NSK; "The Janus Illusion".

stewby

I am probably wrong but I thought february and march were the council tax-free months.
:undecided

Sorry, I haven't posted as much as normal but it's hard to post stuff when not much is going on. However, I do have an update:

This is spend-free day number 17 of 20 (I think) which means I have 4 days to get another 3.


And... although I can't say totals until I get my bill on the 10th Feb... my dad says I have £600 to pay towards my credit card and £100 to pay to my dad.
:j

Hope everyone is doing okay.
Hugs.

abundant1972

Hey all,

Hoorah - SFD number 17 in the bag!

I'm trying to not break into my wages until the 01st Feb this time.

Thanks for the words of wisdom Kat - and good old Martin was right!!! I know this - the part of my brain that misbehaves clearly has selective amnesia when it comes to spending!!! Bad brain!!!

I was trying to think how long I've been on the board too... it feels like a long time!!! Join date was January 2012 and I'm pretty sure I discovered Kat's challenge shortly after then... What a ride!!! There have been ups and downs, and a few falls off the wagon... and yet with help and support - always managed to clamber back on before things spiralled... As Kat said - to all newcomers - HANG IN THERE!!! This as much about developing good habits as it is debt clearing... we want these habits to live beyond clearing our debts... and habits take more than a month to form... It's heartening to see how much this thread has grown though!

A HUGE thanks to Kat and everyone else who makes it what it is!

:T

traveller

Hi everyone, lots of hugs to those that need them

Well today I did spend. I needed a light bulb for the loo. Other than that zilch. Cannot wait to get paid on Friday. You'd think I'll be debt free on Friday, I'm that excited to get credit card one paid off,lol.

I really am going back to how I was 10 years ago now. I have hardly spent anything this month. I think, for some reason, as I became more stressed with life and felt I was working harder in general for my money, I became more spendy Well I found Kats challenge in september I think and have not looked back since. To see such determination from a youngster is brilliant :T Please all of us, lets not give up, the likes of Kat, Phoenix and loveadove truly show it can be done and we will feel great when we get there :T Good luck everyone

LoveaDove

Today = SFD No. 19

Still having problems getting any kind of confirmation from equif@x regarding cancelling my subscription (took out the free monthly trial but had to register with card details, you can only cancel by phoning them up, which I did and still have not received my email confirmation). They tried to get me to agree to 12 months 'free alerts' but with a £2.99 monthly subscription thereafter, which I did not want to commit to just now, or have to go through the hassle of calling them to cancel again. It took 11 minutes on the phone (lots of repeating my ref. code), to just cancel the free trial. I have googled email addresses for them, and emailed all of them to ask for written confirmation (they make it incredibly difficult to contact them over the 'net- no email addresses easily available and a confusing support section). Not much else I can do, unless I send them a letter, or may be just see if end of trial period (2 days) comes and goes without a charge.

experi@n were right on the ball, done and dusted in 5 minutes with confirmation sent through immediately. Complete contrasting experiences for me!

thriftylass

I need a bit of advise. I've been with RBS for over 8 years now but think about changing. I was thinking of the Halifax reward account as it gives £100 switch bonus and £5 a month bonus if I don't go overdrawn, plus even if my income drops under the 750, which it will towards the end of maternity leave, all i loose is the 5 quid for that month. Is it really that easy and seamless to switch with everything being done for you incl. DDs. Last time I changed accounts was before all this online banking etc.

It's I'm a creature of habit so a bit shy to change

clippy_girl

Thrifty I switched in dec to the Halifax account and all went perfectly except my gym wrote to me re cancelling dd. however they had taken the payment from the new one! I will need to keep an eye in that but I had no problems with anything else (prob got about 12 dd and about 5 so's). All my one off payment details transferred as well). I didn't get the £100 so rang to complain and they paid it with £22 comp and them I got the £100 again I would recommend the new switch process as was no hassle

TiptoesDB

Thrifty- we changed from HSBC to co-op the other year and it was surprisingly straightforward, they did all the DD’s for us and there were no hiccups. I suppose not everyone has this experience but it was fine for us.

Wow, it’s really interesting to read how long people have been going on the NSK challenges – thanks for sharing everyone! I think I lurked in September and then joined in October 13. I have loved doing them! I have not succeeded at all of them but it has changed my way of thinking about money and spending and highlighted my weaknesses (wandering through clothes shops on the way to the car after work when it’s been a particularly bad or good day – to cheer myself or reward myself being one of them!) and pitfalls - food shopping without planning anyone? It has, most importantly, made me feel totally supported and ‘part’ of something bigger when facing this sometimes lonely, sometimes depressing, sometimes ridiculous debt repayment journey... with its highs and lows and flat depressing in-betweens. I have become a conscious spender, which I never have been before, and I have let go of so many so-called necessary things and I feel so much better and in control because of it. I feel more free and happy giving up all that and getting rid of our debt. There are hard times, but that’s where the support here has made the difference between giving in and not! I hope other people at the start of their journeys read the posts on here tonight and feel brave enough to take that big step.

1. SFD 17/20
2. Food budget £194.86/£180
3. Brand downshift 6/5
4. Lunch to work 16/19
5. Arranged outings 1/2
6. Exercise 10/25
7. Beauty spends 0/£10

MrsGSR

stewby wrote: »

I am probably wrong but I thought february and march were the council tax-free months.
:undecided

Sorry, I haven't posted as much as normal but it's hard to post stuff when not much is going on. However, I do have an update:

This is spend-free day number 17 of 20 (I think) which means I have 4 days to get another 3.


And... although I can't say totals until I get my bill on the 10th Feb... my dad says I have £600 to pay towards my credit card and £100 to pay to my dad.
:j

Hope everyone is doing okay.
Hugs.

You're absolutely right Stewby it is, i got in a muddle and thought it was Jan and Feb, so next month I will able to take some money back which is good.
I've been wondering where you were Stewby, well done on the SFDs!

thriftylass

Thanks for the advise re changing my bank account. I maybe wait till after payday and give it a go.

Tea-lover_2

Hello all, sorry I have been AWOL

Only managed a measly 8 NSD
Went over the food budget, and spend some of the little money I had saved on a halo health fryer. They were half price and I bought it on the spur of the moment, dam you online shopping. I have a savings account linked to my online banking so I end up just transferring the money over when I'm in a spending mood. Maybe I would be better trying to save in a tin. Don't know if I can trust myself with that either. Oh why am I so rubbish with money!

Also non existent on the excersise front, can't seem to stop eating rubbish so think what's the point going to the gym. Need to kick myself up the behind. Sorry for the downer post. Suppose I have walked up and down to school with the kids, 10mins each way so that is better than nothing.

So all in all a bit of a disaster this month but I suppose the budgets are better than if I hadn't have took part in the challenge. Going to sit down now and work out my budgets for next month. Onwards and upwards for feb