EH - Keeping on track. (AKA focus Woman! FOCUS!)

EssexHebridean

Yesterday - NSD. :T Today so far - also NSD in spite of booking a hotel room - it's a "Pay when you get there" option! :T

My new lens is on its way from Hong Kong but there is a message on its tracking now about it being held "Awaiting receipt of payment" so suspect it's going to get hit with import charges - I'm not going to count them as a spend though as the HK supplier will be refunding them. Me? I just want to get my greasy little mitts on the wretched thing!

Couple of days feeling a bit Blah here - I'm struggling with dealing with someone elsewhere in the world of social media who seems determined to be a bit sharp and snippy - not only with me but with others too, and frankly it's starting to get a bit wearing - I have NO idea of the best way to deal with it! In honestly I find it easier when it's just with me - not least as I know full well that others have noticed also - when she takes a swipe at others it's harder to swallow. I know it's more about her than about those she's being snippy with - she gets off on making smart little comments and hang who she upsets in the process, basically, but it's not a nice thing to witness no matter who it's aimed at.

OH well! Milk supplies are hanging on in there - not a word from MrEH so I wonder whether he's just decided to go without for this week, must check tonight how mine is looking, though. Stew for tonight will have to be a quick saucepan job when we get in - didn't want to muck about with the slow cooker as ours is huge and it never seems worth putting it on unless I'm cooking for several days at a time.

I'm planning a 2 day jaunt to Lincolnshire next week - photography related - hesitated for ages over the room booking - £8 cheaper to book the non refundable one but in the light of the current UK weather situation I've played safe and paid slightly more for the one I can cancel until 2pm on the day. It does mean that if the day before the weather looks atrocious I can shift things about and maybe just go for a single day and drive straight back. It felt rather counter-MSE to be consciously spending more, but equally I'd kick myself if I had to cancel and couldn't get a penny back. I'll take some food with me for lunch on Day 1, take a flapjack for breakfast for day 2, and will have a flask with me in any event (6 hour day standing out photographing jets at an RAF base, followed by another 6 hour day standing out photographing the Red Arrows, if all goes to plan, plus driving back & forth - you BET I'll have a flask!) so should only have to pay extra for an evening meal on the Tuesday.

Other money-related things:
- Need to decide whether we're making another lump-sum payment to the mortgage, and if so, how much.
- Need to investigate what we might want to do with our electricity account when our price freeze ends in April
- nudge MrEH to get his car service/MoT booked
- Book onward travel from Aberdeen > Thurso when head head "North" for a Stripey Easter break... :T
- Book flights for return from Stripey Easter break

cazmanian_minx

EssexHebridean wrote: »

- Book onward travel from Aberdeen > Thurso when head head "North" for a Stripey Easter break... :T

Oooh, are you staying in Thurso or just passing through? Fancy meeting up for a coffee?

EssexHebridean

We'll be passing through Caz - from Station to Scrabster to get the ferry . Likely to be about for a few hours though - so depends if you're about during the day? Would be good to meet! last year we wandered about, walked on the beach, had tea & cake, took a load of photos then ambled round to the ferry!

Oh - fanfare please - my new lens has arrived! Felt in isolation it weighs a tonne, but I know from experience that once it's fitted onto the camera it will be a lot more balanced. Do wish I'd brought the camera body in with me today so I could have tried it out though! :rotfl: There was a small import charge to pay yesterday afternoon - just £17 - and I've already applied to reclaim that.

As I work 4 days a week, my 2 days in the middle of next week theoretically means I lose 2 days money - however some crafty manipulation of days means that I had already agreed I'd swap one of them for my usual Friday off - now I've been asked to cover an absentee in my client's office this Friday too so that'll make up the difference. I was prepared to just suck up the days money lost to be honest, so this is a bit of a bonus. :T

Last nights stew turned into root veg mash patties with the lamb chopped up and added in and stir-fried kale. Very nice it was too, even though it wasn't what was planned. That means that the little swede and the parsnips have been used - carrots still require using though so I need to get my thinking cap on. Might whizz together a quick soup and bring that in for lunch on Friday.

Piquant_2

Oh another diary to subscribe to! I am an out in the open type of stalker/lurker! Enjoy using your new lens.

