My English Castle's Personal Finance Blog

I went to a meeting with university colleagues today for a committee on which I normally serve. It's the first I've seen of many of them since I've been back. One of them is retiring the end of term, and she's been a stalwart worker, so I figured I'd better step in and pick up some slack. Since everyone else is busy with the end of the semester, I took on lots of the work. It really won't take more than half a day, but I have time and energy right now.

I bought a coffee and scone at the meeting, and afterwards zipped over to the charity shop to donate two more loads of stuff. I'm thrilled, really thrilled, to be getting rid of so much stuff. Long may it continue.

More meetings tonight, but looking forward to a warm sunny weekend!

Following the sage SA advice, but still chuckling about the ironing jokes, I've purchased a Rowenta iron on sale at Target. And yes, I saved 5 percent with my RedCard.

Yesterday was very productive. I went to the bank to deposit the flex spending checks, (w)Al green's for my husband's instant coffee fix earning Balance points along the way, Noodles for a free pasta lunch courtesy of a coupon received, then the charity shop to dump off donations, Target for the iron, then finally the grocery store. It seemed like one of those charmed days where you actually remember your shopping bags, your coupons, and get great deals.

Then DD's science project hit. Yuck. We spent four hours helping her paint, assemble, and label mini-amusement park rides demonstrating Newtonian laws. Other students had two weeks to complete this, but she was under a time crunch because of our holiday. Thankfully we all avoided shouting and slamming doors, but there were a few almost tears. And it's done.

I've had a very productive day purging, sorting, and cleaning. But now my iron has completely stopped heating although there is power still to it. It also is leaking water. I foresee a Target trip tonight.
Anyone have an iron(clad) recommendation?

I spent half the weekend on the road, driving to Minneapolis to pick up the dog at my brother's home. They've been dog sitting since DD and DH came to England. I spent some $ on gas (much cheaper in MN), a small lunch each way, and dinner with friends on Friday night. Yesterday DD and I were invited to a tea party, and I bought a cute rose planted in a tea cup for the hostess. I think that was our only spending.

The more expensive news is the dog's impending medical treatment. She jumped off something at my brother's and tore her ACL. We're headed to the vet in an hour to find out that news. Ugh.

So, I have ongoing tasks for the week that need prioritization. They include pulling together class materials for my summer classes, starting our delayed taxes, picking up around here, finding a cleaner, hiring a painter for the house exterior, and starting a massive dejunking. I guess I did start the dejunking yesterday by giving a friend a big bag of DD's outgrown clothes. But much more to come. And I need to sell some things on ebay.

Also to be done is the drawdown of all the food DH bought while I was gone. He buys far too much food and the freezer and cupboards are bursting. So menu planning must be done.

I'm giving myself a grocery budget of $50/week until we can get through this food, and an ebay target of $150. I want ten bags/boxes of stuff out of this house by the end of the week. I'm still working on capstone projects and have to show up at the university with my spending report sometime this week, but first, an hour of purging.


There's more England news on the horizon, but I'll wait until tomorrow to elaborate.

I've spent much of the time since we've returned doing paper. You know what I mean? DD chipped a tooth while I was gone, so insurance papers had to be filed. Insurance didn't pay for it all, so flex spending had to be filed. Endless cycles of paper like that. But the happy news was that I'd completely forgot that I could file dependent care flex spending on DD's summer day camp, and I had money left over. Lovely! It's sort of like foraging in piles of paper, isn't it?

This morning's first paper foray involved the cancellation of DH's airmiles credit card. We've been very happy with his Chase card, so have cancelled the old airmiles card. They've credited his annual fee after they deducted for it, so this morning e-mails had to be sent to get Citi to send us a check. Then he had about 5000 miles rustling around that were due to expire, so I used them on four (!) magazines subscriptions--two for gifts.

I'm looking forward to a towering recycling bin tomorrow morning. Get this paper out!

Well, I'll admit, I did come back kicking and screaming, but I'm back. Back to piles of mail, piles of laundry, a house that clearly my DH didn't clean for months, but we're safe and sound.

However, I suspect it will be quite a while before I "really" come back.

