Put away your purse & become debt-averse

foxgloves

@BalanceBy50 - You're welcome!

@Pixiehouse55 - That's a great subject for a blog. I wish you every happiness both for finding a great boat & then starting your new life afloat.

@Sun_Addict - It was actually better than £80. I had mis-remembered how much money I had withdrawn back in January when the person supposedly sorting out a weird problem said he would need cash. Just shows how long this damn 🐸 has been going on! I saw those still cashpoint-fresh notes tucked at the back of my drawer & thought "Oooh, that's that £80", but this morning I went to fetch it & it was actually £180.
F x

foxgloves

Hello Wednesday Pence-Wranglers,
Not a spend-free day, as have been into town for a few bits & bobs, but nothing frivolous & there were a few general 'wins':
*Paid ALL of the aforementioned £180 back into our Home Improvements Fund. It was the right thing to do, as although that work is now being arranged differently, it will still have a cost. 
*Also paid July's account 'sweep' into the ISA. 
*Needed 2 toiletry items. Only needed to use my Personal Spends for one, as I had sufficient loyalty points to have the other item for free. 
*Did not visit coffee shop. Mr F has a few days off so we will have some cafe visits but not every day. 
*Bought unbranded anti-histamines ready for insect bite season (they love me, unfortunately!) - much cheaper than the big name brands. 
*New piano music for 99p thanks to charity bookshop. 
*Sowed more cress seed. 
*Mr F lifted our home grown garlic - 34 bulbs in total. Laid out for drying. 
*Resurrected a dress I felt a bit lardy in after Christmas but fits well now. Also a summer shawl I haven't worn for ages.... funny how psychologically, I almost think I've got something new! 
Nothing exciting, but if you expected excitement, you wouldn't be reading this diary! 
Just off to march up & down the garden a few times to get my daily steps up. 
F x

Hazelnutty

Oh my goodness Foxgloves you're on fire! What a brilliant find and super productive

Blackcats

Fantastic cash find and amazing will power to pay it back into the appropriate pot.  You and I both know what would have happened to that cash back in the day 😉.  Mine would have gone into my purse and gradually got frittered away on "just a coffee" or "just some earrings" or "just a quick lunch out" or "just a new candle that I really need".  

foxgloves

Thanks both of you.
Yes, it would have been EXACTLY as you describe, @Blackcats. I would have frittered that money on nothing in particular, but doubtless would have involved another candle, couple of baskets, a bit of kitchenalia, etc, etc. Then the next week, I'd have seen an outfit or some shoes & spent that money a second time on the grounds that I didn't really do anything much with it first time round!
Honestly, weren't we idiots..... the key thing though is that we need to be truly ready to change & for me, this didn't happen until my early 40s. I was 46 when I used my VR payout to clear the last bits of our debts. It feels like a lifetime ago because the good money habits are really enbedded now (another training seminar word, lol)
F x

Blackcats

I remember getting a loan - ostensibly consolidating and paying off debt and some sort of home improvement and the morning the money hit my bank account I got in my car and drove 50 miles to a retail outlet centre.  I enjoyed a whole day of spending but was completely pleased with myself that as it was a retail outlet I wasn't paying full price for anything so I was getting loads of absolute bargains.  Needless to say not all of the debts got consolidated so I ended up with a loan, some residual debts and a car boot full of so called bargains.  

foxgloves

@Blackcats That really resonates with me. I blew over £200 the first time I went to a retail outlet many years ago. Not proper spending, as you say, becsuse prices are discounted. The only items I bought which lasted any distance at all were a lasagne dish & a serving bowl with a chilli design from the 'Whitt*rds' shop. The lasagne dish finally broke a couple of years ago & I still use the bowl regularly. I can't remember all the other stuff except a handbag I didn't even much like which went to the charity shop & an electric razor which was rubbish & I binned it. These days, I'd rather pay full price for something I love than come away with three bags of 'ok'.
F

MissRikkiC

Isn't it always the boring stuff that lasts the duration - I bought a silicone muffin tray years ago from the outlet near us and it is literally used every week. I mostly use it for freezing 1 year old size appropriate portions, but also some baking. The K8 spade bag i bought at an astonishing £85 has been in the wardrobe for years. Hmph.

MissRikkiC

@foxgloves i hope you dont mind my asking here, but you seem to have a wealth of knowledge around gardening. I have some lettuce seedlings which require thinning out but everywhere ive read says to just eat them. Thats fine but i seem to remember you had mentioned a module? Do you attempt to continue growing them elsewhere? TIA x

foxgloves

@MissRikkiC - I do like gardening. I started with my Mum when I was about 8 or 9. She was very knowledgeable. Yes, I do grow my lettuces on in modules because my pastexperience is that if I plant the seedlings straight out into the garden, they are at high risk of being scoffed by birds or molluscs. So my method is to sow the seed in my greenhouse, then pot the best seedlings on into module trays. When they have become sturdy little plants, only then do I plant them outside in my lettuce bed. Yes, you can just chuck the thinnings into a salad. I usually do that but this year, I've tried something different. I am potting up the feebler seedlings into a flowerpot & letting them grow into a living salad pot.... as in stick it on kitchen windowsill, keep it watered, then you can snip leaves off as required for sandwiches, etc. Thinnings only supply about two mouthfuls (or one if it's Mr F!) so I get more from my pot method.
Hope this helps, 
F