Sort of debt-free but hope to be a super-scrimper in 2019

Karmacat

You're doing so well, CBC! Great news on a profit of £11.50

Amazon, uh oh, I had that email too, and hadn't read it. You know what, I'm not going to stress it - or ebay either. If I ever want to sell any single piece again, I'll go on gumtree or something. Otherwise, its bulk lots at ziffit etc. I'm reassessing my life constantly, and that's one thing I'm reaching towards, the less online horror stories I go through, the better for me.

[Deleted User]

Karmacat wrote: »

You're doing so well, CBC! Great news on a profit of £11.50

Amazon, uh oh, I had that email too, and hadn't read it. You know what, I'm not going to stress it - or ebay either. If I ever want to sell any single piece again, I'll go on gumtree or something. Otherwise, its bulk lots at ziffit etc. I'm reassessing my life constantly, and that's one thing I'm reaching towards, the less online horror stories I go through, the better for me.

Thanks. KC:T

I agree about the bulk-buying sites like Ziffit and WeBuyBooks. I use them myself. I feel I should give Amazon another go though as some of the books I need to sell are quite niche and the bulk-buyers either don't want them or they offer about 10p each:(

I don't 'do' Gumtree, Facebook or any other method where the buyer has to come to collect. I like to mail whatever I sell. It's isolated here, no near neighbours within shouting distance if the collector is a bit 'dodgy. I don't want to deliver in person either even if the buyer would be prepared to pay the costs. I know I could arrange for collection at a time when OH is here but when I sold something 'pick up only' on eBay the buyer didn't turn up, hours went by with no contact and OH had to go out for an appointment he couldn't reschedule. Of course, the buyer turned up soon after OH had gone and he was very strange indeed:eek:. I'm not really easily scared but I was that time and breathed a massive sigh of relief after he'd gone.

gallygirl

Crikey what a lot of yakking on here :rotfl:. Going back to freezers, I have had a full size upright before which was great, it's the American style which is not as wide which I have and don't like. To be fair though, no chance of falling into it :rotfl:.

Lifeisforliving19

You do get some strange people using Ebay I think. We have had a few odd buyers over the years...:rotfl: Find it particularly hard when they message you with questions etc and English is not their first language. OH has sold a few computer bits in the past and sometimes really not sure what it is that they are asking.
My SIL sold a guitar amp once...biggish thing, on a collection only as it was massive to post. Buyer lived in London and we are in East Mids. He paid for it and said he would arrange collection and after a couple of weeks got in touch again to say he would have to come on the train and could SIL meet him at the station with it. So SIL arranges to do that and then the chap doesn't turn up, messages to say he's changed his mind and can he have a refund!
You have to wonder if its worth the hassle sometimes

[Deleted User]

gallygirl wrote: »

Crikey what a lot of yakking on here :rotfl:. Going back to freezers, I have had a full size upright before which was great, it's the American style which is not as wide which I have and don't like. To be fair though, no chance of falling into it :rotfl:.

Thank you, gallygirl:T



You may have twigged from my contributions to other diaries where we meet that I can yak for England:rotfl:. I'm delighted other people have joined in, I'd have hated to start a diary and be all alone here talking to myself:(. As the old BT ad used to say, ''It's good to talk''.;)


It's the regular type of upright freezer I'd be buying eventually. I like the look of the American-style ones but I know from what a couple of friends have told me that they're not as convenient.


