Arrietty's Acorns

Arrietty

Good morning,

mainly grey here today with a sprinkling of sunshine but rain is due later and will continue for the next couple of days.

I went over to see DF on Friday evening and he treated me to a fish and chip supper which was lovely. He rings them up to order and then goes to collect 15 minutes later. During this time my job was to steam some green beans which led me to suggest that he treat himself to some new saucepans and kettle. I have to be careful with how I approach these suggestions but he did agree this would be a good idea along with a rack to hang them on so I can check up on the progress in a week or so. 

During the collection I also managed to do a lightning quick stealth clean of the fridge & freezer and cupboard doors!  He had a cleaner at one point before he downsized to current home but there was an occasion when he was  asked to borrow money for petrol to get to next job and this made him extremely uncomfortable and wary of having anyone in. When he moved to his current home he decided he could do it himself and on the whole he does keep the place clean and tidy and is on top of laundry etc ... it's just the kitchen which could do with a bit more attention and I'm not sure if that's an eyesight, age, gender or lack interest issue 

Yesterday was a super spendy Saturday and unsurprisingly, I'm over my budget. 
First off it was a saddle check for HRH and a bit of reflocking at £120.  This means his account is now down to £21 with the health plan payment of £15.99 due out next week.  Tight, but fine.  Yesterday I made up another 2 week's worth of feeds and we still have enough raw materials for another couple of weeks after that.  
£340 will be going into Horsery account next month ( this is after I've taken off the £20 I'm saving each month for YD) and there will be £285 going out with livery and farrier so I may need to supplement a bit in order to stock up on feed and supplements for the winter months as I don't think I'll get it all for £55! 

I then went to the garden centre to top up with bird seed and nuts. Also had to buy another couple of feeders as they're being knocked out of the trees when empty and someone is running away with them!  That was £32.96 spent and I don't have a garden budget but perhaps I need one if creatures are going to steal! I can see from the window that the Jackdaw community are already enjoying feasting 

After that it was a quick trip to Sainsbugs to find puddings; a request for fruit strudels had been made and I found these for just £1.55 each so I bought 2 flavours. I also bought some custard to go with for £3 and while I was there I decided to tup up with milk as that was 35p off a bottle and then crumpets were reduced by 30p a pack so I bought 3 packs - I LOVE crumpets   T

Total spend was £10.10p which means I'm over my monthly budget which is now - £9.38.

I'm now pondering as to whether I should reduce next month's budget by £9.38 or just start again?
Actually, if I'm being completely honest,  I should probably include the bird food  which would mean a deficit of
£42.34.   Hmmmmm.... I'm not going overdrawn in reality as there's always a slush fund in my current account which is where the scoopings to ERF comes from and as this is a new project and these final months of 2025 are a bit trial & error and preparation to see if it is a feasible budget before I get REALLY SERIOUS in 2026, I think I'll let it go. 

I did scoop £3.70 into the ERF on Thursday and then another £6.70 on Friday so that has increased again:

ERF = £8153.68
This is my primary focus and I need to remember that! A bit of extra spending here and there will always result in a bit of scooping here and there as long as my spending is considered and I'm not buying unnecessary tat.

Have a lovely day
x

Skint_yet_Again

Arrietty you made me laugh sneakily cleaning while your DF nipped out for f&c 😂 sort of thing I would have done! You are good having fresh cooked green beans with them too. 😇

I agree that you may need a wildlife pot, especially spending £32.96 on feeders and £42.34 (?) on bird food. ERF & HRH accounts look good. 

Arrietty

Hello hello,

I have finally made it back in to post after a busy couple of weeks.  I often sneak on to the Forum to catch up with threads I follow but rarely manage to post.

It has rained A LOT this last week but this morning there is some sunshine and I think there may be a few hours of it until the ridiculously early sunset!  I am enjoying the lighter mornings, especially seeing the sunrise again as I drive to work, but HRH's herd move to their winter field this coming week and I am not looking forward to the trek to the land of Far Far Away. I made the most of the dry weather yesterday morning and went for a morning hack.  

HRH was in one of his suspicious moods and very reluctant to go to a field through the woods one way, so we circled round another  field and he was happy to go in via another route. He stopped at the top of hill and was very reluctant to move forwards.  He then decided to turn around and go back and of course, he walked back through the woods the way he had refused to go on the way in!  

