NOT BUYING IT! 2015 - A consumer holiday

GreyQueen

I really felt like fish and chips today but told myself that £5 for one meal is a touch extravagant, so went to Tosspots and found that I could get 1.5 kg of breaded cod or alaskan pollock for £4.

That was 500g packs reduced from £4 to £2 combined with a 3 for 2 offer, so 3 boxes were £4. Had some tonight and took the rest out of their boxes and put them in freezer bags so that they can be shoe-horned into the crannies of the tabletop freezer.

So, feeling pretty chuffed with that, plus have a bag of fruit and veg, inc the biggest pepper I have ever seen in my life, it's enormous, for £1, and a fabby vinyl cloth which I've been raving around on the Make Do and Mend thread for 50p, which has made my day.

Add in a visit to a friend's shop for a natter and a cuppa, another friend popping over for a chat, and a sucessful haul of library books, and I feel truly blessed. And the weather is looking halfway decent tomorrow and I have an allotment to play with.

Weeds; show 'em cold steel, they don't like it up 'em.:rotfl:

joedenise

savingqueen wrote: »

I have been very good with my spending still, certainly nothing Ihave wasted money on. However today I felt so exhausted I agreed to DH's offer to "pick up some tea" on his way home. I have been so good at using stuff up, I had nothing very easy to cook left. He bought those curry in a bag jobs at the supermarket and similar for the kids. It was edible, convenient but not tasty and cheap (but cheaper than a takeaway I guess.) If we had bought it for a celebration we would have been very disappointed.
The good news is that it has strengthened my resolve to keep striving to do better and DH agreed that he wouldn't fancy another ready meal in a hurry. I need to get batch cooking again, no HM 'ready meals' in the freezer.
Bad news is that he also picked up some choc ices and expensive crisps and similar grrrrr. He was saying this was only a pound and that was only..... and so on. The problem is not a pound in itself- its the total of all the little random spends added up at the end of the month. I am going to log it all down in my book anyway and review at the end of the month and show him so he can see the results for himself. We will get there.... we ARE getting there, just need to whip the OH into shape

Think I might need to do this next month. DH has a habit of picking things up when we go shopping together which aren't on my list! I think probably about £15 so far this month!

Denise

vulpix

Well shipmates I thought it was just me who lost sleep running scenarios in my head.It is comforting to know that we all do seem to be similar in outlook on various topics.Next time i am in need of respite from it I will try some of your techniques,thank you.

Vx

rosiepup2000

Natnat13, hope it's onward and upward for you and your boys. Bathory, very sorry about your contract being terminated. Hope you find something else (with better management!) soon.


I also do the re-running conversations in my head thing. I don't have the kind of brain that comes up with the snappy, witty comeback. I usually think of the ideal retort a couple of hours later while driving home.


I've got an American-Italian friend who has a great word for those nagging worries that seem so important when they wake you up in the middle of the night - 'agita'. I used to suffer terribly with work agita in my previous job, happily not so much now.


I have managed to keep my food spend to a grand total of £11.61 this week, that's about a third of what I would normally spend. That includes using up some money-off vouchers that were gathering dust and due to expire, and some YS finds - a £5 pizza reduced to 50p!


I was thinking this morning about the shoes on ebay that I wanted but managed to resist - if I had given in and bought them, they probably would have arrived about now, and what would I have done with them? Tried them on, maybe kept them out 'on show' for a week or so, and then they would have disappeared into the wardrobe and been forgotten about in all likelihood until I had a clearout. I didn't need them. Would they have made my life in any way better? No. they would have just been more STUFF cluttering up my life. Actually, it's made me dig out the two similar pairs I've already got and I'm going to wear the flipping things and try and get some use out of them. I've got a terrible habit of buying things which I then keep unworn/unused, for 'best', and meanwhile I just wear a fairly small selection of things all the time. I'm not doing that anymore. If I've got nice things, I'm going to wear and enjoy them now. No more 'best'.

pm2326

Have made an unplanned spend today :eek:

I don't have broadband/wifi so I need to use a data card for my iPad when I'm at home, can get one with 6GB preloaded for £14.99 on fleabay, free delivery, valid for 90 days once activated.

Bought current card 1st week in December and I only have 1GB left so decided to buy one now ready for when I need it.