A friend asked me about highlights and low times, and except for one especially awful student and my DH throwing his back out last week, I can't think of a low point. I missed my family, but Skype was great. Don't tell anyone, but I really like the peace and serenity and cleanness of living alone. Especially in London. Always.

On to cleaning, buying Turbotax, and trying to stay off Facebook and quit looking at photos.

The news about folks unable to withdraw money from their Cypriot banks today reminded me of several things that have happened here. Two of my students got their debit cards "skimmed" in one of those nasty add-ons to ATMs. I've heard several horror stories from people on the bus too. I've again reminded myself to only use ATMs inside bank lobbies.

One of my colleagues had another ATM eat his debit card, and when he contacted the bank to tell them, they mistakenly also put a hold on this credit card too. He was left with no access to money or credit all weekend, and had a heck of a time straightening it out yesterday. The bad bank (like my experience before I left) was Wells Fargo who can look forward to being dumped by both of us when we return home.

But there's good news too. One of my flakier students (and that's saying a lot) left her purse on a London bus. She realized it within minutes, but the bus was long gone. Yet within two hours, the woman sitting next to her found her on Facebook, messaged her, and they met up to retrieve her purse.

As a cautionary note, she's put a hold on those cards for a bit, just in case this was too good to be true, but the woman returned the entire purse which included 100 pounds in cash. Amazing.

Only a week until DD and DH arrive, so I'm doing all the London things that I love, but that he's less than enthusiastic about--antique shopping, theatre, etc. and saving all the things we all love like museums and history for after their arrival.

I'm still rather amazed at how expensive groceries have been. On Tuesday I spent 25pds on groceries, and all I have left is tangerines. I do eat almost every meal here or pack lunches, but still, it's expensive.
My new pleasure? Chili beet(root) for on top of salads.

But the good news for us is the exchange rate. The pound has fallen 8.5% against the dollar since January. I'm going to start putting almost everything on the American credit card (which we always pay off) to help take advantage of that.

The British economy seems a bit worse than the American at this point with a new budget coming out next week. Several friends are facing layoffs, and there are plenty of cuts in benefits.

Off to the British library!

Wow, I'm amazed at how quickly this time has flown. I'm 2/3 of the way through my English sojourn, and since last writing have been to Prague, along with day trips to Oxford and other spots.

I fell in love with Prague as I suspect most people do. What a beautiful city. The only significant money I spent there was on a few meals since a very hearty Euro-style breakfast came with the hotel--and some museum admissions. I really enjoyed the Mucha Museum, and although I thought I knew something about this style of work, I'd never heard of him. The Kafka Museum has my favorite though;really suited to his work.

Mostly I enjoyed walking around. How women walk on those cobbled streets in high heels, I'll never know. I spent much of the time with a London colleague who has become a very comfortable friend. I bought a few little bits of jewelry on the Charles Bridge. Sunday's tour was much more sobering as the students visited a town obliterated by the Nazis and then the concentration camp at Terezin.

We got home very late and exhausted from the emotionally draining day. I slept late last Monday, then went for a long long walk.

More soon!

Several weeks ago, I promised a short post on British charity shops. For the 20 or so years I've been either visiting here or living here for a few months at a time, I've seen a change in the number and quality of British charity shops.

When we lived in Surrey, there was a small shop supporting the hospice in our town, but that was about it. There was an Oxfam shop in the next town, but now there seem to be more and more shops everywhere. In my little part of London there are two Oxfam shops, one across the street from the other. One specializes in books and music, the other has the usual assortment of clothes and other things. There's also a cancer charity shop, one for heart disease, one sponsoring vet care for those unable to afford it, and a hospice shop.

They're all very well patronized and seem to have a circuit of people going from one to the other. I was thrilled (really!) to find an almost new guidebook to Prague for 50p (about 75 cents) when I'd been pricing them for 8-10 pounds. The quality varies, but here, as at home, better areas seem to have better stuff. I've also bought a Pyrex pie plate for a pound as I broke the landlady's plate. The books are very good, and I predict that some of the ones I bought will end up there when I finish them.

Great jewelry--and very cute boots and sweaters everywhere. I do think the smaller living space encourages people to dump what they no longer can use.

