Travelling On

Karmacat

Thank you RT!   I can't tell you how contented I am about the decision I made.  I've had a really quiet day, put the DW on, and really, that was that.  I might make some mse "brownies" from my fave recipe, we'll see.  Otherwise **checks other tab** it's Strictly and Alice Roberts

LadyWithAPlan

Yes indeed stay safe and warm!

Karmacat

Thanks all!  Feedback from my sister after the event was "I don't think you'd have liked it" - crowded and hot, with no ventilation, and it went on longer than planned, of course.  Very glad I didn't go, plans are underway with her to make up for it.  Onwards and sideways:

- emailed a local driving instructor seen about the town using a Toyota Yaris 🤣 if he has an "in" to local car dealers, that would be great.  

- I'll check Autotrader again and try to find potential purchases that are physically closer than dratted Heathrow, but otherwise, I'll have to ring that dealer again, we've outlined Thursday as the day for going to a test drive.

- tidying - it's supermarket delivery day tomorrow, and I've been cutting down the order to make it easier to handle.  Insanely, it still comes to £100, but after that I'll definitely be stocked up on tinned butterbeans 😂

- finally finished off the money shuffle, its taken a ridiculously long time, especially when its so simple.  I think I'm going to bring back E2000 from France - it only leaves me with E1200 in that account, but there's literally no expenditures at this time of year, not until end of January, when the quarterly management fee is due - and I could pay that three times over if necessary.  E2000 would help with the car.

So, the actual list for today:
- DW on.
- check Autotrader.
- check with my local council if my kerb is legally lowered - the grass has been removed and tarmacked outside my car-sized gates, so I think its legal, but I need to check.
- tell my credit card people that I plan on buying a car, and using my cards up to the max.  I'm hoping for a balance transfer card before I cash any premium bonds.
- go for a walk, my abdominal muscles need the exercise.
- get hold of the roof tile I wombled, and fit it into the hole I wombled it for - soil slippage is already happening.
- prepare present for the toddler 😮😮😮 I should have done it days ago, but now it *has* to be done by the time I see my sister on Thursday.
- remember to be really, really grateful for the chance to do all this.  Peeked through my curtains this morning, and there's another emergency ambulance pulling away opposite, it's happened a few times in the last 6 months, the same two people are terribly ill.  I feel quite trapped by being unwell sometimes, but that's all it is, just unwell - plenty of other people need oxygen and hospital treatment just to survive, even here, let alone in the traumatised regions of the world.  

beanielou

I so get you on the feelings of being trapped by disability & chronic pain & chronic fatigue but as you say things could be so much worse. 

Karmacat

Karmacat said:

- emailed a local driving instructor seen about the town using a Toyota Yaris 🤣 if he has an "in" to local car dealers, that would be great.  
did it, but no reply and didn't expect one.

- I'll check Autotrader again and try to find potential purchases that are physically closer than dratted Heathrow, but otherwise, I'll have to ring that dealer again, we've outlined Thursday as the day for going to a test drive.
Yep, hurray, there's a dealer about half an hour closer who has two for sale.  Expected me to turn up with wodges of cash, I think 😎 which was a little concerning.  I haven't quite been on the ball with the cash, I must say.

- tidying - it's supermarket delivery day tomorrow, and I've been cutting down the order to make it easier to handle.  Insanely, it still comes to £100, but after that I'll definitely be stocked up on tinned butterbeans 😂
Yes.  Asda were very cheeky and substituted 750g peanut butter at 35p per 100g for 400g at 75p per 100g.  Er, no, more than double!  Driver still hasn't applied the refund, so I applied myself.  Cleaned a lot already, which is good.

- finally finished off the money shuffle, its taken a ridiculously long time, especially when its so simple.  I think I'm going to bring back E2000 from France - it only leaves me with E1200 in that account, but there's literally no expenditures at this time of year, not until end of January, when the quarterly management fee is due - and I could pay that three times over if necessary.  E2000 would help with the car.
Didn't get round to doing that.

- check with my local council if my kerb is legally lowered - the grass has been removed and tarmacked outside my car-sized gates, so I think its legal, but I need to check.
Nor that!

