The impossible dream

Tahlullah.H

Pay day and did the money shuffle.  Certain I have been paid a week early, but no worries.  Everything will just have to stay as it is until the start of next month.  Lots of NSD's as not going out which is a positive.  The cleaner didn't come as she is having car problems, so the money is waiting for her when she comes next week.  I am not desperate for anything from the shops, so will go next week, just to give the camper a run really.  Prolific and One Poll are really slowing down, very little by way of surveys and when they do come in, they are really low paying, so not a lot coming in.  I was using this money to pay for my new mobile phone - it may take longer than it took to pay off the laptop, which was amazingly quick.  No news regarding workmen, still waiting for a quote for the scaffolding for the chimney to be done.  Lots of nothing happening regarding the house, so playing the long game.

savingholmes

I do think the changes you're making will be worthwhile. You've chosen some really nice things. It''s not really been great weather to have someone up a scaffold. Hope you've come through these storms okay. We've had snow and ice, some flooded fields nearby but we're fine.

TallGirl

Yeah to payday shuffles. Yes you do have to be patient with workmen nothing ever happens quickly and it's all about relationships. You are doing well keep up you'll get there. 

Tahlullah.H

Thanks SH & TG.  I wanted to say that the sun is shining today.  How quickly you forget its beauty when is has been absent.  Looking forward to summer.  Luckily, we have not had any flooding, snow or ice to contend with by the coast.   At some point, I will progress with the plan to get the house at least started, if not finished.  Small steps.

savingholmes

Snow has been pretty rather than too pervasive here. Had some rain today. Thankfully no flooding for us. I don't think I would cope well if that was me.

Tahlullah.H

I spoke too soon, as we had lots of snow - so unusual - which settled and made everything beautiful.  And then it melted, but not before I was able to build a snowman.  He looked great with a purple scarf,  black hat, coal for eyes and a carrot for a nose.  Anyway, he didn't look that great the next day and the day after, he as gone.  It was a fleeting romance.

My cleaner came, so that was good, gave her plenty of space whilst she worked.  As lockdown persists, her regular job seems miles away from starting again, so I am glad to be helping out by ensuring she gets a bit of money to help her along whilst on furlough.

I am still tweaking my limited income to cover everything I want it to cover, but alas, it is not meant to be.  At least I can make a small difference whilst I can by moving money into different pots before the big debt eventually arrives.  Waiting for the chimney bloke to come and visit, now that he has the scaffolding cost.  Still not heard anything from the main builder, but that's to be expected as he couldn't start until March.   The extended lockdown is creeping ever closer to my holiday date - not sure that I will be able to class my holiday as 'essential travel' and I certainly don't want to pay £1k to stay in a hotel eating airplane food for 14 day after I return.  Somehow, I don't think my boss would approve either.  Hopefully, Crystal will cancel soon and I can get a refund.  If not, then it will have to roll over again to 2022.  I would prefer the refund to be honest as it can go towards the house repair bill.

Anyway, not been out of the house for 9 days so no casual spending happening - the camper still needs a run.  I am running out of cat litter so a legitimate trip to Lidl needed.  Surveys are going ok but slow, so the payments for the phone are going slowly.  It was bought on 4 months interest free credit, but as I don't appear to be getting any well paid surveys, I will have to consider paying it off with savings when I get to the end of the interest free period in April.  I have pretty much eaten all of the Christmas goodies now, so will need to have a look what is needed as opposed to what is wanted.

Work is ok.  I have a deadline for Audit in April, so no major panic at the moment.  All is good.

savingholmes

Glad things are going well. Hope you get more surveys. Glad you made a snowman. We should have done

Tahlullah.H

Thanks SH.  Such a happy thing to do.  I smiled the entire time!

It's the last working day of the month so today, I managed to make a payment of £150 into the mortgage, starting next month with a balance of £39,250.   I feel positive about that - although my savings toward the work to be done is definitely lacking.  I just feel better putting my money into the mortgage, as I am going to have to borrow against it anyway to pay for the majority of the work.  And starting from a lower point just feels better to me.

I managed to cash out another £10 today from Prolific toward my mobile phone, so I have paid £45 this month against that debt through surveys.  Although it feels slow, it clearly can't be sniffed at.  Happy with this when I stand back and look at what has been achieved.  If I can earn £50 per month over the 4 months interest free, then I only have to find another £50 from my savings to clear the bill.

The car loan is going ok as well.  I am managing to pay £100 per month towards this on top of the monthly payment, so again, I am making progress.  Just feeling lost as I have no clear idea of how much all this work is going to cost.  And to top it off, the Government are saying that all ski/snowboarding holidays are to be cancelled, so there goes my dream for another year.  Positive is that, the money will go towards the cost of the work.  Negative is that I have to wait to hear from Crystal, and how long will it be before they refund.

The gas bill has gone sky high.  I am on Calor and they filed the tank yesterday, making it twice in one year, when I usually only have 1 fill per year.  But it is to be expected.  My diesel costs for transport to work have reduced significantly, so I need to consider re-distribution of my wealth to accommodate keeping me warmer for longer.

Tahlullah.H

Recycle bins have disappeared into the farmers fields - I think - and have probably caused an environmental disaster!  Once the storms calm, I will go looking for the bins and the contents.  Really high winds here.  The cargo ships are all moored in the middle of the sea, not attempting to get into the port, again waiting for the storm to calm before they try coming in.  Wouldn't want to be out at sea in this weather.  At least it is dry and warm inside.

savingholmes

Sorry your bins have gone missing. Ouch to double the gas bill. Ours elec/gas has gone up £20 per month - and water similar. I think CT rises are next... Ah well. Great OP. I would try and save the money instead though - as your mortgage  interest rate could be cheaper than the rate for a loan...