I've been watching (with rapt interest) the BBC programs featuring famous British chef, James Martin, as he addresses the lousy and expensive hospital food inn NHS hospitals. I think we all can imagine the problems with rising food costs, inadequate training, and other issues.

The most appalling part was the massive amount of food waste because (partly) of the elimination of individual patient ordering. That, coupled with not running the kitchen like a business and lack of adequate oversight has caused lots of problems. At one hospital, they were not even cooking from recipes.

But, of course, James Martin is coming in to save the day. This link shows some of it: http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/0/21519469

Two trips since last I blogged, and I'm about to go out the door in a minute.
I spent five days in Barcelona with an English friend and my MN girlfriends. I'd never been to Spain before, and may I just say, this is one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen. On the thrifty front, we rented a flat, ate some breakfasts there, but really spent very little time there. We went out exploring every day, ate great food, drank wonderful wonderful cheap wine, saw fabulous art, and took public transportation everywhere we didn't walk. I even braved the Tube and bus home from Heathrow with a very big suitcase so no unnecessary transportation costs.

Then a busy week teaching with double lectures one day, replenishing my skimpy larder, then off to Stratford upon Avon yesterday with a student group. I've done the Shakespeare/Anne Hathaway deal twice before, but enjoyed it again. It's been VERY cold here with a nasty wind, but I walked the High Street in Stratford and found a wonderful cookware shop, and at another shop bought a fleece for 70 percent off. That, a nice lunch, and a long conversation with another faculty couple finished off a very pleasant day. Now off to a lecture and to a bunch of used bookstores.

Very "chuffed," as the Brits say, that while waiting for the bus yesterday, three different folks asked me about bus routes. I must look like I know what I'm doing--and could actually answer their questions.

I miss my family, but they'll be here in a month!

First, a caveat. I'm not feeling very frugal. I've been wallowing in art, roaming all over, and I'm not used to cooking for one. My DH eats every scraping of leftovers I can excavate from the fridge. But I'm also feeling the pinch of this expensive glorious place.

I'm off to Spain on Tuesday and have a work drinks (will they have snacks?) do tomorrow night, so I'm trying to use up all the bits and pieces in my fridge.

While I was grading yesterday, I roasted the half bulb of fennel and the lump of butternut squash that's been rolling around since last Sunday's lunch. They'll be the anchor of tonight's dinner. It's very rainy and nasty today, so I cut my walk short and am spending the day class planning.

One of my constant issues is the extreme slowness of the bus. It can take 45 minutes for me to get to the university. But my transit pass only covers zones 1-2 on the tube, and Highgate is Zone 3. I haven't yet been able to rationalize the extra couple pounds this would cost, so I bring a book, look out the window, memorize the bus stops, and sometimes sigh a little. But on Tuesday, I need to get to Heathrow for my flight so will have to top up my Oyster card. The TFL (Transport for London) site is very good, so will spend some time later figuring out how much that will cost or if it's possible to get a regular London bus all the way out there. I sort of doubt it.

I also need to figure out the best place to change money. I usually just use the ATM, but we're getting into Barcelona late-ish, and I want some cash in hand. My suspicion is that the PO offers good rates, but I'll check.

Scottish girl mentioned this site that is very much talked about. It's all about food waste and is pretty darn interesting. http://england.lovefoodhatewaste.com/content/love-food-hate-waste-london

My promised post on the charity shops will follow later. Must dry off and work a bit.

I wasn't going to post again today, but have been following this story with amazement. The local governments here are under a lot of financial pressure, and many libraries have closed. But folks in this part of London took matters into their own hands with amazing results:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/feb/05/library-campaigners-save-friern-barnet-branch

It made me think of all the avid library users on SA--and Laura the librarian. It's so awful that libraries are so often first victims of budget cuts. But I like how this story comes out.

I've done some thinking about how folks spend and save around here.
Because energy is more expensive, there is a lot of emphasis on energy awareness. My homestay students tell me they're always urged to turn down heat, turn off lights, duplex print, etc. None of these are new to anyone, but they are certainly more emphasized.

