LonelyRat's (not so lonely) Road to Riches

[Deleted User]

I have to agree with Lucifa I'd expect my OH to be doing whatever job he could whilst looking for a job that he really wants, it's unfair to put all the pressure on you whilst turning down jobs.

lonelyrat

doingitanyway wrote: »

Life is tough sometimes, no point in pretending it isn't. It's what you do about it

Too true DIA. Thank you I know that it's just a particularly dark/ stressy time and things will get better but sometimes I do get a bit overwhelmed. Need to remember that nothing is permanent and great things could be just around the corner (here's hoping!)

Thanks Lucifa/ SSDD23 - I do wish he would get his head out his bum. He's been on the computer applying for a fair amount of stuff this week but I still don't think it's enough. I think he maybe needs to contact temp agencies or something. He does potentially have a lead as a family friend works quite high up in Dell and he's been messaging OH saying he will put in a word for him and see if there are any opportunities. Fingers crossed!

He doesn't claim any benefits so we're getting by on my £700/£800 a month at the moment, which is quite rough and why the debt has creeped up a little. I really didn't expect this to happen (I guess no one does :rotfl:). If I'd known in May that we'd be at the end of October with no job on the horizon I would have asked to go full time again. As it stands I do have a fair amount of overtime booked in so should increase my November pay by £200ish.

Hey ho! Things happen, we'll get by one step at a time.

Feeling very upbeat and positive mentally at the moment, but my body has decided to fail me :rotfl: Felt a bit rubbish earlier and thought I was maybe going to start coming down with a cold... Fast forward to the last hour of my shift and I was so congested and couldnt stop shaking and sneezing. It's like a super cold, it's just appeared out of nowhere and knocked me for 6. Managed to make it through the day but got straight in bed when I got home and have been dozing since. Thankfully I'm off tomorrow so can spend the day recuperating. Frustrated with myself though because that'll be my step streak over I felt too poo and got OH to pick me up at the station so missed out on 3,000 steps :eek: Probably better just to get home and in bed though.

Have been loving the gym! I think I've got myself in a great little routine. Going before work is far, far better than going after. Gets me in a positive frame of mind for the day and work has been more bearable. Don't know if maybe the gym is the reason I'm feeling better mentally - it could very well be those magical endorphins i've heard people speak about before :rotfl:

Still eating quite a lot of rubbish so really need to get back on track. Am going to go through the fridge/ freezer tomorrow and see where we stand foodwise then make a healthy meal plan. I'm going to try to cut down on carbs a wee bit as they are my Achilles heel.

Re: the job down south - Got a phone call yesterday from resourcing and they went through some basic questions then invited me for a telephone interview. Currently waiting to find a time that doesn't conflict with work. Bit nervy for the interview but I'll try and prep my best for it. I just get a bit flustered but if I make some notes I should be OK. It's a "capability and value based" interview which I'm guessing is just like a competency based interview but they're trying to see if my values are in line with the company. Not entirely sure though so if anyone has any insight please let me know :rotfl:

I am slightly worried as my disciplinary warning falls of my file on the 13th of December, ideally they aren't requesting references before that date :eek: Also worried about my debt. It's not massive at the moment but my credit score is still "poor-fair". It's no worse than it was when I started working at my current bank, but I'm still worried I could be rejected for it.

I guess I just need to let all this go for now, focus on what I actually have control over (the interview) and stop worrying about everything else. Easier said than done!

Good news to update! My Dad is coming up for Christmas to stay with my Gran so that will be lovely. Not seen my Gran since August and not seen Dad since April so will be lovely to see them both Will probably be spending actual Christmas day with OHs family but will go through to ED on boxing day.

Christmas is going to be the most frugal one yet! OH and I have said 1 gift each (unless he still hasnae got a job, then it's no gifts each!) His family know that we're in a tough spot money-wise so they will be OK with us just getting something for his niece. I have about £70 in Tesco vouchers I've been saving up so that will be Christmas food and a gift / gifts for her as well. So we really should be OK!

No real plans for tomorrow - depends entirely on if I feel better. If I still feel rubbish it will be a bed and TV kind of day. Hopefully I get better overnight and can be productive tomorrow as the laundry bag is fit to overflow ....

lonelyrat

Am still feeling rotten Think today will unfortunately be a pj and bed kind of day. Will need to take a trip to the shops as am running out of tissues... Although perhaps I can get OH to go for me :A
Saw a jacket I really wanted the other day in M&S but it's £150 :eek: I can't justify it, but it looked so good. It's a long sort of puffer jacket and it has snug wrists which I like as I always seem to get wet arms in my current jacket. It was also very flattering which you wouldn't expect from a big puffer :cool: I do need an upgrade because the jacket I have now was just a cheapo a few years ago and it's seen better days... One of the pockets got caught on a train arm rest and ripped right off and it just looks a bit sad. It's also now far too big because I've lost a bit of weight.

