NOT BUYING IT! 2015 - A consumer holiday

[Deleted User]

Afternoon everyone,

Hope were all well. It's been such a mixed bag for me today.

Firstly I've sorted out some books to take to the charity shop, more will be sorted as I begin to pack my things up to move house.

At the moment the guys are down fitting new windows and doors, the invoice doesn't come for another week or so... so today has the potential to be a NSD

Decided to nip into town as there was some banking that needed to be done that couldn't be done online Luckily I had a old gadget that needed trading in at CEX which got me £6 covering, a £3 lunch from Sainsbobs & my parking at £0.80.

Have to be back home for a 2pm - 4pm shift (I work from home) then tempted to pop back out to drop things at the charity shop and spend the remainder of cash on getting a car wash.

Overall a NSD due to the trade in. The money I have spent on lunch, is a very rare occurrence but waiting for my parent's to go to the supermarket I could wash my own car, but were set for 70mph gales and the time and hassle it takes me is worth the £3 (or so spend)

Also going to trade in some books online with Amazon, there giving an extra £5 credit if you can trade in £15 worth of things this Jan. You can only trade in books and console games, and it's only relevantly new titles I'd say only half of my books met the requirement. That £20 is then going to be spent on some craft materials for my card making.

Have a great day everyone!

thriftish

Hi all!

Going well so far NBI - have had to top up on fresh goods but apart from that we're eating out of the big freezer and larder. Mr Thriftish has been great cooking dinner on the nights I've been too tired to bother, so all homecooked meals here since well before Christmas.

Kids all back to normal this week, including having my 3 mindees. I'm finding it very tiring managing all the kids with being pregnant, but in another few weeks I'm sure I'll be back to normal. Having them in the house increases my food bill, but they all get a free packed lunch in school, so I keep any fruit, juices or biscuits etc that they haven't eaten and use them to supplement their after school meal.

Doc appointment tomorrow to register my pregnancy and filled out the forms for combined GP/hospital care. My previous GP never charged for that but this one is different - €55 for tomorrows visit :eek: and then 6 visits free under the combined care. Presume I'd be charged if I needed an extra appointment for a pregnancy related matter - better mind myself! Hosp appointments are free as I'm going public again.

Hope you're all keeping well, will read back later, off to brave this horrible stormy weather now to collect the kiddos.

Ches

JackieO wrote: »

P.S. I'm a bit like my wrinkly apples clapped out on the outside but inside not too bad. Not so much looking down the barrels of middle age and probably at the top end of the gun :):) But inside I am no more than around 22 inside :):):)

I think according to my birth certificate we are the same age Jackie but I think they made a mistake on mine because I am sure I am not so old as that.

Picklepot

Hi
I'm not joining the supermarket challenge only because January for us is winding down the freezers and stock cupboards time and I need to nip out for random bits to make a meal out of those. Unfortunately its the time for identifying UFO's as the family call them - unidentified frozen objects. Such a let down when you think you've taken out a frozen chicken casserole and its stewed rhubarb!


Went into WILco for first time since before xmas. Bought 2 roles of supposed xmas wrap (dotty) that will do for birthdays in sale. Try and do it every year.
I tried to supress an inner smugness when I heard a lady in front say she had bought and wrapped all her xmas Dec 15 presents. Previously I would have thought PANIC! maybe I should buy up sales gifts and be prepared like her. (never works for me I buy them , loose them forget I bought them etc..
This year...No not buying it.

When she had moved on the sales assistant told me that her own xmas preparations had been terrible she was so stressed having to buy for 32! Her sisters family they spend £150 on alone!

Carrying on plan to keep DH out of shops..have suggested a winter walk in the woods on Saturday followed by home made pub grub after (bacon brie and cranberry ciabatta and bowl of chips all from ALdi)

purpleshoes_2

I've got two big bags ready for the charity shop, a lot of magazines, a lot of poly bags, they are happy to take them as they'll give them out to customers who don't want to pay 5p for a bag, we pay now in scotland. Some stuff that's only fit for rag which will be sold on.Some items that were broken, used or only fit for the bin, binned.

I am making headway, as I said way back in the thread, I had to clear my massive electrical cupboard when a new kitchen went in, had to be totally empty but now it has some stuff in it, used to look like the cupboard of doom. My spare bedroom (I sleep in my box room) also ended up being a room where "stuff" just got chucked, plus when the kitchen went in, other rooms had to be cleared and a lot of stuff ended up where it wasn't usually, anyway, a lot of that stuff has been recycled, charity shopped, put in textile banks and used and any stuff that was just fit for the bin, binned, Ive been working away at it bit by bit for a couple of months and there's not very much left to do now.

