Life of Pie

The world, according to Frugaldom, is a complete package. We have all we need to create all that we want and if we break it, we have the wherewithal to fix it. Nothing is fake, everything is real - just take the time to look into this amazing frugal bubble that is our world. It's like the life of pie!

Life of Pie!

Humour me, if you will. I'm still the same person living the same frugal life surrounded by the same people, same space and same basic ingredients that make up Frugaldom and the world around me. Yes, some faces and places may have changed, some friends and family have passed along the way and new little humans have been born into our extended family, but nothing much has actually changed. We are still in this same bubble that holds all the secrets and solutions to all the mysteries. It still dumbfounds me that some people just can't see the bigger picture when it comes to looking after our spinning rock as it hurtles around that blazing ball that we call the sun.

Planet Earth (Free Blog Photos)

Don't get me wrong, I'm no scientist, I'm just someone who likes to think more and spend less when it comes to the topics of money and life. I can't stand money but it's a necessary evil in our society. Whether we see it as paper notes, metal, coins, pebbles or digital points, it is merely a number that can represent pretty much anything else, anywhere else. Our imaginations know no bounds and are restricted only by how much we can experience, not by how much money we have. It's like pie - some of us can bake our own from very little while others are happy to pay whatever it takes for others to do it for them.

Our world is a mish-mash of every possible ingredient available to mankind and it is all contained within this giant, multi-layered, bubble oven that's heated by the sun and insulated or protected by the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, ionosphere, magnetosphere, atmosphere and any other invisible-force spheres that engulf our ball of spinning rock. They contain everything, dictate our weather, our climate, our tides and the phases of our moon. As far as mankind is concerned, nothing more gets added and nothing gets lost - it is baking mankind in an ever evolving life 'pie'.

Life of Pie

We have what we have and it is up to us all to keep making pie and sharing it accordingly. Some people will be researching and developing the very basic ingredients, some will be tweaking the recipe, some harvesting and preparing the ingredients and some making the dough. Some will be helping bake this never-ending pie while many more will be contributing to all the various fillings needed to help our spherical bakehouse stay in production and meanwhile, we all need to contribute to maintaining the oven, as a complete break-down would be globally catastrophic.

Sadly, there are those who will always want a larger slice of the pie than others and there are also those who aren't prepared to share their slice with anyone else under any circumstances - they'd rather pig out, get fat and dictate the pecking order. But one would do well to remember that when times get tough, those who spit feathers, bully the flock and crow loudest are likely to be next in the pie, even if it's just to bring peace to the neighbours.

Feed the world... every single person is contributing to the global pie in their own way - even if it doesn't turn out the way we like it.

There is only one way out of this kitchen and it isn't by any earthly door that anyone's ever found. We're in it together and we're in it for life... only you can decide how you choose to contribute. What holds it all together and keeps things going is the balance of nature and our combined, conscious efforts to maintain the equilibrium. I believe this is the very basic principle of life itself and that everything we amount to is what gets returned. Trying to lead a balanced life and helping those who can't should be first and foremost, in my mind. Money won't buy food, water, shelter or even fresh air if this bubble bursts, so why accumulate useless 'stuff' that has no meaning in the meaning of life unless you already have everything you need for a balanced and happy life? By all means, protect your investments, but spare a thought for those who have nothing.

We need to find alternatives to save our bubble from bursting!

www.scottishmultimedia.co.uk / Frugaldom

Motoring Moneysaving Tips Pre-MOT

The cost of keeping a safe, reliable car on the road can amount to a fair chunk of any frugal living budget, especially if that car is needed on a regular basis.

 

Making a few preliminary checks and doing the simpler things yourself before your MOT is due can save you a small fortune on potential garage bills. Here are a few moneysaving suggestions.

 

Information and graphics by www.motorparks.co.uk also available here

Visit the frugal blog for more moneysaving hints, tips and suggestions.

The NYK Chat Room

The NYK Chat Room

To date, the preliminary get-togethers in the new chat room have proven to be most enjoyable, enlightening and entertaining. We all appreciate that typing errors can inadvertently be made and allowances should be made for this, mainly down to the fact that I wear out the letters on a key board quicker than I wear out shoes!

