Future Proofing my life: Deposit saving then MFW journey in under 13 years

LadyWithAPlan

Aug 3rd
Gym Queen! I did HIT 13 mins, leg weights and then 25 min swim this morning before work. Then this afternoon I dragged a friend out for a long walk along the London canals as he been getting very unfit, eating badly (uber eats daily etc) largely cos his partner has  been very very ill for months and had a huge op. So we walked and talked for 10km! We went through Hoxton etc, so fabulous especially as warm but with a nice breeze.
So my watch is saying serious cals burned 

I printed up a big list of Aug actions, eat frog things and goals thanks to my journalling on here the last 2 days and pinned it where I can see it when I wash up!!

DONE!
i made a call I have been putting off for ages and got a great resolution - I hope...
I tidied one hotspot in my study - planning to do 13mins a day there 
I tidied my kitchen  last night so  it was lovely to see a shiny sink this morning instead of stuff that needed putting away.
Practised my 10 mins I promised I would on my new hobby daily -  (was actually 30 mins when I finished but pleased)
Got 2 work things out the way

Declutter 3/31 - opened loads post, charity bag started. 

NSD 2/13  still 

Invoices
No movement on my invoices, one small one is being paid  this week definitely but no cash in yet for the big one.

Grocery Challenge £12.84/170 spent £0/30 bulk 
Lidl I popped in  - they had some veg boxes but were 70% potato and I am not that into potatoes - some hurt my stomach. 
I did buy some tasty salt and pepper chicken sausages YS - lovely ... I had some before from the H8ck brand and didnt like them but these lidl ones were v tasty. I also bought a bit  more of their specials limes, organic tomatoes, DF milk .. I found the strength to put back the Dorit8s..I put them in my basket and then removed them before the till - my crisp and sweet habit needs curbing as I want to lose at least 1kg of fat this month. Happy to put on muscle though ;`) If I buy junk I eat junk.. Its not rocket science!

House savings    £12/ 3,636     - thanks Mortgage PIG!
After reading on a MSE diary about someone having a mortgage piggy bank I asked for one for Xmas - mine is pale pink and has wings and a unicorn horn
I am not really sure what I am doing with it but I have been popping spare change in and a £1 the other day when I didn't go to the local shop for sweets.
So I figure I should empty it out  on a few monthly basis - £12 was in there (plus shrapnel I left )
So I moved £12 into my purse for cash grocery and moved £12 out the bank grocery pot to my baby isa for the house

I am only saving house deposit cash into PB's and my baby new ISA for the house now - as all interest I earn now I will get taxed at 40% (as hit the £500/yr limit) So interest rates going up is not really helping. 

 
Got some big business decisions to make Friday on this hobby thing turned side job so need to look at the business plan I am waiting on 

I really want to buy this course $275 and get going - started a savings pot for it -   - think the structure looks great- I could pop on CC but trying to wait til I get a few 0000 back in my account.
I do have £40.03 in my blow money pot (£20 from last month) ... What I sell this month will go towards this. But I may break....


I do have money dotted everywhere  else I could draw down and I hate  doing so, but I also have
cc to clear £202 by Aug 29  plus travel charges of approx £30
an elec bill £315 (part of ongoing nightmare with the scottish energy co.)
I want all outstanding debts to 0

savingholmes

I can understand you wanting to get some of your outstanding invoices paid before spending out on non-essentials.

I like your mortgage pig come unicorn.

Do you invoice promptly? That can be as important as chasing the money after.

You have tickled my curiosity with your potential business venture. Look forward to reading as things progress. 

Seriously impressed with the walking... 

Moralpanic

I love walking London canals.  It’s amazing how peaceful they are even when you’re in central London.  The eastern end of the Regents canal is my favourite.  

LadyWithAPlan

Moralpanic said:

I love walking London canals.  It’s amazing how peaceful they are even when you’re in central London.  The eastern end of the Regents canal is my favourite.  

Yes its gorgeous there and I look at the canal boats with their constant mooring license  (v MSE) and dream. However I have way too much stuff to move on a canal boat though I can now buy one in cash. Those locks and if I had boat engine trouble argh ,...

 savingholmes said:

I can understand you wanting to get some of your outstanding invoices paid before spending out on non-essentials.

I like your mortgage pig come unicorn.

Do you invoice promptly? That can be as important as chasing the money after.

You have tickled my curiosity with your potential business venture. Look forward to reading as things progress. 

Seriously impressed with the walking... 

Yes I do invoice end of the month, I had allowed cos of cashflow it to run late but this has got silly. The one small  invoice that was promised has not been paid, the big invoices (diff company) should get paid this week, we waiting for cash to come in ... I am not stressed though as luckily all my bills and budget are in hand) 

This new business idea - I spent Thurs/Fri working on and Saturday doing a photo shoot ... now up to a brand to see if they want to do a collab and then we may get moving. If it doesnt happen I will continue to build the side business - just will be a  much slower process and not have the monetary push etc. If it happens it could be very cool and very lucrative ... we will see

So Thurs/Fri/Sat all spend days - including buying food for the shoot for us all. So I need to dig out all my receipts and add up

Sunday 
NSD!  nsd 3/13
Was going to the shop during my walk for YS  (despite a full fridge) and then stopped myself so I could have a NSD. I need less food in fridge this week as leaving at weekend for 2 weeks.


