13 Moons part 2 - Freebird & Frugabulous

Lula-Hula

Thanks guys for the support, I need to be here more than ever now as I kind of gave up on the Big Pink Book once I'd cleared the debt & was used to just entering all my financial info on my spending diary & spreadsheet which are on the lappie .

Thankfully, I can still access bank & emails etc via the old desktop, but I am totally adrift without my calendar which has all the dates for bills & direct debits on it.

Tonight I've resurrected the Big Pink Book & have entered all spending & bank transactions since friday. To the best of my knowledge there are no bills due out of my account until May 1st & I do have actual paperwork for those. The pet insurance payment has just gone out & in a desperate attempt to stem the flow from my financial arteries I have made a payment of £100 to Uncle Richards CC as payemnt towards the gig tickets - there's still another £50 odd on it but I can pay that once I get the actual bill as I dont know exactly how much.

The shiny new CC took yet another beating today; the nice man in the lappie repair store releived me of £150 just for labour & diagnostics of the problem. He seemed to think that as it as it still boots up, then it may be salvageable & just need a keypad replacement ( approx £100 - £200 ) rather than a full 'motherboard' which will set me back a breezy £600 :eek:_pale_:eek: + where's the 'slit-my-throat-whilst-wailing-like-a-tormented-soul' smillie ?? I can think of other words that begin with mother to express how I feel at my own stupidity.

I did actually say to nice man that at that price I may as well just get a new one ( having spotted the 0% finance for 10 months offer which totally trumps the 6 months with shiny new CC ) He reckons it's possible to claim on household insurance ... yeh right, only if you have accidental cover. I dont.

I kept it bright & cheery when in the store but nearly dissovled in tears at the door so had to go to TKMaxx for a wander to cheer myself up. DD tried hard to convince me that a miniature pig shaped frying pan would o the trick, but actually the lovely sunglasses for £12.99 & a new lunch box for DDat £3.99 were just as effective. These were about £100 cheaper than the nice pair I was planning on treating myself to before the G&T tide occurred, so i was fairly restrained.

Having always said to DD that if she kills my laptop then it would be about 2 years of no pocket money to buy me another one, I'm now wondering just how many weeks of my pocket money it's going to take :think:. I very much doubt I will be declaring any spends over on the Clothes Challenge for a while.

Had to spend another £11.72 on some bathroom equipment & then we came home so I could mope about in the garden feeling very sorry for myself.

There is evidently a way to go before I now achieve complete control of my finances & more than ever I need to get to grips with household shopping budget.

Back to the hellmouth tomorrow - double work but clearly there is a reason for this drama so I am open to learning from it.

Bye for now
xx

[Deleted User]

Hi hun,

Sounds like you've had a time with the lappy and the t.v, glad that the lappy is fixable even if it is going to cost you more than you thought.

Hope work goes well for you today.

Tea
x

Lula-Hula

Oh yes, it seems that break from everything has given me a renewed sense of purpose.

Work-job wasnt as bad as expected. The atmosphere in the office was a bit 'unusual' but that didint worry me at all. The Goblin attempted being buddy by asking " So, did you enjoy your break then ?" To which I replied "Yeah, it was great". That's all she got out of me. I'm not angry anymore, I just despise her in a calm, detached way

I have my attitude to work all sussed now, gonna rock up & do my best, keep my chilled vibe on show at all times, nurture good working relationships with colleagues & try to learn as much as I can about the business, then wander home again. No change on home-job either at the moment; for now it's necessary, that's it.

The lovely boys were great & full of stories about the bullsh!t that Gropey's been spouting in my absence. Nice Design Dude said he thought that I was the only person who'd been succesful on the 'company diet' ( 3 Gs also attempting to lose pounds) as he was sure I looked slimmer - lovely lovely man :A.

I'm sure I havent lost any more than the original 8lbs but his comment has spurred me on which is great. I had oatbran porridge for brekkie, took in an apple & fat free yoghurt for lunch, then had one slice of toast for tea followed by mackerel & salad for supper. I also did a Davina weights workout for the first time in weeks & felt greatly energised although a bit glowy, so had a lush bubble bath after. No doubt, I will ache all over tomorrow. The plan is to do a yoga session & workout on alternate days.

Have to stick to this exercise schedule & maintain the healthy eating to, I need to look my best for Brandon

NSD all day & I'm slowly getting used to the idea of an alternative grocery shopping method & location ... I know it makes sense if I plan ahead & use it wisely, just need to come to terms with it

I've been reading some great books & have one chapter left of the current one so I'm away to bed to finish it.

I do miss posting from my comfy nest, bye for now

xx

taxi73

glad work was ok and that someone complimented you...

Lula-Hula

Good morning to all,

I've had a busy week workwise & am looking forward to a few days off ( again ).

Tv is on already & I'm loving all all the coverage of the wedding :j

Yesterday was payday & I've finally sorted out all the 'loans & borrowing' from the savings funds. I owed £220 & was due to make another payment of £150 in today. Well, due to other unforseen & costly events I've done a bit of jiggling & shuffling.

A total of £370 was due to the funds.

The Gas & Electricity bills arrvied & the total due was £200.67p. So, rather than pay £150 in to the savings, I just paid the bills.

A total of £170 still due to the funds.

The Gas & Electricity still has £300 in it, so I've deferred/written off the £70 I borrowed & transferred £100 from the G&E fund to pay the £100 I still owed to the other funds ( car tax, car insurance & car maintenance).