Here goes with the weekly schedule; hopefully it will cater for your every need across the frugal spectrum.

Read more here

Day 4 of Extremely Frugal February - Homemade Soup & a Teapot Warmer

Just Another Frugal Day in Penny Paradise

Apologies for a belated post but the day escaped from my grasp while I went off in search of some more furniture and attempted to catch up with all the frugal news.

Spending was at an all-time low after the normal porridge breakfast, a pasta lunch and then just soup and pudding for dinner tonight. At most, I reckon the food total amounted to under £1 including cooking it and I didn't light the fire, just kept the log burner going all day. I'll call it £4 in total so it covers the tea and coffee.

Today's Homemade Soup

I have made about 3.5 litres of the stuff and I'm calling it spicy ham and lentil with pasta bits. I started off with about 4 litres of stock made from stock cubes I'd bought on offer at only 10p per pack! They were past BBE date but that matters not a jot to me, it's cheap stock at twice the price. Added to that was about 300g of red lentils (30p-ish?) and 2 sachets of something called Spicy Tomato and Basil Orzo. When made up as per directions on the pack, it tastes a bit like mini pasta with a spicy sauce... I didn't make it up as directed, I poured the dried contents of both packs in with the lentils and stock and let it slow cook for a couple of hours. The Orzo cost, I think, 5 packs for £1 from Approved Food at some point and this box was found lurking at the back of my cupboard. (Orzo is tiny pasta shaped like grains of rice.) The soup tastes lovely, it's spicy hot and it's very filling. However, if you are anything like me, you'll have a stock of 10 packs for £1 strawberry whip, so soup and pudding is always an option.

We caved and had supper tonight - Herby naan bread lightly toasted with a sprinkle of cheese - which would be sheer, unadulterated luxury if I had paid full price for the Naans and cheese - but, of course, I didn't. It was, however, still a good 50p for the two of us and it wasn't strictly necessary. Now I need to eat double portions of veggies for the next few days to make up for today's wacky meals.

Hints and tips for use during power cuts

Does anyone know what this is?

Look closely and have a guess, if you haven't already read about it elsewhere on my blog, forums or other web pages.

Yes, you are correct! That is a light shining through the holes and it throws some pretty patterns on dark walls during power cuts.

Here comes the next clue...

This contraption is made from two of the parts that make up my three-tier steamer and I burn tea light candles inside it so I have some place to warm plates or keep the tea pot warm while the kettle is on the stove. I simply invert the top tier to give it a flat surface for the teapot or can leave it the correct way round for sitting plates over to keep them and their contents warm rather than switch on the mini oven. (Last time I included this in a post was when demonstrating how uneconomical it was to attempt to warm a room using candles in the wake of the resurgence of the 'candle heater' post on Facebook.)

And now the main reason for my belated post this evening - I have found myself an absolutely fabulous bargain sofa for the living room and have arranged for some help to collect it. (Neighbours are helping tomorrow night.) My only niggling worry is that there's yet another storm howling around us at the moment, bringing more torrential rain and hail, but the sofa will have to be moved over 20 miles in an open top trailer... I suspect we may need to reschedule if this awful weather continues unabated. I have until Saturday to collect my fantastic sofa that I've only seen in photos - it looks stunning to me! The current owner is giving this away and I feel so lucky at finding such a treasure in the free ads that it is ridiculously exciting! :)

Right now, I am like a kid awaiting Santa, desperate to see my new piece of furniture! It will provide a place to sit other than the futon bed settee that has served as a couch for the past 11 years and travelled around 5 houses with me. (That deserves a bit of rest and recuperation.) The 'new' sofa also has storage underneath it - oh the joys! Even more storage for my crafting goodies, magazines, books and whatever; I really cannot wait to see this! If it needs a cover throwing over it, I'll use one of my big knitted blankets.

Tomorrow also sees the expected delivery of my bargain carpet. If 'Lady Luck' smiles on me, there may be a 'proper' living room beginning to take shape in time for my next blog update.

Help Save our Libraries!

Councils, Cuts and Foolish Finances!

Wigtown County Buildings, which house the library

Sign the petition against proposed cuts HERE

 

It is with some dismay that I read of Dumfries and Galloway Council proposing cuts to Wigtown Library opening hours, from 40.5 hours to 17.5 hours per week. To many, this is possibly nothing more than the next cut in an already over-stretched (some may prefer to say badly-spent) budget forced upon the council by circumstances beyond their control. But for those of us who live here in Wigtownshire, the threat of cutting the library opening hours is nothing short of outrageous!

 

Wigtown is a small town - not a village, a town - home to around 1,000 people. It's our nearest town, about 10 miles from Frugaldom. The County Buildings, in which the library is now located, underwent massive refurbishment between 2000 and 2003 shortly after Wigtown was awarded official recognition as Scotland's national book town. I'll repeat myself here; Wigtown is Scotland's national BOOK town - as in the town of BOOKS. Any Government cut backs that could result in restricting public access to books within a national book town is nothing short of scandalous! In fact, if it wasn't such a serious threat, one might be forgiven for considering it as a sick joke!

 

Sign the petition against proposed cuts to Wigtown library HERE



 

The county buildings and all that they contain are the hub of the Wigtown community, with the library providing free access to books, papers, research facilities, computing and, lest we forget, the Internet. It has a children's area, a fun place for littlies to gather and listen to the fantastic tales told by the likes of Renita Boyle , one of the local authors and storytellers. 

 

A library opens up a whole new world to anyone who may not necessarily have the wherewithal to buy books. It provides online access and contact with the outside world for visiting writers, book collectors and other visitors to the area, especially during festivals and fairs. Let's face it, we can't rely on mobile phones about here and it's not as though everyone has phone lines installed, let alone owns a computer with an Internet connection. 

 

Wigtown library serves as an information access point for tourists and yes, some may see it as taking advantage of the place, but there's no getting away from the fact that the library can provide a bit of warmth, comfort and peace to enjoy a good book while just passing the time of day. Libraries ensure books stay in print and are made available to all who want to turn real pages and they allow us the freedom to choose what, where and when we read.

 

Sign the petition against proposed cuts to Wigtown library HERE

 

A library is about providing an open learning facility for anyone who cares to venture through its doors. It should be accessible throughout the day and week. If these proposed cuts go ahead, will anyone take the time to co-ordinate the newly reduced opening hours with the times of our dwindling public bus services? We have no public transport to or from our tiny corner of this county, but we do have a visit from the library bus every three weeks. Will the library buses be stopped in the near future, I wonder?

 

We, as frugalers, should embrace and support these precious resources in whatever way we can. Even if you would not be directly affected by a reduction in services, you represent the electorate whose votes put Governments and their people in high places. Our tax money contributes to their salaries, so it is up to us to ensure that these people take responsibility for how they spend our money.

 

As frugalers, spending within our own means is something we do.

As frugalers, avoiding unsustainable debts is something we do.

As frugalers, making do and mending is part of our daily routine.

As frugalers, sharing our knowledge freely is something we do.

As frugalers, doing our best to support one another is something we do.

As frugalers, access to public services may be paramount to the survival of our lifestyle.

 

To everyone who is following, everyone who is attempting to follow and even to those of you who do no more than read about following a frugal lifestyle, I would ask that you carefully consider needs, as opposed to wants.

 

In my opinion, we need our libraries to remain open and accessible fulltime. For some, they are the only leisure facilities left within the realms of affordability and for others, they provide the only warm and quiet retreat available to them for relaxation, reading and/or study. For writers, illustrators, photographers, translators and editors, libraries represent a trickle of income derived by way of Public Lending Rights, for those with eyesight problems, they may be the only local source of large print or audio-books... the list goes on!

 

Why shouldn't we stand together and fight these proposed cuts when they could result in us giving up the luxury of free access to the books and services we need when we need them?

 

Help us to say no to cuts in our library services then feel free to come back and request our help when it's your turn. Sign the petition against proposed cuts to Wigtown library HERE and, if it is within your power, come visit in May during the festival. I'll try to meet you in the library!

 

NYK, Frugaldom

Octavius Frugalus – October Money Challenge

Frugal Living Forums :: OCTAVIUS FRUGALUS CHALLENGE

In October 1775, the whaling ship ‘Herald’ discovered the ‘Octavius​​’ adrift off the coast of Greenland (the land where absolutely everything gets recycled in an eco-friendly way). The crew and passengers on board ‘Octavius’ had all perished and the dear old Captain was still seated at his desk, writing his final blog! The last entry was dated 1762! This ghost ship had been sailing the frozen seas for 13 years!

It would appear that everyone on board ‘Octavius’ had frozen to death, unable to afford any heating, unable to knit or recycle anything into warm clothing, unable to feed themselves by way of not knowing how to rotate stock, preserve and keep their larders, pantries and stores filled. They were basically unable to sustain themselves against all nature and life had to throw at them. Money, after all, cannot buy life itself.

Our October frugal living challenge is about keeping our ships afloat. I love the sketch of ‘Octavius’! It adequately represents the length some people will go to enslave themselves to money when there are so many other things that money can never buy. We sail in pursuit of happiness, contentment and an enriched lifestyle. Money isn’t the be all and end all of life – knowing when to abandon a sinking ship and encouraging others to help save themselves is the best we can hope to do in the worst situations.

So… let’s all help keep the boats afloat this October, in memory of the ghost ship ‘Octavius’. Legend has it that they only perished because the Captain was taking short cuts and planning to reach the unreachable without due consideration for the unexpected. But the unexpected is almost always what catches us out in the end.
 
Be prepared… the financial seas can get rough during the winter months and we need to be prepared to ride out any storms.

Join us HERE to take part in our October frugal living challenge, your captain for this month’s voyage of discovery will be Octavius Frugalus

Preparing to Take on the Cost of 2012

Getting the Budget Right from the Start

Autumn is certainly upon us, here in southwest Scotland. The first frost arrived here two nights ago with the plummeting temperatures, but clear skies also mean sunshine, so that's an added bonus. If only it could reach the washing line by the back door for long enough to dry the laundry!

As we tumble through the final quarter of 2011, my mind has been wandering mora and more to the 2012 frugal living and moneysaving challenges that lie ahead of us. With so many price increases, the budget is being stretched beyond all recognition.

In 2007, running a household on £4,000 really was a dawdle, thinking back on it. Over the following five years, I pulled the purse strings tighter and tighter, cramming more and more ito that same budget, squirreling away every available penny that could be saved. It paid handsomely. By 2008, I was debt free and piling all those extra pennies, that soon became pounds, into savings pots for all manner of items and events.

Daughter's 21st birthday brought a joint-celebration by way of her engagement. We catered for over 100 friends and relatives, bringing two families into one and spreading the costs to make it a party night to remember. There was also a housemove for us, after the sudden death of our thirty-something year old landlord.

The following year, there was the big wedding. Again, everyone pulled together and bride and groom had a wonderful day spent with all their friends and family, before a good old shindig in the evening.

The year after that was son's 21st, but he opted for money towards his car, which was probably for the best, as he really needs that for travelling to and from work. (Country living has its drawbacks, especially when it comes to employment and proximity to towns, with regards to fuel costs.)

That brought us up to 2010, when we really thought we were getting on top of things with the savings. By then, there was a grandchild scheduled for arrival. She duly arrived on Hogmanay, in good time to herald in the New Year.

So far in 2011 - what can I say?

We had a few problems over Christmas and New Year involving neighbours,  landlords and their out of control dogs. Anyone who has been following Frugaldom will know the stories, anyone else will need to trace back the blogs to find out more. In summary, H lost his income, the car packed in completely, meaning it had to be scrapped, and we were served an eviction notice that involved all sorts of to-ing and fro-ing between lawyers. The positive outcome of all that was that we had the freedom to say 's*d the lot of you', cash in the savings and buy this house.

We moved in here at the start of June 2011. As you'll have seen by previous posts, the house was more of a wet shell, but it was affordable, it has a spectacular garden space and there's huge potential for development both outside and in, so we fell for the dream and leapt at the opportunity without as much as a sideways glance.

In the beginning, we had no plumbing - all the pipes had burst over the two winters the place had lain empty. But we have a stream running through the bottom of our garden, so we had the pleasure of making frequent trips to and from that stream collecting buckets of water to enable us to 'flush' the toilet. It was fun while the sun was shining, when it rained we needed the buckets to catch the water that was running through the back roof.

It's now November and we have been in here for 5 months. We now have safe electricity, all the plumbing we require and a serviceable backboiler behind the open fire that heats the water and three radiators. We also have a window in our bathroom, a front door and a solid roof over the kitchen. Life is grand: We simply need a ceiling and a back door to complete the elementary repair works. Tomorrow sees the start of the next phase - pulling down the old kitchen ceiling.

With savings depleted, the £4,000 per year challenge will need to continue but I am making one small concession - an extra £1,000 in 2012 so I can incorporate the Council Tax. If anyone else would like to join me in the next year, challenging your household to some frugal living and moneysaving, you'll find all the details in the frugal living forums via http://www.frugaldom.com/

There are challenges for almost everything moneysaving you can conceive, from saving loose change to homemade ifts and growing your own vegetables. We have challenges about how to earn more money as well as how to cut costs on most things we need in life. It promises to be a very interesting year ahead and I would love it if a few more would join our merry band of frugal heroes. Make the most of your money, get rid of your debts and start saving for the future you really want. Don't put off starting or risk missing an opportunity, be prepared to take life as you find it and make it into something good. Life is too short for stalling the start of your dreams.

NYK Media
www.scottishmultimedia.co.uk

Counting the Costs of an Unplanned Housemove

Number-cruching is usually fun, much more so when you don't have any debt to worry about. However, our own current situation of having been served two months notice to quit the house got me wondering how others would or could cope.

I consider myself fortunate to be in a situation where we freely chose to rent a fairly cheap, slightly neglected property in order to afford to save towards buying our own place. But what if we'd had debt? What if we didn't have the wherewithal to save and were now faced with the unenviable situation of having to move the entire household elsewhere on a budget of absolutely nothing and within a tight timescale?

Homelessness IS a situation that can be forced upon anyone relying on privately rented property for no good reason other than the landlord wants their property vacated. They'll find a reason or an excuse. Similarly, it is a situation faced by many mortgage holders in the event of sudden job losses, interest rate hikes, sickness, a death in the family or unserviceable debts.

We do have a homeless problem within the UK, whether we all acknowledge it or not, and it's not just reserved for those with drink or drug related problems.  There is a genuine need for housing, a genuine need for safeguarding existing tenants and home owners and a genuine need for employing radical measures to protect against future changes to circumstances that are within human control. The population just keeps on growing while the availability of housing cannot keep pace. No amount of money will buy living space on this once great island once all the land has gone.

So, you're facing the real possibility of being made homeless...

First of all - don't panic! Easier said than done, but there's no point wasting energy on it as the outcome will remain the same - you will need to find another house and move home within a short space of time. Landlords are perfectly within their rights to serve as little as two weeks' notice, depending on your tenancy agreement or if you breached the terms of your lease so, in that respect, our personal situation is fortunate.

If you are of a disposition that things could really get you down and you feel there's no place else to turn, there's always The Samaritans who are there to help all. If you simply need a little bit of cheering up in the wake of an otherwise gloomy situation, or for a bit of light-hearted banter, feel free to join us online in our Frugaldom Forums, where there are always others to share your plight. Our frugal ways and regular catastrophes may well help to make you feel a little bit more 'normal'.

If you have debt and have been struggling to meet your financial commitments, there are agencies you can contact free of charge. Citizens' Advice is one, CCCS for free debt help is another and, in the case of housing, we've found plenty of helpful advice on our local community action centre hub. Contact your local council to find out if there's one in your area or try searching online. For us, we have the Nithsdale Council of Voluntary Services with Dumfries & Galloway Voluntary Action.