Pressure cooker - tried cooking a whole chicken in it, its fine but prefer using the halogen or oven for it, I like crispy My pressure cooker doesn't have a airfryer.
It was a YS FR Liddel one - I will be stir-frying and also be makimng stock from the bones and the pressure cooker water today.

TT £1.99
None for last 2 v busy days so 99p and a pound.


Gym - went Saturday for a brief time (back/biceps) and today for a 53 min swim and 20 mins functional body weights. Was tired so will start leg day tomorrow. I also went for a walk afterwards for 4km.

There is some family drama kicking off which is upsetting hence me not being online. I  thus have to house/dog/horse sit in the countryside at the end of Aug - this will stop me spending money at least in London !

Study is a mess after photoshoot as put all my lights up, however I want to leave some up as they a pain to put up. 

Free money - I used £17 xx of my £50 Sains voucher Saturday to pay my food and some bulk coffee - rather than using cash

savingholmes

Enjoy your house sit.

Good luck with Collab idea

LadyWithAPlan

savingholmes said:

Enjoy your house sit.

Good luck with Collab idea

Family rescue house sitting starts this weekend so will use it as a real MSE 2 weeks Especially as family member has a gas guzzler of a massive 4 wheeler so beyond driving to see parents I wont be going far!  Especially as she has so many animals I wont be able to leave for long.
I also will buy this $275 course and focus on that.

Potential side hobby may have moved forward a few steps today, they really  like the shots. There is a big meeting tomorrow so I may have news after but am relaxed. It could be a huge deal but I have learnt to do what I can and then dont stress.

NSD 3/13
I was going to proudly declare a NSD but then remembered I went to Liddel for DF milk and also Poundland for some house bulk stuff ... I tried 


TT £1 MOVED OVER

Invoices - still nothing from the 3 companies who owe me

Gym, HIT for 10 mins,  leg weights 25 mins, swimming 28 mins
I made my first pressure cooker stock from chicken bones and fried up the breast from the YS whole chicken I bought Saturday with lots of salad. I am aiming to use all food in my fridge this week.

I went to see an old friend of mine this evening first time in a year, he insisted on buying me dinner and had a bottle of champagne on the side - he knows how I like it.(yes so MSE) , However I am having a few days off drinking where possible this month as pointless to train then drink .. so told him not to open it.  

Another friend rang to say her  boyfriend has just dumped her after 2.5 years - just after she has bought a plane ticket to London to see him for 10 days. So there will be heavy drinking Friday eve.. She is heartbroken so I am sad for her but he never seemed that serious to me and always flirted heavily with all her friends including me in a way that quite upset a partner of mine so not sure its that much of a loss long term. Not that one can say that. Heartbreak is awful.

savingholmes

Love the planned NSD - that was always me... Something would derail me. Now I try and focus on the wider budget - and if poss send others in for me to control my spends. Not always possible.

I get how you feel about the friend. Is heavy drinking mandatory? Perhaps doing a completely different activity could break the cycle better and turn it into a positive memory.

Well done on saying no to the champagne.

Well done on the TT, cooking and gym.

Best of luck with new business option and on getting invoices paid! I'd love your income but I'd find waiting for £ so stressful!

LadyWithAPlan

savingholmes said:

Love the planned NSD - that was always me... Something would derail me. Now I try and focus on the wider budget - and if poss send others in for me to control my spends. Not always possible.

I get how you feel about the friend. Is heavy drinking mandatory? Perhaps doing a completely different activity could break the cycle better and turn it into a positive memory.

Well done on saying no to the champagne.

Well done on the TT, cooking and gym.

Best of luck with new business option and on getting invoices paid! I'd love your income but I'd find waiting for £ so stressful!

This particular friend of mine and I have decades  of celebrating and commiserating over bubbles so think just been dumped is in a special girl drinking category of its own - maybe I need a line item in my monthly budget )
The only positive part will be the drinking as I struggle to not express how I really feel Any friend's man who  when we are all together is looking down my cleavage saying 'you'd be amazing in a 3... some(!) or 'I'd like to grab you right now' is not in my opinion a keeper.
(understatement of the decade)

My income has been high, low, inconsistent, full of late paying so it is the reason  I budget and have done for over a decade. I have learned I often need a lot more than 6 months EF as I will choose to do projects that will require future spend paid now and I may not get paid in 6-9 months due to cycle of work so .. or they require investment now that does not pay off for a few years (Life of a creative) So patience, frugality, budget, space for late payments... its one reason I haven't bought a flat!

Yes the new business venture I am insisting on 3 months upfront in advance.

My planned NSD  3/13 only this month - yes its an uphill battle - I need to get some watering globes for my plants - as I am going away with this heat.. 
it will be easier out of london

Cheery_Daff

I was never any good with NSDs, too much of a fritterer! 

Sorry to hear about your friend, although she sounds well shot of him! But you're right, saying bad things about him isn't the way forwards... 🙄 Difficult though. Sorry about the troublesome family situation too.

Very wise to be insisting on upfront payments in the future!

savingholmes

A lot of small businesses ask for 50% upfront. If someone is a slow payer - I would do that or invoice weekly. But then I've stuck to a salaried job for a reason. 

I agree that bloke is not a keeper. I'd not be able to keep my mouth shut.