It’s fair to say that since I left school at 18, I’ve been living on a budget. Of sorts. I worked for two years before entering the world of Studentom for 3 years whilst I studied for my degree. It was during this time that I mostly racked up a LOT of debt. I’m not just talking student debt, but additional credit card debt. As I’ve tried to make ends meet through freelancing and temping work, the debt has grown and it’s become like a gargantuan albatross strung about my neck.
I tend to blame the paltry student loan I had during my degree - around £1000 to last me around 3 and a half months at a time, whilst trying to pay household bills, travel expenses to uni, books, materials, printing costs (outrageous!!!) and the like. I couldn’t really work because a) my degree took up a LOT of my time (that tends to be the nature of graphic design) and b) again, having sustained a prolapsed disc in my back when I was 14 means that I can’t sit or stand for hours on end at a job. Which is what most student jobs entail.
But in hindsight, I guess I was too carefree with putting money on the cards I had. In those pre-credit crunch heady days, it was SO easy to get thousands of pounds worth of free credit. It was a lure. I tried to be careful but it just kept adding up. Sometimes, my free credit was all I had until the next loan came in. I feel a bit angry that I didn’t control myself more; but I also feel angry that in the time that Rich and I went to uni (he started in 2000 and left in 2003, I started in 2003 and left in 2006), our financial help from the government was absolute pants. And just as I left, they started giving out student grants again. Thanks, Labour.
But all this aside, the upshot is that I am still living on a budget and have a lot of money to repay. So in essence, I have to make quite a lot of money that, in my heart of hearts, I feel like I’m wasting each month on slowly chipping away at a debt. Debt is like an invisible money vacuum that sucks away the ££s as soon as they come in. It’s not anything productive or constructive, it’s just a big horrible finger up at me and my past spending habits.
So for me, 2009 is going to be the year that I really have to up my game in terms of managing my finances and maximising the amount of money I can make to try and get on top of everything. So here’s my very basic plan:-
1. Get a work diary. Being self-employed and working from home AND being productive takes a LOT of discipline and motivation. Two things that I have been severely lacking in for the past year or so. A work diary will mean I kind of have something to answer to; I have to write down all the work I’ve done that day, and can also plan how I’m going to break up my work during the week so it’s not all left until the last minute. I lack structure and organisation in my day, and I’m hoping it’ll make me work differently - the way I’ve always wanted to. It’ll also help me see if I’m spending time on projects that just aren’t worth my while.
2. Get a part-time job locally. I need to be able to subsidise my freelance work with regular paid work so I at least have a contingency should the freelance work dry up. I NEED that security. The past 3 months have been dreadful. Not even remote workers are immune from the curse of the credit crunch.
3. Grow more of my own food. Last year, I was all over the place. I think it was mostly to do with dealing with everything that was going on with Nannie, sick hens, as well as having a lack of direction of what I wanted to do with my career. It had a knock-on effect with my motivation to get my veg sown here at the Smallest Smallholding. That, together with the dreadful ’summer’ (hah!), meant that I only managed to get a few decent crops of food. But when there were times that I didn’t have any money coming through, being able to go to the veg plots and pull up some potatoes, carrots and onions (possibly three of the most versatile and useful vegetables), was like a saving grace.
I’ve organised all my seed packets from last year, and there is SO much that I didn’t grow - broccoli, parsnips, squashes, salads, herbs…So that in itself is a bit of a blessing as I don’t have to fork out so much on buying in new packets of seeds. I’ve decided to ease up on the potatoes this year though - I bought some Charlotte second early potatoes (more on those in another post) but I’m not sure if I’ll go for maincrop this year. Maybe if I need a patch of ground clearing of weeds. But being able to buy really tasty maris pipers from a local farm for £6 for a sack of potatoes kind of puts me in two minds. I want to grow things that really benefit from being picked fresh, and I want to use the space I have the most economically that I can. This will take some thought, and some planning.
4. In winter, wear more clothes (but try not to dribble dinner down them so can wear on more than one occasion). We don’t want to be lumbered with a big gas bill at the end of the quarter, so whilst it’s cold (although the hard frosts have disappeared in the past couple of days) we need to try and limit the time we have the central heating on. This house is drafty and old, with no double glazing apart from the bathroom. Blinds in the front room let in drafts through the old sash windows, so curtains are also in order. Will have to get Mum to teach me how to run up curtains easily.
5. Never go food shopping on an empty stomach, and never go without a shopping list. How many times have Rich and I returned home only to discover we forgot to get milk/bread/spread/passata/orange squash? Then we go back and end up spending more because we’ve spotted a few ‘nice things’ that we fancy. Result? Unnecessary extra expense. In the past I’ve also found that planning my meals for the next few days in advance also helps me to keep ‘on track’ with the food spending. Being vegetarian also definitely helps, especially when cooking one-pot veggie extravaganzas (chilli, curry, stews, soups…mmm…).
So there it is. That’s the plan. I think even if I start to accumulate some savings (hah! that would be nice!) and extra income, I’d still stick to these rules. But now I’ve got it down in writing I’m going to TRY and stick to it. So please send me your best wishes for getting a decent part-time job. The rest I think I can take care of myself….will keep you all updated….
13 Responses to “Living on a Low Budget in 2009”
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January 12th, 2009 at 8:46 pm
I can totally identify with your situation. Like you I ran up debt whilst in uni, as my parents weren’t in a position to help me, my job didn’t pay that much and my books and printing costs were stupidly high. And I know I was too extravagant, but there’s no use in crying over spilt milk! So this year is my year to really tackle the debt too, and try to pay a significant chunk of it off.
Good luck with this year, and with all your goals!
