Evasive action! Stop the trench becoming a hole.

KeepOnKnitting

To be fair I am a seasoned veteran of travel mishaps, and my special skill is turning the incidents into fun stories. The one relating to this bus journey is as a result of the hotel stay in Central London with 2 hours notice and minimal budget. I decided not to use an 10-bed dorm at 2am, but instead paid twice as much for a single room. The feature of the room is that it included an en suite shower room. The room was small enough that a taller person would have had their feet in the bathroom while they lay in bed. The shower had only two settings, boil or freeze. I wanted to tell the receptionist about how dangerous that was when I left in the morning, but he was asleep in the chair with a bath towel over him and I didn't have the heart to wake him. Security was not their forte. 

Cherryfudge

I wonder if he's noticed you're gone?! It's good you could get a single room though. What a stress!

KeepOnKnitting

Ha, I think he only would have noticed that I left my key with the others. I could have taken someone else's key and gone exploring if I had wanted. So insecure!

Tonight I was late leaving work and one of my clients had been talking about getting a burger. I came really close to stopping myself on the way home, but instead I got home and threw veggies and tofu in the airfryer for quick food. I found the airfryer in Aldi for £17, and so far I am loving it. Feels much more economical than the oven, so I am experimenting to see how many things I can cook in it. Downside is the teflon doesn't seem very robust. I guess if it becomes a problem I can upgrade.

emsi_b

Just dropping in to say I admire your tenacity and perseverance! As for the air fryer- we had a cheap one from my parents to try, and the Teflon on that was rubbish too. We did enjoy it whilst it lasted, so upgraded (a lot) to a two drawer Ninja. We have definitely used the oven a lot less- husband is especially fond of hot lunches involving some kind of potato item and some kind of fish or chicken freezer item, so this has saved a lot in heating the oven up for single portions!!

KeepOnKnitting

Thanks @emsi_b. As a single person, the air fryer does make so much sense, but it didn't seem worth it financially at £50 or more. £17 is more likely to be cost effective as well as energy efficient.

I have less than a month now in my current job. Starting to get a bit excited about the new job, shorter commute, more time to myself, and other positive things. 

I am feeling a little bit down, as I had the car repaired the other day and it means there is no way I can stay in my planned budget this month. I won't hit my "Save £12k in 2024" goal of £3k. I won't be putting much, or possibly anything towards my holiday this month. I feel a little like I failed at the last hurdle, but I really didn't want to put off the car repair any longer. 

liselle

Hopefully the receptionist had not sourced the towel from your shower room……!

Many congratulations on the new job

KeepOnKnitting

Veggies and tofu in the airfryer again tonight. Cat's nose was wiffling, so I let her have a tiny morsel, expecting her to sniff and then reject. Apparently though, she likes smoked tofu. Who knew!?

Aimingforthegoodlife

Congrats on the job! You have not failed at all, you have made great inroads and can afford to pay for the car, which is fab! You are still winning, some months its just a slower win than others

Cherryfudge

It's sensible to have the car repaired. Your safety (and that of others) is really important. After all, you could be buying yourself the opportunity to do the savings in future, if you save yourself from having an accident. And the savings you've already got are progress in themselves, even if they aren't what you were aiming for.

Once you are in your news job, a shorter commute and more time for yourself are rewards in themselves, but also likely to be MS. 

KeepOnKnitting

Well the end of December and the start of January has whizzed by in something of a haze! I'm currently in between jobs, enjoying a little bit of leave and doing some bank work next week before I start my new job at the end of the month. I've been a bit naughty and took a few days away over the weekend that I didn't really have the cash for, but I really wanted a break away for a bit. As a result, I am now back at home and will be working to a strict budget for the next few weeks. 

Goals for 2025 are:
- Go on my long-awaited holiday in April. (I've been planning this trip since about 2020)
- Balance transfer the remaining credit card balance to a new 0% deal when it is due in December
- Pay off my student loan (After my first pay in my new job, my overtime pay is going to go to my student loan)
- Stop using my cashback credit card. (I've decided it just isn't worth it. I want to go back to using cash for the vast majority of my expenses. The cashback isn't worth the stress.)

Goals for the rest of January:
- Take lunch to work on 8 remaining work days
- Batch cook some foods from scratch for when I go back to work
- Do some work in the garden ready for spring