Time to grow up.

Megano

Oh my lord this is an expensive city - £10 to be able to check in to the hotel early (then again my megabus gold experience wasn't luxury - I would describe it as being in a box the size of a coffin which is strapped to a roller coaster for 7 hours.) if travel lodge wanted to charge me £40 at that moment in time I would have paid it and given them my kidney as a thank you!
Checked the bag and realised I forgotten my toothbrush, suncream, shampoo and I'm getting a bit of a cough. Headed to boots and it came to £30 odd quid. I've been here less than a day and already I'm about £40 quid down. Thankfully all the sights we are wanting to do have already been paid for.

The other day I was at W3 and the area manager called the supervisor and said I start permenantly on Wednesday once I'm back from the trip. That was it - no trumpets, no would you like it? No congratulations. So yey!?

A girl was looking to rent a spare room in the area we live I was like great! An extra couple of hundred a month but OH is saying no as he enjoys it being us as ever since we've moved in together there has always been someone else living with us. I think he's being an idiot but then again I can't force him to do anything he doesn't want to do.

JustAboutThere

Megano,

If you don't mind brash & sometimes abrupt serving staff for Chinese, then check out Wong Kei on Wardour Street in Chinatown. Cash only and they plonk the food down in front of you - sometimes you're seated at a shared table, but the food is fast, filling and pretty good.

The Med Cafe on Berwick Street has some good set menus:

http://www.medcafesoho.co.uk/menu

If you're near the Tower of London, then Cheese & Peppers has homemade food at excellent prices.

http://www.cheeseandpeppers.com

I tend to buy my tooth brushes / paste from the £ Store - no need to pay more, but they tend to be more on the outskirts of London. The powers that be don't want 'tat' on the likes of Oxford Street (have they *looked* at the eastern end lately?) OK, they're trying to tart it up, but it'll take time.

Its surprising how close some places in London are to each other. If you have the energy and can't face the Tube, then check out walk.it and see if your route is do-able:

http://walkit.com/cities/london

Enjoy yourself. You deserve it.

Megano

So the good news is we had a blast and done everything we wanted to do the bad news is I don't think either of us expected London to be so expensive and now I'm poor - like I need to ask the bank of mum for a bail out to last until payday (last resort but I'm not ruling it out) and the capital one card might have taken a pounding

In awesome news: I passed on the managers details at W3 to the manager at W4 (I know it's getting confusing!) and she got the job so because I solved W4 managers headache he's managed to get me a venue meaning W4 is back on the table.
It's only 6 hours a week so I won't be earning as much but screw it.
It's still going to help me get debt free quicker.

Megano

The BIL saga continues:-
Thankfully citizens advice got in touch with HMRC and explained that FLP lives with MIL and DIL so they should be getting child tax credits and family allowance. Apparently it was an admin error and they are sorry for the stress that's been caused. Anyway
FLP SS worker popped in to visit MIL and BIL they are so happy with his progress (?!?!!??) that at the next panel meeting they are going to suggest BIL gets him overnight once a week
All of a sudden he starts talking about money 'this girl I know gets £15 a night kinship money so will I get that?!?!!'
'Well no as your FLP DAD - kinship is for people who foster'

As soon as she left he turns to his mum and says if I am getting him overnight I want £15 a day to cover my expenses. (OH and I were in London at the time - only found out about this yesterday evening which just so happened to be OH's 30th birthday)
At that point I lost my !!!! and said to MIL and DIL 'the money is yours to do what you want with but I don't want to hear about it' then DIL was like its to take FLP out swimming (which he hasn't been for 3 weeks) cause he's struggling to afford it. Again I went mental - he's getting all these hand outs left, right and centre but can stretch his JSA? When OH and I take him out we never ask for a penny back. Swimming, soft play, books, toys, back home - oh but that's because we can apparently afford it. They just seem to think we have a never ending well of money - and here I was thinking I was working 3 jobs for the giggles.

DIL is also like 'if SS can give FLP overnight to BIL. I'm going to ask can we make it 3 nights? - we never asked for this we have our own lives' at this point I was like aww really smart like BIL hasn't had him 24 hours in over 6 months - hell even when he's here he's never put FLP to bed but yeah your right! Why stop at 3? Why not ask for 5 or 6?!

OH is upset/angry/disappointed/annoyed at his family for not making an effort for his birthday as he got 3 cards for his birthday. One from BIL 2 just stating his name without a happy birthday or a handshake or a gift, another one from BIL1 and FLP literally saying I.O.U (at this point BIL1 still isn't talking to either of us so even though he was in the house he didn't speak to him) and £30 from MIL and DIL.

Getting so sick of it and I'm so disappointed in BIL - I was completely on his side and was so proud of him but clearly he's just slipping back into his old selfish ways and he's so ungrateful for anything we've done for him. I'm not expecting a statue to be built in our honours but just stop treating us like we're scum.
You know what even if he didn't utter another word to me in his lifetime right now I don't care - I'm honestly done with the whole thing.

Willowpop

Glad you survived London, Megano.... and yeah, it's not at all cheap, that's for sure. There are a few ltitle tricks that locals do and know, but essentially it's not a cheap place to live. If you really want a laugh, have a look on right move/similar for rent prices for flats/houses...never mind selling prices!!!

BIL sounds like he is starting on a downward spiral again tbh.
Try not to let it stress you too much (easier said than done, I know). You and your OH have done more than a lot of people would do in your position.