I've also noticed the increasing emphasis to pay attention to food waste. Because food is a bigger part of people's budget, there are lots of articles and supermarket tips on how to stretch things, particularly meat. Many supermarkets charge for bags. I've also seen lots of articles on how to use up things like the last bit of mustard, dabs of vegetables, etc. As with the energy savings, none of this is new, but it's much more stressed.

That said, the lunch places are jammed and I hardly ever see anyone bringing in a lunch--well, except me.
The student office here, cognizant of the cost for students, has installed a microwave. I'm refilling my travel cup with water regularly. Everyone also seems very aware of the cost of transportation, especially with the huge rise in train fares. It would save me 20 minutes to take the bus to the tube, then the tube the rest of the way. I've discussed this with folks in the office, and virtually everyone moans about it, but takes the bus.

There also seems to be increasing stratification, just like in the US.

Tomorrow's topic? Charity shops!

Now what made me feel like I'd have a relaxing time in London? I'm prepping assignments for three classes, grading three, lecturing two, and squeezing in lots of fun. Wednesday we had our first British Life and Culture class, followed by an absolutely fabulous production of War Horse at the National Theatre. I walked back to my bus stop with a colleague since it was such a gorgeous evening, but didn't get in until after midnight, skyped with family, and finally to bed at 2. And up again at 6:30 to teach two classes that next morning. Brilliant and exciting, but I got some groceries on the way home, admired the fabulous view over London from Muswell Hill, came home and fell asleep on the sofa. Horrible to say, but I spent the gloomy day inside today to get caught up with grading and prep.

Good news? I AM caught up and have assignments ready for the next week. Tomorrow some more exploring and then shopping for my Sunday lunch with friends.

I'm aiming for a better job prepping because the next three Fridays I'll be off on day trips or in Spain. Fabulous? Yep. Busy? Yep!

Although I seem to be eternally battling a cold, I had an interesting weekend. My classes are going well, and I'm staying in most of the day today to get things set for the week.

I find I almost always need to plan my outings around the bus and transportation schedules. Although I woke up feeling sniffly on Saturday, I had a long list of things I wanted to do and which had to be done to prep for this week. So off I went up the hill, taking a different bus than I usually do--this one to London Bridge Station. I loved the route--through Islington to the "city" of London, then across the river to Southwark.

I'd been reading about Borough Market--a real foodie haven, and it was MUCH bigger than I anticipated. It was also jammed with people buying all sorts of produce, honey, fruits and veg, meats of all kind from wild boar to ostrich. There were many stalls selling all sorts of prepared food including exotic sausages, paella, rabbit sandwiches, veggie dishes, wine and champagne by the glass. I bought some jams from Devon for gifts (lovely man), some leeks, golden beets, carrots, and parsnips. I bought some Asian chicken noodle soup for lunch, but though I wanted to taste everything, many of the prepared foods were expensive--though it would be a fun way to spend the day.

Then I took a long Thames side stroll which probably didn't do my cold any good, but there was a fire juggler performing, and it was a beautiful sunny day. Then to the Gloucester Road tube station where I plan on starting tomorrow's class. A short walk from there is Virgina Woolf's childhood home. I ambled through Kensington then on to the National Portrait Gallery to scope out the Woolf stuff there. They have a new exhibit and a great digital archive that really helped plan my class.
Then to Oxford Street heading toward my bus home where I got more meds and kleenex and various items at Superdrug. Then a quick stop into Marks and Spencer Foods for their special dinner offer--a four course prepped dinner for two with a bottle of wine for 10 pounds. Not a particular bargain, but I figured it would stretch me into three days plus.

I came home so tired that I didn't eat anything but had a long hot shower, skyped DD and DH, and went to bed. I'll have the dinner stating tonight.

Sunday I spent with my in-laws on the Isle of Wight. It was my F-I-L's 87th birthday and although I knew it'd be a long trip, I had to go. After scoping more bargains and ignoring DH's advice, I left early to get a bus from Victoria coach station to Portsmouth. DH always took the train, but it was 20 pounds cheaper and as fast on the bus. I took a different bus to get to Victoria, but was inordinately proud of myself for figuring it all out. Then the ferry from Portsmouth. We had a lovely lunch at my favorite waterside pub, birthday cake and gifts later, then back to London. Again, a couple of new buses, but I was pleased it all went well. I am feeling so confident about my ability to work out the buses. I used to love the tube, but it's so wonderful to watch the world on the bus. Home after 10, but managed to stay awake for more skyping and prep for tomorrow.

