Cloudy's 'bring me some sunshine' diary!

Cloudy456

OK here goes....I've been lurking for a few months now, having had my LBM in February, and this site and all the wonderful people have been invaluable in getting me focussed but i have realised I'm not really getting anywhere - I have stopped my debts increasing which was a major first step but I am only scratching the surface in terms of actually reducing them! just over 11k at the last count, eek! :mad:

I'm 24, work full time and live in a shared flat with one other person. I have a boyfriend of about a year but we don't live together or anything and he doesn't know nearly the extent of my debts, which is one of my main motivations to sort them out - I would be mortified if we came to living together or something and I had to confess all, and realising this made me see that I shouldn't have ever let myself get into a position that I am ashamed of or hiding from anyone, but I got into this and its up to me to get out of it so I can be proud of myself and my situation.

My debts have mainly been accrued through overspending through uni and in the 18 months since I finished and started working. I suppose I thought they would sort themselves once I had a salary but it turns out £1260 a month doesn't go that far when you're always socialising, live somewhere half decent and like to eat well. I have probably added about 4k to my debts since I started working...aggh!

So anyway, I have made a spreadsheet with all my debts and since February I have updated it each month on the day before payday (the worst point of each month!) and that's what made me realise I am basically robbing Peter to pay Paul as the saying goes and I am only actually reducing my debts by about £50 per month! I need to seriously up this rate if I am to be debt free anytime this century.

So this diary will serve as my motivation, I think that a bit of support as I have seen in other threads will do wonders for me plus having to publicly (well sort of!) post up my progress will keep me on the straight and narrow...here's hoping!

So anyway my goals are basically to start seeing a proper reduction in my debts, pay them off within 2 years max and get into a situation where I can save and get my eye on a mortgage. Wish me luck! And any support would be more than welcome, thank you and sorry for my rambling!

Cloudy456

First step - I've updated my signature to show my totals and will update this each month once interest etc has been applied and I can give an accurate maximum figure for the month.

Today has been a NSD (good start hey?)

Tomorrow is a work lunch out so I am likely to spend about a tenner but will keep it lower if possible. Its so hard to disguise the penny pinching but I will try...

Anyway that's all for tonight, major first step in setting this up so I will be back with more tomorrow...

Cloudy456

Well today was a good day, the work lunch didn't happen so I brought a tin of soup for 54p which I had at work - that was my only spending today and tonight will be spent curled up on the sofa watching election coverage so no more spending on the cards. I have worked out that if I am to avoid adding anything onto my CC this month I have got £130 to live off until 25th...hmm. I don't run a car (I walk or cycle to work) so don't have petrol to worry about. That's just entertainment and groceries really. Is it do-able?!

I know compared to some amazing people on here that is loads but I'm used to spending so much more, its hard to get used to being so restrained!!

anonymoose_3

Hi Cloudy :hello:

Happy new diary I'm subscribing so I expect plenty of updates

I live with my OH and it's only recently I've told him how much is on my CCs.

Can you cut your CC up or not carry it with you to take away temptation?

The 25th isn't that far away so you've just under £45 a week, managable if you budget.

Good luck,

Moose xx

Cloudy456

Excellent, my first subscriber! Motivation to keep it up hopefully! I may well start leaving the CC at home, don't want to cut it up in case of a genuine emergency (!) but I really feel like I'm so motivated right now I don't need to. I'll see how the next couple of weeks go! Well done on your progress and weight loss - it seems like a lot of people combine debt paying and diets, maybe the whole change of attitude will reach into other areas of my life and not just money!

Cloudy456

Ok, so this is a rough budget. Not a full SOA as I think that has too many irrelevant categories for me.

Income: £1260 per month hopefully will go up in 2 months when payrises at work are decided, fingers crossed!

Outgoings:

Rent and household bills (all included) £475
Mobile phone: £35 this is a fixed long iPhone contract which I can't change but I use it loads
Gym membership £34 I can't cancel this for another 4 months but will do so then. Until that time I will use it as much as possible to get my moneys worth!