Pippilongstocking

Happy new lens...................:)

Sorry to hear you've been having a hard time outwith the duvet that is DFW



PS remind me I need to find a bed.......................

cazmanian_minx

Happy new lens Yes, I can usually be about during the day (joys of self employment!) so if you have some time to kill, give me a shout

starnac

Yay your lens came :j that was pretty speedy. Can t wait to see the photos it takes

EssexHebridean

Very much looking forward to trying out the lens! I popped it onto the camera last night but of course it was too dark to do anything with it!

Caz - we'll touch base nearer the time (Easter-ish) about grabbing a cuppa when MrEH and I are coming through Thurso then! (Joys of self-employment here too!)

Bank details supplied for the refund for the VAT charge from the couriers - that should wing its way back to me pretty quickly if the rest of the company's service is anything to go on. I need to remember that it has to sit in my bank though until the CC bill arrives as the original charge was put on the card.

Other than that:
- Still got money in my purse from last weekend, and no plans to do anything spendy over this saturday and Sunday, so no need to visit the cashpoint.
- Mini money-shuffle done into the VSP - AKA the "Hebrides at New Year" fund - looking good there - reckon we've got the travel covered and half way to the accommodation now!
- Meter reading - Electric - might consider it to be time to ring Scottish power and ask them to reduce the DD I think, bearing in mind we're still only in a tiny debit and it's most of the way through the winter...

My account currently has £125 in it
Purse stands at £20
Including this weekend there is only 3 weekends to go before I can next invoice any work, which means things are looking fairly healthy.
With that in mind another small money-shuffle shall be performed to move the "excess" across to savings. I can always move it back... #ButTheTheoryIsIWon't

Fay - the issues elsewhere are the other person's problems, insecurities and issues rather than than mine - that much I have realised having talked it through with a couple of smart-cookie chums who also both know the other party. She will either get over it, or she won't, but either way, in the long term it will only be herself that she chooses to show up as I am far from the only one who is aware of her behaviour.

NSD's - Milk is still hanging in there and thus we are now up to 7/15 for february. Should be 8 by the end of the day...!

EssexHebridean

Decision made last night to change the 1 year standard warranty on my new pricey bit of camera kit to a 3 year one - this has the added advantage of being an "international" warranty too so if anything goes wrong Canon UK can deal with it. As I'm close enough to them to be able to deliver stuff for repair, and I know their service is ace, that felt like £15 well spent. I've already got the paperwork through from OneStop, and they've dropped the remaining £2 of the VAT refund back into my bank today - hurrah for them.

Shopping being done when I leave work tonight - I have a list, which I will be trying to stick to, and I have £15 in Morrisons vouchers in my purse which will mostly cover it without having to touch too much cash, I hope.

Small Money saving Thing yesterday when I got home - £3 in luncheon vouchers arrived following a survey I did - those are stashed aside ready to use in Tesco or sainsbugs next week.

Electricity account checked - 51p in the red currently, which is pretty cool I'd say. I'm going to sit tight at the moment with the DD remaining at £58 - just until we know what the score is with any colder weather coming in - I'll review it again in a month or so, and will do another meter reading before then too which might make them review it downwards anyway.

Summit meeting last night decided that we're having a takeaway tonight - it'll be either chinese or fish & chips, not sure which, although I quite fancy the latter. Personal spends, so doesn't come from grocery budget.

Waiting to hear the results of the rugby pitch inspection for MrEH's match tomorrow, although we suspect it's a foregone conclusion as it's battering down here at the moment. If it's on, not raining, and the light is decent I'll go along and take pics.

Been alright being in the office today - Nightmare Boss is out all day, and Nice Boss has had to go out over my lunchbreak but by way of apology is bringing back cake when he returns!

Pippilongstocking

You know I have vouchers for Mr T now I could use them for magazines when I'm doon sooth = but things are needing to be lobbed at cards, so I'm tempted to forgo the riches of exchange for some grocery action. (I have 48 quid vouchers which I think equates to about three magazine subby's but its been so long since I've had any - wondering if its worth it)

Is this short term stupidity oh frugal one, please advise?

Yay to electricity, and takeaways by order of the summit.