New recruit: First steps (advice appreciated)

[Deleted User]

Hey there
Just read your diary and looks like you are making great progress there!! (also glad Im not the only person starting to think about xmas!:D) also congrats on getting married!
Im another voter for the MF by 40 club- 30 would be impossible (unless I win the lottery in the next 18 months) but 40 would require quite some effort but not so much its impossible! ...

BaconandEggs

Thanks for reading! It's not too early to be thinking about Christmas is it? Glad I'm not alone! In previous years there's no way I would be trying to organise for Christmas at this time of year. A little more organised!

I wonder if we should set up a thread along the lines of "MFW by 40" - even if it just lists the threads where people have the same goal/are in a similar situation.

I personally find reading most of the threads and post on this board very informative and inspirational - but it's always more interesting (and of course relevant) when the person is in a similar situation or has the same goals.

Currently waiting for the electrician to come round. Have enquired about getting a new aerial socket in one of the rooms and it will be £30. Sounds reasonable and the guy has done some work for us before - which we have been hapy with.

Spent a bit of time this morning ringing up about our drains. One of them needs a bit of work. Didn't like the sound of alot of the people I spoke to. Ended up speaking to a largish company which has done some work where I work. I get the impression there are alot of cowboys in that industry.

I've had a day off work today - so a nice long bank holiday. Especially nice as it is rare that I get consecutive days off. Done a bit more painting - with a colour which isn't white! Woo hoo! It is extremely satisfying and the room is really starting to take shape. My wife is already looking into lightshades and carpet. We've already got most of the furniture for it so I'm hoping it won't be too much. She is going to make a lampshade but I think we might need a couple of bits of free standing furniture for extra storage. Can't have too much storage (although it does make it a bit easier to accumulate junk).

BaconandEggs

I've noticed recently that the number of small birds in the area has decreased slightly. I read about a virus that affected great tits - where there is a particular problem in Oxfordshire. I wondered if this had anything to do with it. However, I may have discovered the cause. I've just seen a small cat running round in the hedges and trees (where I know there are some nests - wood pigeon and blue tits among others). I'm currently looking at a large tree which it has scambled up. I definitely saw it go up there - but I've not seen it come down! I'm not anti cat at all.I just wonder if this is the potential cause? I do love birds and there are often large numbers of birds that use our feeds and come to our garden for water. I need to make sure we're not putting food anywhere that makes them easy game for our new neighbourhood feline.

fishfins

Ooh, I get so annoyed with the cats on our street! They sit under my bird table and nothing comes to it any more! I have considered buying a water pistol to get rid of them without hurting them . You might not be as mean as me though

Hurdler

fishfins wrote: »

Ooh, I get so annoyed with the cats on our street! They sit under my bird table and nothing comes to it any more! I have considered buying a water pistol to get rid of them without hurting them . You might not be as mean as me though

I got this sonic cat repeller from Wilkinson as they were always digging up and pooing in my wall-planter. This thing emits a sonic beep if anything triggers off it's sensors and they have stayed away.

Otherwise lion-poo apparantly works as well - they're scared of some bigger cat. Some garden centres sell bags of it!!

The things you find out when you have a garden!!!

BaconandEggs

The sonic thing sounds good. I'd feel bad using a water pistol I'll keep an eye on things for now. My neighbour is pretty good at making sure they don't go for the birds and is in all day. He doesn't like the cats on the hedge becuse he knows they are after the baby birds and his fish.

Changed my savings account yesterday - basically updated it so that I get a bit more interest (there's no much money in that account at the moment but I thought it might be worth it for 5 mins on a freephone number). It ended up taking ages and they asked loads of questions that I woudn't have expected for a savings account. More the sort of questions they qould ask when applying for a loan/credit check etc. Very strange.

This morning I've had the drain bloke out. Had a blocked drain which needs sorting before winter and some repair to the mortar in a drainage channel. Watched him do it and I could have done it myself! Cost a bit more than I was hoping. Having said that - he did it in a fraction of the time that it would have taken me and it would have involved me getting/borrowing some equipment - so I can live with it. Will definitely be doing it myself next time too. I also managed to repoint some brickwork and repair a bit of a garden wall with the left over mortar before I went to work. My wife's just finished the last bit of emulsion on the room we're decorating - so feels like we're making real progress. Just need to give it a good clean now and start on the gloss.

Waiting for a price on the electrical stuff still and the roofing to be done - but with any luck we will have it sorted before the weather starts getting bad. It already feels like winter is on the way!

BaconandEggs

Got the free Celebrations through from the Viking offer. That's one Christmas present sorted!

BaconandEggs

I made an "Excel House" following Hurdlers comment in their diary. An excellent idea, where it is easy to visualised the MF challenge ahead. I've made the house out of £250 "bricks" that will get coloured in as they are overpaid.

There's been alot in the news recently about house prices and rental prices. It got me thinking about how much nicer it is to be in your "own" home rather than renting. I say "own" because I appreciate that it is not truly that until the mortgage has been paid off. Nevertheless, the ability to alter things as you see fit and the lack of a landlord adds such a feeling of freedom.

The place we rented prior to moving in here was not bad at all and really we're grateful to have found it. It did have its downsides though. Noisy neighbours above and on both sides, a long walk from the car which made trips back from shopping no easy task, through multiple security doors and steps. It was cold and potentially expensive to heat in the winter (we wore about 10 layers) and uncomfortably hot in the summer. There was the constant threat of the landlord raising the rent - which he did just before we moved out - by 10%. There were regular inspections which felt like an invasion of privacy. All the neighbours were also renting and there was a feeling that no-one really cared about the area and had no stake in it.

Now we're paying less on the mortgage that we were in rent, for a nicer, bigger place in a much nicer area. There is a sense of community. We have a garden and a garage. Some of the money we pay in mortgage is paying off our mortgage not our landlords' mortgage. We've really enjoyed improving the house and have learnt some good skills on top of just making it look alot nicer. It's great to be able to use the garden for bbq's, hanging out washing and growing.

Feeling very motivated about all things MFW at the moment.

BaconandEggs

Put some insulation on one of our doors today. The insulation tape cost more than I expected at around 3 pounds for 15m but hopefully it will be worth it. The doors now makes a satisfying "schooom" noise when it closes now.

BaconandEggs

£50 extra earned this weekend. Going straight on a brick.