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Teetering on the brink
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Totally agree about the cost of lunch being ridiculous @ellen_vannin and funnily enough I do try to always make my own when I go in (usually in the form of frozen blocks of home made chilli and rice or something similar to pop in the microwave), but on networking day it is just a no go. Everywhere is just rammed with people (literally more people than desks which is hilarious unless you are one of the last ones in -musical chairs for grown ups!), the fridges have no space in them because everyone has brought a fresh carton of milk for their one cup of coffee, and tbh it just seems really antisocial not to buy lunch. It’s only one day a quarter so I consider it a worthwhile treat…
Though if I am honest I have also started going to lunch with my work bestie once a fortnight too. That chicken is SO good! 😬
Oh and I’ve booked to go to lunch with work bestie no.2 next Wednesday too. Hmm, ok, I might need to consider this slippery slope when I am reevaluating my budget. 🤣End ofDec-24 May-25 Brother £ 5,400.00 £ 5,200.00 Overdraft owed £ 1,349.90 £ - MBNA CC £ 10,534.20 £ 12,056.18 Barclaycard CC £ 9,667.21 £ 8,138.15 Fluid CC £ - £ 732.50 NatWest CC £ 12,018.14 £ 11,774.23 Total debt £ 38,969.45 £ 37,901.06
Paid off in the month
-£ 914.90Total paid off 2025 £ 1,068.39 3 -
Life has to have some treats.
Just ration them.0 -
It’s not like you’re eating lunch out every day. If you can afford it in your budget then it’s a nice thing for you to do. You’re doing super well.2
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Another tip for a cheap ish night out is the meerkat cinema codes. If you buy any insurance through their site you get 2-4-1 cinema offers mid week and discount meal offers too. Even better if you go through TopCashback too!Agreed you should have small treats now and then otherwise it’s not sustainable, just allow for it in your budget and enjoy. But once it’s gone that’s it until next pay day.Lightbulb moment - 17/08/2017 £17,033. Current CC debt £0.00 DFD 31/7/24 🥳. Member #8 of Fiver Friday Challenge £150/£2602
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@BadBookkeeper Thanks for the tip about the insurance. I am going to pass that on to my daughter too as we both enjoy the cinema.👍
Very tired today. Yesterday really took it out of me. Conscious that I don’t feel like I have made much progress over the past couple of days, I filled in a YouGov survey, promised myself that when I have Friday’s off I will consider it a day to devote to selling stuff (a promise is all I have the energy for today!) and then managed to secure a TooGoodToGo surprise bag from Aldi. No idea what how this works as I have never done it before, but £3.30 for £10 worth of food from Aldi seems like a good deal. I am hoping that between that and shopping from home I can avoid my usual food shop at the weekend and maybe just top up with milk or something small.It feels like I should get an ‘F’ for effort towards my goal today but oh so tired. Nap needed.End ofDec-24 May-25 Brother £ 5,400.00 £ 5,200.00 Overdraft owed £ 1,349.90 £ - MBNA CC £ 10,534.20 £ 12,056.18 Barclaycard CC £ 9,667.21 £ 8,138.15 Fluid CC £ - £ 732.50 NatWest CC £ 12,018.14 £ 11,774.23 Total debt £ 38,969.45 £ 37,901.06
Paid off in the month
-£ 914.90Total paid off 2025 £ 1,068.39 4 -
Ooh hoping you post later whether the Aldi bag was worth while. I suppose it's pot luck really. But if you are adaptable with meals worth a go.0
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So my old broadband supplier have notified me of a £2.75 refund due, and I signed up to the Greggs app for my free sweet treat on my birthday. I know they are only baby steps but they are in fact still steps in the right direction and today I am being kind to myself and celebrating that as a win.
End ofDec-24 May-25 Brother £ 5,400.00 £ 5,200.00 Overdraft owed £ 1,349.90 £ - MBNA CC £ 10,534.20 £ 12,056.18 Barclaycard CC £ 9,667.21 £ 8,138.15 Fluid CC £ - £ 732.50 NatWest CC £ 12,018.14 £ 11,774.23 Total debt £ 38,969.45 £ 37,901.06
Paid off in the month
-£ 914.90Total paid off 2025 £ 1,068.39 8 -
Baby steps all add up. What's that about £4 x 31 days =£124 a month.
When you look at it like that it's good going.
Then you could say coffee or other small treats not had add even more.1 -
Well, it turns out Aldi have no surplus food after all and cancelled my TooGoodToGo order. Ah well, I will try again another time.
End ofDec-24 May-25 Brother £ 5,400.00 £ 5,200.00 Overdraft owed £ 1,349.90 £ - MBNA CC £ 10,534.20 £ 12,056.18 Barclaycard CC £ 9,667.21 £ 8,138.15 Fluid CC £ - £ 732.50 NatWest CC £ 12,018.14 £ 11,774.23 Total debt £ 38,969.45 £ 37,901.06
Paid off in the month
-£ 914.90Total paid off 2025 £ 1,068.39 0 -
Hello been enjoying your diary
it's fantastic that you are educating your daughters re being careful with money. Sadly that wasn't a part of my education neither in school or from my parents even though they were never reckless with money. I was watching a Chris Evans show online with Martin Lewis and there was talk about educating young people to understand the importance of money. There is a free download available which is aimed at kids in education which he funded. Here's the link https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/family/financial-education/
I have been reading it as an adult and it is very educational, would be great to give your daughters access to the book.3
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