- tell my credit card people that I plan on buying a car, and using my cards up to the max.  I'm hoping for a balance transfer card before I cash any premium bonds.
Nor that!  Oh dear.

- go for a walk, my abdominal muscles need the exercise.
Yes, thank heavens!

- get hold of the roof tile I wombled, and fit it into the hole I wombled it for - soil slippage is already happening.
Yes!

- prepare present for the toddler 😮😮😮 I should have done it days ago, but now it *has* to be done by the time I see my sister on Thursday.
Well, I put the cardboard it came in into the recycling bin, that's about it.

- remember to be really, really grateful for the chance to do all this.  
Definitely.  Thinking of "my" toddler, I also worked on my late brother-in-law's family tree, she has his surname so it seems fitting.

I need a long break right now, I'm quite tired - but I had my usual "treat" lunch on supermarket days - oven chips 😂😂😂 always good.  I might do a bit more later, but I'm not stressing if I can't.  Pretty pleased at what I have managed.  But Christmas is coming (not quite the same cry of fear as "Winter Is Coming" 🤣 but bad enough 🤣

Karmacat

Right, I'm taking all the fiddly steps that lead up to one socking great big step:
- withdrew £5 from the remaining baby happy wheel where I win money, it went to my cc.
- YG survey - I'm up to 950 points already.
- transferred £5 from Rewards vouchers with my bank into my current account.
- Asda have refunded me the money for the mad substitution they sent me, which will also go to my cc.
- brought E2000 back from France, it will be here by close of business today, as usual nowadays - that means that I have just over £4k available to me as actual cash tomorrow.  

So today:
- write down the postcode for the car dealer we're going to tomorrow.
- prepare snacks!
- make sure I take the necessary plastic (driving licence, at a minimum 🤣)
- three horrible phone calls: my bank and the two ccs, to let them know that wodges of money  will be  may be leaving my accounts tomorrow.  Obviously, I don't buy if I'm not happy.  And there's the matter of an AA inspection?
- and the dealership mentioned my DL - but not insurance.  I don't have insurance.  Need to contact them about that too.  Blimey.

themadvix

If it’s anything like when we bought (but that was from a main dealer, so it might not be), they’ll ask you to put a deposit down (c. £100) and then go and collect when it’s ready (valeted, MOT’d if there’s not a recent one) - and pay the balance then. You should be able to pay deposit on cc - do this and you get the credit card protection. Definitely worth doing.

beanielou

You don’t need nor can get the insurance until you have decided on the car. 

Toot toot. 

Karmacat

themadvix said:

If it’s anything like when we bought (but that was from a main dealer, so it might not be), they’ll ask you to put a deposit down (c. £100) and then go and collect when it’s ready (valeted, MOT’d if there’s not a recent one) - and pay the balance then. You should be able to pay deposit on cc - do this and you get the credit card protection. Definitely worth doing.

Thanks for this - yes, I'll just want to put a deposit down, won't I - I'll probably want an AA inspection too, come to that.  I'm also going to arrange for home delivery - I'm not going to drive it 40 miles when I'm such a recent re-learner, it would be asking for trouble.

beanielou said:

You don’t need nor can get the insurance until you have decided on the car. 

Toot toot. 

Toot toot!  I was thinking of the general insurance they must have to have different strangers using the car?  But yes, in general, it's got to be specific me plus specific car, hasn't it.  Yikes.

I just phoned my standard cc provider - they added £2k to my available balance, so that's now £5,450 - I mean, it used to be £10k 🤣 but that was before the financial crash 😮  I'll phone the other one this afternoon, just to make sure.  Might be tricky, as I haven't used it for very much (just fancy teatowels from the British Museum 🤣 ) The woman on the phone at the cc people was very helpful, and reminded me about the thing of paying for *all* of it on cc to get the cc protection, not debit card or cash - I'm really not used to this!  Dear me.  Cup of tea, lunch, then that phone call, then I might try for a walk if there's time.

LadyWithAPlan

As far as I am aware paying just a portion of it on cc gets you the full protection of purchase price 
check on mse on section 75 
Martin L will be clearer than someone on a phone at a cc company