I must admit I enjoy the serendipity of a good rummage in my chest freezer but the fear of falling in is ever present:eek::rotfl:. We planned to keep our current freezer in the garage where there's plenty of room but knowing OH's tendencies to hoard junk in the garage and pile it high I thought I'd be having to move masses of things from the top of the freezer every time I wanted to gain access to the contents:eek:


I keep it in a funny little room downstairs in the house which would otherwise be too small to use for anything except for, yes you guessed it, storing junk. There's only room for one person in the 'room' and as the door opens inwards I have to squeeze in and close the door behind me when I'm rummaging or defrosting. Maybe I should let OH know when I'm venturing in there or leave him a note if he's out as there's a chance I may never be seen again:rotfl:

[Deleted User]

Lifeisforliving19 wrote: »

You do get some strange people using Ebay…….. I thinkMy SIL sold a guitar amp once...biggish thing, on a collection only as it was massive to post. Buyer lived in London and we are in East Mids. He paid for it and said he would arrange collection and after a couple of weeks got in touch again to say he would have to come on the train and could SIL meet him at the station with it. So SIL arranges to do that and then the chap doesn't turn up, messages to say he's changed his mind and can he have a refund!
You have to wonder if its worth the hassle sometimes

Your poor SIL, going to all that time and trouble for a timewaster :eek:. I hope she managed to sell the guitar amp to a genuine buyer in the end:)


Yes, I agree about wondering whether it's worth the hassle. I know when my debt situation was at its worst I had to do a lot of things I hated doing but which I had to:(. eBay selling was one of them but every penny that resulted from it was a lifesaver. Now it isn't so pressing I'm finding it much harder to force myself to do it:o. This current batch of buyers were all genuine and very friendly from their communications so I breathed a sigh of relief once I'd been paid and the parcels had been posted. It's still early days though as they could still complain or ask for refunds if they're difficult:eek:. I can't see any legitimate reason though as I make sure I mention any flaws in the item when I list and even upload a photo of anything that they might quibble about. They can't really say the item wasn't as described or what they expected. It never ceases to amaze me though that so many buyers never bother to read the listing properly and email the stupidest questions about items that are covered clearly in the listing. It makes more work when listing but well worth it if the transaction goes through hassle-free:j. 'Anything for a quiet life' is becoming my mantra;)

[Deleted User]

Good morning everyone:coffee:

It was really cold here overnight with a thin powdering of snow. When I got up about 6 the moon was still very visible and bright, although it's normal colour. What a pity that there was so much cloud the night of the Blood Moon:(. I went outside a few times then to catch a glimpse of it but couldn't see a moon at all never mind an orange one:(. Some of the photos taken by people in other parts of the country were really stunning.


I started my diary mainly to keep myself on the straight-and-narrow as I muddle through the next stage of my life now I don't have to worry too much about where the next bill payment is coming from. My focus for the next few months, maybe the year if nothing major spoils my plans, is to be a saver:j. Pretty much a first-time saver too which is an embarrassing confession to make for someone in her '70s:eek:. I've already diverged from the path I'd planned to take on here as I've cluttered up a lot of my diary with ramblings about lots of non-financial happenings especially sheds:o. I'm pleased to report that the shed man came yesterday, did a really good job and is already here to finish off today. OH actually confessed that he's pleased that he decided to pay someone to do the job instead of struggling with it himself. That's quite an event as OH begrudges paying money for something he could normally do himself:j. He's still been outside 'helping' though;). So, diary-wise, back to business!:j



I mentioned in an earlier post that I plan to spend as little as possible for the first 6 months of this year in order to build up my savings as fast as I can. July will be the most expensive month of the year and a no-saving one as all my car-related expenses fall due together:(. I think I missed my breakdown cover off the list but received an email today from RAC reminding me that my renewal is due on February 1st:eek:. I seem to have become out of synch with the dates as it always coincided with the tax, insurance, MOT etc but I remember now that I let it lapse for 6 months:o and ended up with it due for renewal in February rather than July. Although when I balance the books at the end of the year I'll have paid the same in total it means I won't be able to save as much at the end of January as I wanted as I need to keep enough in my current account for the breakdown cover renewal:(



I usually always shop around for car insurance and breakdown cover and signed up with RAC for the £40 cashback. Obviously that won't apply this time but they tell me the cost of cover this year has been frozen at what it was last year, ignoring the cashback. I might switch again so need to have a look around. I can't risk not having any cover although it was very tempting in the debt-ridden days not to bother with it. Doing a lot of mileage in a very old car on my own in a very rural area means it's just not worth the risk.


