The Edcawber Principle

beanielou

Boo to windfall being so small.

Great news on the CC's though, on all fronts :j :j

Suffolk_lass

I presume you have checked your credit rating on Martin's credit club? (if not, there is a link to it ion the page I have posted a link to below) and that you applied for the second BT card in Mrs E's name? If I recall, there is a checking tool (there is - here) you can use to see if you are likely to be accepted for a card, before you apply (and without impacting your credit rating).

You mention BT - Santander are the other lot offering 27 months 0% at no fee - if you check first...

Sorry that windfall was smaller than you thought.

It does sound as though you are blasting through a bit at the moment.

Re the garden, that is a good idea. You could also plant a green manure crop in those beds and then cover that later in the year (and all the nutrients will get absorbed until you need them) - something like peas or beans (dwarf French) - you get to eat the produce and the dying down plants will add nitrogen to the soil It doesn't matter if there are weeds in with them but you could sprinkle something like alfalfa or rocket to fill the gaps. They are quite fast growing so compete well with weeds

edinburgher

SL - I check my credit rating monthly with both MSE Credit Club and Clearscore - I had a 90% chance of getting the Spanish bank card, but no luck! Could it be because I now have something like £50k of open credit cards?

I was keen not to make Mrs E do any work with finances, but it was our only fee free option in the end. She has transferred the remaining £1400 or so onto a B@rclaycard deal - free for 20 months, no fee and £21 cashback :money: I think we'll set the DD so that the balance is fully paid off by the end of the 20 months, I'm happier just having the accounts in one name for debts.

A green manure crop sounds good, but I'd describe our soil as poor, heavy and wet. Any recommendations for that? I'd thought perhaps sweet clover?

In other news, inlaws have offered to pay for us to go on a free all inclusive holiday with them! :T There are times where I'd consider saying no but a) it's our only chance to go away this year and b) FIL about to retire, so he will be flush with decades of PCLS money :rotfl:

Very much makes up for the work windfall being a bit pants

beanielou

Fab news on the holiday

edinburgher

£1.40 paid off a credit card.

Hoovered, cleaned the tumble dryer heat exchanger, made posh mashed potatoes for dinner, shaved and took out the recycling.

Mrs E has taken party animal DD to soft play, that's 4 parties in a month

It's a crazy, crazy night

Suffolk_lass

edinburgher wrote: »

SL - I check my credit rating monthly with both MSE Credit Club and Clearscore - I had a 90% chance of getting the Spanish bank card, but no luck! Could it be because I now have something like £50k of open credit cards?

I was keen not to make Mrs E do any work with finances, but it was our only fee free option in the end. She has transferred the remaining £1400 or so onto a B@rclaycard deal - free for 20 months, no fee and £21 cashback :money: I think we'll set the DD so that the balance is fully paid off by the end of the 20 months, I'm happier just having the accounts in one name for debts.

A green manure crop sounds good, but I'd describe our soil as poor, heavy and wet. Any recommendations for that? I'd thought perhaps sweet clover?

In other news, inlaws have offered to pay for us to go on a free all inclusive holiday with them! :T There are times where I'd consider saying no but a) it's our only chance to go away this year and b) FIL about to retire, so he will be flush with decades of PCLS money :rotfl:

Very much makes up for the work windfall being a bit pants

Thanks for the update - I think you have taken a really mature position on this - I really like that Mrs E wants to pay off that card separately within the 0% time.

With your soil type I think sweet clover sounds like a really good choice. It is quite fast growing and deep rooted, so should help with that concrete soil I recall you were so impressed with last year (ahem!). You could follow it up with potatoes as they logically follow legumes in a crop rotation and irrespective of the quality of the crop they produce, they leave the soil lovely and crumbly after they have been harvested - if it is sheltered, you could stick a couple of tomatoes in with potatoes as they are both part of the nightshade family (so you can co-grow but not succession plant them, without getting blight). The advantage is you can eat what you grow. A nice little cherry tomato like Sungold F1 hybrid will have Miss E munching them off the plants.

The other green manure I would consider (maybe after the compacted soil has given up) is fenugreek which also grows almost anywhere and is edible. Not sure how much you cook asian - very popular!

edinburgher

I do love a nice potato :drool:

Am hacked off, brown letter from the taxman demanding £750

It's one f00king thing after another.

teapot2

Thats not good re brown envelope - do you definitely owe this or could it be an error on their part do you think :mad:

edinburgher

teapot2 wrote: »

Thats not good re brown envelope - do you definitely owe this or could it be an error on their part do you think :mad:

I don't even know how I'd tell if an error had been made on their part. They show you income from any jobs you've had, then a range of credits and debits that are frankly meaningless, wave a magic wand and tell you that you owe hundreds of pounds.

I am absolutely scunnered, no motivation for work whatsoever today. I purchased a week of annual leave last year when I changed jobs, deducted over 7 months. I hated it and my next pay would be the first one where it isn't being taken any more. This new deduction will be greater than the impact of that, but over the entire financial year. So it's like I've had a fortnight's holiday that I didn't enjoy and can't remember.

Suffolk_lass

I have just had a similar experience. The default position is to change your tax code for next FY and take it back over 12 months. Mine was right - when I left my employer they gave me a tax rebate based on their two twelfths (months) that my personal allowance would not catch up (and a 40% refund) while my pension provider gave me 1/12th of my annual pension.

I phoned up and they agreed to recover my overpayment in March so I start the new Tax Year all straight (and I received the revised tax code notice yesterday). You could check with them (my man was very helpful) - I went on my personal tax account first and then phoned.

Does it say why you owe them? you are PAYE so quite surprising