Prosperous & Creative Soul & MFW Year 3

lucielle

Glad the journey home went a lot smoother. 

L

Blackcats

welcome home.
glad that your relative is doing as well as can be expected.
interesting art gallery photos - which did you prefer? More modern or more traditional?

jwil

Welcome home!  Glad you had a lovely trip and glad relative is stable.

doingitanyway

Welcome home 
It sounds as if you had a lovely time with many cultural highlights.
Glad your relative has stabalised

LadyWithAPlan

Those pics were stunning, glad you had a great break.

savingholmes

Thanks Lucielle, Jwil, DIA, Blackcats and LWAP

I prefer more modern art - so abstract, surreal, futurist etc. Still learning terminology. I prefer simplified images in bright colours or repeating patterns. I like pictures with some kind of story to them though - ones which make you look and wonder and work out what they are about - or why a motif e.g. eggs in a surrealist artist painting - keeps repeating... Some of the older paintings are overly sexualised, or feature a lot of violence that leaves me uncomfortable.

I had a lovely time away and hope that I'll be able to return - perhaps late Spring / early Summer next year - depending on how my job situation goes. Not ready to go back to work. Came home with a slight head cold but nothing worrying. Lovely to chat with hairdresser and his wife yesterday. Other than that made art and done a tiny bit of tidying and my washing. Keep forgetting meds which is revealing how exhausted I am though as I keep struggling with the nods - even nodding off at the hairdressers - to the point I went to a fave pub to eat on the way home and took part of meds late to help shake the symptoms. It was too late by the point I realised today though. 

Cat has been very friendly and hung around most of the day - probably because it barely stopped raining. I've arranged to go out with DD and her BF bowling later in the week. Last time I went I really hurt my wrist though so really hoping that doesn't happen again.

I get paid at the end of the week - including over £900 in expenses which will help with my CC. Then I have a savings account that matures early October so will also pay that off the CC. My car insurance is due in the coming pay month and my MOT the month after so I need to look out for good insurance deals and a good local garage.

KajiKita

So glad it went so well 😊

Re the sore wrist after the bowling - I think the balls come in different weights. Perhaps try using one of the lighter ones each time?

KK

savingholmes

Thanks KK

Yes will try lighter still this time - but sometimes the holes are too small on the lighter balls. I still need to check if I can get free vouchers via T.

I need to grab a quick shower and get to work (from home). Still deciding between my dedicated space which became a dumping ground over the break or the kitchen table with an office chair which is tidy. So grateful to work from home most days.

savingholmes

Well I've had a fabulous if spendy few months with my house move related expenses, art supplies, new clothes, holidays etc. It is very distressing however to have the slog of paying even a 0% CC off again - all be it I will use some reg savers as they mature to repay some - it is probably as well if I feel some of the 'pain' by paying the rest from monthly income.

I've worked through my finances and reminded myself very firmly of my time freedom goal and the steps necessary to achieve that aka stop fritter spend, stick to a budget and boost AVCs as much as possible.

My goal is to increase my AVCs to £650 a month from October (£200 more) - which unfortunately coincides with when my holiday pay deductions for extra holiday will start. So that will be an ouch. Then all being well I'm due an increment in December when I will aim to increase it to £700. Then potentially from April go to £900 - as I will be able to spread my annual leave purchase over 12 months rather than the 6 I'm doing now. Then hopefully when the CC is cleared around July 2025 (if not sooner) increase AVCs to £1100 if I keep my job.

If I achieve that I might be able to retire around October 2031. Ideally I'd like the option to bring that date forward by 18 months. By retire - I mean give myself time freedom to explore art and writing and see if I can generate an income from that - while having both monthly income and a sufficient nest egg that I could clear the mortgage outright if I needed to although I'd probably use it as income instead. I'm seeing any EF savings as separate as this house still needs work and I will need a replacement car at some point.

I'd then use my ISA savings income to fund future holidays guilt free. They are currently paying me around £130 a month although rates are falling... 

Before moving here I'd hoped to be able to send £2K to AVCs a month but I think I was double counting my existing pension and other things so I don't think that was ever really doable. I also want to feel I'm maxing out my present while living within my means so it's an interesting balance.

jwil

That sounds like a great plan, good luck with it!