The total left in the funds is now £650 & this is made up of :

Car Tax £110
Car Insurance £160
Car Maintenance £180
Gas & Electricity £200

Yes, I overpay in to G&E fund each month - the Gas bill was £140 & the Electricity bill was just £60 for the last quarter - & the reasons are :

1) I like neat, tidy figures & paying £150 into funds each month is very satisfying

2) The overpay allows me a bit of wriggle room & a sort of 'emergency fund'


I've earned well with the home-job this week too, having done a 3 day week so I've topped up the cash funds and the totals are as follows :

Presents £140
Clubs/Hobbies £45
Fun £10
Clothes £10 (+£27 in the cashminder acct)

The fun fund is very low - largely due to the expensive trip to the concert, but I'm now giving myself pocket money each week from home-job earnings so that can also be used for fun . At the moment I have £55 & any treats just for me have to come out of this money eg cosmetics, booze & meet ups with friends.

I've done my budget for the month ahead & calculate that after all the essential expenses are paid & an allowance of £50 a week for housekeeping (works at at about £250 for the month due to my week starting on a friday & it being another 5 weeks til next payday) then I should have about £400 left. This will allow for payments to the shiny new CC which are sadly , going to be very necessary & hopefully will enable me to start a bit of a savings scheme.

Sometimes, things dont go according to plan though ...

Lula-Hula

Really enjoyed all the wedding pageantry & love, love, love the dress :happylove.

But, back here in Lulaville, the queen is in trouble .

The royal laptop surgeon has performed his diagnostic tests & proclaimed that the once beautiful & gleaming laptop is now BER, ie
Beyond Economical Repair :sad:.

I have to be honest here & say that sadly, I was kind of expecting it. It only boots in safe mood, the shift key was stuck down, meaning password was annihilated & although they could potentially replace the 'logicboard' ( I think that's what he said :undecided) it would cost about £700 & it's just not worth it.

Yes, I am sick about it, & yes I am going replace it. No, it wasnt cheap & no, I wont be buying a cheaper one this time. I will be replacing it with an identical one - just 6 months newer & this time with an outer shell case & a mouse so I can wrap the keypad in clingfilm .

The only & slight comfort I have is that the version of 'Office' I bought is licensed for 2, so I can at least install that for free. I need to check with insurers about whether I can claim for the damage, but I'm doubtful & just desperate to get a new one asap. I'm struggling without access to my finance info & calendar of payments & direct debit due dates.

Due to bank holiday weekend, my old one & its carefully 'wrapped' hard drive ( to enable transfer of files to new lappie at a cost of another £25 ) wont be returned to the store until wednesday & as I'm double working wednesday & thursday next week, I wont get in to do the deed until friday. I'd rather be alone to do it anywya, rather than have DD along who'll be trying to get me to buy her i-pad, new mobile etc etc.

So, there we have it, I am an A* Idiot .

How on earth am I going to recoup the costs of Gordon sabotage?

Well, Plan number 1 is that I've signed up for the May NSD Challenge.

Plan number 2 is no more non-essential clothes, shoe & accessory shopping for me.

Plan number 3 is cutting my costs & the best way to do that is to change my household spending habits. No more pleasantly soothing & ambient trips to waitrose until further notice .

From now on, I'm all about str e e e e e tching my pounds as far as possible & getting as many rewards, points or prizes for my shopping as I can. You know where I'm going to have to go to do this, & I know it makes sense. Doesnt mean I have to like it though .

I've allocated a £50 a week budget for all household spends & that starts TODAY. Payment will be via the cashback CC & although it's not a huge amount, at least I will be getting something back.

I hope not to actually spend that much each week & have to avoid the huge stocking up I'm prone to. It will take a bit of time to get back in to the rythm but I have to do it.

Karmacat

Lula! I'm back online today for the first time since my laptop conked out (tho mine was only a faulty adaptor ....) and I was going to tell you off about not posting a link to your new thread on your old thread .... but I've only read this page, and it sounds like you've had a *disastrous* April - got to go back and read whats been going on, sounds awful. Sending you lots of positive vibes ...

RosaBernicia

RIP Lula-lappie :A

Fingers crossed you find a great deal on a new one.

Rosa xx

Lula-Hula

Ooh hello & welcome back KC ... havent posted over on yours for ages but have been lurking & catching up on your doings today.Sounds like your family wedding was a great success too


I thought I had posted a linkie on previous diary ... anyway, not much happening here to be honest. A precis :

I got out of debt, got new CC with cashback from my bank which has 0% interest for 6 months so I've bought a cooker with proper door handles - yay- & hopefully variable heat settings


Had plans to buy a sofa as well - obviously paying all off before 0% runs out but recent laptop disaster has put the kibosh on that rather. Am not going to whine about it too much though as I was given generous donation towards the old one via Dad & am in a position to 'buy' new one. Hopefully will take much greater care of this one as it's costing me real money.

Thanks Rosa - will do my very best to put hard learned money saving ways to good use

Perhaps the reasoning this happened is to show me that I need to save up for stuff like sofas & keep CC for emergencies.


Anyway, I have properly exciting news; I checked the veg patch earlier & there are teeny weeny little carrot shoots

No sign of the parsnips yet but I am very very pleased about the carrots. We also have 40, yes 40 baby leeks growing on the window sill. I now realise that veg parch isnt anywhere near large enough so have been planning an extension.

I also love having the herb pots by the front door; there's something very pleasing about running down to snip some chives or tarragon to accompany my omelette. I havent yet found a use for the chocolate mint plant other than a quick snack on the way in or out, but I just love the whole ethos of growing my own food at home

Karmacat

Me again .... thanks for the update ... I've been alternately reading back and playing mah jong solitaire - and yes, the family wedding was really wonderful. The little veggies and herbs showing their faces to you is a happy thing! Glad there's something - we do what we can, don't we. When I'm in the garden, I'm still hacking away at dead buddleia and ivy ..... I'll get there by next year, but not yet.