Living the Dream Ludlow style

debtfreeoneday

Singlespeeder said:

debtfreeoneday said:

It’s little things like that though that always motivate me. Pennies make pounds and its 3p less going to the mortgage company. 

Indeed ! and as we make 12 payments a year and each one saves another 3p a DAY so by the end of the year I'm saving 36p a day it's all good ! 3 days is a £1. It's insidious....you don't 'see' it because its sort of a negative... it's just interest that ISN'T being added so you don't even really notice the saving, but the saving is there

Gadzooks I've not described that well!

But I get it totally. They do make a difference however small and it’s pennies in your pocket not theirs!

Singlespeeder

Well it's officially 'kin freezing in Ludlow presently and even with snow on the ground still, I've managed with CH or the logburner going on during the day.... the electric throw does a grand job.
It's 8C in my office at the moment.
We don't have a radiator in our main bedroom and I have noticed the outside of the quilt defo feels 'damp' (maybe cold ?) so keeping an eye on that. We're in the market for new Double Glazing as we've got single glazed sash windows that need replacing in the bedroom and my office, and the condensation is really bad which can't help the damp feeling quilt.
After Christmas we'll probably move into a different bedroom, one with a radiator, but we'll wait til the kids have gone home.

My sister works as a nurse in Coventry and has a hankering after a somewhat nomadic lifestyle, renting her house out and living in her caravan, picking up NHS Bank Shifts as and when required. I think she'll love it for a bit then it'll come with it's own issues....
We, once the mortgage is cleared in ... about 42 months fingers crossed .... would like a motorhome. I have a hankering for an old Hymer or Burstner, odd looking buggers tbh but that sort of suits me. I'd love to do the Atlantic Highway up the side of Norway and mooch through Germany and Italy in it. We could afford one now but that'd be using money we'd set aside for clearing the mortgage so I think it'll have to wait. I just don't want to look back regretting not having it for these 3.5 years.... it's a dilema. Main problem is the cat tbh ... remember her?, the bird slayer ... well she HATES going in the car, might be different if she was loose in a moho, but I'm not sure that's a risk worth taking ! So we may have to wait til she's er, gone to catch birds in the sky ... she's about 12 I think... not sure how long cats live.

Any thoughts?

savingholmes

Cats can live to twenty or beyond... 

On the motorhome - they are such a lot of £ to buy and to run - you'd have to commit to using it a lot for it to be worth the upfront cost or the depreciation. Approach it like you would/should a business idea and cost it out properly and see how it would fit within your overall budget  - and when.

Singlespeeder

Well after the cold snap, (-7.5C) Christmas in Ludlow has turned very wet.
Along with the rain, my partner has come down with a dreadful lurgy ... not The 'Vid , she's tested 3 times, all negative. But she's lost her voice, banging headache, snotty now, bit of a temperature (though not particularly high) .. and it's Christmas Eve Eve.
Tomorrow we've got to drive to Chester to collect her son and girlfriend, so we need to really start the cooking prep today really. We're all vegetarian, so we have a baked bean roast, which sounds cr4p but actually it's a bit of a highlight. Best made a day or two before Christmas Day, so today really.
I really hope she gets better as she loves Christmas and seeing her kids, but I think this year will be a bit of a wash out.

savingholmes

Hope your partner recovers quickly.

Singlespeeder

HNY to you lovely people.!

Christmas was a subdued affair with the partner having the Lurgy. It really knocked the stuffing out of her for 3 weeks ! A course of antibiotics was required for the filthy chesty cough that came along. She's finally gone back to work this week but still isn't firing on all cylinders.

We've used the log burner more and it seems pretty good if you light it earlier, like 10 am and have it on all day ... doesn't seem to use loads of wood when it's good and hot and it's a really nice heat. We've saved up a £1200 Winter Fuel pot which as yet we haven't touched as December's (with that "-7C for over a week" snap & Christmas)  combined bills only came in at £117 after the £67 was deducted. And we've loads of wood still. Can't remember if I said before about finding a place that does barn dried wood which I then season for another 8 months for £65 a builders bag  ( or £55 each if you buy 2 ! ) so we bought 1 as a trial and it's good dry wood, so next April I'll buy 2 or 3 to season over the summer for next winter. I'm sure we have enough for this year.