I've been given the day off work tomorrow by the manager due to equipment upgrades so whilst I'm aware I'll have a deluge of emails and voicemails to deal with on Tuesday, I'm not going to refuse that gift so I've decided to use the morning to go and stock up on feeds. HRH's account is running on empty after the saddle check, another 2 bales of hay, tub of glucosamine and farrier due this month, so I'll just have to fund it myself and repay myself when it's flush again.  This stock up should last for a good 2-3 months through winter and once they're in the winter field I won't need to be using so much hay. 

The new rug for HRH I ordered never materialised and it took far more time trying arrange re-deliveries ( and Royal Mail still failing after I'd given instructions) and a refund from the seller than it should have.  I won't be buying from that company again.  So, that'll be  £70 coming back, eventually. 

I'm not sure if it's my age, but I find it so irritating and draining having to constantly chase and request that people/departments/businesses/ organisations simply DO THEIR JOB and why when I find one that does actually behave properly, I praise their service and hold on to them like they're gold!  

I had to contact water company recently and I have to say that despite a fairly long wait to actually speak to human, the service was pretty good. All our road had water meters installed a couple of years ago but weren't switched on to them immediately as they said they would send us comparisons for a couple of years.  My first comparison bill seemed a lot - apparently I used water like a 3 person household with a garden and hose.  I was a bit shocked but as someone who likes both washing my clothes regularly and is partial to a long bath with a book, I thought it best I change my ways.  I now shower rather than have a bath and have been more conscious to use the eco setting on washing machine ... I don't have a dishwasher and only wash up once a day anyway and don't have a garden hose. The recent estimate showed very little change apart from a significant decrease in useage in June. Hmmmmm thats when my neighbours were away on holiday, I realised. I called the water company and after checking mine and my neighbours accounts, the customer service person agreed that she thought the meters had been allocated to the wrong houses!  
She organised for a technician to come out and check and he duly arrived on the day and within the time frame and with a half hour reminder text!  He carried out the check and yes, the installers had got them the wrong way round - apparently fairly common! All good.

Next thing I received an amended  payment schedule. Like most people, I pay from April through to January but this statement said that I was £166 in credit but not to worry because they were going to take that off my new schedule. I was not to worry and I wouldn't have to do a thing. This new schedule started with payments on 1st December and runs through to June 2026.  
Ummmm, why are you starting to charge me in December this year, for a bill that's not due until April, next year? Another phone call to a different customer service person who was very pleasant, but also confused as to why I wasn't happy with this arrangement.  The company made an error which  resulted in me overpaying for this year and now, rather than refund me the overpayment, you want me to start paying for next year ?  I think not! 
She had to speak to a supervisor but came back and said she would cancel the direct debit and they would send me a refund and then send the new bill when it's due.  Correct! 
I checked my bank and they hadn't cancelled the direct debit, so I did ! I won't hold my breath for the refund, but have decided that rather than sing up to a new monthly direct debit plan, I will save the money in MY account and then pay each bill when it's due.

Similar game played with energy company who noted that although I am £200 in credit on my account,  they think it would be a good idea to increase me monthly payments by £20? Again, I think not! As a gesture of good will I increased the payments by £5 and will review again at the end of this month.  

Like I say, it's an ongoing theme of organisations trying to relieve me of my money under the guise of being 'helpful'.  My bank 'noticed' that my current account recently dropped down to just £10 credit and wondered if an arranged overdraft might 'help' ?  No, transferring money from my savings account is what helped that situation.   Would I like to 'upgrade' my account to received such and such benefits ... all for £11 a month? No, I'd like to carry on as I am and not pay anything for my banking services thank you. Unless you're offering free monthly hay deliveries - I'm not your target customer! 

Enough waffling; lets get to business;

It was the youngest family member's birthday yesterday; we had a lovely tea party and games and of course my gift fund has been used.
Trips & Treats Fund: £1200

I got scared that I would forget to make the regular weekly payments to the monthly saver so I just paid in the maximum amount! I'm aware that I may not be able to make the maximum payments in December and January due to other costs this time of year. 
Monthly Saver: £1000

There have been a fair few payments rounded up to the regular saver this month, mainly due to too much spending. I get really bad spend fever in that twilight week between Payday and Billsday - especially with lunches and snack at work. 
Regular Saver: £1299.93

I have been really good at scooping untidy money from current account to my retirement account, in fact in October I paid in a total of £95.68p and this was all painless and actually quite fun. I have a special notebook where I record each transaction and I am disappointed if there's nothing to scoop.
I also received an interest payment of £24.61 on the 1st November.  Once the Monthly Saver matures, that will be added to this pot, but that's not for another 8 months so I'll keep ploughing on with the tidying up.
Early Retirment Fund: £8242.47


I'm happy with the progress made on savings in October; over £350 added in total and despite the overspend for   my first Monthly Budget attempt, I have started again in November and with no major purchases planned and no birthdays due, I'm hoping to stay within budget this month.

