In pursuit of Health, Wealth and Happiness

Birdie85

All that money stuff sounds great! I'm getting so excited for you!

Have you got any holidays planned for your last uni-free summer?

Tete_en_l'Air

No, no-one to go with Couple of weekends in London but that's it. I now need to look at holiday entitlement and when to put my notice in - I think I'll have 12 days up to the end of August so I'll take them at the end of August so I still get a month's full pay in Aug but will also have two weeks off for a rest/last-minute organisation. After Shrimpy's debacle I want to give six weeks' notice so I will actually be able to take those two weeks off, whatever happens. Which means notice will need to go in in mid-July. I'm actually really nervous about it!

clearmydebts

Wow is all I can say. You are an inspiration Tete. You are so focussed x

Tete_en_l'Air

Awww thanks CMD :kisses3: I don't feel it most of the time so that's nice to hear!

Now. Pinecone. Just got home from work to £6 worth of luncheon vouchers (LUNCHEON VOUCHERS! I didn't know they were an actual thing!) for some surveys I did. I thought I would be getting cold hard cash So, firstly - will I get funny looks if I try to buy a Boots meal deal with my vouchers and secondly - is there a way of changing my preferences so I get the moolah instead?

Kittikins

Yay, I love luncheon vouchers, they're so quaint Yes, you can use them nearly everywhere, but lots of checkout people don't know what they are - they need to put them through as coupons and scan the small barcode, not the big one! (I've been doing P/C for years )

Well done on the SLC call and that's good news that you don't have to give your dad's income - at the mo, I'm not 'living at home' but will be soon, so it's great to know that they won't reassess me adversely once DD and I move in with the folks! Phew!

I'm hoping they've received my paperwork and that my application goes through nice and smoothly. I had to send in my divorce certificate (yuk) and a few bits to show I'm a parent, and, like you, will be about the same off financially when I'm studying. I've got to try and get a job for the summer holiday though as I'm only paid for term time and aim to leave at the end of term and then move. Gulp.

Tete_en_l'Air

Hi Kitty! How come you're moving 'home', have I missed something? Hope all is OK. Yeah the lady I spoke to said that since I'm living with a parent then to only take my income into account when asked for 'household income', which is then basically £0 because I won't be earning. I thought I'd get the full amount as Dad's a pensioner now, but I'm relieved there wasn't more wrangling involved!

Kittikins

At the moment DD and I live in our own house in Sussex, but Uni2 is in the 'shires, not far from where my parents still live in the house I grew up in. So, we're upping sticks and moving in with them for the year and then going I know not where, it'll depend on where I can get a job and afford to buy somewhere.

Sadly I have to sell our current house as my mortgage is huge, and my teaching income won't be enough to support it The job I was made redundant from was very well-paid in comparison to any other job it seems!! Ho hum......it'll all be worth it in the end though

Lara44

Tete_en_l'Air wrote: »

How you doing Lara? I meant to say the other day your reading retreat sounded ace - are you feeling calmer about everything now?

Hey Tete, not doing too bad. In the middle of DIY fever atm. Lots going wrong unfortunately!

The reading retreat was ace. I so enjoy being on the coast. OH is away atm so having a writing hermit session Another deadline bit the dust tonight so I am feeling woop!!! Watched Nashville with wine and chocolate - anybody else got that guilty pleasure?

No rest for the wicked until the end of September though - but light at the end of the tunnel. Going to go shopping for some home organisation bits tomorrow as a bit of a treat. Sad life, eh?!!

starnac

Tete_en_l'Air wrote: »

Awww thanks CMD :kisses3: I don't feel it most of the time so that's nice to hear!

Now. Pinecone. Just got home from work to £6 worth of luncheon vouchers (LUNCHEON VOUCHERS! I didn't know they were an actual thing!) for some surveys I did. I thought I would be getting cold hard cash So, firstly - will I get funny looks if I try to buy a Boots meal deal with my vouchers and secondly - is there a way of changing my preferences so I get the moolah instead?

You can use them in loads of places Tete but P/C are changing at the moment so you can get points instead to exchange for PayPal cash! Personally I like the luncheon vouchers as it is 'free' money for shopping

Tete_en_l'Air

Thanks for the pinec0ne pointers Kitty and Star, as I understood it the vouchers are for meals only (eg Boots meal deal) - but Star you mention shopping - are you allowed to spend them on anything? That would be better. I logged in and had a look in the FAQs but I have to wait for an email inviting me to become a paypal member I did however receive a product through the post to try out as we were discussing the other day! Not edible unfortunately but still - I love a good freebie

Kitty, that sounds like a great move all round to move in with your parents - I guess they'll be able to help with childcare when you're swamped and DD won't get lonely while you have your nose to the grindstone the whole time! Selling the house also gives you more freedom when you come to apply for jobs next year too

Yeah my job is fairly well-paid too, not in terms of what I do I don't think, but in terms of the location and 'transferable' skills (i.e. it IS quite a responsible job and I look after big budgets, loads of people etc BUT the buck doesn't ACTUALLY stop with me so I can't *really* say I've managed ££££££ budget and 500 people when applying for other jobs) so although my NQT salary will be about what I'm on now, at least I know I have a progression route for the future, whereas if I lost my current job and had to get another admin-type job in the area, I'd face a pay cut of about £5k. Plus there's the whole 'enjoying your job' part too, which is priceless.

I don't watch Nashville Lara but I see plenty of people tweeting about it! Current obsession is The Killing (Danish version - even though I'm meant to be practising my French and Spanish )

I've just realised that I only have one day between now and 17th June when I don't have something on after work/all weekend :eek: Just been listing what I'm doing and when and what I'll need to sort (washing etc) beforehand, and suddenly I feel really stressed about everything and fitting it all in I feel like I spend most of my days trying to look busy at work while time is whizzing by too fast and it'll be September before I know it and I won't be prepared! Trying to think of little things I can do from my computer at work, like sorting my digital photos on my external hard drive

On a bit of a personal note, one thing I decided when I started brainstorming where I wanted to be by the time my course starts (and so what I need to do now to get there...) was that I'd quite like to be in a relationship. I don't think I'll have the time or energy once my course starts to start looking, so I've been internet dating like a mofo. I'm in touch with three different fellas at the mo, which is confusing and probably only adding to my stress. I met one on Sunday but although he was nice enough, it was a little awkward with a few of those awful silences. Much as I hate myself for it, I ended up missing my ex, because all I could think about was how nice and non-awkward OUR first (internet) date had been - even though he turned out to be a total pig - what's wrong with me? Anyway, another first date with another one on Friday night so we'll see how it goes. Just thought I'd tell you guys about that because no-one else knows (can't bear other people's expectation as well as my own!)