Caz counts it down

cazmanian_minx

Huh, when did Red Spotted Hanky start charging a booking fee?? Went via the Scotrail website instead, since I didn't have vouchers. Yes, half marathon day looms, so I thought I'd better do something about getting there and back. The MSE way would be to drive down in the morning, leave the car in Rose Street all day (about £3 for parking) and then drive back - however, after running 13.1 miles, I don't think I'd be the safest person to be navigating single-track roads at speed... So I'm getting the train down on Saturday afternoon, have found myself a B&B not far from the start for £35 and will get the train back on Sunday (fortunately the one train a day on Sundays doesn't leave until just before 6pm - I think with a 12.30 start I should have finished by then ).

Another busy day for work, nice lot of proofreading, 15 orders posted and a few emails typed for Mr RPC, who rang me this morning from a conference to sort a few things out.

cazmanian_minx

cazmanian_minx wrote: »

Just musing this morning...given I may be about to have a small pony about the place, I'm wondering if there would be an interest in setting up a website all about ideas for things to do with Shetlands, minis and outgrown kids' ponies? So many of them end up just being lawnmowers because people don't want to sell on part of the family, when there's really an awful lot that can be done with them in terms of in-hand schooling, in-hand hacking, horse agility, trick-training, driving etc. etc. etc. Will do some research....

Well, unless I've completely misinterpreted how to use the Google AdWords Keyword Suggestion tool, not a single person is putting in 'outgrown pony' as a search term on Google, so I think this may be a non-starter, at least from a money-making point of view :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

cazmanian_minx

cazmanian_minx wrote: »

Well, unless I've completely misinterpreted how to use the Google AdWords Keyword Suggestion tool, not a single person is putting in 'outgrown pony' as a search term on Google, so I think this may be a non-starter, at least from a money-making point of view :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Okay, helps if you learn how to use the dratted thing first :o:o Looks like this might actually be a goer, but will spend some more time before spending any money (and wait to see if we're actually going to have the pony!)

cazmanian_minx

Right, I'm sure none of you are waiting with bated breath to see if I made the third part of GallyGirl's challenge....

Business
Overdraft: -£-4,860.00 / -£4,660.00 +£200.00

Business total: -£-4,860.00 / -£4,660.00 +£200.00

Personal
Halifax card: -£5,130.00 / -£4,990.00 +£140.00

Personal total: -£5,130.00 / -£4,990.00 +£140.00

Grand total: -£9,990.00 / -£9,650.00 +£340.00

Three out of three :D:D Another little mini-milestone is that the tax and transcript VAT savings account has now crept over £2,000 for the first time. I'll need the VAT for the first week of May, but the tax isn't due to be paid until 31st January next year, so if I need to lend that to the business to avoid having to renew the overdraft, I can do.

Have a great weekend everyone, I'm off for a little 13.1 mile jog around Inverness

cazmanian_minx

Actually - am I being daft? Got a 1.9% 0% money transfer offer through on my Barclaycard yesterday, which I could pay the overdraft off with. Hang on, let's run the numbers. 1.9% on £4,660 is £88.54. IF I could pay the overdraft off in the next 2 months and don't have to renew it (which is actually a fairly big ask, given how slowly it's been going) then that's £50.48 in interest and it's not worth doing. If I have to renew it, then there's another £150 fee plus the extra interest to add.

I'm thinking for the sake of £38 it might be worth shifting it. The offer expires on 31st March, so I'll see how I go.

cazmanian_minx

I managed to make it a fairly non-spendy weekend away - bought my supper and breakfast with the weekly shop on Saturday morning, didn't get tempted by any of the stands in the registration hall and Sunday supper was courtesy of M&S Food Hall on the way back to the station.

It's funny, you wouldn't normally think that 32 hours away from home would feel like a holiday, but lying in my single bed in the B&B on Sunday morning, (which was just a B, no breakfast on offer and when I got up in the morning, the teaspoon was missing from the tea-making tray, so I ended up eating porridge with chopsticks made out of a couple of biros :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:), stuffing myself with carbohydrates, watching Jeremy Kyle and not having to go and feed and muck out all the animals was such a total switch-off for my brain that I feel like I had a proper rest, despite running 13.1 miles and then walking another 3 from the finish point back to the station.

(Knocked four minutes off my PB as well :D:D:D)

cazmanian_minx

Oh, and I got home to letter from HMRC, saying they'd reviewed my appeal, I was correct and they were happy to confirm that I was de-registered for VAT.....as of 28th February!! Hooray, on the whole, but slightly awkward in that I've spent a week sending out VAT invoices to eBay customers when I actually wasn't registered. Have put a message up on the business Facebook page asking anyone who needs an invoice reissuing to get in touch.

dawnybabes

Woohoo, there's two, are you buying a lottery ticket for the third ?

cazmanian_minx

dawnybabes wrote: »

Woohoo, there's two, are you buying a lottery ticket for the third ?

I wish I shall just see what fate decides to throw my way!

A nice varied day, talked to a couple of people Mr RPC is thinking of employing, typed a few emails for him, proofread three files for the agency, sent out a few orders, collected six books from the library van and tackled the ironing pile (now down to one basket!)

Mr Minx went to look at a Mitsubishi L200 after work today and, amazingly, didn't buy it on the spot :rotfl: There's a warning light on it that keeps flickering on and off and although they say it's just an electrical problem and there isn't an actual problem with what the warning light's for, it's making him jittery. I have suggested that if he thinks it's otherwise a good buy, he asks them if they can take it down to our helpful mechanics for them to check it over, but I think he's probably going to leave it. He IS getting sensible in his old age!

cazmanian_minx

I realised today, when looking back through my records for the horses' last weights, that my lovely, lovely farrier hasn't charged me anything twice in row. Given that means I'm £80 up (well, £60, I suppose, I can't remember the last time he charged me the full amount), I felt that I was more than okay to spend £47.50 on a new turnout rug for Merlin - his newest one is 3.5 years old and getting very shabby and this was reduced from £95.

If anyone else fancies a rug bargain, my friend with the tack shop is doing 50% off on a shedload of rugs until midnight tonight to clear out her rug bay - she'll post nationwide for £10: https://www.facebook.com/HilltopHorsesLtd

£25-worth of proofreading done, had another go at getting eBay to remove my VAT information after I got a reply from customer services saying my VAT number was attached successfully to my account and they would remove VAT from my selling fees and have been utterly frustrated in my attempts to get hold of the correct person in the events team of the posh hotel Mr RPC is going to a lunch at. Will try again tomorrow.