Might seem expensive but when I had my laptop and used a dongle I was paying £15 a month for 3GB. even if I use all the card data in 2 month, I've cut the cost in half :T

savingqueen

Does anyone else struggle to spend money? There are certainly areas I could do much better on but in some areas I find it very difficult to spend money even when gifted. I have money saved up from 3 birthdays ago to buy a smartphone - never had one but still using my old cheapie "just as smart" mobile. I still have an M&S voucher given as a birthday gift 1 year ago. I can buy practical stuff but as much as I admire pretty thangs, I find it very hard to buy them. Even nice toiletries given to me as gifts I stash away to regift as I use minimal plain and simple stuff. To be honest I only get gifts now from DH & the kids and a few friends so not much of a problem. I think its fine to buy practical things but DH and kids want me to have "treats". I have my birthday age in cash to spend and plan to buy little odds and ends from charity shops etc as I fancy.... that will please me far more than spending for the sake of it on a shiny something I don't need. 25 years ago I was the opposite and could never have imagined I would change!

thriftwizard

A less-than-expected but totally necessary spend today; I got my car insurance quote before Christmas, and was horrified by the amount; well over £500, for a small car, and I'm a 56 y.o. lady driver who has never even had a speeding fine or parking ticket in nearly 30 years of driving. However I've only owned my own car for 5 years, and during that time we have reported a couple of very-minor no-fault incidents to them, neither of which has resulted in any kind of claim or even damage without a claim. But I couldn't face dealing with it on top of all the festive preparations etc., and it wasn't due until the end of January, so I put it aside to deal with nearer the time. Anyway, after a couple of weeks correcting the details they had on file regarding the minor incidents, which they'd somehow got appallingly wrong, and negotiating, and comparing quotes, etc. etc. today I finally coughed up £210, to a well-respected company, for the same level of cover! Phew... it is most definitely worth shopping around; don't let them brow-beat you, and don't leave it 'til the very last minute, so you have time to sort things out.

Otherwise, just £80 for a week's food for 6 people at our local market. There'll be another £5 or so on bendy veg when they're packing down on Sunday. I thought I would have to darken the doors of the supermarket, as we'd apparently run out of tea, but luckily I found a cache of teabags in a very strange place - the tea caddy! However, cider supplies are getting very low - a visit to L!dls may be necessitated before long. I'm not the only cider-drinker around here...

edwink

rosiepup2000 wrote: »

If I've got nice things, I'm going to wear and enjoy them now. No more 'best'.

Hi Rosiepup


I decided to have "no more best" clothing etc. over a year ago. I then looked at the clothes I was mainly wearing before and am pleased to say they have all mainly gone to the Charity shops now. I had some nice things but they were not my favourites, they were just convenient to wear!! So now I wear my flowery jeans that I have several pairs of that I love. They were just sitting in my wardrobe all the time along with other pretty jeans I have. All purchased from *bay and I love them!! And I enjoy wearing them all!!!


I know you won't regret the decision not to have best anymore. At least you will now start enjoying wearing them instead of them sitting in your wardrobe!! :cool:


Anyone else want to join us in the no more best challenge????


Edwink x

bunbun2

I think i had better stay in my cabin until February. January has not been great spending wise. Ds1's choir fees had to be paid as well as my WI annual membership and payment towards ds2's summer camp fees. Then today we have had to replace our tumble drier. It stopped working just after the new year and OH replaced the part for £10 which was great but unfortunately it didn't last and stopped working again a couple of days ago. Unfortunately we don't have anywhere to dry washing so a tumble drier is a necessity. On a good note though food wise our spends have been low apart from the fish and chips we bought for the boys yesterday. Ds1 has been really low recently and not eating. He is a loner and finds it hard to make and keep friends and is noticing it even more at the moment. He has also had a few issues and his confidence and self esteem are really low. OH has a history of depression and I can see ds1 with the same traits:(

Anyway when I emerge from my cabin I hope to do better

Coulddobetter

Hi Shipmates
I cannot believe others run the conversations in their heads, that is one of my big problems. It interrupts my sleep and mostly it's work. I take over a new role on the first and work is just on my mind constantly. The job was offered to me, didn't apply and if I hadn't taken it I would have had to train the person doing the job. I seemed like I didn't really have a choice. Not sure whether it will be a poison chalice. Only time will tell.
Spent ages looking at CV s tonight and man are they bad, why can't people look at the job profile and match their CV! Grrrrrrrr

Good news NSD, too busy and the new job is better paid so will be able to save more. My plan for retirement might come true if I remain mindful.

Visited friends tonight so have a free night out with great people:T

Could do better x