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Progress is...
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Well about flipping time indeed RT - HOW many times have various of us old stagers here said “you ought to start a diary!” eh?! Entirely delighted that you are here now and the subscription bookmark has been ticked!Hurrah indeed to “sort of” mortgage neutrality - you may recall we have reached that milestone ourselves relatively recently, and even if you know that in reality you can’t do anything with it any time soon, it really is a good feeling!🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00. Balance as at 31/12/25 = £ 91,100.00
SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her4 -
Happy new diary!3
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@themadvix & @Cheery_Daff & @ladybird1106 & @EssexHebridean & @Viking_mfw - so happy to 'see' you all around the kitchen table!
@themadvix - yes indeed a virtual 'home' though the home stretch of owning the house outright - virtual sofa surfing has been my happy habit over the years, picking up tips and tricks from all the wise folk on the boards
@Cheery_Daff - how did I know that you would be one of those 🤣 - I'm oddly still mortgage neutral as not everything has hit the bank accounts yet due to the weekend, so I have a few days to feel the feel. We do have a plethora of slugs - they are a bit like shell-less snails are they not? I do like garlic escargot - may have to g00gle a recipe? 😂
@EssexHebridean - it was your milestone that made me have a look at YNAB a few weeks ago and do a bit of forward projection for mortgage neutral - I thought it might be Dec/Jan for the temporary milestone but somehow we managed to underspend and reach it Oct/Nov instead!
Today's thought of the day...
Progress is...
Not giving a flipping flying heck about others' judgements when you suddenly get a backbone and say "NO - your expense is not in my budget!" (The rambling behind this is over on GP's diary - she always gives me food for thought with her bold statements and musings.) NO is a very powerful word - looking back, I wish I had learned earlier to exercise it in regard to the flow of money. The others in question are not paying my bills, putting food on the table or clearing my mortgage. They do not have the security of NOT living pay-cheque to pay-cheque or knowing that living simply and within one's means is an art - a skill that takes lots of practice and dedication. I suddenly have come to understand my dear Mom's statement that begging for money is easy, earning money is NOT.4 YEARS 10 MONTHS DEBT FREE!!! (24 OCT 2016)(With heartfelt thanks to those who have gone before us & their indubitable generosity.)...and now I have a mortgage! (23 AUG 2021)Original End Date - Sept 2041 New projection - Dec 2039 (reduced by 21 months)9 -
Make sure you purge the slugs before you eat them RT 😉Mortgage free 16/06/2023! £132,500 cleared in 11 years, 3 months and 7 days
'Now is no time to think of what you do not have. Think of what you can do with what there is.' Ernest Hemingway3 -
You've got a diary! Excellent. Subscribed
I think a bit of sunshine is good for frugal living. (Cranky40)
The sun's been out and I think I’m solar powered (Onebrokelady)
Fashion on the Ration 2025: Fabric 2, men's socks 3, Duvet 7.5, 2 t-shirts 10, men's socks 3, uniform top 0, hat 0, shoes 5 = 30.5/68
2024: Trainers 5, dress 7, slippers 5, 2 prs socks (gift) 2, 3 prs white socks 3, t-shirts x 2 10, 6 prs socks: mostly gifts 6, duvet set 7.5 = 45.5/68 coupons
20.5 coupons used in 2020. 62.5 used in 2021. 94.5 remaining as of 21/3/222 -
If you decide to make slugs a staple part of your diet then I suspect you will have plenty of willing vounteers to send food parcels…! 😆🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00. Balance as at 31/12/25 = £ 91,100.00
SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her5 -
Ha ha - I hope know you are joking about putting slugs at the centre of your diet RT, as Hugh Furry-what-his-face tried cooking them on one of his progs, when the wee beasties were rampaging thru his veg patch. The results were bitter, slimey, bitter, bitter, yuck, yuck. 🤔🤢
Greying XGrocery Spend May 2026 £111.65/£200
Grocery spend April 2026 £199.95/£200 +5pence
Non-food spend May 2026 £41.72/£80
Bulk Fund 2026 Month 5/12 - £5.98/£93.54 (reducing balance - start £120 pa)
""Mother Nature don't draw straight lines
The broken moulds in a grand design
We look a mess but we're doing fine
We're card carrying lifelong members
Of the union of different kinds..."
"Union of the Different kinds" - R Christie & T Gilbert, Fisherman's Friends4 -
Ha, it's such a shame slugs aren't edible. Even our chickens wouldn't touch them! (They were obsessed with eating worms though - fortunately we have plenty of those too - but it would have been more convenient if they'd have eaten all the slugs!)5
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I used to have lots & lots of slugs but I've not had any for a few years now. No idea why though. Certainly not slug pellets although I did once put salt on either side of the steps after I stood on one in the dark. Yuck just doesn't cover it.
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I think they came to my back door.badmemory said:I used to have lots & lots of slugs but I've not had any for a few years now. No idea why though. Certainly not slug pellets although I did once put salt on either side of the steps after I stood on one in the dark. Yuck just doesn't cover it.
There's a frog who eats them but some are probably too big for her. I think a bit of sunshine is good for frugal living. (Cranky40)
The sun's been out and I think I’m solar powered (Onebrokelady)
Fashion on the Ration 2025: Fabric 2, men's socks 3, Duvet 7.5, 2 t-shirts 10, men's socks 3, uniform top 0, hat 0, shoes 5 = 30.5/68
2024: Trainers 5, dress 7, slippers 5, 2 prs socks (gift) 2, 3 prs white socks 3, t-shirts x 2 10, 6 prs socks: mostly gifts 6, duvet set 7.5 = 45.5/68 coupons
20.5 coupons used in 2020. 62.5 used in 2021. 94.5 remaining as of 21/3/223
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