January 13th, 2009 at 10:07 am
I’m the same! By no means do I have a large student loan (as they wouldn’t give me one!), but I bought and started renovating my house whilst at uni and that took a huge amount of money, mainly on credit cards! I’m slowly chipping away at it and I know how you feel, the money comes in and then disapears!
Planning your meals is a must and somethign that I do to stop myself buying all those ‘buy one get one you don’t need’ offers!
Good luck with the part time job, I’m sure somethign will turn up for you.
January 13th, 2009 at 11:09 am
Were you really expected to be able to live and study on that student loan?
I ask because the amount you quote is not much more than I was given when I did a one-year MA in 1974/75 - and how much inflation has there been since then? No loans then either - the money was a grant and did not have to be repaid.
I find it bizarre that government ministers complain about the prevailing “debt culture” when they have an education system that puts people in debt from the start.
The “very basic plan” is very sensible. Heavy curtains with thick linings really do work (people used tapestries for hundreds of years). If you’re not fussy about how the curtains look you can make them from fabric remnants bought in sales.
January 13th, 2009 at 11:34 am
That sounds like a good plan. Fully share your rage at student debt. In my more cynical moments, I wonder whether it’s a ploy to keep us all accustomed to our middle class lifestyles while we’re studying and so saddled with debt when we finish that we’re effectively forced to go into graduate schemes and become investment bankers and corporate lawyers and keep the system going, rather than doing anything worthwhile!
You could try and get old curtains on Freecycle or from friends or relatives. It took me over a year, but I’ve finally got my sewing machine fixed and finally made curtains from some old ones that I scrounged off someone. It meant I didn’t have to bother hemming them or sewing the curtain tape on, because that was already done, and could just cut bits off and put them together to make them the right size. Made life much easier!
January 13th, 2009 at 7:51 pm
A *world* of yes. I managed to survive without too much student debt (because my degree was vocational, I could work at it fairly easily) but things went horribly wrong when I had my son - I stopped working for 18 months but carried on spending like I was still earning. And then some. OUCH!
I’m slowly chipping away at mine (hence the name and subject of my blog), but I do allow myself to dream about how wonderful it will be when it isn’t still hanging over me like Damocles’ sword…
I’ve gotten to the point where I quite enjoy seeing how far I can cut the grocery budget - it’s got to a bit of a competition between me and the economy at the moment. I think I’m winning
If you don’t shop at Lidl, I highly recommend it - it’s saved loads of dosh for me.
January 14th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
Sounds like an excellent plan. I’m with you on the need for organisation, structure and need for a part-time job which I’ve kept putting off doing.
January 14th, 2009 at 6:20 pm
Hi Luce
I know how hard it is, 6 months ago I had my 9-5 studio job (paying pretty well) and Rich had steady freelance work, now I work my evenings a M&S and Rich works part time at the local school. We are pretty lucky though, we managed to get through Uni without running up debts (Rich has never had a credit card and refuse’s to get one!) and have always been good at managing our finances, it does mean going without some times but I thing that only make you appreciate stuff more if you’ve had to save and work for it.
Keep your chit up and try not to let it get you down!
p.s curtains are easy to make, but I suggest you invest in some inter-lining for them, its a bit pricey but will in the long run save you loads on your heating, all our curtains have it and its BRILLIANT!
p.p.s if you want a part time job then I do recommend M&S, I work with 2 lady’s who have back problems and the company is happy to work round that and makes sure they get to sit down at the tills for most of their shift, and the pays pretty good too, their also happy to work around your other commitments (my freelance work and a lot of the guys I work with are at Uni), you can find they job vacancies on their website. Not the most amazing jobs in the world but it pays the bills!
January 20th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
I know the feeling!
Setting up the business last year & the massive investment that entailed - plus with Tony not working for months - has put a severe strain on our finances.
Some serious belt-tightening for 2009 is in order! I enjoy Fiona’s “Cottage Smallholder” blog, she’s always coming up with inventive, money-savinhg ideas plus tasty ‘on-a-budget’ recipes.
Good luck - & I hope you have better luck with the veggies this year (let’s hope for a cold ’snap’ to keep the slugs at bay).
January 23rd, 2009 at 11:27 am
Growing tons of Veg is definitely the way to go. We have also got in to preserving big time.
For the first time this year we also dried loads of peppers. It worked really well. We have them all over the house. They actually look quite decorative.
January 28th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
I totally agree with your sentiments. I’m now 44 and grew up with easy credit and the aspirations bestowed on us by good old Mrs Thatcher - the world was our lobster! However now that I’m in my 2nd major recession, and that my parents were still living by the ration book well into their dotage, I am quite happy to make use of left overs, run up some curtains to cut out the drafts. I was quite embarassed at yoga the other day to see that my socks were darned beyond recognition!
In a way this latest credit crunch/slump/depression call it what you will is necessary to make us all sit up and realise that we can’t go on forever spending credit and wanting the latest gadgets!
I too am getting my garden organised this year - made my list of crops last night. No point growing perpetual spinach even if it is easy and grows forever - no one will eat it! My next task is to finish preparing the garden….where’s that bottle of wine….?
February 4th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
I’ve just found your blog, which I have to say is great!
Whilst growing up, my parents always seemed to be on some kind of economy drive, (loans, credit cards and the like were unheard of then), but what they were able to do to keep the spending down was to grow fruit and veg, it’s kind of a family tradition.
On the whole issue of budgeting and growing your own veg, can I suggest that you grow veg that is hard to get hold of or expensive. So instead of growing potatoes or onions say, which are cheap to buy, grow asparagus, shallots, broad beans, mushrooms, gooseberries, etc.
Have fun growing and good luck for 2009!