NST July 2024: A July jaunt around Madrid

Shrewbie

Sorry to hear your news @DawnW. Take care of yourself.

I have been awol enjoying the last few days of hol, back to Madrid tomorrow but then on to Andalucia. I am within hol budget, just about. Had to cram a last cream tea in today and they all add up ... but on the whole we've done well to eat meals at home and take sandwiches out for lunch, just having coffee and cake out occasionally. It's easy to do this with my mum's side of the family as we're all quite frugal. Have been drinking every night though, not a lot, but don't feel particularly good for it. Will have a dry week I think.

Grateful for family time, for getting some good weather for swimming and kayaking, and for seeing red squirrels. 

Updating my signature now as I just got paid and have decided to pay to savings first this month.

Hope everyone is well xx 

f0xh0les

House deposit rising nicely @Shrewbie. Well done! Today was volunteering, I took the rubbish home for my bin, and any left over food to the community food recycling project. Really didn't feel in the mood, but still knocked out 3 large pizzas, one bowl of pasta, and a foccacia. No cleaning took place. There is always tomorrow.

grandmanerd

Well aren't I having fun. Logged into online banking yesterday and the 3 'pending' transactions had gone through but there were also numerous 'just eat' transactions (don't know if it's from the genuine site) which did not originate from my account. Multiple transactions on multiple days, mostly when I had no card or internet access. Contacted the bank, they've logged a complaint on the 'pending' ones but wanted me to try the retailer first on the other ones and contact the police.

DS3 helped me delete my card details from my account and established that my last transaction was 30th June. Contacted the police phone number - diverted to community policing team who aren't there every day, told me to phone 101, who in turn told me to phone Fraud Action who then directed me to fill in a report online. The rest of the afternoon was spent setting up an account, doing profiles and questionnaires and logging in 45 separate transactions.

DS3 gave up on contacting the retailer (he has had success on twitter with complaints about orders and food quality but I'm not on twitter and don't think I want to be). By going through all the footer info, I've found an address in the Netherlands, left a complaint under food review and there is an ethical section which includes fraud but seems to be limited to workplace issues.

The weed pulling on Tuesday and Wednesday left me with a fine crop of nettle stings on my knees and shins (I had gauntlets on to protect my hands and arms) and not to be left out the midges added their gifts (particularly at the back of my knees and the top of my wellies).

No more from my brother. I'm just supposed to just wait until my niece feels 'better' - we're on week 3 now. I also went through all the Land Registry information and am sure I can do it myself (not paying a solicitor £850 or more). Not sure how I can progress things but will be looking for more information today (film club is 'Brigadoon' and I wouldn't watch that at gunpoint). Just feel like my brother and niece are playing stupid games, they could let it drag on a few more months and then announce that the house is worth even more and I should pay a new extortionate amount to get his half.

I'll have spent more of this month without a bank card than with one - the new one was only activated last Saturday and was blocked on Wednesday. Brief precis of the conversation with my brother - they now want me to sign a piece of paper saying if I sell grandma's house in the next 10 years, I'll give him half the profits otherwise I'd be ripping him off.  So I'm supposed to give him money for his half spend in excess of £30k of my own money on it and then if I have to sell (most likely because I need a bungalow) he wants half of the profits. Little weasel.

Sorry for the whinge, things will get better, I'm not going to cry or feel sorry for myself. I did successfully change an appointment yesterday - they were sending me to somewhere unsuitable for wheelchairs and couldn't quite work out where it was (an alley off a side street). I asked to go to next town up and they offered me the local infirmary instead. Only in September now but that means more time to lose weight before I go for my diabetic review. The poo test will arrive in the next fortnight so even more fun. I'm ticking all the doctor's boxes for him (they get paid for achieving target numbers on these things).

Grateful for sunshine, especially just looking at it from indoors, books, the series I'm watching (in between form filling and making phone calls), easy food (cheese spread on ys wraps). I saved a turtle on Wednesday. It was one of the side games on my game (one of the ways to get more points or bonus items - ten unseasonal red hats with a white fringe and bobble got you a turtle). When I got it, it switched to a screen saying I'd saved a real sea turtle.

f0xh0les

Blimey @grandmanerd they really are messing you about aren't they? I take it you won't benefit if he pops off first?

Today is house cleaning blitz day.  That is enough.

grandmanerd

f0xh0les said:

Blimey @grandmanerd they really are messing you about aren't they? I take it you won't benefit if he pops off first?

Today is house cleaning blitz day.  That is enough.

