What have I been doing for the last 10 years???

Domayne

Hi BCM! I didn't think it was possible to get a contract for £12 a month with unlimited internet :shocked: I looked on billmonitor and it never mentioned that...Just an 02 contract that was pretty much near enough to what I'm paying now so I didn't think it was worth it. However, I lost my phone 3-4 months ago which my insurance refused to pay for and I had to buy a new handset myself, so I don't need a new one for some time (unless I lose it again :rotfl:) so a rolling contract might be perfect for me...my phone is up for renewal in 10 days so I think I will cancel it and go with the giffgaff rolling one, thanks for that! Is it possible to keep the number I have now though? I've had this number for about 6-7 years and don't really want to change it
As for the ISA...Your right! It is only 2% interest (fixed for 2 years) so with your advice, I've lowered my standing order to £200 per month (Not sure if there's a minimum I need to put in each month though ) Until the card is paid off...which I'm hoping for the end of April/May...Not sure where I got I get paid 3 times in January that I mentioned in a previous post but my next 3 payday month is May...and there's no way I can pay the rest of the balance by the end of Jan/Feb :rotfl:
I don't pay the minimum however, I've never made a minimum payment, The lowest I pay is £400 per month, I just added that because it was the interest I was charged last month...I made a fail attempt at doing a balance transfer, but what I did was transfer to a credit card I already had and it wasn't 0% now I don't really want to apply for another balance transfer so soon after the last because I'm worried it will affect my credit rating? (which was already low when I checked with equifax - 375! Not sure why since I've never missed a payment or anything ) and I don't even have the card for that cc anymore, I cut it up earlier this year! (don't have any credit cards anymore :j )
In November I paid £521 and I just made a payment now of £31 since I had £431 in my current account and the new balance is £3146.72 :j

But here is the new budget I planned with a 4 week pay rather than monthly as it makes it a little easier for me to keep track!!

£1,742.46

Rent - 250
Savings for niece - 50
Pet Insurance - 17.12
Travelcard - 136.80 (going up in january )
Phone - 40 (will cancel in 10 days)
ISA - 200
Personal spends - 280

=973.92

Leaving me with £773.54 to throw at the credit cards! I'm going to get on it alot harder in January but this month is quite hard to budget, although I haven't gone over it yet! :T
I moved £100 of the £400 left in my current account to give my mum for xmas...It might seem like a lot, but neither of my parents work (bad health) and I've been paying that same amount of £250 since I started working in 2004 and whenever I try to raise it...my mum won't take more off of me, so I don't really begrudge giving her that so she can have fun it the sales!
The £300...well I'm hoping by next Friday when I get paid, I still have £200 left of that which I will chuck at the cc, but I need to use around £100 for more xmassy stuff!
I really need to get this smoking under control though!! Have you got any tips for that?? :rotfl:

Domayne

I just made a payment of £150 to my credit card and now It's under 3k!!!! New balance is now £2996.72 :j:j:j:j
I thought while it was sitting there til friday 'just in case' was a bit silly, since that means I can spend it and resolve myself of any guilt because I 'needed' it...If that makes sense. It's only 8.30am :rotfl:
So in the current account, I still have another £150 - £100 for the xmassy things and £50 'just in case' - :rotfl: I won't spend this though, I just don't want to have my current account at 0, I will transfer it to the cc on friday!
Going to go shopping later for for some xmas drinks/food and ingredients for today to make a lemon drizzle cake and chocolate brownies, so not a nsd but a planned and lsd!

Domayne

Oh, and I ordered a giffgaff sim and learnt that I need to get a pac code so I can still keep my old number! - Making progress! :dance:

Domayne

Just got back from my xmas shop and...it didn't go so well
Spent £96.38 on the food and drinks which isn't bad - Got 192 nectar points and £5.23 off of my next shop :j
But I ended up spending £34.99 on a bottle of Jimmy Choo perfume for myself They let me buy a tester bottle though so I got 100ml for that, I did need some new perfume too since I have none...
So that left me with £15.01 in my current account - Paid another £5.01 to the credit card taking me to £2991.71 :j and now have £10 to sit there until Friday! Oops...but, it could have been worse I guess - Good thing I paid off that £150 this morning!
Got my ingredients for my brownies as well but...forgot to get lemons so no lemon drizzle cake today but that's ok!

Domayne

Finally got to finish a survey with valued opinions!! :j I signed up a few weeks ago and every time I go to do a survey, I'm either disqualified or they have reached their quota!! So I have £1 now - It's a start!

