Hello All,
Suck it up Buttercup is going to be my self-motto
of 2016!
I am going to make a real
conscious push to not complain. Of course all my complaints are 100% justified
and valid however I’m going to try really hard and just not
complain. I can hear some of you already laughing at me.
I made a whole lot of
decisions towards the end of 2015, that I wanted to implement in 2016. I
suppose you can also call them goals.
One of the really, really
big ones is to get out of debt for good and live within my means. This means
not purchasing anything at all on credit. I have to have the money or else I
just can’t have it. Additionally while I have to live with what I have, I need to pay
for all the things that I already have, that includes the credit cards. Now I am a lucky
ducky and have ‘shit hot’ credit so the banks are always offering me the best
of everything. I’m in a very privileged position to say that I’ll be paying
this all off at 0% yippee!!! I did a balance transfer in November, which has
prepped me for my 2016/2017 plans. It might take a while but I’m on board.
I have wanted to sort
this out forever but just never got around to it. Who likes those people that
are all talk and no action. Not me! but that’s how I was behaving.
So how did I make this
360 degree change, you ask? It was this crazy American guy called Dave Ramsey.
I’ve been listing to his podcast daily and watching a whole lot of Americans on
Youtube. He talks about zero balance budgeting. Every dollar/pound that comes into
your account needs to have a place to go. It needs to be allocated. He also
talks about the cash envelope system, which is something else that I’m doing.
I’m not going to write much on this as all you have to do is Google Dave Ramsey
and his baby steps. I’m on baby step 2! I’m going to have to cut back on
holidays, shopping etc. (Warning: I would like to say personally there are
moments I find it difficult listening to him. He’s really religious, gun loving,
anti Obama redneck. If we ever met it real life it would not go down well.
None the less, his opinion on money is interesting a worth a listen)
Lucky for me I have a few
exciting things lined up that I purchased in 2015 for events in 2016. This year
I will be gong to Glastonbury for the 4th year on the trott! I can’t
wait!!! I also managed to bag tickets to see Adele, Coldplay and The Maccabees
this year. Puls I have one big holiday in March. It’s not a place that I have
ever had on my list, its not really my bag… but I’m going to Las Vegas to get
hitched! No not really… It’s my moms 60th birthday and of all the
million places in this great world of ours, she wants to go to Vegas. So being
the worlds best child ever, I’ll tag along. My brother and sister will also be
there with a few of my moms closest friends who are willing to indulge in these
shenanigans. I think I might have mentioned this before but I’m not very
British when it comes to drinking with my family. I absolutely hate being
around my folks when they drink, they rarely get drunk but its not fun. Who
knows how I’m going to survive this trip but wish me luck. I’ll be in Vegas
over Easter.
After the above list of
fun things, I have nothing else lined up at all. I’ve heard this term that makes
me laugh but will also be very relevant to me. It’s called ‘The Summer of
Suck’. I’m going to have to find fun entertaining things to do that cost almost
nothing. No trips abroad, camping weekends maybe?
Oooh I have found a new
pastime activity that I like. I’m upcycling furniture and making things. You
should all check out Annie Sloan. She’s British but way more popular in the US.
Her thing is chalk paint. Last weekend I painted 2 old IKEA kitchen stools and
then waxed them one night this week. I’m pretty good at painting and have
painted almost every room in this house. While on the topic of houses, this
last November, house and I celebrated 10 years together! Can you believe it!
I’ve been a homeowner for 10 years!! Kinda cool don’t ya think. There is still
so much to do when you have a home that is 119 years old! Its time I get a new
kitchen but… I’m sticking to the plan. Finish the baby steps and then see what
money is left, I would also like to pay off my mortgage by the time I’m 45. I
have no idea how I’ll find that extra money but I’ll try.
In the past I have spoken
about aging but thought I would say a little more about that. I like aging. I
think I’m doing a pretty good job of it. I’m so much more resilient about so
many things and I’ve learned so much over the years. People occasionally still
manage to hurt me but less and less so. I have also learned to live with
different kinds of relationships. Long gone are the best friends. I might use
the word out of habit but I don’t have best friends anymore, they are all busy
doing their own thing. Some of them call me from time to time. Some of them
make the effort to see me, some don’t. Either way… its ok. I’ve made a life of
my own. I so rarely get board these days, I enjoy my own company so much. I’m
growing into me, life just fits better. There is no change in actually knowing what my
bright future holds but its bright. I don’t know what will be… but it will be.
The same things that make
my world go round from the beginning remain. Love & Music… that’s it, that’s
all.
I know a few people that
don’t listen to music very often at all, almost never. They listen to BBC 4 and
that’s about it. They both have very good jobs (doctor and teacher) but I don’t
understand how they do it. Not a day goes by where I’m not listening to
something or another. This brings me to the very sad death of David Bowie. I
was sitting at my desk at work 7am when it was announced on BBC6 Music that the
musical creative ledged David Bowie had died. World wide reactions might be
dramatic for some of you, but music is such a powerful visceral thing. Bowie
songs is / was the soundtrack of our lives. How can you not hear a song and be
brought back to the time in your life when…..
I’m a massive movie fan
so soundtracks to movies are very powerful for me. Only since David’s passing
have I realized how I knew so many of his songs without knowing it was him, who
sang it. I’ve seen Reality Bites and Pretty Woman so many times over the years, both have Bowie in the soundtrack. There are so many films that have his music.
Last thing before I go,
the composer of the soundtrack for Hateful Eight was totally deserving of its
Golden Globe award. So was Brie Larson for Room and Leo for The Revenant. (Yes
folks, I’ve seen it all. If I’m not listening to music I’m in a theater
watching a film)
Be good kids, I hope to
not be so much of a stranger. Its one of my goals! If you get a chance listen
to the Dave Ramsey podcast #7875 where he talks about goals
Laters peeps
Lxx
