Working the numbers 2019 style

mark55man

thanks for the thought on weight loss - eating wrong is definitely a big part of it.

was going to be a NSD but got a message as leaving work to stop by Mr T for some cleaning and store cupboard bits and more urgently, some sausages (yum)

mark55man

so a lazy Saturday yesterday, centred around an event at the town hall, which was only an hour but seemed to end up eating up the whole day

today was a bit busier, weekly shop at Mr L, mowed the garden (front and back), and made a nice tuna nicoise (sadly no anchovies) with a few 59p salad veggies (spring onion, tomatoes, celery, lettuce, and potatoes). OH was very pleased, and I managed to keep the base vegan for DS1&GF. Then down the tip with a mixture of garden and house clutter.

neither day was NSD, but wasn't too bad. we're going to make a point of being super frugal for a couple of nights a week to take the pressure off groceries budget (ie jacket, beans & cheese - simple pasta & pesto/sauce - not quite a store-cupboard challenge but nearly)

Sadly I now have to do some work, as I have a big conference tomorrow, and just want to get on top of it.

mark55man

so 1 NSD so far this week, the others were small spends apart from today which will be fuel and shopping!

numbers are looking better for May and with a week off next week, all inclusive, should manage to be relatively cheap even though we are going away. holiday spends can escalate so will be careful but not overly frugal

may be quiet for a bit onlline, but will catch up when we get back if not before

[Deleted User]

All looking good Mark! Enjoy your holiday, sounds great

mark55man

so back from our holiday's - which ended with a long weekend in Barcelona where OH and I spent the days walking around town, around museums, and doing a homage to Gaudi who had a big impact on the city. it really is a fabulous holiday destination.

cost wise was ok - plenty of set price menus where you can eat reasonably cheaply as long as you can avoid drinking which mainly I managed - plus using the great value Hola Barcelona travelcard (also good for the airport) meant we could go to some of the interesting places a bit further out. finally by braving some of the less famous streets we got some good prices on coffee and snacks.

the major cost and annoyance was the travel agent had booked us into a hotel 15 miles from the town centre based on the fact that it had Barcelona in the hotel name. Worse, it was poorly served by public transport and would be £30 for each return trip/taxi so we ended up making an executive decision and cancelling the one and finding a lastminute.com place right at the heart of town - which was noisy but fun!!. At the moment there is a hefty late cancellation charge outstanding but I'll fight it out with the agent - and it would have spoiled the weekend and our rare late nights out to have used the distant one

both thoroughly relaxed and determined to keep up walking and (surprisingly) healthy eating we managed so hopefully back to a new normal. Will be updating everything next weekend once the paycheck is in and regular payments are out

Sunshine_girl2

Glad you enjoyed your weekend, despite your travel agent debacle. Thoroughly enjoyed Barcelona , went on the open top bus to get to some places. Would love to go back again as it's such a big city. Hope you get the cancellation fine sorted.

mark55man

a busy few days back at work catching up but managed a few low spend days and only forgot my packed lunch once but was able to get by with a "mug shots" pasta thing, which I keep in my drawer

a little bit of overspend on the holiday and the cancellation fee will make this month interesting, but OH and I are on a spending ban to try and catch up and maybe will do some store cupboard eating, to ramp down the slight (!!!!) surplus we have.

too nice today to sit inside and do spreadsheets so will put that off to tonight or tomorrow and will report back soon

mark55man

Have crunched the numbers and its been a busy month and we enjoyed our holiday. However for something that was largely funded by my FIL still managed to cost more than expected – this was funded by my savings – money put aside from the bonus I got at XMAS but don’t use for day to day stuff. So kind of an EF but I don’t think of it like that.

On day to day spending we had a good month – a little more on clothes than usual, but less on entertainment and coffees out (partly a genuine reduction and partly 1 week counted as holiday spends1!). Groceries were good back on track, including a couple of guilt shops to make sure the kids had enough while we were out.

The big picture looks good, and although the regular payments are boring, they are what is getting the job done. May be dull to repeat every month, but its important to remember the basics – and get too vexed by the odd overspend when everything else is clear. However I’m not ignoring completely so am going to report on overdraft as well (s in the last entry before my pay goes in towards the end of the month.

• Start of year - Debt 0% CC - £8351: Now £7005 with £2250 in regular savers Target 31/12/2019 = £0 - still on target
• Start of year Car Loan - 2.8% - £12K: Now estimated £9.5K - Target 31/12/2019 = £6K - still on target
• Start of month: Overdraft £1.7K - End of month £1.5K - £200 improvement
• Start of year: Mortgage £132K: Now £125K Target 31/12/2019 = £118K - still on target
• Weight - 117KG (getting chubby): Now 118KG - Target 31/12/2019 = 100Kg (Not at all likely TBH)

So all heading in a good direction, but I did lose control of O/D a bit so need to keep an eye on

Steps wise, I have been even better this month lifting average from just over 6000 to over 7000, with a definite upward trend. Pleased that the holiday didn't do too much damage to the waistline

mark55man

Third go at this post - MSE is getting very trigger happy on its IT support and security policy - which is charming is a naive small business/local organisation sort of way except when you consider how much money the MSE site makes and then its a bit irritating

anyway managed a fairly cheap week - lot more vegetables and store cupboard treats. Cheese on toast, baked potatoes, tuna pasta bake, ratatouille, then pasta with ratatouille sauce as OH made so much

forgot my lunch twice and had to pay £5 - coincidentally there may be a new allowance at work for people who travel using green methods, which I think I can use a couple of days a week which will be £5 a week which helps and will keep me fitter if I get on my bike to get to the station 10 miles or so away

just about to head out shopping - have my list and not hungry so that should go well :-)

mark55man

ridiculous number of miles this week, coinciding with a ridiculous amount of rain so I am exhausted. Hence a ridiculous low number of steps so far but will get out this weekend.

getting up tired hasn't helped with packed lunches so £10 this week - plus saw an old school friend for dinner in London, and that was the best part of £50 even though I was driving so only had one drink. I only see him occasionally so not something I would miss, even though financially I could have done with just having a drink and a chat