Simple living in the country - back to basics

badmemory

To be honest I no longer think they care.  Just to add to my gripes the increase in my state pension is not 3.1% it is only 3.088%.

EssexHebridean

I wish someone would give ME a 3% payrise...or in fact any form of payrise!  

badmemory

EssexHebridean said:

I wish someone would give ME a 3% payrise...or in fact any form of payrise!  

I too wish someone would give you a raise EH I think we are all going to need it this year.  I just resent them gettinig over £2k when they've reduced my promised rise from triple lock to double lock & then don't even pay me that.  Let us not forget also that ministers who live in grace & favour apartments don't pay for all their energy now let alone in April.  They only contribute based on their ministerial income not their MPs income.

Cheery_Daff

I wish someone would give everyone nice a payrise 😁 my phone autocorrected that to give everyone a parish 😂😂😂😂 had brief Father Ted visions of us all running round trying to control unruly parishioners and getting into scrapes 😂😂😂

Been swimming this morning, so this month's gym cost is now an average of £18 per visit 😁

themadvix

Lovely image there Cheery! 😂😂😂 Father Ted.... maybe that's a plan for this evening's entertainment.

Cheery_Daff

Ha, I do love Father Ted! 

Checked the LPG tank this morning - we're down to 7% On the online portal it says order end date is today, but when I spoke to them, they said that date is basically meaningless... However, she reckons at our currently level of consumption 7% will last 18 days, so we don't need to ration just yet. Delivery due within a week at any rate, and if we update the tank level online every day, they'll prioritise us if it looks like we'll run out. 

Wish we had a gauge in the house, not in a field I'd be far less likely to run out! 

Anyway, checked on their price fix while I was on the phone. Currently paying 43.9p per litre (the delivery will be about 1600 litres, so roughly £702). Their contract is for 2 years - fixed only for the first year at 47ppl (so roughly £752 for a full tank), then variable for the second year (but you're still in contract so can't switch - what a swizz). 

Local independent place doesn't do fixed contracts (which means they will go down as well as up, and you can switch whenever you like), but they're currently charging 50.9ppl (so £814 for a full tank). 

Won't need another tank til about July, so no real point fixing now I don't think - although I suppose come July when I can't get anything cheaper than 70ppl I'll regret it... 

Cheery_Daff

Meant to say I checked annual consumption - we had a delivery 23rd March last year, and we've used 3364 litres since then. At the current 43.9ppl that works out as £122 a month on average (we pay for each delivery when it arrives, not monthly). Fixing at 47ppl would mean roughly £131 a month, and the local place's current price would mean £141 a month. 

Obviously need a crystal ball to figure out whether to bother fixing now, although given we're not in such dire straits that we can't absorb an increase, I'm not going to. 

Time for another cup of tea I think! 

greenbee

Thanks for the reminder that I need to check the oil tank... 

EssexHebridean

Remember that estimated use/cost might drop though as last year was exceptional generally on two counts - in March last year we were still seeing very cold temperatures, although this winters relative mildness (so far!) will contact that to a degree. We’ve also spent a lot more time indoors over the past year than we might normally do, too. Fingers crossed you might save a few pennies here and there! 

I’ve just tweaked my gym cost down another notch, too! 😁

Karmacat

And hopefully all your new insulation will have an effect?  I like the analysis you did, Cheery, helps you with the choices you need to make.

I'm hereby casting two votes: one for Father Ted, and one for a gauge in the house, not a field