No I'm living in dread of him dying - I'd be stuck trying to sort it out whilst my nieces are going through probate

f0xh0les

Might be better to have in mind, that you might just have to cut and run then.

I have spent the afternoon sorting paperwork from step-gran's estate / multiple mortgage lenders over the years / building regs certificates / Home-Car-Life Insurances/ old bank accounts.  Got a nice pile to be rid of, and a couple of concertina files are emptied.  It does build up, and then it takes up a load of space.   Now happily tidy and snug in the bottom of the wardrobe in box files. My bedroom looks so much tidier (still no carpet though, it is on the list)

Won't be a NSD as the kids would like chipshop chips for supper, and I can't be bothered to argue - because they demolished the 3 focaccia  I made at lunchtime (so I would not have to go shopping) along with the soup, and the salad, and the coleslaw that was supposed to feed them today.   Well it did feed them, just a lot earlier than expected But I really really don't want to go shopping tonight.

Stuff got done today, so I am happy.

DawnW

Sorry to hear of your bank woes and your relatives @mothernerd . I am right off some of mine at the moment lol. I think you have shown great patience, much more than I would have done, and would have sent the house off to auction and be d*mned way before now. There are, after all, many more houses and probably more suitable houses.

Work today and still more horrible sneezes, runny nose and coughing. Not covid though (I tested), not sure if hay fever or a cold, or both. I have asthma, not the dramatic type which causes 'attacks' but just the 'annoying everyone by coughing' type. Bleurrgh!

Anyway, after pulling my hair out because my cousin suddenly wanted to change some of the music for the funeral, I said NO! The funeral is on Tuesday - it had to be short notice to accommodate said cousin's holiday, and all the arrangements are done. As it is they will be reading, or attempting to read, a 'eulogy' that I haven't been allowed to see! I will be so glad to be done with all that.

My new shower room is coming on. We have tiles today, and it is starting to look really nice   Hopefully it will be finished next week, and I can clean up the top floor and the stairs.

Work today, so OH cooked dinner, and he remembered to use salad leaves, spring onions and beetroot from the garden, so all good

I now need to do some watering, and will not be late to bed tonight.

Grateful for garden produce, being fairly busy at work so that the time passed quicker, and the shower room starting to come together

laura_lau

So sorry for your loss @DawnW hope you will have time to rest a bit this weekend.

@grandmanerd I was speechless to read about your latest news, so sorry this is happening to you and you are very patient. I would have already reached tipping point and put it up for auction, as others have said.

I have set up the signature for August already, looking forward to start with it. This week passed so quickly. I was in the office twice and we were doing a bit of organising and repair on Sunday and Monday, OH has painted with anti mould the external-facing wall in the living room, which in Winter has some cold spots, and then painted to match the current colour (which I hate, but I will not spend money on painting until I have enough for the little bit of refurbishment I want to do). I took advantage of having to move the furniture to empty the boxes on the shelves and I got some new boxes to match the other half of the boxes. They look much better now, plus they have a lid and slightly smaller than the shelf, so that should improve air circulation and help preventing mould on that wall in Winter. Small expense but I feel it was worth it.

Today was payday, so I have sorted the money in the savings accounts and spending pots. I have also booked a small trip we will have to do in September (4 nights) to visit DSS (dear stepson) who couldn't come to spend a few weeks with us this Summer as he found a Summer job. We were all very sad to not spend a bit of Summer together, so we booked it for the most affordable time. I'm quite pleased because we managed to book an apartment for the 3 of us, return flights for me and OH and a rental car, plus train to Stansted, for about £160 per person. That is going to be our holiday for this Summer. 

I am quite excited for the Olympics, I love watching them and I am off to watch the opening ceremony just now. 

lcc86

NSD today, forgotten the number but I have a tally in my diary. Got up early and went straight to the gym. Back home and logged onto work for 8am. I need to get into the habit of getting up early and getting things done as my commute will be getting longer when I eventually move jobs. Not that there's been any progress on that front, HR are just ignoring my emails now. It's very frustrating but not sure what else I can do.

Finished work early, prepped some lunches for next week and cleaned my aquariums. Back to the gym for pilates, showered before walking home and now I'm on call for the evening. 

weenancyinAmerica

@grandmanerd - do you have a friend who is a solicitor or one who knows one who might help you compose a letter on your behalf? Any law school nearby that has someone who needs a practice case to work on? Might be time to make sure all of the expenses you have rung up are taken off the the value of the house and make sure the funds are are in your account. Too bad you can't bill him for the time he spends giving you a hard time.