Indebted Dunce's quest to be debt free

castortroy28

Hiya!!

thanks for the reply. I agree with you regarding the price hikes.

I guess the defaults are bad but if I give it two years and then everything is settled then i guess I will have a bigger deposit and it will look better.

Hmmm... what exactly do you need to be done to your teeth? The reason why I ask is that well I had being going private for years but it seemed such a waste of money.

i couldnt get any decent service for NHS in London but my home town has been great. So now am waiting for an appointment at the hospital where they will knock me out and do all the necessary work at no cost.

yes we all do need to go for a holiday... how about a short break in the uk somewhere? i am going soon as I havent had a break really in 4 years so i was thinking wales or something.

Indebted.Dunce

I need a jaw realignment surgery followed by braces. Good NHS dentists are really hard to come by and NHS funding even harder. I have checked with a dozen or so dentists/orthodontists and no is hopeful about funding. We will see how it goes.

Holiday will be a staycation or abroad depending on what is cheaper. I have personally found staycation to be a lot more expensive.

Indebted.Dunce

This week marked 4 months since my last bet, quite proud of myself. I am certainly looking forward to converting the 4 to 400 months and many more after that!

In terms of spending, this week has been a really good week I have only spent £12 - £2 for a cab share earlier today cause of the snow and £10 for comedy night tickets. If only every week could be like this week!

Indebted.Dunce

Been a really crap day, spent most of the day thinking about how stupid I have been with my gambling - my net position as at August 2010 was c£1,500 and then 18 months later (Feb 2012) at lowest point it was c -£37,500. That is a swing of £39,000 plus all the monies that I should have been saving ~ £800 to £1,200pm - taking a mid point of the two, that is £57,000 gambled in 18 months!!

What have I got to show for the binge? F U C K ALL! Actually that is a lie, I have got anger; resentment; uncertainty; negativity; austerity; lack of savings; lack of house deposit; been pushed back at least 5 years in my life; monthly interest costs of c£150; and the list goes on! C'est la vie!

Apologies for the ramble and angry post, I just needed (still need) to vent!

castortroy28

hiya...

try not to beat yourself up about it too much... It does eat at you a bit. I worked out the other day In the last 4 years I have turned over winning and losing around about 302k. Yes thats right... you heard it. over 300 thousand pounds. Thats ridiculous. I happy you caught it when you did and now know when to stop.

This is going to sound a bit weird but when i watch football now n the bookies, I sometimes if i can chat to some of the problem gamblers on the machines. Just to help them a bit especially the young ones. they normally know what i am talking about when i talk to them about their limits but hearing it from another gambler and someone who is older always helps. especially when i tell them about how much i have lost. I think the gambling industry has a lot to answer for in this regard, and spotting when people are having problems gambling.

And I have met people who have even lost more than that.. I know this guy who has lost 1.5 million, his house, wife and kids due to gambling.

big props to you for stopping fully...
not having a good week this week.. am tired.. have been sick so dont get two days pay and shower broke at the house.

boss is on my case about work and have queries stacked up to my eyeballs...

thinking about emigrating... there is too much to complain about in this country which i used to love.

Indebted.Dunce

Hey Castortroy,

Are you feeling any better? Don't worry too much about the lost pay, I am sure you will make up for it soon. Health is a lot more important than money after all "health is wealth".

Where are you thinking of emigrating to?

I know what you mean abt not beating myself up but it is quite hard not to do it.

I am really pleased to hear that you are trying to help the others stop - well done!

Only time will tell if I have been able stop fully, so far so good - over 4 months and counting.

Indebted.Dunce

Its the time of the month when I realise that I have not been able to exercise self restraint (when it comes to spending) for yet another month. After all, the numbers don't lie and the story is:

Current account 862
Cash 60
Current account 2 10
Total assets 932
Barclaycard 1 -4,287
Barclaycard 2 -1,625
Capital One -
Natwest 1 -
Natwest 2 -
Family loan 1 -12,620
Family loan 2 -3,095
Season Ticket Loan -2,533
MBNA -5,099
NW Loan -4,058
Total liabilities -33,317
Net worth -32,385

Bet free: 19 weeks

Based on the above figures, I have paid off just under 4% during the month. A couple of exceptional items worth noting in the above figures:

1. Paid for expensive dental bills
2. Paid for a new suit and shoes

A positive exceptional item included not paying for drinks due to dryathlon.

