Rising to the top of the ocean - and staying afloat!

rising_from_the_ashes

Grrrr it's hideously windy here today!:eek:

I ended up putting the bins in the garage last night .... typically it's bin night tonight - worse tho' .... it's recycling week .... why is it always windy on recycling week We've got these stupid boxes (think big storage tub that you can get a places like £stretcher without the lid) - and they just blow all over the place ... and the stuff in them follows not too far behind.

Maisie & I have a rather wind swept walk beside the beach ... I did enjoy it but it was really gusty at times ..... poor Dinky was getting blown around all over the place on the way back :eek: - hate driving when it's like that.

Can't get ear muffs anywhere (where I am) so will have to try to remember the next time I'm in town ..... not a lot else to say - big cat ventured outside for all of errrr 2 minutes :rotfl: but is whinging as he wants out *sigh* .... think it'll be a bath & fleecy PJs soon!:)

taxi73

Very windy here too.Hope you find ear muffs soon

[Deleted User]

Hiya,

We had the same recycling problem here until recently, the council in their infinite wisdom decided to give everyone a wheelie bin. Which to be fair is a good idea if you live on the straight roads, however we live on a hilly bit of a road and many of the houses down our road have steps going up to the main road and there are quite a few old people down our way too.

I hope you manage to find some earmuffs soon and I hope that you and Maisie enjoyes your rather wind blown walk?

Enjoy your bath x

stitching_witch

I've always had a second current account for my monthly direct debits but struggled with paying annual bills like car and bike tax and MOTs. Inspired by your system I have set up a couple of eSaver accounts; one for the big bills and longer term savings and one as a 'holding account' for odds and ends.

To keep track I've built a lovely spreadsheet so I can see at a glance how much is in each 'pot' at any given time. I can see that in a year's time things will work really well, but this year may be a case of playing catch-up.

For example my contents insurance is currently paid monthly at a rate of £17.50 so that's the amount on my spreadsheet and how much I will need to put in that 'pot' each month to enable me to pay in one lump on renewal. Trouble is the renewal date is in July so there won't be enough in that 'pot' for the first year. Why can't everything be due on 1st January??? Scrap that, that's straight after Christmas :(:o

I suppose I'll just have to borrow from another 'pot' or increase the amount for the first six months.

If you have any words of wisdom about how you managed in the first year please let me in on the secret!

Stitchy x

StressedSteph

Good point about the first year of savings pots Stitchy. Guess its either make huge monthly inputs to your savings account or you will have to do another years DD, while you save up in the pot.

The 2nd choice isn't ideal, but probably the only option .

Afternoon Rising,

Guess you are at work today. Is it still windy with you?. Its very windy here, but at least the sun is shining :T.

Have noticed the nights are drawing out. It used to get dark here just before 5pm and now it is nearly 5.30-6pm before its dark:j. Roll on spring.

Hope you and Maisie are well.xx

rising_from_the_ashes

stitching_witch wrote: »

Inspired by your system I have set up a couple of eSaver accounts; one for the big bills and longer term savings and one as a 'holding account' for odds and ends. To keep track I've built a lovely spreadsheet so I can see at a glance how much is in each 'pot' at any given time. I can see that in a year's time things will work really well, but this year may be a case of playing catch-up.

:j:j Yay! Unfortunately the 1st year is difficult - and really the reason why my "others" pot fell to pieces last year as I was having to over pay some of the house & car ones to get them to where they needed to be in time!

stitching_witch wrote: »

For example my contents insurance is currently paid monthly at a rate of £17.50 so that's the amount on my spreadsheet and how much I will need to put in that 'pot' each month to enable me to pay in one lump on renewal. Trouble is the renewal date is in July so there won't be enough in that 'pot' for the first year.

Ohhhhh that sounds sooooo familiar!

My car insurance was due in December & I had been paying monthly by d/debit but was also putting the same amount away each month (so I could pay in one go at renewal) - then I ended up changing the car in September so needed to pay in full 3 months earlier than intended:eek: BUT it was paid in full :T (which I'd never have been able to do before!:T) because .....

stitching_witch wrote: »

I suppose I'll just have to borrow from another 'pot' or increase the amount for the first six months.

I was able to borrow within the "big pot"

Overall, I probably did a mixture of both - eg the car insurance shortfall came from the rest of the pots within the H&C pot. My car tax wasn't due until Feb, and service not until August so I knew I had time to make it up but other ones - especially in the 1st half of the year when the pots were all pretty low on funds - I had to overpay.

Your totals page sounds a bit like mine?

I like it as it's instantly obvious where there's a shortfall / if it's possible to borrow to cover something etc



Best words of advice I can offer ..... errrr ....... depending on when things are due / how much spare money you've got to make "overpayments" to get pots to where they need to be in time, I'd say pick a group and work on that one this year and then another group next year

I tried to do far too many in one go and ended up raiding all over the place to prop pots up - once I gave up on the "others" pot it free'd up a bit more money to get the H&C one sorted (but it does mean that I don't have money put aside for these just now :eek:)

rising_from_the_ashes

StressedSteph wrote: »

Guess you are at work today. Is it still windy with you?. Its very windy here, but at least the sun is shining :T.

Have noticed the nights are drawing out. It used to get dark here just before 5pm and now it is nearly 5.30-6pm before its dark:j. Roll on spring.

Hope you and Maisie are well.xx

Hi Steph it's still horridly (is that a word?) windy here - can't remember the last walk Maisie & I had that we didn't get wet at some point :eek:

As you say .... roll on spring & here's hoping it's a dry one!:)

rising_from_the_ashes

OK ... bit p'd off as I finished my "prop up the immune system drugs" last Thursday and I've had cold since Tuesday :mad:

Honestly, really annoyed as I (probably as I'm so germ paranoid:o) rarely get anything and, apart from when I had flu last August, haven't had a cold or anything like that for over 2 years (not bad for someone with a knackered immune system!).

Next infusion is due next week ..... BUT .... they can't give it if you're ill - honestly the list of questions you have to go through before each treatment is unbelievable ......

Don't particularly want it as it's horrible and my hair's getting really thin now BUT ....

Sent an email to my consultant (unfortunately this time the treatment is in the morning and my consultant appt in the afternoon) and he thinks I def need to have this treatment but we can have a chat about what to do when I see him - we might have to reduce the dose ....

*sigh*

ETA don't know if this is a side effect - but I'm always bloomin' frozen now!

I'm usually the one in the office wanting the windows open (mainly to get rid of the germs) - but I am usually roasting ....

rising_from_the_ashes

Ohhhhh AND - sorry I'm a bit bloomin' moany today aren't I - that'll be the cold!

Discovered the issue of parking charges at the counties beaches has raised it's head again & is likely to be pushed through this time .... talking about £40 for a season ticket ....

Could be worse I guess but I really bl00dy object to paying to park to walk the dog on the beach when I pay bl00dy council tax already!:mad:

Not a lot to do apart from get one tho' which really p's me off too (as they'll go "oh it's been a success as we've raised £xxxx")

I counted up that out of the places where the charges will apply, I regularly go to 5 of them (ie weekly) and go to another 2 fairly regularly (monthly - could live without those I guess ) ... counted up and have been 14+ times in the past 3 weeks so ... would be cutting off my nose if I stopped going IYKWIM:(

It's one of the reasons I chose to move here ......

stitching_witch

I would paste the totals page on here like you did, but I don't know how to do it. Tried copy and paste like I would on a PC, but it doesn't seem to work with Numbers! I'm a bit of a technophobe really. Give me a sewing machine any day. :rotfl: