Hurdler's Race to be Mortgage-Free

Tilly_MFW_in_6_YRS

Hi Hurdler, what fab news and how great that it was this forum that helped, Sepa x x x x

An amazing group of people. I do my best to lend a hand to people when needed and its marvellous to see this working.

Best wishes for new chapter Tilly x

misscousinitt

Well done Hurdler. Hope it all goes well for you.

MCI

Hurdler

What a month!

• Passed a trial for a sports mag that was resurrected, but then dropped again,
• Got offered my first proper journo role, with the bonus of being at IT contracting rates, and part time to offer me the chance to get some more Sports Reporting work experience
• Resigned on Monday and have been prepping for the new role as and where I can, as well as still having Journo school!

Bit of a change in strategy now.

As you can see - Vernon is now counting up to the magic figure of £1295 - the point at which an overpayment of that amount will trigger another monthly payment reduction.

General concensus from Limited Company owning pals is to let 3 months or so build up in my business account, paying myself the absolute minimum (£633 per month) and making up the rest with my buffer fund I have had sitting around since I took redundancy.

I am also going to get rid of my Insurance cover on things like the TV, washing machine and dishwasher - they are now approaching 4 years old and I have probably paid for a new one of each over the 4 years in cover.
I rang Sky and haggled and they are giving me 9 months of HD service but knocking off the price of it, as a reward for being with them for 4 years.

That all helps to whittle my outgoings down quite nicely.





Exciting times... :beer:

Happy Easter everybody!

Tilly_MFW_in_6_YRS

Happy Easter Hurdler, enjoy your break and good luck with the studies and your new work

Best wishes Tilly x

Hurdler

You would think that having landed a new job, my stressed brain would let me sleep, but it keeps waking me up early ... Between 4 and 5 in the morning, typically fully awake at 5:30!

Anyhoo - shuffled some of my emergency fund into a new ISA ...

No journo school today so town for the first time on a Saturday in ages!
But alas I hear the demon shorthand, features and a portfolio calling on my attention!

I found a free version of Quickbooks for limited company finances that I obviously downloaded when I created the limited company this time last year but I suspect it will charge me for the full version in 30 days ... So I also made some spreadsheets as well to keep costs down.

Sortd out all my finances this week for the month and have to dig out my BT share certificates to sell off, so I can add that to my Stocks and Shares ISA fund. I might have enough to sort that out in a month or so.

I had a fab Remoska meal last night - sweet chilli salmon, grilled potatoes and asparagus!

Tonight I am meeting one of my friends who is now a mature student on a physio course ... Wagamamas in town for us ... Yum!!!

abouttimetoo

Hi Hurdler, congrats on the new job :j

I can remember you joining the board and talking about your plans for a career change and look how far you have come in such a short space of time, very well done you :beer:

Boo to the waking up early, i hate it when that happens

Hope you're having a good time in town and enjoy that meal tonight. I've heard a lot about Wagamama's and although they are often present in the cities I work in and eat out in I've somehow never found myself in one yet. Are they really nice then?

Regards
ATT

Hurdler

Thanks ATT...
Came back to watch the chaos in the Boat Race this year.
Wagas is lovely - I like a couple of the side dishes and a big bowl of noodles! It's because of Wagas that I roamed around china town in search of Gyoza (dumpling) skins (which my mother nicks every time she comes round!)... I got the low down of how to cook them from a guy on a project and I am going to do some of those as a leaving present for my colleagues (along with some Mauritian food)...

It's quite reasonably priced as well - which will be good given that my friend is a mature student and home for the hols, and I am going to be only working part time...

Hurdler

TCB payment clicked - only £1.46 but I am STILL waiting for the !!!!less managing agents that I am getting shot of.
I had to chase them for my money and it still hasn't arrived.
I hold out next to NO hope for getting my £200 reserve back on this form.

I am so sorely tempted (once the new agents take over) to write them a really stinking letter telling them exactly what I think of them, other than the bland "I am exercising my right to terminate the contract" that I had to send.
The property manager, in particular, is perhaps the rudest little muppet I have ever come across.

So £1.46 is better than nothing.

Hurdler

So me and my remoska are getting to know each other.
So far I made a toad in the hole with next to no oil, roastie veggies and I did spuds, carrots, onions and a chicken breast mini-roast last night.

I think I left it in a little too long (added a single pre-made yorkie and an Anut Bessies sage and onion/sausagemeat stuffing ball for the last half hour.
I think I need to do that a lot earlier in the proceedings as the chicken was going a little dry (but I drowned it in gravy so that was ok!)

As I am not heading to Mr T until the weekend, I am focussing on what I have in the fridge/freezer for the rest of the week...

Opened the conservatory door this morning and heard the rain thundering off the roof, so the lakeland heated airer will get proper use for the first time today...

Both of these devices boast super-efficient use of the electrics... so we'll see.

I tried to start mounting my print stuff on black card yesterday and was working on my portfolio. This is not as simple as I think people have thought - it's not just about slinging in stories in there and hoping we have enough to pass... you have to write up your structure and planning... I suspect a lot of people are going to be in the same position as the previous classes, frantically trying to pack in stories and write them up... so I am going to be spending my Easter Monday trying to get the story-lines sorted out.
Mounting is quite a challenge for the un-creative... sigh.

AND a classmate and I might have to do a presentation on Tuesday so there has been some to-ing and fro-ing of emails - so I need to tackle that today.

Contemplating not going to Watford this week and drafting the first couple of weeks of articles for my new job (SQUUEEEEEE!) so that I am able to get up and running quite quickly.

Time to put the washing in and crack on with stuff... have a good bank holiday everyone.

gallygirl

Just catching up on your news and wayhay :j, how exciting :T.

And to Sepa - :kisses: from all of us