Indebted.Dunce

Another couple of weeks flown by and that makes it 21 weeks and counting!

Financially the month as been so-so, haven't spent a fortune on booze (yet) but I got some tickets to the cricket! It is my little treat and I feel that it is deserved! I am considering becoming a member of a county club (it might have to wait till next year).

Additionally, I have been really bad with cabs this month! Have racked up nearly £40 worth of cab bills! :mad:

I am already counting down to the next payday so that the debt numbers keep coming down!

castortroy28

Hello!....

I know what you mean about the taxi thing.. sometimes you just cant get around it. You have to check where there are buses its a lot better of course.

The one good thing that has come out of my gambling is that I know several taxi drivers who will pick me up and drop me off and let me pay them back another time. Its weird.. I can go out in china town and have a late night dinner and taxi home without paying that night cos i know the people and area so well.

great news on the cricket, yes you do have to have something to look forward to you know...

updates from me... hmm... contract got extended for another couple of months so thats good.. i can hopefully save up some more money.

One of my ppis claims got rejected cos they said i agreed to the ppi on my online application but then they didnt evidence this either so stupid. so i have to go back to them to get the evidence.

still have a cough and i really cant shake it at the moment.. its quite annoying as i cant go to the gym. have been watching my weight it seems to be okay but not losing any at the moment and i do miss the gym a bit.

i used to catch up on the music i missed and also its good to get a sweat on.. you feel so much healthier afterwards.

still been looking for new jobs and things... market is so bad right now but hopefully something comes up. my lovely mum bought me a new suit the other week (wasnt too expensive at all) i have a funny body shape so she normally needs to alter it a bit.

havent gambled much at all recently.. last night had a bit of turnup as put money on west brom to win in play at 7-1. 3 quid and won 21 woo... that covers me for lunch for the rest of the week lol...

guitar is going okay but i need to have lessons again hard though with work and its quite pricey really.. once everything is sorted and i have saved more of a buffer it will help.

hang in there indebted dunce.. not long to go to payday... was curious, are you married? kids?

Indebted.Dunce

Hey man,

I would love to take a bus but I live in a middle of nowhere per se and the transport network is quite bad out here. Cabs tend to be the only way around unless you are willing to walk and/or wait for a train (only 2 an hour). My downfall is that I work long hours (like I have just walked through the door) so sometimes I just really can't be bothered to wait nearly half an hour for a train and then a 15 min walk from the station when I can take a cab and be home in 10 mins... I am generally a lazy git so I find it easy to rationalise it... normally its £20pm but this month has been double that (and the scary thing is that there is still a long time left in the month), the high number is mostly down to sheer laziness and running late in the morning... whoosh! Just written a bleeding paragraph trying to justify why I take cabs - the guilt must be really bad for me!

Lol! I am glad to hear that your credit extends to cabbies and restaurants! Recommend any decent ones in chinatown? One of my favourites there is Imperial China. Funny enough I was near Chinatown earlier this evening, went to Princi Pizza, if you haven't been I would highly recommend it. Its on Wardour Street (half way between Chinatown and Oxford Street).

Well done on the extension. I am sure something good will come through workwise, who knows maybe the current guys will keep you on permanently. Then you can restart your guitar lessons as well.

PPI may end up being a bit of hard work but I have no doubts your PPI claim will come through. Have you sent them a check for £10 and done a data protection act request (I believe it is called Subject Access Request under Section 7 of the DPA)? I am sure it will come up if you search for it on the forums.

The cough does not sound good at all, have you been to the doctors or the pharmacist? Have you been taking anything for it?

I wish I had the motivation to go to the gym. Like I mentioned earlier, I am just a lazy git! I have been talking about joining a gym for literally years but it still hasn't happened.

Moms are simply wonderful, I think they are intuitive and the fact that they love their children unconditionally unlike anyone else.

I am glad to hear that you are staying away from gambling. I am really chuffed with my extended spell away from the tables.

I am not married and no kids. I have been with my gf for over five years and should get married but can't afford the ring, wedding, honeymoon or a house so that is on hold but should hopefully happen soon. How about yourself?

I have really rambled on so I better stop (if you have gotten thus far, you are a patient person).

Roll on pay day and gambling free days!