Hypno's kick up the backside debt diary....

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  • hypno06
    hypno06 Posts: 32,296
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    Thanks for all the replies so far you fabbie lovely people :D

    I am feeling a little better today - the holiday is def on a budget - the biggest money saving thing I can think of is to leave hubby and kids behind - so I am going on my own :rotfl:

    Plus, a friend has said that she can do with an escape from reality too so she is joining me and that means that the cost of the apartment is split between us, saving me £150 already. She is really on a budget too, so we won't be tempted to spend unnecessarily while we are there.

    I did a bit of matched betting today and added £44.95 to my profits so that was good - I have worked out that if I make £50 a week from matched betting, then in a year I will have paid off my Egg card. I am on track so far, so just have to keep the momentum going.

    Also, this week, I sold another book on Amazon making me £2.03 after postage etc and some bits on ebay totalling £120.37 after fees and postage so that was pretty good. Trouble is that we have nothing on ebay at the moment so next week's total is looking pretty small!

    Because the MSE site is SO huge, it is taking me some time to work my way round it - I have obviously become familiar with the brilliant DFW board, have spent a bit of time on OS and now buy stardrops and soda crystals :A and am becoming a nuisance on the gambling intro board for my matched betting, but have only recently discovered the freebies site.

    I am yet to work out how to get so much from Boots without spending more than 50p but I have now started to get freebies through the post.

    This week I have got three things sent through - some washing powder, some shampoo but best of all I got a 100g bar of Heaven Chocolate :T

    Oh, how I love this site!!!!!
    Successful women can still have their feet on the ground. They just wear better shoes. (Maud Van de Venne)
    Life begins at the end of your comfort zone (Neale Donald Walsch)
  • taxi73
    taxi73 Posts: 20,815 Forumite
    Hi Hypno...nothing wrong with adding a diary as it really does help see where you're at...I use mine all the time and would go insane without it....and my dear..please enjoy your break you need it and as the other poster said you weren't expecting the money so it hasn't altered your DF date.....I look forward to reading your diary
  • Hi hypno - the kicks up the backside you've given me over the last few months have helped me leaps and bounds, so if there is anything I can do to help let me know :)

    My OH also applied for an M&S LOB card and got rejected unexpectedly - first time she's been rejected from anything, so it maybe M&S are being extra picky.

    Keep going with the diary, I think there are a few of us on here who would be avid readers...
    Official DFW Nerd Club - Member no. 208 - Proud To Have Dealt With My Debts DEBT FREE DECEMBER 2008!!!
  • hypno06
    hypno06 Posts: 32,296
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    Well the sun is shining and it is a beautiful day here. I really should be out gardening or something but I simply don't have the energy! This dratted cold I have had all week has sapped me which is probably why I have been feeling so down moneywise this week, and why I really am looking forward to my holiday :j

    Today the car insurance became due so went via quidco and not only saved £30 on the (already cheap) renewal quote, but have £130 lovely cashback tracked already.

    Then seeing something on another DFW thread, I have applied for a savings account through quidco - deposited a whole shiny pound and will hopefully see another £25 tracked there. Of course it is always a while before it comes through to the bank, but it will be a bonus when it arrives.

    DD who is 12 is having one of those practice days for when she is a teenager. Mooching around demanding that a laptop of her own is becoming a desperate necessity. When I suggested to her that she asks people for money for her birthday which she can then put towards getting a recon laptop from somewhere cheap, she complained that it is 3 months and 7 days until her birthday, so can't possibly wait that long.

    I think I will change her name to Kevin......
    Successful women can still have their feet on the ground. They just wear better shoes. (Maud Van de Venne)
    Life begins at the end of your comfort zone (Neale Donald Walsch)
  • benbenandme
    benbenandme Posts: 12,159
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    I love the diaries on here, for me it is where I get inspiration from so keep going!! I saw your signature on another thread earlier and was amazed ... how long have you ben doing this and how have you managed to reduce it so much? I'm guessing a large chunk of it was your inheritance but that is superb, well done you:T :T
    Mortgage Total: £55,900 / £75,000
    2024 Savings: £1566
  • hypno06
    hypno06 Posts: 32,296
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    Well, we have been in this situation for a while but really started to get flickers of lightbulb moments about 4 or 5 years ago. Unfortunately the debt was so huge that it really didn't make much difference at that point - sort of one step forward, several larger steps back type thing. The result was that we continued robbing peter to pay paul and ended up in even more debt, despite our best efforts.