Keep smiling. X

Megano

Honestly Ive nothing new to report. I feel like Im in the Rhianna song "work work work" I know deep down in the long run its going to be worth it as i'll get out of debt quicker and be able to save up for the house but I would be lying if I said its not getting to me a little (and its only been a couple of weeks!) but I just need to bite the bullet and get it done.
OH is away on a lads week to Amsterdam before school starts back (its always weird saying that but trust me he's a teacher not a pupil) which I think is annoying me also - like here i am working 3 jobs and he's on holiday (to be fair its my choice to work 3 like we could easily get by on my W1 wages but it would take longer to clear and save up for the house - the joys of having no patience whatsoever!) also I discovered i have a holiday from W1 on Saturday and when I told him he was like "well Im going to football and then Im booked for an engagement" part of me is like really? Can there not be some give and take?
There is MORE drama at W3 basically we have 3 floors to hoover, empty bins, clean the kitchen and bathrooms (the floors are the same size as a medium large size flat) and 5 members of staff (when there should be 10) and we need to do it in the space of 2 hours which means we are only able to do the basic basic basics and the office who have contracted us (the cleaning company) are not happy - the area manager says she's going to get new staff but there is no sign whatsoever.
The manager of W4 texted me and I've to go meet him on Friday but the more I'm thinking about it, there more I'm thinking of saying no - yes there is 24 hours in a day but its really tiring trying to get to W3 to W1 then home in time to W2 without adding another one to the mix - doesn't help when I have a chest infection. Ive been coughing constantly since the London trip (so about 2 weeks solid) - apparently with chest infections you just need to let them ride there course.

BIL is doing his "pretend everything is normal" with OH and I by trying to whitewash what he said about us not being there for him and not supporting him - honestly its too little too late. Obi's I'll be civil to him after all he's FLP dad but in terms of going above and beyond I'm kinda done. He has a meeting with a children's panel next Wednesday to see if he can start getting FLP overnight.

ChicaBonita

Hi Megano, if it's a severe chest infection I would get antibiotics from the doctor. I had a bad one a few years ago after working weird and wonderful hours and by the time I went to the doctor (after doing my back out from coughing) it had almost transferred into pneumonia. Look after yourself!

Megano

So I bite the bullet and texted W4 saying "Im sorry for messing your around but I have to say no to the job" he texted back saying not to worry about it and the great news is the job has went to the W3 manager - my good dead for 2016 recommending her to W3 as she now has 16 hours a week extra work. You know the more I think about it the more I think I deserve a sainthood.

According to my calculations I should be "bad debt" free before the end of this year (famous last words) - Ive spoken with OH about the Florida trip mostly everything has been paid for all we need is spending money and the flights. We've agreed OH will buy the flights and I'll save the spending money. Im thinking I won't need anymore than £1000 - £2000 is that wishful thinking or will it be too much?

Here's the thing. Fast forward to after the Florida trip. We start saving up for our first home I'll be debt free but OH won't be debt free for a couple of years so he won't be able to save as much as me - Im obviously not going to save for the whole deposit myself but when I get to 1/2 target amount do I just stop? I kinda wish we were on the same journey. I seem to be going on the motorway while he's stuck on the slip road (what a great metaphor I should be a poet!)

Im applying for a back office job at W1 - yes its means I loose my shift allowance which works out to be £3000 over the year but Im guaranteed every Sunday off and the latest I would work to would be 8pm instead of 11pm.

Managed to round down my account and was able to make a sneaky payment of £16.03 to the capital one credit card (I bloody hate that card!) and I've organised a cash out from TCB of £97 odd - really want to ask the BOM can I miss the repayment of £250 this month so I can throw it to the C1 CC instead but then again it wouldn't be fair as she said I didn't need to pay her last month to give us extra for the London trip.

Megano

Im completely at a loss and in advance let me say sorry for ranting but I'm sure you'll understand.

I feel like OH and I are on completely different wavelengths. He came back home on Friday from his week away in Amsterdam, yesterday he was out all day at football and wrestling and today when I finish work he's out at wrestling again! Im not saying we should spend every minute of every hour together but just a bit of time wouldn't be too much to ask?

It seems like I'm more keen in getting debt free so we can start saving for our 1st house than he is. I honestly feel at my wits end. Im ALWAYS there for him, Im ALWAYS make an effort to spend time with him but when the shoe is on the other foot it looks like I'm far down on the list of priorities.

We've been together for 8 years so I don't want to be too drastic and be like that's it and throw in the towel. I just wish he would make more of an effort for me.

Megano

Just like a summer romance as soon as it started it was over - I've had to say goodbye to W3.
So as I said in my previous post we are really really understaffed so I was asked to do the toilets which normally wouldn't bother me however today every 2nd toilet was honestly disgusting and caked in crap so I got on with my tasks and I was noticing I was running out of time to get everything done in the two hours and when i walked by the office everyone else was sitting there on their phones and I think thats the straw that broke the camels back - before when I had finished my tasks I would go and ask everyone else if they needed a hand so we could all finish early, yet when the shoe is on the other foot everyone is happy for me to be stuck behind?
Also I was really really struggling at W1 to have the same energy and work standard.
Im kinda looking forward not having to get up at 4.30 in the morning but I'm kinda sad that Im going to lose out in the extra money - deep down I think I did the right thing espically because it was affecting my relationship with OH and W1.

Anyway onwards and upwards....
Some money from TCB has hit my account slim able to make a sneaky payment of £69.18 towards that pesky credit card!