Its a really awful day here today, high winds and rain, so I haven't gone and dumped the stuff at the CS, unfortunately its to be the same right through until the weekend so I will do it tomorrow, I also wasn't feeling very well for a bit, got up, had a great sleep, felt fine then just felt really rough, thought it might have been the alcohol free cider, chemicals etc, anyway I had a packet or two of crisps, something I don't often do and I feel a bit brighter, maybe my sodium levels were low. I had eaten a banana but I still felt rough, anyway who knows, I feel a bit better now and I bought some appletize for later on, theres been a couple of times in the past Ive had alcohol free kopparberg and woken up feeling terrible so I maybe should just be sensible and not drink it.

Dinner will be something plain, at the moment I can't face what I was planning. Todays total spend has been £2.49

Im also going to list a few items on ebay and freecycle a few bits as well.

purpleshoes_2

Picklepot wrote: »

Hi
I'm not joining the supermarket challenge only because January for us is winding down the freezers and stock cupboards time and I need to nip out for random bits to make a meal out of those. Unfortunately its the time for identifying UFO's as the family call them - unidentified frozen objects. Such a let down when you think you've taken out a frozen chicken casserole and its stewed rhubarb!


Went into WILco for first time since before xmas. Bought 2 roles of supposed xmas wrap (dotty) that will do for birthdays in sale. Try and do it every year.
I tried to supress an inner smugness when I heard a lady in front say she had bought and wrapped all her xmas Dec 15 presents. Previously I would have thought PANIC! maybe I should buy up sales gifts and be prepared like her. (never works for me I buy them , loose them forget I bought them etc..
This year...No not buying it.

When she had moved on the sales assistant told me that her own xmas preparations had been terrible she was so stressed having to buy for 32! Her sisters family they spend £150 on alone!

Carrying on plan to keep DH out of shops..have suggested a winter walk in the woods on Saturday followed by home made pub grub after (bacon brie and cranberry ciabatta and bowl of chips all from ALdi)

Not a chance am I buying for christmas 15 just now. Christmas is actually one time of the year when I don't go overboard (not that I think I do the rest of the time). I only have a couple of people to buy for, I tend to know how much Im going to spend on them, we don't waste food either and a lot of the treat food we eat is stuff that my mum gets given (chocs and stuff particularly).

I know some people find it easier if they are on a tight budget to plan and buy some gifts well before december, I do that myself, but having them bought and wrapped the first week in Jan! No way.

Picklepot

Odd question I know but as any cat owner will know cat wee is pungent.


My tom cat has been frightened of the Christmas tree since 2007 when we had him. First two Christmas we had to use a plug in thing and keep him out of the room. Next couple of years he skirted the room on his belly watching it suspiciously.
We thought he was Ok with it this year until I was putting it down and found he had weed/sprayed on it and I suspect he might have been doing over Christmas. My instinct is to bin it , the thought of partly cleaned off wee (as you cant see It) being stored in loft for 11 months sounds like a dec 15 Christmas horror which I might just advert now.
No plans to buy a new one though

grunnie

N6CNH you say you traded in some books to Amazon. I use to sell my books till the postage got too high. Can you tell me how you return them to Amazon and who pays the postage? Mostly maths books from teaching days and a few cook books.

117pauline

Love the idea of UFOs - I simply have "somethings" on my freezer list but will change it now.

I "pay" a different purse when I am emptying the freezers and cupboards so I then have money to buy the replacements when they are on offer. Something similar to the SecondPurse idea here on MSE. This way I have a fairer idea of our spends each month. Having said that I am determined to reduce the stock levels and use the extra money saved towards my OH's big birthday trip.

Had my endoscopy last night and apparently I do not have cancer - how did I not know that was what they were expecting? So now to wait for the biopsy results.

I agree with the poster earlier questioning why so many go to A&E rather than their GP or walk in centres. I think some of it is the "want it now" mentality of people who feel ill and want someone to put it right immediately. Personally I think that the country needs re-educating on what constitutes a justifiable emergency.

purpleshoes_2

117pauline wrote: »

Love the idea of UFOs - I simply have "somethings" on my freezer list but will change it now.

I "pay" a different purse when I am emptying the freezers and cupboards so I then have money to buy the replacements when they are on offer. Something similar to the SecondPurse idea here on MSE. This way I have a fairer idea of our spends each month. Having said that I am determined to reduce the stock levels and use the extra money saved towards my OH's big birthday trip.

Had my endoscopy last night and apparently I do not have cancer - how did I not know that was what they were expecting? So now to wait for the biopsy results.

I agree with the poster earlier questioning why so many go to A&E rather than their GP or walk in centres. I think some of it is the "want it now" mentality of people who feel ill and want someone to put it right immediately. Personally I think that the country needs re-educating on what constitutes a justifiable emergency.

Ive been to A and E twice I think in the last 15 years, once when I got a bit of glass embedded in my foot and it had to be removed and once when I broke my arm. I'm not sure if there are walk in centres in my local area, but I rarely see my GP these days, last time I was there was with the issue with my tailbone and that was about 18 months ago.

Id never go to A and E unless it was something really serious and Ive never ended up there after a night out on the tiles after either:rotfl: