Balancing not just the budget

ZTD

vasseur wrote: »

You are putting me to shame though - I haven't been out for a run for 2 weeks because of the dreadful weather....:o:( fingers crossed I can get back into it this week.....

You could always take up swimming.

RosaBernicia

Haha, well I am slipping this week though it's going away for the interview that knocked me off track - am going to just keeping working through the podcasts even if I don't quite manage to do them in exactly a week as set.

Interview went OK. Don't think I necessarily got it, but glad I was brave enough to go for it.

And I logged on here just to note that I opened my bill for the small CC that I used for interview shoes and upfront line rental, ready to add the interest into the record on my budget software... and then realised THERE ISN'T ANY INTEREST BECAUSE I'LL BE PAYING IT OFF THE SAME MONTH :j:rotfl::T


Since interview is over I am now project-less ... currently alternating cleaning the flat with watching DVDs and trying not to sign myself up for anything :rotfl:


Rosa xx

RosaBernicia

Payday update again...

Cleared interview costs off small card so it's zero again and paid £200 off the remaining debt. Total now sub £5,500 :j . Also paid up front line rental for phone, and have broadband at £2.50/month for the coming year - but it won't talk wireless to my laptop so am sitting on a cushion by the router til I get round to ringing Plu5net (and probably then buying an adaptor as I think the problem is just my laptop being too old to speak the same dialect as the router - the wireless works fine with my phone and work laptop).

Still loving the software and have got next month's budget outlined - it looks OK but I'm cross that I haven't been paid properly AGAIN so I don't have the extra flexibility I should have.

Requested refund from electric supplier which should turn up soon, and have also switched so should get it all back now anyway . The new supplier looks to be much better about managing the direct debit so hopefully that will be less of an issue in future. Remembered to claim mileage expenses today and must do the receipts tomorrow.


In other news running has fallen by the wayside due to interview stuff and a cold, so am thinking I'll just repeat a week and carry on. Haven't heard anything from the last interview yet - don't know if this is good or bad for complicated reasons to do with their mad appointments process - and have another on Tuesday so will need to prepare a presentation over the weekend.


Feels like change is happening and so far not too scary change


Rosa xx

ZTD

RosaBernicia wrote: »

Payday update again...

Payday! :beer:

RosaBernicia wrote: »

Cleared interview costs off small card so it's zero again and paid £200 off the remaining debt. Total now sub £5,500 :j .

:T

RosaBernicia wrote: »

Also paid up front line rental for phone, and have broadband at £2.50/month for the coming year - but it won't talk wireless to my laptop so am sitting on a cushion by the router til I get round to ringing Plu5net (and probably then buying an adaptor as I think the problem is just my laptop being too old to speak the same dialect as the router - the wireless works fine with my phone and work laptop).

Depends on the exact nature of the problem. If you router only talks 802.11n, then it should be possible to get it to talk older protocols (802.11b&g) - but it may be configured for n only.

It may be the authentication protocol - depending on your OS, you may have to download an update from Microsoft to cope with the newer protocols like WPA2-PSK. Or alternatively, downgrade what your router is asking for to something your PC does support.

RosaBernicia wrote: »

Still loving the software and have got next month's budget outlined - it looks OK but I'm cross that I haven't been paid properly AGAIN so I don't have the extra flexibility I should have.

You'll get paid two days before retirement with enough money to allow you to retire early...

RosaBernicia wrote: »

Haven't heard anything from the last interview yet - don't know if this is good or bad for complicated reasons to do with their mad appointments process - and have another on Tuesday so will need to prepare a presentation over the weekend.

Good luck!

RosaBernicia wrote: »

Feels like change is happening and so far not too scary change

:T

RosaBernicia

Not a proper one as I got distracted around payday and although I set up my important payments, I need to go back and untangle the budget I had a training course of some sort on every week for the last three weeks so was rushing about to hotels and things.

I paid over the min on the only remaining real debt and have re-cleared the small card last night. I have been using it for things that would make the current a/c messy, eg when I know something may be refunded, but it isn't really helping and now I have rainy day funds in the current a/c it could be avoided. That's all up to date and clear now, I just have to go through and record all the other stuff so I can work out what I've spent. It will be more than planned in several areas as I've started a Pilates class, bought summer work dresses and haven't been grocery shopping very sensibly with being away each week.

Work is still not entirely sorted but there should be progress after Easter, so I am hoping it will be resolved within 3 months. I'm keeping an eye out for other options but in many ways I like where I am and it would seem daft to walk away from an easy step up working with people I like - it would just risk frying pan/ fire. So it's still on wait and see really.

There is a possibility I may also have the option of going back to finish the training that caused me the debts in the first place (hopefully without causing any more). Not definite and I need to think about it over the next couple of weeks, but I did realise that would mean that this time next year I could be in a very good place... with debts cleared, training finished after all, career at a point which would enable me to buy a flat even here if I chose to stay, my health sorted (will have answer on gluten diagnosis by then) and a healthy social life

Will be back tomorrow or shortly with figures once I've untangled the budget. But I do have one other announcement... got the CC bill yesterday and realised that Next Payday Will Mean SUB FIVE K ... :j


Rosa xx

kerri_gt

Good to hear from you Rosa - sounds like the pennies are going in the right direction and you're sounding quite content in yourself. How is Pilates? Not tempted to go back to pole?

RosaBernicia

Thanks Kerri... yes content is a good word. Much less stressed in several directions.

I would like to do pole again at some point, but it's awkward to get to right now and I'm not sure I want to take it up at the same time as finishing my training - I might not manage to do both properly. I'm intending to pick up running again once I get a bit more decluttering/ organising done - hopefully the Bank Hol weekend will help with that, I'd forgotten about it :rotfl: so it might just give me some extra time to finish switching over clothes and tidy the garden. Pilates is really good for me and reasonably flexible as I can do it at home as well as at class... and if I go back to the running, that can also be fitted around anything else. Once I have some decisions - which are also likely to include moving house - then I can decide about whether to go back to pole class. The area I'd most like to move back to would also be really near pole class, so it's a possibility.

I need a chat with another of my friends about the training thing, and then I think I'm going to drive out to one of my favourite places and have a long walk to think it all through. Part of me really wants to finish it, and remembers the bits I really loved and all the knowledge that's still there - but there is another part of me that wonders if I'm still that girl any more and whether there are other things I'd rather do.

How's things in Kerri world?


Rosa xx

RosaBernicia

OK, according to my beloved YNAB my debt currently stands at -£5,307.

There's an interest payment to add but I am intending to pay £350 off this on payday, which will cover the interest and still knock it down below £5K. I've debated switching this card to a 0% but am a little nervous about that as it's currently low life of balance and so I have a lot of flexibility with it, whereas a limited term 0% might up the interest before I can manage to pay it off. This all depends on the work situation and how it works out, so for the moment I'm just waiting to see what happens. Ideally if I do switch I want to do it at this address before I move as that will look better on the credit check.

My pay is messed up again :mad: so there should be £300-600 coming in my May paycheque that I haven't budgeted for - I figured it was simpler to work on the definite lower salary. This and some previous holiday budget is currently just going into a 'buffer fund' in case of moving costs etc, but once things settle down I will split this into into a big chunk for a holiday and a smaller bit to make a nice dent in the debt.

In other MSE news, I've ordered a new mobile as mine was on its last legs - but should be getting £60 Quidco cashback as well as the shop cashback, and a pretty good deal with plenty of 4G data plus unlimited minutes and texts. Am just not going to talk about this week's Sainsbugs and Waitrose shops :eek:, I've stocked up on just about everything and bought healthy things to make up for the last 3 weeks of eating out all the time.

Rosa xx

ZTD

RosaBernicia wrote: »

I had a training course of some sort on every week for the last three weeks so was rushing about to hotels and things.

Trained in anything fun?

RosaBernicia wrote: »

but I did realise that would mean that this time next year I could be in a very good place... with debts cleared, training finished after all, career at a point which would enable me to buy a flat even here if I chose to stay, my health sorted (will have answer on gluten diagnosis by then)

Oh, sorry to hear that - that's no fun at all... :grouphug:

RosaBernicia wrote: »

and a healthy social life

:T

RosaBernicia wrote: »

I would like to do pole again at some point, but it's awkward to get to right now and I'm not sure I want to take it up at the same time as finishing my training - I might not manage to do both properly.

Doing pole "properly"? Is that a perfectionist talking? I can do fun stuff half-arssed and it's still fun...

RosaBernicia wrote: »

I need a chat with another of my friends about the training thing, and then I think I'm going to drive out to one of my favourite places and have a long walk to think it all through. Part of me really wants to finish it, and remembers the bits I really loved and all the knowledge that's still there - but there is another part of me that wonders if I'm still that girl any more

What do you mean by that?

RosaBernicia wrote: »

and whether there are other things I'd rather do.

It's not exclusive - you can do it, then do other stuff. Keeps you off the streets with the bottles of White Lightning... :rotfl:

RosaBernicia wrote: »

OK, according to my beloved YNAB my debt currently stands at -£5,307.

You shouldn't use acronyms like that - makes people temped to make up rude meanings... :whistle:

RosaBernicia wrote: »

My pay is messed up again :mad:

Your payroll people are "special".

RosaBernicia wrote: »

Am just not going to talk about this week's Sainsbugs and Waitrose shops :eek:, I've stocked up on just about everything and bought healthy things to make up for the last 3 weeks of eating out all the time.

Lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...CHOCOLATE...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce

RosaBernicia

ZTD wrote: »

Trained in anything fun?

'Leadership' :rotfl::rotfl: so no, not really.

ZTD wrote: »

Doing pole "properly"? Is that a perfectionist talking? I can do fun stuff half-arssed and it's still fun...

Yeah, but it's less fun when all the cool stuff requires actual fitness. I was just getting frustrated with it and that's not fun.

ZTD wrote: »

What do you mean by that?

Some of the reasons I wanted to do that training have gone away. I thought it would help turn me into the kind of person I wanted to be and actually that's not about the subject matter. But there are still other reasons I love the subject and want to be involved, and that would be easier and give me more options if I do finish the training.

ZTD wrote: »

You shouldn't use acronyms like that - makes people temped to make up rude meanings... :whistle:

I looked up YOUR acronym, and so you can shut up :P

ZTD wrote: »

Your payroll people are "special".

No, my employer is special. In many ways and some new ones which I found out today. And which are why I will be finishing up a job application tomorrow.

It's always the proverbial straw - nothing has changed on the job or prospects since yesterday, only what I know about how differently certain people are treated.

ZTD wrote: »

Lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...CHOCOLATE...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce...lettuce

I don't do lettuce and cacao is a vegetable


Rosa xx