While I really like the M&S one I do hope to lose some more weight so would be silly to invest in a coat when I hopefully won't be this size much longer. Will enlist OH to come to primark with me sometime soon to see if I can find a cheapo version of it there. OH needs to come otherwise I will make some bad decisions and end up leaving the shop with hundreds of things!

Have a lovely day everyone

redofromstart

Greenbee mentioned that Primark have down jackets for £15.

I agree that the interview is probably competency based but under different name. Write STAR on your paper - what was Situation what was the Task what Action did you take and what was the Result. Make sure you actually answer the question, amazing how many people waffle on and don't, or talk hypothetically when I have asked for a real work example.

Silver_Queen

I am a champ at grilling people for job interviews, one of my jobs at work is to interview and mentor new people, plus my OH has been applying for every job under the sun. If you need anything, PM me and I will try my best to help!

Agree with Redo - the STAR thing really really helps you focus your answer to the key things that you want to say. Just make sure that you always have a result because a lot of people tend to miss the result off, thinking that the action part is self-explanatory. It sounds a lot more confident and strong if you finish off with a short sentence about the result that you achieved.

lonelyrat

Thanks for the heads up redofromstart. Went to Primark yesterday and got a decent jacket for £20. Far better than blowing a whole months budget on one fancy jacket :rotfl: Thanks for the interview advice as well - I really, really appreciate it!

With regards to the interview... Would you guys suggest stating "The situation was... " etc. I worry that it sounds too robotic and perhaps you don't need to signpost that clearly.

What I've done so far is go through their website and the job ad and highlight the "values" they're looking for. As it's still a customer facing role I'll keep these values in mind and prep for customer service questions. I'll have an example for providing great customer service, negotiation, teamwork, problem solving and maybe leading by example. I was going to have a look on their Glassdoor page and see what other people have to say about it.

I'm feeling quite confident at the moment (but the interview isn't until Thursday, plenty of time to get nervy :rotfl:). Will just prepare as much as I can.

Silver Queen, thanks for the advice! I will make sure to end with a short "result" bit. I can waffle (as I'm sure you can tell from my posts) so I really need to focus myself in.

Off work again today and feeling miles better! Cold almost completely gone so feeling very thankful it was just a quick one. Back in work tomorrow but not too fussed as I enjoy a Sunday shift. They hardly ever schedule me them, but I'm doing Sunday's for the next 3 weeks which is good! No train on Sunday mornings to get me in in time for work so means OH needs to drive me :A I love getting a lift in

Potentially promising news on the job front for him ... Got an email from someone "very keen" to speak to him. It's about some entry level IT job which would suit him quite well. Fingers firmly, firmly crossed that it ends up leading to something. I'm going to get him to call first thing on Monday morning. Ideally it results in an interview. If it's actually a good job OH could always stay up here a few extra months when I move down to England so he can get the experience.

Plans today are to do laundry (currently impossible as all the living room furniture is in the kitchen and I can't actually reach the washing machine :eek:) OH parents are getting new flooring in the living room so everything's all up in the air - hopefully it'll all be sorted by the end of this afternoon :cool:

Am potentially considering a walk with OH as the sun is shining and it looks like a beautiful day... I'm on the fence though because it's nippy, freezy cold and I may just end up sick again :rotfl:

doingitanyway

Crossing my fingers that your OH gets some work too.

Take it easier so the cold doesn't boomerang back.

[Deleted User]

Fingers crossed for OH, and for your interview

lonelyrat

Morning guys! Currently on the train to the gym then got overtime scheduled at work :eek: For the next 3 weeks I’m working (almost) full time hours. Feeling Ok about it and very happy that we’ll have some extra coming in... maybe I can finally start debt busting again? I may very well be funnelling it into savings to keep for moving though.

OH has an interview today! It’s a call centre, so not ideal but it will work for the short term. I dont want to get my hopes up too much as he may not get it.... but I’m secretly very excited in case he does! Two incomes :eek:

Happy Tuesday everyone

doingitanyway

Two incomes? Heres hoping.
Also, even if you do start debt busting again with the overtime money, do consider squirrelling some away too. An emergency fund definitely helps me feel less 'edgy'
Have a good day