6 months to freedom / Race against the bank

Scuff

Does this mean if you get 1900 you'll spend 200 on sushi??! Sounds like a dream, I miss my sushi fix! Have you ever tried the make at home kits?

littleweasel

Haha - it's not likely to be that much sadly, more like £1720! Our 'increased' pay award which is now applicable was 1.7%, which is still less than inflation. Grrr. If I could get one of the two promotions I've applied for (still not heard anything) I could eat sushi all day every day -er, I mean start saving for a deposit ;-)

I've got one of the sushi mats and some nori actually, but haven't made any for a while. I struggled to get the rice right and am always a bit suspicious about the raw fish element (for some reason it's OK if I'm buying it).

It's so cold in the office today, I think I'm going to have to buy a hot drink just to stop my hands from freezing :-(

littleweasel

...made myself a cup of tea and am cradling it. Though a coffee shop coffee might have provided psychological help!

littleweasel

Payday!!!! :T

My base salary increased from £1687 to £1711. Don't spend it all at once... Still haven't heard back re: these interviews although they promise a response within 2 weeks of application closing! That's public sector HR for you...

This month I am going to pay at least £400 off the debt, and transfer the remaining credit/store card debt on to 0% in order to clear it more efficiently. The fee will only be a tenner or so.

Worked out that after bills, today's supermarket shop etc I have £515 remaining, which is still quite a bit. However, this month also has some forseeable expenses; various celebrations and a trip to Paris in mid-November. It'd be ideal if I could keep 'other' spends to less than £400/ £100 or so a week...I know that's still a lot. However I've already cut my spending by over £300 a month (where did it all go?!) so I don't feel bad about it. :cool:

littleweasel

Right, a more detailed budget for the month. I had a payday treat today of a spicy chicken and rice thing from Wasabi - £5ish, massive and just what I needed (I have an annoying cold and can't taste anything that's not spicy!). It'll be back to bringing in lunches tomorrow as Tesco are delivering tonight.

Here are the expenses I currently know about. There are a lot of them! I have £515 to pay for everything non-essential.

1st Nov £15 Piano lesson
2nd Nov Dinner/drinks out - could be a bit pricey. Let's say £30, it might even be more...!

6th Nov: £10 on things to take to a friend's US election night party
8th Nov: £20 on colleague's leaving drinks
10th Nov: £30, my birthday drinks

12th Nov: Gig, £10
14th Nov: Dentist...£50?!
15th Nov: £15 Piano lesson
16th-19th Nov: Paris :eek: Say £100?!
22nd Nov: Piano £15

24th Nov: Karaoke, £30
28th Nov: Gig, £10
29th Nov: Piano £15

= 350. Will likely spend at least another £50 on groceries/food etc (the 515 doesn't include today's £30 Tesco delivery), so up to about £400. Can't believe I'm spending so much on entertainment this month! The £115 that remains will no doubt get eaten up by little things. I will need to keep a close eye on what I'm spending this month.

littleweasel

3 posts in one day, that's what the payday excitement does to you :-P

Had a nice MSE moment just now. Tesco showed up early (they're back in the good books now after a dodgy spell) with a £43 shop that only cost £30, and now the cupboards and freezer are groaning. The fridge is moderately stocked, as I think I've finally found the right balance of perishable/non perishable foods. It sounds pathetic, but it made me so happy surveying it all, planning yummy meals and realising there was enough to last for ages but not so much that perishable food would go to waste. Before reality struck I did loads of small shops in the expensive convenience supermarkets that proliferate round here (I live in London Zone 1 and there aren't any big ones nearby), not really thinking about how much I was spending or how much food I needed. It was a waste of food and money. I dunno, I think I've finally turned a corner..being sensible with my money doesn't need to mean being miserable, it just means not wasting it on nothing (with the result that I have more to spend on things that actually matter!)

HeadAboveWater

Good for you littleweasel What a revelation, huh!?

Think I can see you coming round that corner in the same direction as me!! lol

littleweasel

It is!

I spent about £3 at Tesco today which wasn't on the plan - but I was massively craving Stilton (!?) and while I was in there noticed they had some great reductions - 15p for 3kg of potatoes and 65p for 16 nice sausages.

Meeting a friend for a quick drink late this evening- shouldn't be expensive, I have a hard time trying to pay for anything when he's around!

My balance transfers are now being processed, so I will stop wasting interest on the balance I was carrying while I tackle the debts. I think I will close the Oasis card account as soon as I know it's gone through, I don't really shop there enough to make the discount worthwhile even if I never paid any interest.

Right, lots to do tonight - a bit of NaNoWriMo, studying, and piano!!

littleweasel

Morning!

Today's sandwich, piri piri hummus with vine tomatoes and cucumber, accompanied by an orange, another tomato for good luck, and a mini mars bar. Meal out later which should be nice :-) I spent about a fiver with my friend last night. Piano lesson before dinner tonight...the spends are creeping up! Still, I should be OK. The overdraft will be completely gone by next payday, and then I can pay the rest off with my Christmas paycheque (although there's not so much urgency now it's at 0%).

In the new year, I will use credit sensibly to ease cash flows rather than as a bonus pool of cash which is there for spending. :-)

littleweasel

Quick update. Friday was expensive (but amazing fun!), I spent £5 on transport on Saturday and £3 today. I think about £50 for everything, which was more than I wanted, but not by loads.

The balance transfers have gone through so I can close my Oasis card account tomorrow :-) Will also make a payment to the new transfer card tomorrow and update my signature to reflect the £400 I'm gonna take off the overdraft.

Need to write 600 more words on my NaNoWriMo effort before I can study...! It's been a busy weekend.