As private tenants, you may want to look at your options for applying for social housing or to local housing associations. And then there is the power of social media - our old friends the forums, blogs, websites, Facebook, Twitter or any other broadcast platform. Don't be afraid to shout out for help when help is needed. Just be careful of what you say and how you word it, as it is unbelievably easy to offend others. Trust me, I have first hand experiece of that!

Finding your next house deposit while not knowing when (or even if) your existing landlord will refund your current deposit can be unnerving. There is a Tenant Deposit Protection scheme in place in England & Wales:  we haven't been made aware of any such scheme becoming mandatory in Scotland, although it is reported to be implemented in future.

When leaving your current home, always ensure you either

a) Leave the property exactly as you found it or
b) Have an agreement with your landlords regarding any reimbursement for improvements you have made to their property at your own expense.

I would highly recommend that any and all relevant conversations and agreements with any landlord be recorded in writing, signed and witnessed for future reference. It prevents any unneccessary disagreements when one or other party could very easily renege on their word at any time in the future. Man's word is not always his bond; sadly, that is one mightily important lesson we have recently learned.

Here, in Scotland, we have what is known as Landlord Registration, whereby all landlords must be registered. It is illegal for anyone to let out any property to any tenant without first being registered as a landlord through their local council; failure to do so can result in fines of thousands of pounds. You can check to find out if your landlord (or any other landlord in Scotland) is registered by completing the online information request or by telephoning your local council.

Landlords do have statutory obligations to their tenants, just as tenants have obligations to safeguard any rented property in their charge. Make sure you know your rights and the landlords' rights before you rent. These do not relate exclusively to private landlords. Housing associations and even council housing is governed by much the same thing. The only thing that seems to differ greatly is the reduced or Government subsidised rental costs for social housing.

There is a Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme (RDGS) that operates in some regions. It enables people on low incomes and in housing need to access accommodation within the private rented sector. You can find more free online help from the CAB Advice Guide. This scheme is available in Scotland, although I suspect you'll need to be in receipt of some form of benefits in order to claim hardship. In the first instance, contact your local council to enquire into the existence of any such schemes in your area and don't forget what a great source of information your local library can be. Check out Shelter, which is a UK based charity dealing with housing and homelessness, they appear to have separate information for Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales. Even if you consider alternative types of accommodation, rather than regular bricks and mortar, Shelter should be able to offer free housing or homelessness information or advice.

Getting closer to the final moving date without having secured alternative accommodation can (and often does) place extra strain on any family, but I'm well informed that a landlord cannot simply make you homeless. In the unusual situation that they will not negotiate an extension to allow you time to find another place to stay, they must, by law, give proper notice between serving the original 'notice to quit' and any potential court proceedings. Before you MUST leave your home, your landlord MUST have done 3 things:

1. Served on you a Notice to Quit
2. Served on you an AT6 and
3. Obtained a Court Order

I believe the above to be true as pertaining to the Housing (Scotland) Act 1988, therefore I cannot be sure that legislation elsewhere is the same or similar. It's Government legislation and, as such, you can find out more about it here. On the other hand, you are free to request the return of your original deposit and turn in the keys to the property on the stated day, assuming you have someplace to go. You are also within your rights to seek independent legal advice and contest the landlord's intention to repossess your home. Help with legal costs may be available under any Legal Aid legislation.

I do hope that this blog helps someone and I fully intend keeping up with posting throughout the process of househunting and moving after being served Notice to Quit by our current landlord. I guess the most important thing in all of this, just like in any other dispute, is NEVER DO NOTHING. Take action immediately, seek appropriate help or advice and be prepared to make the necessary changes.

Don't forget that you are welcome to register and become a part of the free Frugaldom Forums, where everything frugal or moneysaving can be discussed - helpful information, chats with like-minded others, recipes, garden plans, self-sufficiency, hens, ducks, property, how to make ends meet... if it's about saving money, cutting costs, clearing debt, frugal living or working from home, you'll probably find it discussed in Frugaldom.