Resourcefulness: The budgeter's friend

foxgloves

Well, this morning's garden session was very enjoyable. I managed to pot up all the geraniums, having given them a good pruning in the process & most of them are now indoors. I am short of pot holders - I think I broke a couple & sent one to the charity shop as I didn't much like it, so that is something I intend to buy this weekend. I don't want anything fancy, plain white would be fine, so I will try a couple of places in town, maybe a couple of charity shops too, & if no luck, will move the search onto garden centres. It was pleasant working in the greenhouse & Soot came out to keep me company......although this wasn't as altruistic as it first appeared, as was actually the beginning of an extended & exceedingly persistent lunch pester. 
A few minor bits of financial admin this afternoon, so money stuff feeling nicely under control. I don't know if you recall that over the summer, I suddenly had an email from the Cephalopods saying that I'd need to increase my monthly DD by over 60%. It was, I think, a bizarre malfunction of their AI predictor tool because when I checked that, it was saying that I was currently paying that huge amount but needed to pay their recommended amount, which was the amount I'd been paying. Weird. I checked my own figures & we were actually sitting on a bigger credit balance than the same time last year, so it made no sense, I got in touch to say I wouldn't be paying it & tbf, the customer services person I spoke to said she could understand my confusion. Anyway, I received an email last week saying that they were going to reduce my DD by £29 pm as I am paying too much. So that would be from c. £140 pm to c. £110 pm. I've signed into the predictor tool thingy this afternoon & already it's showing that I should be paying £109 ! Well, I like a good credit balance so have compromised & set our new payment at £120. That's a £20 saving per month, but should help us retain a decent credit balance for winter. I can revisit it again in March. Input new figure on Spreadsheet 1 (Bills/DDs). As I mentioned in a previous post, I think there have only been 2, at the most, 3, occasions since the last week of Sept, that the CH has even come on. We have it set at 18.5 degrees (we have a gas stove in the living room if evenings get particularly chilly as we get into winter) & mostly when I've checked the thermostat (which is kept in our chilly hall), it has been showing 18.5 - 19.5 without any heating. I don't expect this will last too long. News websites are sure soon to start predicting snowmageddon, which for all those of us who are not Scottish wildcats is likely to mean colder temperatures & maybe some frost. Today my oyster catcher mug went back in the cupboard & has been replaced with my frosty robin one. I do like a seasonal mug!
Right, that's enough chat. I think I will go & have a quick stock-take of herbs & spices in case there's anything I've overlooked for the eco-refill shop tomorrow. Then I think I'll have some honey & lemon in my robin mug.
Take care, m'dears. We live in interesting times.
F x

rtandon27

ah @foxgloves - I too love a seasonal mug!  I'm currently alternating between the pumpkin orange one that says 'It's Autumn' and my EB splurge 'Magic Potion' (personal spends of course) - OH on the other hand is a creature of habit and uses the three printed with an image of his childhood haunt.

foxgloves

@rtandon27 - I have been hanging my nose over EB's autumn mugs but haven't succumbed yet, though I might! I also like her St. Valentine's Day mug painted with random loveheart sweeties, just as I remember them from the 1970s. Mr F buys me one of her diaries for Christmas every year. The 2026 one is so pretty. They really suit me (you know what a planner I am) as each month also has a double page planner which I use for meal plans, plus a page for notes on which I jot things I need to remember on that month's Big Budget Day. 
F