We've had someone round to quote on installing a radiator in the bedroom ( Screwfix have a good deal on with a free £20 TRV thing with each rad , and they're damn cheap too), just awaiting the quote and if acceptable we'll get that fitted and maybe a new double one in the bathroom as it never gets very warm in there either.

Also getting upvc DG fitted to the bedroom which'll hopefully eliminate the condensation issue.

This work is all budgeted for and has the money waiting.

Dug some parsnips up from the garden.... weren't going to win any beauty contests that's for sure ! Fuggly is what they were ! But they made a great curried parsnip soup !

On the mortgage front, daily interest is down another 3p ... so each and every monthly £700 payment (which includes an incidental £132 OP)  drops the daily interest by 3 or 4p. Another win !

Singlespeeder

Morning.
All is well in Ludlow. Not much has occurred except for getting another year older and a birthday break to Swansea.
It's a strange place but it's ok, if a bit rundown , like a lot of city centres like Northampton and Coventry. Ok N'pton is a town.
The Mumbles is nicer. We're doing 10,000 steps a day, 22 day streak for me ! It's about 5 miles a day. On Saturday we walked from the Swansea Marina to the Mumbles Pier and back... about 13 miles, my longest walk in quite a while. 31,000 steps. Pan flat and the weather was lovely, nice pint in The Pilot ... happy days!.
I'm also doing a sort of Yoga / callisthenics routine every day, stretching, 60 press-ups, resistance band work etc ... I love it, it HAS to be doing some good! I've shed about half a stone in January!
I've entered my first bike event of the year at the end of April so that'll keep me focussed ... it's a 3 day bikepacking thing in Wales, very relaxed, not a race, just a good reason to get out and ride somewhere different.
I've also joined Prolific and done a couple of small surveys, £3.50 in the pot so far   Every little helps!  As does a £200 'win' on the Premium Bonds... my best ever !
So all in all not a bad January... I guess the PB's are technically Feb ...


And I've noticed I've been Debt Free for 2 years already

Singlespeeder

Morning from an overcast Ludlow.
Not reported in for a while, Ludlow continues to be a fantastic town to live in ..best move ever.
Getting loads of cycling in, over 1100miles for the year so far so fairly pleased with that, aiming for 2023miles for the year and well ahead of schedule despite only doing 74 in January.
Garden is looking better , Lupins are putting on a good display. Veg wise, last years garlic are nearly ready to dig up, broad beans are doing well even though I lost most of the October planted ones with the cold winter. Courgettes aren.t looking ace at the moment, very weedy. Rhubarb and Strawberries are doing well too.
We had 3 single glazed windows replaced a couple of months ago and the new DG units are great, makes quite a difference in noise levels ... keeping the dawn chorus out !
The big mortgage news is we've just paid off £9,100 ! It's a good day !

Jessy103

Great overpayment, well done! 🙂

Singlespeeder

Morning. Loads going on at the mo. We lost my Dad shortly after my last post (please don't give condolences, they're not necessary) he was 91 and had a good life, was unhappy having lost his wife 3 years ago and didn't really want to be here any more.
His estate will be a tricky one as he owned a few rental houses, had shares etc... first world problem.
My 2 sisters and myself are the executors so that should be relatively straightforward, currently awaiting probate etc. it's just a lot of hoops to jump through.

We then discovered that 2 of the houses were being used as cannabis grow houses ! They've subsequently  had their electric supply cut off and National Grid want £2600 to reconnect each house.....

So there's loads of trips to Coventry trying to sort all this shizz out. Going back makes me just appreciate Ludlow more!

Other than that life is pretty quiet