My 'spend nothing on groceries for the whole of January' challenge to myself is still struggling on. I need to buy milk tomorrow as all the teas and coffees for the shed man and his dad (who came to' labour' for him) has used up nearly all I had left:eek:. I knew it wasn't possible to reach the end of the month without more milk though so I shouldn't be surprised that I need to buy some:rotfl:. I'll cheat and not actually fail my challenge as I have £30 in Morrisons vouchers so won't be spending any 'real' money:j. There's nothing else that I need to buy that we can't live without unless it's kitchen roll. I have to confess to being wasteful with that:o. Not spending anything on groceries this month means I have surplus for the breakdown cover but I'll have to replenish the food stocks now we've eaten our way through most of them. February's food spend might be more than usual although I plan to do less stockpiling from now on;)

Karmacat

Morning! Hope you're feeling toasty in spite of the snow - the pictures I've seen looked horrendous, but we've had nothing round here.

On the "cluttering with non-financials" - there are huge financial implications to things like sheds and freezers :rotfl: I try to be *very* brief about things that have no financial association whatsoever, but nearly everything does, lets face it
Hope everything goes well for you today :j

elizabethhull

Very well done with your progress on your January challenge.

We still have a milkman ! So many times I've reassessed that decision, because obviously it's cheaper at the supermarket, but then I tot up the 'pros' for me and we still have him. We get free delivery of the odd item when it's on a special offer, and if I run out of anything I don't have to do a full online shop (to qualify for free delivery) and he delivers 3 times a week.

carbootcrazy wrote: »

I really dislike eBay these days and find every excuse not to list things. But then I'm a procrastinator anyway:o. o

Every year my NY resolution is 'Do not procrastinate' ! I'm thinking of more realistically changing it to 'Do not procrastinate as much as you did last year' - might have more chance of success !!

I have shoes that will sell on eBay, but I've never sold, only bought. DSIL sells, and because I gave him a lot of stuff to sell when their finances were threadbare, I thought he'd be willing to sell some things for me. Then his account got rescinded because of some totally unwarranted negative feedback. As a result of that, if I have something negative to say, I send a message - it's kinder.
So I OUGHT to sell my own stuff - where's a 'Round Tuit' when you need one ???

[Deleted User]

elizabethhull wrote: »

Very well done with your progress on your January challenge.

We still have a milkman ! So many times I've reassessed that decision, because obviously it's cheaper at the supermarket, but then I tot up the 'pros' for me and we still have him. We get free delivery of the odd item when it's on a special offer, and if I run out of anything I don't have to do a full online shop (to qualify for free delivery) and he delivers 3 times a week.





Every year my NY resolution is 'Do not procrastinate' ! I'm thinking of more realistically changing it to 'Do not procrastinate as much as you did last year' - might have more chance of success !!

I have shoes that will sell on eBay, but I've never sold, only bought. DSIL sells, and because I gave him a lot of stuff to sell when their finances were threadbare, I thought he'd be willing to sell some things for me. Then his account got rescinded because of some totally unwarranted negative feedback. As a result of that, if I have something negative to say, I send a message - it's kinder.
So I OUGHT to sell my own stuff - where's a 'Round Tuit' when you need one ???

I envy you your milkman! It's bandit country out here, haven't seen a milkman for years:eek:. Or a window cleaner. It would be lovely to find someone to clean the outside of our upstairs windows. It's a tall house and the terraces of house martin's nests under the gutters and eaves every summer mean the sills are shocking for a lot of the year:o. OH goes up there on a ladder extended to its full length but I worry about him doing it at his age. We can't access the sills from inside or most of the outside glass come to that. If we ever have new windows I'll insist on those that swivel open so you can clean the whole of the outside from inside. I think they're called 'tilt and turn' but that might be something else entirely.


As for Ebay, I know from what many others have said, that they side with the buyer rather than the seller in disputes. A lot of keen sellers have given up on eBay to try their luck elsewhere:(