PigginSkint's DFW Diary

dawnybabes

Hi Piggin

Hope all is well and you're all OK

Dawn

PigginSkint

Hello Dawn!

I am around! Work has been nightmarishly busy this week so I haven't managed to get on MSE during the day and the laptop has not been playing ball so I haven't managed to get on MSE in the evening either!

The new laptop battery arrived the other day and as I have been up to my Dad's today for dinner I took the laptop and new battery with me and got my brother to help fit the new battery. So as you can see, normal service is resumed! (I hope!)

It was a weird feeling earlier on to have the laptop on and not plugged in! I have to discharge and recharge the battery a few times to get the full capacity out of it. Here's hoping!!

hypno06

So, how's things?

PigginSkint

hypno06 wrote: »

So, how's things?

Much the same! I'm working hard and paying everything. OH is working hard and paying nothing, apart from the Halifax bill (just!). Fed up? Moi?!

Last weekend we had a house meeting about the housework and have come up with a rota, which I have been working on in fits and starts over the week at work to try to fit it all on one piece of paper. So this week we will see whether everyone (i.e. OH) does everything they are meant to be doing.

hypno06

hmm......same old then. I hope things change for you soon to allow you that bit of breathing space!

PigginSkint

hypno06 wrote: »

hmm......same old then. I hope things change for you soon to allow you that bit of breathing space!

Thanks - I hope so too!

PigginSkint

Hi All

Sorry I have been rather quiet lately – work has been nightmarishly busy and I have also been busy in the evenings this week (housework rota, Avon order etc).

I had planned to give a few snippets of money news in this update but that has been rather eclipsed today by some much bigger news, so I will save those for another time.

Today is something of a crunch day money-wise in the PigginSkint household and it is all to do with tax credits. I have not had my latest award notice so I didn’t know what my new award will be. Today should have been the day that the payment went into my bank account, but it hasn’t. I am not entirely surprised to be honest, but this means that my calculations for the rest of the month do not add up. As a result I have had to suspend my daily payments to credit cards, for the time being.

I sent a text to OH to say that we need to have a serious talk about money tonight and he phoned me back about an hour later. Luckily I happened to be on my own in the office as the other 2 girls that I share an office with were at lunch. Apparently there are 3 letters waiting for me at home, so I got OH to open them and tell me what they said.

Two of them were about overpayments in previous years (to cut a verrrrry long story short, a few months ago I sent them a letter about these because I finally got OH to start sorting out his finances). Not huge amounts (as expected) – in total I have got to pay them back about £300. The other one was to say ‘we haven’t got enough info to process your claim’ which I suppose means that what they need is details of OH’s current income and estimate for the year 2008-2009 – this is because when I sent my form back I wasn’t able to give them any info about this because OH was job-hunting at the time. Until I read the letters for myself when I get home, I won’t know much of the details (and I think I am going to have to phone them anyway) but it would appear that my payments have now stopped until such time as I have ‘paid’ back what I owe for the current year.

If this is the case, then I think I can live with that as I wasn’t actually being paid much anyway. What it means, though, is that it really is crunch time as far as the family finances go because now OH must start paying his way – i.e. make a significant contribution to the household bills (instead of nothing at all – grrrrrr!!!!). I calculated this some time ago so he knows how much money we are talking about – 50% of the household bills (mortgage, gas, electric etc etc), not counting food, comes to approx £330 a month. In addition he needs to continue paying the Halifax credit card bill at roughly £180 a month and he needs to sort out his student loans and start paying that back.

The long and the short of it is that if he hasn’t got the money to do this, then he needs to find it pronto! And if he doesn’t, he is likely to get a very nasty shock and very soon!

Anyway, better get on with some work.

Bye for now!

PigginSkint

Hi All

I had a talk with OH last night – how much good it did, I don’t know.

It looks like I just need to provide the tax credits people with a bit more information to enable them to process my claim for this year – I will phone them up this evening to ask them exactly what information they need.

I told OH that he needed to start paying his way. His reply was ‘but I have been’. I explained to him (very patiently!) that just paying the credit card bill for debt that he has run up in my name does not count as paying his way! What planet is he on?!

I told him that he needs to start paying me the £330 a month that we discussed before, and that needs to happen soon. In addition he needs to continue paying the Halifax bill and he needs to pay me the £185 he owes me for the cheque that bounced. I told him that the £330 a month needs to be a regular feature by Christmas (I didn’t say ‘or else’ – I didn’t have the heart!). He also needs to provide me with the information I need to sort out the tax credits.

I don’t know how much of this he actually took in. One of the first things he said was ‘that needs paying’ (pointing to the mantelpiece) in November. I asked him what he meant – it is the Spotlight subs that he needs to pay for, at a hundred and something quid. He also said he hopes the money from the ad comes in soon – I said that hoping isn’t good enough, he needs to actually do something.

How much of this have I already said? What difference is it going to make? I don’t know what else I can do! I have sent a text to my stepmother this morning saying that I think I need help – I can’t seem to get through to him, so perhaps someone else should try!

Last night I got upset when we were in bed and I told him why I was upset – I still don’t know whether it will make any difference.

Anyway tonight I will phone the tax credits people and then I should hopefully have a much better idea of what I am dealing with.

All this is particularly upsetting at the moment because DS’s birthday is soon (before next payday) and we will be having a bit of do at our house – just inviting a few of his friends round to play and a few family members – and I really don’t know where I am going to find the money to pay for the food. I don’t do anything fancy but I still haven’t got any spare money to pay for it. In addition there is not enough available balance to cover the rest of the bills for the rest of the month. Luckily I have got an Avon delivery due next week so I have just got to hope I can get rid of enough deliveries quickly enough to get enough cash in my hand to pay for stuff!

Sorry for the rather rambling post. This is all very depressing – sorry!

dawnybabes

(hugs)

Don't know what to suggest ? What is he doing with the money he is earning ?

Where was he before he moved in with you ? Did his mum keep him when he lived at home ?

Could U do a bonfire party - just jackets and beans round a fire ?

PigginSkint

dawnybabes wrote: »

(hugs)

Thanks!

Don't know what to suggest ? What is he doing with the money he is earning ?

He doesn't exactly earn a lot! A large chunk (approx half) just goes on the Halifax bill, some goes on food (bread and milk etc) to supplement what I buy, plus additional expenses??!!! The point is he just doesn't enough to cover what I want him to pay. He doesn't seem to grasp the point that he needs to make more efforts to earn more money!

Where was he before he moved in with you ? Did his mum keep him when he lived at home ?

He was in a council flat, then got evicted (not entirely his fault - bit of a long story).

Could U do a bonfire party - just jackets and beans round a fire ?
Thanks! I will think of something!

Thanks for posting - I do appreciate it!