Paid off the £31,000! BUT - still scrimping!

milann

Not  long now until you can put your feet up and enjoy doing things once were allowed. 5 weeks will go quickly 👍

Seasidegal58

Hi    – @beanielou @Sun_Addict  @amber03 @HairyHandofDartmoor and @milann - thanks so much for your posts.😀 

Well – the task of posting every day went belly-up!  Actually what I wrote in my last post could pretty well be used again here!   Nothing much has happened since then – work, work and work, met my friend at the weekend for a coffee and haven't spent hardly anything!   

BUT – on Friday it will FOUR weeks to the big R-day!  The time is actually going so quickly what with being so busy at work.  

However, I did receive my State Pension statement today confirming how much and when I'll get it.  It's increased a little from the estimation statement I received last year, which is what I was expecting.  I did call DWP to see if I could receive it on a monthly calendar basis, but apparently they can't do that – just weekly, two weekly, or four weekly, so I kept to the four weekly payments.

And I had a telephone call with my DCS work pension provider today to go through my options as I don't want to drawdown any income from it as yet – hopefully for several years or more.  I'll be able to draw out some of the tax free cash to cover this when needed as long as the pension rules don't change.  He said I can keep it going on the same (low) charge basis – I've got to raise the risk though to get the growth I want so will be also spending time over the Easter weekend looking through the funds, as well as getting my work handover notes, etc, ready.  He suggested having a chat with my HR department to see if my final bonus to be paid to me with my last salary payment in April can be used as salary sacrifice into my pension which will offset the income tax to be paid.  So I'll have to have a chat with HR re. this.

Also, I'm thinking of starting a new diary on 1 May to reflect the next stage of my life! 

Anyway, I shall definitely be catching up on diaries tonight – I'm completely out of the loop here and it will be good to read what everyone's been getting up to!

milann

Funnily enough I’ve been thinking about a new diary should my early retirement go through. It’s a new phase of life which should be celebrated 👍 I know I’ll need to really watch my spending so a diary would help me stay on track - but I plan on making the most of my time. So although I now have some limitations - I intend enjoying it. 😁
Hopefully you can do all sorts of lovely things once the lockdown finishes. Think of the friends you’ll be able to meet and the places you can visit 👍 Roll on 4 weeks.....will you get chance to meet your work friends for a proper goodbye?

Sun_Addict

All my retired friends are loving retirement, they seem to lead such full lives. Obviously scuppered temporarily by the pandemic but none of them have regrets. Great idea on having a new diary for your new chapter in life.

Seasidegal58

Yes I rather like the idea of a new ' retirement' diary @milann. It will be my third here - the first reflected my debt free journey and this one started as I wanted to get my emergency fund together and stay on track till retirement. 

I have a few plans out there for when the lockdown restrictions are finally lifted and we're back to normal.  I won't be meeting up with anyone from work before my retirement. But as soon as I can I will have a celebratory lunch with my boss and another with a few of my lady colleagues.  Going forward I will still be coming up to the City for my hair and dental appointments so there'll be opportunities for catch up lunches then as well. 😀

Seasidegal58

I can't wait @Sun_Addict - I think my boss really does think I'll regret it and will be bored!🤔.  Me - I can think of much better things to do than either being glued to the chair at my desk in my living room for hours or having that commute five days a week!  I was talking to my friend on Saturday and one of the things we're looking forward to are nice crowd free warm days in the summer during the week and out of the school holidays when we can saunter down to the cockle sheds with another retired friend and have a long cool drink and look at the sea - perhaps with some chips!🐙🌞🍹

enthusiasticsaver

I have to say we are really loving retirement and often say how did we find time to  work even over the last year?  Not long now

savingmore

i am very excited for you.   I am two years until retirement, so will live vicariously through you until and hope to lean and garner useful info in the meantime, and squirrelling away monies to build up inadequate pension pots in the meantime.   

doingitanyway

I can't wait for your new retirement diary. Very excited for you

Seasidegal58

Hi @enthusiasticsaver @savingmore and @doingitanyway. Thanks for your posts.  I'm updating my signature.  Weeks to retirement now officially only 4 weeks away as from today!!!!😀 

Although it won't apply to me going forward, an email went out yesterday to all at work confirming that once the office has fully reopened, flexible working hours will be taking effect in that they expect that people will work from home at least one day per week and possible more.   Staffwise the firm has grown rapidly and is approaching the point where basically there won't be enough room for everyone in the office at the same time so there will be hot-desking – cupboards and desk pedestals will be removed and no personal items on desks (although you'll get a locker).  I think everyone has been expecting it – it seems to be the way of the office world now.  My bestie who will be continuing to work there has already told her boss that she'll be quite happy working from home all the time – not sure if he is up for it though! 

Me – I'm quite happy to be missing all this upheaval!  My own boss said he is quite happy with a locker – he said he can put his golf clubs in there!

So it's Good Friday today – was chilly and grey outside.  I turned my storage heaters off the other day when we had the warm weather and have felt cold indoors today – so I've turned them back on!  I've been working today and have started on compiling the various handover notes to give to my replacement when I leave. 

I did the housework this morning instead of tomorrow and made a vegetable stew and dumplings made with vegetarian Atora for dinner - very warming  🫕

I have a new book to read – DD sent me it for Mother's Day – 'Mistresses' which is all about the mistresses of Charles II - the power women of the day!  I'm quite looking forward to it as the Restoration period is one of my history favourites – even since I read 'Forever Amber' back when I was sixteen!  One of my fave novels!