Cat Lady Chronicles

Olliegami

So excited for this year, but trying to keep a lid on it?? I feel like I don't want to get too over-invested and then feel bad if I don't live up to my expectations, but I honestly feel that's what needs to be worked on this year.

Today has been mildly productive. Despite not waking up until 1pm!!! (Late nights & I do not get along) I did go to the local community cafe I volunteer at to tidy things up after a Christmas Meal that was held there. It was a NO SPEND DAY, despite a quick trip into Tesco with bestie.

I did find 35p along the way home though. I always forget to watch out for roadkill. I will be adding that to my little pot of cash, and there's now a reminder in my BuJo to take some money to the bank. I believe I have £11 to take in.

As far as money goes, I'm trialling something different. I have a Monzo account which is hooked up to a Savings Pot and a Bills Pot. My AIM is to spend only £100 a month on things like groceries, pet food, essentials and entertainment.

I also recently got an account that uses Visa (Monzo doesn't) as a bingo website I signed up to didn't allow a deposit with a Mastercard. Soooo, now I have this extra account, and it has a local branch, so that's going to be my 'money I've earned online' account. For treats, or when I get to the end of the month and I've overspent. HOPEFULLY, obviously, I won't need to use it, and I have a feel that when it reaches a certain amount I'll move it to my savings pot. (The return is 1.14% but it's the best I could find without minimum monthly deposits & with easy access.)

Yesterday I cashed out on Quidco for Ner0 vouchers. Again, my AIM is to only use money I've earnt elsewhere to buy luxuries and this year coffee not made at home is a luxury inDEED.

astrocytic_kitten wrote: »

It’s never occurred to me to check if I could use Quidco for my regular bulk purchases of cat food, d’oh - thanks for introducing me to that idea!

In the past I've disregarded Quidco, because I don't often spend money online - but one day I was just browsing and noticed a few pet supply stores! Every little helps.

xx

Olliegami

Today has SNEAKILY been an NSD.

I met up with my mama and we got a coffee & something to eat. ty mama.

Whilst we were out we looked at wilko for some decorating inspiration and I finally found something for my front door to try and exclude some of the noise from outside and keep in a bit more heat. The bank of mum prevailed once more and I escaped town without spending any of (my) money.

So I spent a few minutes cleaning up the surface of the door frame (gross) and then applied the new stuff and despite the new difficulty I have locking the door, it seems to have done a good job! I could tell a difference in the amount of sound coming through instantly! Maybe my flat will be warmer for longer now too.

In other news I got my student loan through today thanks to Monzo. That means I've had a money shuffle and the majority of my loan is earning a little interest, too.

Tonight is FREE bing0 with Mr Q - so I'm on that (please let me know if you want more info about that. They have some referal bonuses, and no wagering requirements beyond depositing £10 - which you can then withdraw immediately after!!)

Jan NSDs: 1
Jan budget: £83.90/£100 left
£2020 in 2020: £18.78

Olliegami

Hello!

It is Sunday, and I am taking a brief break from writing an essay to update my MSE stuff and generally talk about how this journey is going.

Honestly - my spending habits are an issue. I've been trying to hard not to spend, and some of the time I'm really good at reminding myself of my 'purpose' - the reasons why I don't want to spend and the benefits that will come as a result of it. Other days I just feel so 'on top of the world' that I just treat myself to whatever.

I keep trying - as a part of that, I've actually started making some Youtube videos! I'm pretty pleased with myself, and am well aware that a lot of what I'm posting probably needs to be a bit more focused. As with so much of my life, so many things link together so I find it hard to talk about borderline and impulse and then not talk about spending or vice versa. If you want a link, please let me know and I'll link it.

I've reorganised my bookmarks on chrome so that I am checking my 'favoured' websites and survey sites and signed up to a few new ones. I especially like some of the mobile survey sites, and have enjoyed feeling a little bit more productive by answering some of those when I'm taking a break from study.

Hope you're all well and that things are going smoothly for you.

Jan NSDs: 6
Jan budget: £51.31/£100 (remaining)
£2020 in 2020: £28.31