Edinburgher gets cracking!

Secret_Saving_Squirrel

Hello,

I just returned a damaged Amazon book (idiot postman left it on the doorstep in the rain) via collectplus to a little newsagent near me which I didn't even know existed! No queue, friendly service, much better than the post office.

Squirrel

Alchemilla

Bum. Nearest collect plus 20 miles.

SuperSecretSquirrel

Hurrah! I have managed to read this whole thread over the past 24 hours

You have come a long way, and since passing your driving test seem to have a healthy bit of extra money each month to save/invest

I now have a list of things to investigate further thanks to your diary:

• Investigate zopa/ratesetter (though since you've withdrawn everything from zopa I guess I'm too late)
• Search for some interesting pressure cooker recipes and if it still appeals look for a good deal on one
• Read/re-read Millionaire Next Door and Richest Man In Babylon
• Try the roasted butternut squash, onion, pepper, courgette dish with couscous and feta cheese

Personally I'm trying to balance our medium term aim of mortgage free wannabe with longer term aspirations of 'freedom'. Currently the plan is to achieve mortgage neutral status by overpaying and increasing savings/investments in parallel (I agree that monevator is a great resource for those getting started with S&S ISAs). Beyond that I figure we'll be taking a balanced approach between paying off the remaining mortgage (once ERCs are more reasonable) and investing for the future. Love the idea of retiring early from paid employment to concentrate on a self employed future doing what we love, but from a position of complete financial security from the outset. Anyway, I'm rambling, the point is that it's really great having a diary like yours here in MFW that touches on more 'bigger picture' subjects and the handy 'money hacks'.

Thanks for sharing, and good luck with the rest of your journey!

PS - Congratulations on your top secret surprise good news, whatever it may be... In possibly related news, our journey will soon go from the adventures of a pair of DINKYs to that of a young family

edinburgher

Thanks for reading SSS, it's always a real boost when someone takes the time to scour your ramblings for inspiration :j

For the first several months, it felt like I was a bit too prone to jumping from one idea to the next. It now feels, however, that I'm on a fairly even keel and have a plan that I'm sticking to. I'm just about to begin the 4th month of saving for the Freedom Fund and like yourself, I'll be going for a mix of OPs and investment.

The plan is to save in cash until the end of the financial year and then dump a lump sum into Vanguard Lifestrategy, adding £500 sums whenever available after that. I could just as easily set up a monthly DD, but I fear that I'd lose focus without the smaller goals to motivate myself. That's not as efficient as it could be, but I will forgive myself

• Driving, while pretty helpful, has divided opinion in our house. My wife loves it (or using me as a hubby taxi) and I'll not deny that it has given us more options. On the other hand, it's costing us £214/mth to run and eventually replace a small car that we largely use for local travel
• Zop@/R@tesetter - I'm not convinced this is viable in the UK any more - I'd rather get 5% from N@tionwide/4% from CB with the FSCS guarantee
• PCs are very useful, from making stock and steaming veg to being able to make a decent steak pie filling in about 25 mins. I'm sure you could pick one up secondhand, but I'd either replace the seal or consider a new one if you can find it reasonably priced
• TRMIB is a great read and it's always worth refreshing your recollection of it. I tend to do so once a year (usually on holiday!)
• Re. money hacks, I suppose the normal ones now are: Stooze every penny you can, do the money shuffle to get max interest on cash, the free H@lifax fiver, budget for everything, cut down utility spending and try not to buy too much carp!

A fairly utilitarian sort of day. Survived a morning hangover (out with friends last night) and found it amusing that I wasn't annoyed by guys taking the mick because I don't have a £400 phone, but did feel myself getting annoyed when one chap tried to tell me that we weren't getting the interest rate we get on 3 savings accounts :rotfl: I am getting old!

• £5 to Freedom Fund
• £10.67 to 2017
• Made HM houmous, tzatziki, bread
• Studiously avoided going for a jog

ajmoney

edinburgher wrote: »

• Studiously avoided going for a jog

What is stopping you Ed? I read a good suggestion which may work for you, it does for us. When you really don't feel like going out, put your kit on and go out for 6 minutes. It normally gets a bit easier after the first 5 minutes so the chances are you will carry on. If it truly is not enjoyable or too much then turn around and run back home, you will have done 12 minutes which is better than sitting on the sofa and once used to it you can probably cover a mile in that time.

Go on, give it a try!

edinburgher

Go on, give it a try!

southerndave

Just catching up Ed, looks like you're busy as usual. Interesting to see the news but I think I can guess.....!

southerndave

Have you dropped your new shoes in a puddle?

edinburgher

southerndave wrote: »

Have you dropped your new shoes in a puddle?

They are now officially mudded, week 1 of Couch to 5k begins

Listed an eBay item and bundled up 2 others to post tomorrow.

pavlovs_dog

are they your new trainers that you've christened Ed?

Hope all is ok with the thing that we're not talking about :A

Was it you who posted a while back about low energy lightbulbs? (trouble with reading many diaries from scratch in a short sitting is that the finer details often start to create one big MF blur ) If it was I'd like to pick your brains.