Domayne

I think after new year - I'm going to quit my game! I haven't been enjoying it for a while now. I have a lot of 'friends' there that I've known for years from other games, but over the last year, it's all just been a drama pit of b***hing and backstabbing over custom wearables and quite honestly, for a while now it's been making me super anxious and depressed but I don't want to leave because of some perceived loyalty to some people there and the amount of time/money invested in it, but if I'm REALLY honest with myself - it doesn't make me happy anymore and I need to get a real life...I just don't know how to do that either since people irl make me even more anxious and I don't even know what I want
Waiting for payday this Friday, I'm doing alright though - Still have £28.29 in my personal spends and £10 in the current account, Aiming for 3/5 NSD's this week but the only things I really need to buy are closer tomorrow (£1.50) and take-a-break on Thursday (78p) So should end with a plus! :j

Things to do today

Call T-Mobile and cancel contract!

Domayne

Called T-Mobile to cancel my contract! :j
They said that once I activate my pac code with the new company, My phone will automatically cut off 30 days later...so I will still have to pay a t-mob bill in December and January plus the £12 for giffgaff! Works out better long term though so yay! ^^

MuffinTops

Wow, you're doing great with all these changes.

Even just considering cancelling your game is a massive step forward. Perhaps try to replace your online friends there with the ones you have here. Not much drama here either - except the good kind!

I understand the anxiety of meeting new real life people because I'm the same. I'm great at small talk but clam up when it gets any deeper than that which I know is due to my own issues. I think the key is to not let it run your life. I think we all have our own insecurities and anxieties deep down, it's just that some are better at hiding them than others. But one step at a time as you're making such good progress that putting too much on yourself isn't necessary.

Cheaper data bills are definite big YAY!

Domayne

Hi muffintops! I really feel like since starting this diary, I've come a long way! I mean there are a few things I still won't do (like give up niece savings or my imperial leather foamburst ) but I'm surprised at how well I'm doing and getting a little obsessive if I'm honest! With my game especially tho...I had a kind of epiphany the other day. Well, not quite an epiphany since I already knew this but maybe a bit of a :wall: moment...On the game, you can spend real money and buy something called csc (which you can buy cash shop things, custom content, or sell it for in game currency - sP) but you can also buy csc with sP, which you can earn with games, quests, selling things in your shop etc....for a long time, I was buying csc to sell for sP...which is really stupid, I was valuing a GAME currency higher than real money!!! that I'd worked for!!! 0.o Yet in the game, I have over 1 billion sP...enough to buy about $300 worth of csc!!! lol, I really have no idea where my head has been for a long time now, but it actually makes me sick recently when I think of this and WHY I'm still spending real money, when I don't need too NO MORE CSC FOR ME!!
I've also been really good with things like diet coke and haven't been drinking it, except for when I'm at home and sticking to coffee I make here and water w/squash! The smoking...well this is a bit hit and miss tbh - I didn't smoke yesterday, haven't so far either today but I find I really struggle when it gets to Friday and my resolve just runs away from me or something
Yesterday was a NSD! :j Today hasn't been - I spent £7.15 on mostly things I need...lip balm because I get chapped lips and mine had ran out, a bottle of squash, sanitary things and closer magazine (I've cut out new, star, heat etc but this is my favorite so I kept it!) which isn't too bad...Now I shouldn't need to buy anything until take a break on thursday!
I'm exactly the same as you...pretty good at small talk but when it comes to getting deeper or getting 'close' to someone...I just can't do it It's even an issue I have with people I've known for a LONG time, like my best friend, sister etc...When my ex and I broke up, he said something along the lines of he doesn't feel like he's with me...I get this because I very much am introverted, live in my own world, very self reliant (maybe even selfish you could say) etc etc...I don't know how to NOT do this....but I wasn't like this until about 2005/06, now I'm not quite sure how to reverse it I'm trying not to let it run my life, but it really does. Have you found any coping strategies to help you with this when you are interacting with people? I feel like maybe I'll just be stuck in this cycle forever now

MuffinTops

I'm with you on not giving up specific things. A frugal life is a happy life, not one where you feel you can't do anything you really want to. Even where you think you've not done great, you've still kept at it. Those head banging moments are good. That feeling you get helps you not go back. Spending money on the things you need are good spend days too.

My coping strategy is that I have lots of friends that I see occassionally and also stay in touch via the odd few lined email with just 2 closer friends I try to see regularly, although they both live miles away so we really do have to make an effort to see each other. I've been told I'm very much an arm's length person until I really get to know someone and I can see that. I like to email friends though because behind my cyber mask I can relax more and open up much more than I do in person.