Mental Health Nurse in need of a cure for spending!!

rachyroo1985

I completely understand what you are saying Chevalier and that is my thoughts exactly. What have we been spending the extra money on!?! C**p is what we have been spending it on!

To be fair over the past 2 months I have overpaid by about £800 per month to get rid of overdrafts and pay off next etc.

This month I am going to keep a tally of grocery and entertainment spending as I think I may have overestimated our spends.

I am going to contact sky today to reduce our tariff.

The contents and buildings insurance are together so they are both covered.

I love the way people are comfortable enough with each other to ask questions and point things out on these boards. I needed someone to ask me straight what I am playing at instead of me burying my head. We are in a lucky position and could have done a lot more to stay debt free.

But as they say hindsight is a wonderful thing, and all I can do now is change the way I do things and plough on through!

Thanks for your advice and comments. It really is appreciated and is a great motivational tool!

Igamogam

All very upbeat and positive rachy - well done

rachyroo1985

Have just spoken to sky and have reduced my monthly tariff from £62.50 to £33.50 which is a saving of £29 per month so I am well chuffed. They could only offer me £5 per month discount for keeping sports and movies so decided to cancel both. OH does not know about this yet but for the amount he watches them he won't notice for ages anyway!!

:T:T

chevalier

YOu are welcom:)
chev

rachyroo1985

Morning all. Here's to a successful November with lots of debt paying and money saving (I hope).

I am looking after my friend's little girl today (13 months) and we are having a play day in the house as the weather is freezing!

Out to see Skyfall tonight with OH and we have 1 free ticket so only need to pay for one of us.

Got to do a shop at Tesco later do no NSD but I have decided to keep a log of grocery and entertainment spends during November as these are 2 areas i really need to be more thrifty in, so wish me luck.

Hope you all have a good day.

rachyroo1985

Well just got back from Tesco and realised how easy it has been for me to waste lots of cash in the past!!!

We spent £125.22 so anything else I spend on groceries this month will be added to this. Needed lots of stuff we dont need to buy ll the time though like:

• Cat litter £5 (only buy once every couple of months as the cats hardly ever use tray)
• 48 cat food pouches £13 (Will last 24 days, and already got about 15 in the house)
• 2 boxes of cat biscuits £4 (Will last a month)
• Kitchen Roll £3 (Will last a month)
• Crate of beer £10 (Half for OH to take to his mates tomorrow instead of going out drinking and half for home)
• Fabric softener £4 (Big bottle will last a couple of months)
• Lots of freezer stuff (for OH when I'm at work as he can't/wont cook and now freezer is bulging)

SO, hopefully should only need to buy fresh stuff for the rest of the month instead of £20 here, £30 there. Thanks to anyone who has commented on my diary or SOA as you have helped me to look at my spending alot more critically.


OH has gone to cinema with his free ticket bought using clubcard points. I decided not to go in the end so he has gone with a friend. Have tidied the kitchen cupboards and just spent 20 minutes grinding coffee beans that have been stuck in their for months!! I have found my cafetiere and will now use my fresh coffee. If its out on show I will use it!!


So far we have drawn out £20 for entertainment. OH will get a drink at cinema tonight and the rest if for his share of pizza with friends tomorrow and football subs on Sunday.


I am at work tomorrow and Saturday morning so wont be spending. However, OH starts new job in 2 weeks and needs to be shirted and tied so we need to get some clothes on Saturday. We have a strict budget of £100 including shoes and have looked at what he already has. In the past it would've been £300 down the pan I'm sure. On Sunday we are going to a firework display. Tickets are £5 each but OH has £10 owed to him for a computer job so we are using that. so apart form the clothes we shouldn't be spending much I hope!!

rachyroo1985

Hope everyone is well today. I am feeling a bit "up and down" at the moment. I think the initial excitement and enthusiasm is wearing off as some of you said it would do. I am feeling a bit scared about the enormity of what I have to pay back. I know it's not as much as some have, and that I am in a better financial situation than some, but can't help but s**t myself about wanting to become debt free asap.
I am guessing that this a process that most of you guys have been through and come out of the other side but at the moment the "debt mountain" just seems so high and I've never been one for mountaineering (give me a good book and a glass of vino any day!!).

Really hope to feel more positive about things soon.

Anyway whinge over!!

On the upside:

• I had a £385 Comet gift card from my washing machine insurance. Was sent this in Feb and have a year to spend. Typically its been sat in the cupboard all this time. So with current Comet situation I have been having a stress about not being able to spend it. I phoned the insurance company and lo and behold now have a £385 cheque in the post to pay off the CC!!
• Amazon emailed me to say my payment of £3.93 from my first book sale is in transit to my account, so another PAD when that arrives.
• I have had my first NSD of November so only 9 to go. Hoping for at least 2 more next week.

Hope everyone has a safe and fun night tonight if you are going to see a bonfire/ fireworks and hope to post in a more positive frame of mind next time.

Igamogam

You sound as if you are having a normal reaction That debt mountain may well be daunting and whilst you feel the enormity of it at the moment you are really only in the lower slopes, looking upwards - hence that slump in enthusiasm! As you move forwards ( and upwards ) it will get harder but each step brings you closer to your goal. Break down your debt into tiny bits - some do it 1% at a time. If you are a visual person create a spread sheet or a low tech piece of squared paper:rotfl: with each square representing a small goal/piece/percentage of the total. Dont get down if you take a couple of steps backs - you are only human and remember your debt built up over a number of years - not over night - so unless you have a huge windfall it aint going to go away overnight. Make debt mountaineering a hobby which you dedicate a bit of time to each week and always make sure you are properly equipped - I live in the mountains and wince when I see parties of ill equipped groups setting out on glorious hot days - they set themselves up to fail.............
So decide what equipment you need crampons,compass,map, Kendal Mint Cake:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl: and keep it handy when you need it;)

Great news on the Comet refund Now what percentage of your debt is that?

rachyroo1985

Igamogam wrote: »

You sound as if you are having a normal reaction That debt mountain may well be daunting and whilst you feel the enormity of it at the moment you are really only in the lower slopes, looking upwards - hence that slump in enthusiasm! As you move forwards ( and upwards ) it will get harder but each step brings you closer to your goal. Break down your debt into tiny bits - some do it 1% at a time. If you are a visual person create a spread sheet or a low tech piece of squared paper:rotfl: with each square representing a small goal/piece/percentage of the total. Dont get down if you take a couple of steps backs - you are only human and remember your debt built up over a number of years - not over night - so unless you have a huge windfall it aint going to go away overnight. Make debt mountaineering a hobby which you dedicate a bit of time to each week and always make sure you are properly equipped - I live in the mountains and wince when I see parties of ill equipped groups setting out on glorious hot days - they set themselves up to fail.............
So decide what equipment you need crampons,compass,map, Kendal Mint Cake:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl: and keep it handy when you need it;)

Great news on the Comet refund Now what percentage of your debt is that?

Thankyou so much for that post. Have now dusted myself off and printed off a 100 square mentioned on the 1% board. I have worked out 1% thresholds for my debt and realised i have actually paid off 20% of my debt already!! So much more than I thought I had. It will hopefully keep me motivated to just pay that little bit extra to get to the next square. My partner who has up until now been a little reluctant to join me on the debt clearing mission seems to have had a breakthrough after seeing it mapped out visually. I hope he too catches the bug and strives to pay the next square and the next and so on......
Sometimes all you need is someone to offer a few kind words and a different viewpoint on things to help you on your way so thankyou again xxxxx:A:A:A:A:A:A

Igamogam

Hey no problem......see you at the summit one day;)