    We have been renting out our spare room for the last 2 and a half years which has made a big difference, although we miss our privacy loads. The inheritance made a very big difference and is what inspires me to continue really - if I fail now, then it is not just everything that I have worked for that will have been for nothing, but will be everything that my Dad worked for will also have been for nothing. I therefore cannot fail. It simply is not an option.

    We have always had more than one job each - at times doing 2 full time jobs EACH plus college, and still trying to be good parents to young children!

    We have pasta weeks, jacket potato weeks and beans on toast weeks! Basically, you can have anything you like for dinner this week as long as it is.....!!

    Since joining this site in December, I have discovered the delights of ebay, of matched betting and of quidco, not to mention more amazing meals for less than the cost of a postage stamp and 101 uses for stardrops! I look forward to my piggy clicks each week and got really excited when I reached enough for my first voucher!

    The biggest thing so far that I have done so far, which I have to attribute to one poster on this site, although brought to my attention on a totally different, and non money related, site is the reclaiming bank charges.

    I have claimed £3000 successfully from Halifax, £265 from Mint and £90 from Barclays on a small account. Barclays, however, are defending my claim for over £3000 so just waiting for the court papers now.....:mad:

    But, even with the impending court date, it is still over £3000 that I have received back so far which I had previously just written off!

    So, with the help of the lovely DFWers on here, I will get there. I will, I WILL!!
    Successful women can still have their feet on the ground. They just wear better shoes. (Maud Van de Venne)
    Life begins at the end of your comfort zone (Neale Donald Walsch)
  • Nneave
    Nneave Posts: 45 Forumite
    If I was your dad, I would be proud that you are getting things sorted, but really pleased that the money was able to give you a break for a few days.

    Enjoy it. You've achieved so much already, you deserve it.;)
    Depression is well Depressing. So I go shopping. Then I realise how much debt I'm in. Then my depression hits low and so I go shopping...
  • hypno06
    hypno06 Posts: 32,296
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    Nneave wrote: »
    If I was your dad, I would be proud that you are getting things sorted, but really pleased that the money was able to give you a break for a few days.

    Enjoy it. You've achieved so much already, you deserve it.;)

    I know what he would be saying. :A The year before he died he wanted to come away skiing with us but couldn't afford it, so I paid for him to come with us and told my OH that Dad was paying for himself.

    So, it is almost like my dad is paying me back for helping him out back then.

    Doesn't stop me feeling that I should be paying it off a credit card though!!!

    Honestly though, I know it will do me good to get away. I am thoroughly looking forward to going and I will have fun.....loads of fun.....:D
    Successful women can still have their feet on the ground. They just wear better shoes. (Maud Van de Venne)
    Life begins at the end of your comfort zone (Neale Donald Walsch)
  • hypno06
    hypno06 Posts: 32,296
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    Well, I am pleased to say that I did get out into the garden and gave my lawn its first haircut of the year. Had a bit of a tidy around too and got the pruning thingies out. I hacked back a fair bit of stuff - perhaps it is too early to be pruning but I know next to nothing about gardening so I work on a sort of "survival of the fittest" basis!

    Then I messed up my laptop so discovered the "techie" board on MSE - very helpful people and I would recommend them to anyone! As you can see, I am fully operational again :p

    So, another week starting again tomorrow - my personal challenge is to tidy the house from top to bottom. No mean feat I can assure you.

    So if you haven't heard from me by about Wednesday, send in the recovery team. I may be drowing in a sea of ironing.....
    Successful women can still have their feet on the ground. They just wear better shoes. (Maud Van de Venne)
    Life begins at the end of your comfort zone (Neale Donald Walsch)
  • lynsayjane
    lynsayjane Posts: 3,547
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    hiya hypno, I'm sure your dad would be more than happy for you to spend a part of your inheritance on yourself rather than 100% debts, in fact I know mine would have told me to!

    good luck with it all, we'll keep an eye on you. though despite what you've said it seems like your still doing heaps, £50 a week on matched betting? I'm so getting into that!
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