Tantaraza vs the Frogs!

Eager_Elephant

This has all the links to the forms - https://www.gov.uk/appeal-against-a-penalty-charge-notice/court-order

Plus look at the one undeneath about getting more time to challenge a court order.

If you can get evidence of your poor health from last year that will be even better, its likely they will remove all the costs and you just pay the original PCN (I've helped a few people at work with this)

If you need help with the forms let me know.

beanielou

A star as always EE

tantaraza

HHOD Thank you so much. Unfortunately I do appear to have a cold but hopefully it’ll go away soon.

Eager_Elephant Those links are great, I do have a couple of further questions though so will send you a PM tomorrow. Thanks so much for your help!

tantaraza

So, this weekend has been semi-productive for me. This cold has made me very sleepy so I’ve been watching some of the Marie Kondo show on Netflix. It was very relaxing to watch even if I had to keep pausing for naps. :rotfl:

Houdini has been spayed and is staring at me miserably from her buster collar, so I feel incredibly guilty. I do know it’s the best option as I wouldn’t be able to care for any puppies, but I wish there was a pain-free alternative.

Frogs to Eat
—Research loans and grants for the cost of a moving van
—Make a list of who to inform of the move and sort into priority order
—Write letters for the creditors and look at forms for the PCN
—Look at supermarket online basket and review contents

I’m not sure about that last one, to be honest. The £190 cost feels alarmingly high for a single person, but having been in a position where I had zero money coming in for 3 months, I feel it’s important to have a non-perishable supply that will last me a good couple of months. :think:

pidge04

Wishing you so well with everything!

[Deleted User]

I'm so happy that you started your own diary, tantaraza. I'm sorry I'm so late to make my first post on it but I've subscribed now and hope to be a regular visitor. Your writing is wonderful and your honesty, especially in the first posts, has really moved me:A.


You mentioned right at the beginning that writing things down on the diary has been a cathartic experience and I know exactly what you mean:T. I didn't really expect doing that would have such a beneficial effect but it definitely has for me and I haven't even been as open yet about my problems as you have. Like you I tend to bottle things up and rarely open up to people when I'm in any kind of distress. I always feel there's enough misery in the world without me adding to it:o. I know it's the wrong attitude. People's mental health is so much better when we can talk about what's hurting us. It's not easy in real life though is it?


What I would like to say to you is that the situation you're in is definitely not your fault. Please don't blame yourself:kisses3:. It's so easy for us to think we must have done something wrong or deserve to have been 'punished' in some way but it just isn't so. I think we all muddle through life doing the best we can and then circumstances completely beyond our control mess things up for us:(.


I'm eternally grateful to MSE and all the wonderful people who I don't even know and will never meet who have helped and encouraged me through some really black times. It's a wonderful community. We'll be delighted to celebrate with you when good things happen (which they will:T) and quick to commiserate and offer hugs whenever life throws any nasties your way.


Take care xxx

tantaraza

pidge04 Thank you!

carbootcrazy I agree — I kept things bottled up until just after Christmas when I shared what had been happening with a few friends. Their support was so overwhelming and lovely and helped me to feel more positive, so I’ve decided to try and be a bit more emotionally honest this year.

Thank you so much for your lovely post :grinheart

tantaraza

I am feeling extremely positive today thanks to a news article where another driver appealed their PCN and proved that a bus lane was unenforceable due to poor signage... their offence was dated after mine — and it was the same city centre street! I’m still not certain that I won’t be able to avoid paying, as it’s been so long, but I have hope!

I have been less successful with my frogs

Frogs to Eat
—Research loans and grants for the cost of a moving van
—Make a list of who to inform of the move and sort into priority order
—Write letters for the creditors and look at forms for the PCN
—Look at supermarket online basket and review contents

However, I’ve also eaten a frog that’s been bothering me for a year and made £80 in the process. :T This will go towards the grocery stockpile.

In less positive news, I realised that I forgot a debt from my original list, so I owe an extra £360 than I thought.

I’ve decided to use the KonMari method to sort through my boxes. The hope is that I can a) declutter and end up with less to transport, and b) divide things into “essentials to fit into my car” and “boxes for the moving van”. I’m expecting it to be difficult as deciding whether I love and use something is hard when that something has been in inaccessible boxes. Many times I’ve wanted to read a particular book or use a certain item and ended up disappointed because I can’t get at it. I’m expecting the next couple of weeks to be very stressful, but I’m hoping it’ll benefit me in the long run. If anyone has used KonMari or decluttered in general and has tips to share, please let me know. I need all the help I can get :rotfl:

[Deleted User]

tantaraza wrote: »

I am feeling extremely positive today thanks to a news article where another driver appealed their PCN and proved that a bus lane was unenforceable due to poor signage... their offence was dated after mine — and it was the same city centre street! I’m still not certain that I won’t be able to avoid paying, as it’s been so long, but I have hope!

I have been less successful with my frogs

Frogs to Eat
—Research loans and grants for the cost of a moving van
—Make a list of who to inform of the move and sort into priority order
—Write letters for the creditors and look at forms for the PCN
—Look at supermarket online basket and review contents

However, I’ve also eaten a frog that’s been bothering me for a year and made £80 in the process. :T This will go towards the grocery stockpile.

In less positive news, I realised that I forgot a debt from my original list, so I owe an extra £360 than I thought.

I’ve decided to use the KonMari method to sort through my boxes. The hope is that I can a) declutter and end up with less to transport, and b) divide things into “essentials to fit into my car” and “boxes for the moving van”. I’m expecting it to be difficult as deciding whether I love and use something is hard when that something has been in inaccessible boxes. Many times I’ve wanted to read a particular book or use a certain item and ended up disappointed because I can’t get at it. I’m expecting the next couple of weeks to be very stressful, but I’m hoping it’ll benefit me in the long run. If anyone has used KonMari or decluttered in general and has tips to share, please let me know. I need all the help I can get :rotfl:

Well done on making a start on eating the frogs. The one that netted £80 was a brilliant result:T:beer:.


I can't say I'm a Marie Kondo fan, in fact I'm disappointed that I found her approach very frustrating and irritating especially as she has so many devotees. I read her book a while ago in great expectation that it would magically transform my life:rotfl:. I think the reason I found the whole concept so hard was that I came to it at the wrong time. When you're broke, not able to buy anything new for years and are having to make do out of necessity with things that certainly don't bring 'joy' or are beautiful it's hard to get rid of the things you're having to live with. I might give her methods another chance now though as I'm in a different place with my life;). I'll be very interested to see how you get on with it. She has some innovative ideas for folding garments to minimise on space. That bit sounds like it will be incredibly useful to you as you sort out what you need to pack for your move.


Good luck with the PCN appeal:beer:

HairyHandofDartmoor

I haven't read or seen Marie Kondo but I do think that decluttering is very therapeutic in general. I try to get rid of possessions that I don't use, which don't have happy memories, and which are duplicates. Some items which I may have used in the past but aren't 'me' any more, I also tend to get rid of. I try to keep items that represent the person I am today, not the person I used to be, if that makes sense. It's a very individual process so it's hard to do it for someone else I think.

Anyway good luck with your decluttering. It's always a good idea to do some before moving house and you are very much having a fresh start .

Well done on eating a frog and getting organised with your to do list. I see you've had some more excellent advice form EE :T.