=total of £544

Debt repayments:

£183 HSBC loan (only for another 4 months then its clear!)
£170 CC1
£25 CC2

=£378

Which leaves me with £338 for living off - groceries, entertainment, basically everything else. I don't have a car which helps and cycle everywhere as I live in a big city. It seems do-able.....but I would really like to be making additional payments to the CC. I have E Bayed everything I don't need and have signed up to do surveys online although this is very slow going so far. But I am really hoping to increase my salary either through a promotion or changing jobs in the next few months so hopefully that will make some sort of difference.

My main area of overspending is on groceries, I always take lunch to work and I don't eat extravagantly at all but it never seems to come in much below £120 a month....this is definitely the first area I need to work on!

Cloudy456

Well today wasn't the best day money-wise...spent £12 at lunchtime in my local salon then another £3.50 for things for dinner for myself and my boyfriend whose coming round tonight. In the past I would have bought a meal deal from M and S or Tesco for a tenner so that was actually a good step, I got the cheapest meal I could think of (sausages and mash!) and will have some veg left for the weekend.

I also got a £2 survey through which by some miracle I qualified for (I never seem to, anyone else have that problem?!) so I am within 30p of the £10 limit where I can cash in vouchers. But I think I might leave it to build up some more until I can get enough supermarket vouchers to do a bigger shop for free. Feels like more that way!

Anyway I shouldn't spend any more today now, instead of going to the pub and easily spending £20 I will be in watching TV!

I'm really just counting down to the next payday so I can make more payments...its so depressing how I never seem to have any more money the day after being paid, and as soon as the payments have gone out the next day I count down the days until I can make more then next month!

I need to do some shopping this weekend as I am desperate for some new work trousers. I have an old pair in my cupboard with lots of wear left in them but fear they may be a size too small as they were last time I tried to wear them! If I can't squeeze into them now I will hit Primark. Also need to buy a birthday present for my boyfriend but I have budgeted for that last month so that's not included in my money for the rest of the month.

Will try and keep spending down over the weekend but I always seem to spend loads, then nothing during the week, maybe one or two pounds a day tops. Oh well, at least its only two days compared to 5!

Ok enough of my ramblings, am off to cook some dinner!

Have a good Friday night everyone whatever you're up to!

Cloudy456

This weekend has been surprisingly good money-wise to my surprise - managed to spend £13.50 all weekend which is something of a miracle for me and gives me hope for my £40 a week budget for the rest of the week! I haven't got my week's food in yet which I will do tomorrow but have £27 in cash which I will spend about £12 of tomorrow and then hope the rest will see me through until Friday.

Soooo tired now, so off to bed feeling pretty positive about the week ahead!

anonymoose_3

That's a good spend for a weekend Cloudy x

Cloudy456

Arrrrghhh!!! Just have to have a massive rant! I've been feeling so positive about things and really feeling like I'm getting somewhere then I come home to a massive gas bill which means that we have to increase our DD to make up the shortfall over the summer. I'm so annoyed, my flatmate is incapable of putting on more clothes, she just keeps putting the heating on and I try and say I don't think we need it but she just says she's cold and leaves it on and what can I do, its her home too! She's oblivious to how much utilities cost and I don't want to fall out with her as we get on great but seriously, its into May now and she keeps turning it on! I really resent having to pay for her excessive use and she is in debt too so why she doesn't want to be more careful is a mystery to me!! Aggh sometimes I wish I lived alone but I can't afford to (oh, the irony!) and I know I would get lonely but uggh, I hate flatmate issues!!

Anyway, sorry for the rant! In better news, I did my food shop for everything I need for the rest of the week for a grand total of £5.92 which I was really pleased about. Anyway I'm still on track to clear a good £300 this month, just annoyed that future months will have money knocked off debt payments and instead paying for heating bills!!!!

Going to read some cheerful looking threads now to stop me going to buy something choclatey to cheer myself up!

Herewego

Hi cloudy,

would it be worth looking to move supplier of gas you could get cashback through quidco.
Well done on your weekly shop i am impressed, wish mine was like that.