Frugal Living Challenge 2011 - part 1

minnie2

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

Minnie, well done, keep ploughing away and it'll soon be gone:). I started with over £17k:eek: on cc's/loans and if you asked me what I had to show for it, I couldn't tell you. Once it's paid off, it's fantastic. I still try to stick to the "do I want/need this" before I spend (but do slip up now & then:o).

thanks!! how did you pay yours off? was it a long slog? ive got well weve got loads of debt - which we are paying off but i want it gone!! if i get onto my training course september my money will go down for a year which i am concerned about - we are ok at min but for that year will we manage?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! hoping preparing now will help.But not sure i hav done enough.we just have no spare money!! our mortgage is £641 a month!!! let alone our 2 credit cards 3 loans etc

midwinter wrote: »

eBay have a free listing weekend, 19th & 20th March. Some conditions apply.

Thanks for the info!!!! Got loads to go on!!!

mama67

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

I'm in East Lothian so just down the road!

Lived in Edinburgh for many years but was brought up in the country and missed the open spaces so I moved here about 6 years ago (oh boy, where does the time go).


(I am still working on the cv but it's taking a while and I keep getting bored:o but will keep at it)

Dh's family originate from Dalkieth which is just outside Auld Reekie

Lesley_Gaye

did a bit of cooking this afternoon in advance for dinner this eve

it all tastes really lovely and am looking forward to it. Tried some new recipes from an Indian cookbook. A potato and cauliflower curry, mushroom bhaji and a red lentil dhal. Another vegan one for those who are interested.

It uses lots of spices, but they are all the common ones. I did it in advance as I wasn't sure how long it was going to take me, but in the event it was quite straight forward. So if you like this kind of food, I could post the recipes if you want

as I'll more than likely be doing it again, I need to price it all up now, and work out the cals too

inspirespirit

Saga of the gas and electric continues.
The lady from Southern Electric did phone me back today. We were supposed to be arranging a payment plan. When I gave her my account numbers she got very confused and put me on hold. She was gone for ages and then came back and gave me another phone number to ring. An 0800 number.
Anyway, after a lengthy phone call to this other number (still not sure who they were, duh), this wonderful woman put me on hold forever and a day and eventually came back and told me I had SIX different accounts !!!!! She said SE had made a right !!!! up with my accounts and she had no idea why.
Right at the beginning 18 months ago, I had a problem with them as I wasn' receiving my bills. i was constantly phoning. Apparently, when I was phoning they were setting up new accounts and not closing the old ones !!!! So when I did start receiving bills, they were showing my payments and looked as if I did not owe any money (I remember being well chuffed last August when my gas bill was only 30 quid), but apparently i had other accounts that were acrruing debt that I had no idea about.
She still isn't sure why, how, what or when this happened and needs the weekend to try to sort out the mess.
She has however, knocked 50 pounds of each bill so that is one hundred quid off, thank goodness.
She was unbelievably kind and has said i can pay the electric off at 6 pounds per week, the lowestshe can let me pay, and we are going to review the gas every month and I have to phone and let her know each month how much I can afford.
She is phoning back on monday when she has ploughed through it all as she wants to make certain all the debt is actually mine with all these accounts. what a nightmare:eek::eek:

redglass_2

inspirespirit wrote: »

I received the letter on the 9th and it said the money would be taken out of my account after the 9th, so I immediately rang my bank, but it wastoo late, they had already tried to take it out. ....

Have you still got the letter, Spirit? It would be valuable evidence that they didn't proceed properly, telling you one thing but doing another - how are you supposed to make sure the funds are in the bank if they don't inform you when they will take the payment? They are at fault twice over, first with the mistakes in reading the meter and then with that letter, so try not to be too intimidated. Don't forget your local Citizens' Advice Bureau - they are well used to handling this sort of situation and will offer free advice, sometimes even free legal advice with a proper solicitor. They also write letters for clients, on occasion, and they can help with financial problems and benefits too. Look them up in the phone book. Good luck, hon. :grouphug: EDITED TO ADD: I've just read your last one. That sounds a lot more hopeful, and if they are being that nice you can be sure they know it's their fault. Fingers x'd for you!

LolaLemon wrote: »

I had a look on the flylady thread on OS, it scared me!!

Flylady scares me too! If that doesn't work for you, try Sheila Chandra's BANISH CLUTTER FOREVER (from the library, natch - no need to buy) - it's a gentler approach but a very good one. I am much better organised than I used to be thanks to Sheila C and she doesn't confuse being organised with being tidy, the way lots of de-clutterers do: her point is that some people like a minimal style house, some like it busy and full of knick-knacks, but whatever style you prefer, it has to work for you and not be constantly getting in your way and getting you down.

I still haven't caught up after 2 days, so off I go again....nearly there...

inspirespirit

Thanks Redglass. I feel better about it, even though it will probably turn out I do owe the money (from what she has said), which will mean my electric and gas was costing me almost 200 pounds per month for a 3 bed semi !!!! She has kindly given me her name and extension number and I am going to be ringing her monthly so I will be keeping a very very careful eye in future on my bills.

Also, went to Ald! today for the first time. I went there instead of Lid1 as my friend told me they did He!nz beans cheap. couldn't find any branded products. Didn't really like it very much. The meat was priced well. Bought chicken kievs, fresh, 2 for 99p. A chicken for 2.99 (god knows which battery farm the poor blighter came from - wish I could still afford organic but I can't). Managed to get free range eggs though at a good price. Apart from that, there really wasn't much there that I had on my list. Hated the checkout. I got in a right frazzle. Only 2 checkouts open, with at least 7 people before me. Huge long conveyor belt this end with everyone piling their stuff on and then nowhere the other end to pack !!! everything whizzed through and bunged back into the trolley.
Not impressed cos still need loads of stuff. Going to Lidl tomorrow to see how I fare there. Can see me ending up back at Mr. T's.:eek:

never_too_old

yipee i have just noticed i have got my 3rd star

im now serious lol

tumptyteapot

Tesco value bitter is nice! And only 2.1% but just what I needed with wasabi peanuts :-)

23rdspiral

a NSD!!! despite going into Boots at lunch - i had a voucher and decided i didnt need posh moisturiesr so had a noodle around and found makeup brushes ect... and for 3.80 a pack of 2 facial cleansers to be used with their pump cleanser that i got with the last voucher i had... so it cost me nothing! felt very strange at the till, but very good.:D woooo!

ooh and last nights cheap vegan curry was lush!

tonight i'm trying a couple of tips from on you fabulous Fruglaistas - soup & pudding... to see if it's enough, but also fun to have a propper pudding.
- curried parsnip soup from 10p/bag woopsied parsnips (recipie from on here thank you to whoever it was!)
- and that cheap cheaty sponge pudding, not with pineapple but with broken mandarin segments... might even make it a chocolate sponge if i can figure out how!

l.m.hart wrote: »

yipee i have just noticed i have got my 3rd star

im now serious lol

:T

inspire - i hope she's gone away to check that you aren't paying multiples of the same bill for your house. bravo with persevering. good luck!

slowlyfading

It's Friday :j :j :j

14th NSD of March for me Having a lazy evening with OH after having chicken fajitas for tea - yum Think we're going out tomorrow for the day so will end up spending, but never mind

Hope everyone is okay x