bit ). It's not going down that's the crime but staying down.

Disasterous past few days . Fixations on Friday caused me to buy yet ANOTHER printer (upgrade for me) @ £12 :eek: but it takes my old cartridges (mega cheap) and am selling my old one for £5 (bargain - but £5 is £5) to a friend. Also ended up with another sewing machine that'll have to be sold on ebid once I find a box for it. Only way forward on that one! Have a few wee items to sell on ebid (I figure it's cheaper than ebay :t) but currently can't get my card to register with their preferred payment system (cheaper than Paypal) so will have to phone bank tomorrow.

Board seems to have gone quiet/dead. WHERE'S NUALA. Hugs Nuala if ya on a downer....prayers re ya shingles and prescription costs.

Anyhow bumped into old shiatsu lady who does free shiatsu @ drop in other day and she gave me her card and mentioned to get in touch when I wanted it :t . Think she'll give it to me for free . Might be handy with the back.

Convicted of sin and feeling a bit spiritually low after all these fixations. At least sleep is beginning to improve...

Training tomorrow. ECDL test part 1 tues 9am (and the college server was down last night so couldn't revise and can't revise today cos it's Sabbath)...

Blessings

E

BigMummaF

Advice please!
Neighbour has given us a room sized carpet & I intend to put it over the back garden to help rid the blummin weeds :mad: so:-
1. It's a foam backed carpet. Does it make a difference if it goes pile side up or down? At the moment, Pup thinks he's struck gold by having somewhere so luxurious to lay in the sun, when his mates only get grass :rotfl:
2. How long do we leave it down for?
3. Is this likely to be an almost permanent solution, that should enable us to get ahead of the game & just be able to do the odd bit of weeding as we see them?

Can't sit here tho..too much to do. Hope the sun is shining in your world too x

pagangirl

Hi all - sorry been awol, but life got in the way Was claiming JSA, but been advised to go for ESA instead (by manager of jobcentre/doctor). Put new claim in by phone last tuesday, got paperwork back yesterday - found 11 errors on it so far :mad::mad::mad: (including the fact that they have me down as registered blind :eek: - arrrrrrrrrrrrggggghhhh !!! Can no one get anything right these days????

Sorry for rant - just so cheesed off with everything - sick note from doc said severe irritable bowel syndrome, came out with anti-depressants - huh ??? Took 1 tablet, totally spaced out for 19 hours - scary stuff - definitely won't be taking any more - don't even have depression to start with - now even more confused than before

Frugalling is going well, here (at least something is) !!

Hugs to missing in action, be good to yourself hunny - CAB are a great help, I would contact them re work issues, they can take over from you, and it it would ease your mind a lot.

Commiserations, Congratulations etc as required, especially to all new baby frugalleers

Kiwisaver_2

BigMummaF wrote: »

Wow..is it really that close to your coming over? It seems to have flown by. & you & the family must be so excited! I do hope you manage to get here what with the volcanos & strikes

Yes I'm excited! Just five more sleeps, five days of work and four more dinners. :eek: I packed my bags today and have been on my feet all weekend locating various bits and bobs, returning library books, washing and ironing etc. What's done is done now and I have the rest of the week to think about all the things I have forgotten. The fridge is looking like Old Muvva Hubbard's and I'm determined nothing is getting thrown away before we go.

MIAGood to hear from you again, only wish it were under better circumstances. I hope the counselling helps lift that big cloud from over your head so that you can see a way forward.

Also thanks for reminder Frugaldom my tax return is still on big the list of things to do before Friday.

top_drawer_2

just finished making some laundry gloop and it seems to have solidified, in fact when I put in the machine to test it, it wouldnt move out of the drawer until I put a jug of water in the drawer. Also there doesnt seem to be much suds in the drum.