The budget is £350.00 for November and there have already been spendings:
Fuel = £61.47
Headlamp = £12.50
Prescription - £19.80
Grocery/Household shopping = £47.90
Sundries (gift wrap and cards) = £12.00

I know, it's only the 2nd! 

£196.33 and 24 days remaining 

 

Arrietty

Good morning,
and it is another beautiful sunny one despite the mist which is slowly dissipating.

Yesterday was just glorious and at one point during my five hours at the yard, I was wearing  just a t shirt with jodhs.  All the horses were enjoying the sun and there was much rolling and consequent muddiness.  HRH has been wrapped in a his old mainsheet  while the rug saga continued and the only protruding bits were his face and legs and rest assured, these had an extremely good coating of mud 
They're still in the winter field so he had a happy few hours with his hay net in the sun while I cleaned tack and pottered about.

The original rug I ordered was refunded and I've been  disappointed with the lightweight one I ordered from  a slightly cheaper brand. I can't be doing with all the chest buckles and straps and leg straps.... soooo I bit the bullet and decided to order 2 from my preferred brand of rugs which fit him beautifully and have simple surcingles and a tail strap.  
Yes, that was £173 I hadn't budgeted for and yes, there was another saga in getting them delivered 
I paid extra for 24 hour delivery and arranged for them to be delivered to local post office as a signature was required and I'd be at work,  Went too post office to collect them and the 'geezer' told me he'd refused them|!!

When I asked why he said that he didn't get paid to take in parcels, they were too big and he had to prioritise his shop!  I told him that I'd paid extra for 24 hour delivery and selected his shop from the locations available on the Royal Mail app. His response was "talk to Royal Mail then'.  I was FUMING, especially as he said he'd arranged for them to be returned to sender. The next day, the tracking was updated to show that they were being held at the local delivery office and I could collect them from there.

So, at 8:00am on Saturday morning I was there collecting HRH's rugs.  I mentioned the drama to friendly and helpful Post Office man and he said this had happened to other people and he'd already highlighted it to his manager and they thought that perhaps if the 'geezer' wasn't happy to take delivery of parcels then he shouldn't have a post office.  He also advised that I arrange for any  future orders to be delivered to them.  

The end result of nearly 3 weeks of frustration ( which has entertained my colleagues no end ) and a fair amount of time and money spent, HRH finally has his new rugs, he looks very smart in them and he is warm, dry and cosy. 
I have learned the valuable lesson that I should NOT always try to save money by choosing cheaper options!

To the money!

I won £125 on the Premium Bonds which has gone part way to repaying recent spends.
Trips and Treats Fund = £1325

No change to the regular saver as I paid in the full amount I could on the 1st.
Monthly Saver = £1000

There have been a few pennies rounded up and sent over to my linked savings account as well as a deliberate payment I made
Standard Saver - £ 1353.42

A few NSD's this week so not so many scoops to the ERF but the ones I did were of higher value so a respectable £25.59 in total. 
Early Retirement Fund =£8268.06


In other news, the water company have been in touch to confirm that they have now correctly allocated my meter and that they are sincerely apologetic for their mistake. No news about the credit on my account or future payments but I'm rating them a 10/10 for customer service and quick action taken once I'd highlighted the error. 

I pondered where to put the £50 I need to save each month towards future bills and after some deliberation I decided to just throw it into the linked saver as although I could earn 85p interest by adding it to the ERF, I really want to keep that account as one-way traffic only one at the moment. I am doing this to save me from myself!

As I was up and out of the house early yesterday I decided to whizz over to Sainsbugs and get a bit of shopping done.  I spent £39.29 on groceries and £28.75 on toiletries. Earlier in the week I paid £25.99 on a fitness app which has 15 minute sessions which I have been doing daily and quite enjoy.  It;s only for 3 months so I have set a reminder to cancel the subscription 2 weeks before it ends!! 

The £350 November budget is being whittled down rapidly, far more rapidly than I was expecting to be honest but it has certainly stopped me from buying any snacks or lunches at work! 

£71.72 and 21 days remaining