What an adventure!

Hi SA Buddies:
I'm six days into my London sojourn and loving it. I miss my family, but it's so fabulous to come out of the classroom and find myself in the heart of London.

On the financial front, my wire transfer finally went through, so I'm as fully funded as I can be. My students are really amazed at the cost of things, but I think this will be an excellent experience of living on a budget much tighter than they're used to. I'm sort of accustomed to British prices, and I have to say, my transport pass has allowed me to explore a lot, visit some great markets, and go places I might hesitate to visit if I had to pay.

The flat is great; it's in a quiet residential area of North London, and despite the bus ride, I really like it. I've got all my grocery loyalty cards, have even discovered some coupons, and got a free two pints of milk today.

Some of my extras will be paid for like last night's curry night, and next week's play tickets. I can see I'll need to pack sandwiches at least two days a week, but I'm really enjoying both exploring a part of London I've never seen much of and coming home to a great flat. It was definitely the right decision.

After some assorted troubles, students overloaded with luggage, very problematic snow in London, all has actually gone well, My rental flat is cute and nice, the landlady is great, no real problems. I ventured out into the snow and did a bit of grocery shopping--realizing i forgot how to shop for one.

Going to catch up with some needed sleep now.
More tomorrow...

That's about the size of it! Lots of stuff to do including scanning class materials for London, organizing and planning those classes. Lots of stuff stuffed in the suitcase. We broke down and bought a new suitcase. Our old ones were showing the signs of lots of traveling. I bought an ultra lightweight hard case. I hope it survives ok. Plus I'm stuffed up, as I've been fighting (really fighting) a cold since Saturday. It doesn't feel like a cold; it feels like the flu, but I had a flu shot? No signs of it in DH or DD thankfully. This morning I got DD off to school, sat in the family room chair and fell asleep for two hours. I felt horrible when I got up, but a cup of coffee, a piece of toast, and three ibuprofen seem to have made a dent in it.

Massive lists and lists of lists everywhere here.

Well, maybe not "working" on them, but thinking about them. I would like to think of a new substantive goal now that the house is paid off. Fully funding the retirements plans doesn't have quite the jazzy appeal I'd like, though we'll certainly do that.

I'm also in the early stages of freaking out about leaving in 15 days. But I'm also working on that. DD and DH are back to work and school, so I'm off to do some errands.

First errand of the day? Join the local credit union. I've been itching to dump the big banks for a while, and this seems opportune. Their debit card has no foreign transaction fee, so it seems ideal.

But as usual, my mind is bogged down in minutiae. How many pairs of socks do I bring? What should I buy there? Seriously, you'd think I'd never left the house before.

We're buying a new laptop for me to take to the UK. Just back from Best Buy (ugh) where I tried to buy an ASUS that was out of stock. I wanted it based on reviews, and now the clerk has offered me the floor model for $80 off. What do you all think? They'd send it over to the Geek Squad to have it checked and the demo software taken off. But that's almost 25 percent off the already sale price?

We came back from MN last night. We had a lovely Christmas with my brother and his family. My only mishap was our thrice-repaired tire gave it up on Monday morning when I was driving to have breakfast with my girlfriends. I didn't want the uncertainty of it, so just got the darn thing replaced. Another $120 in a very heavy-repair-bill season, but I felt so much better having it replaced.

We all got great gifts. My nephews have started brewing their own beer, and we enjoyed their home brews. Even DD was happy with her gifts. We slept late this morning (8!) and lazed around, spending part of the afternoon at the dentist. I'm looking forward to a few lazy days, cleaning up around here, and then getting ready for England.

I have plenty of good news; I'm halfway through my grading. I only have a few more gifts to buy. Unlike last year at this time, DH is pretty secure in his job. Our house is paid for. We're off to England soon. We're all healthy.

But I miss Christmas. Every year I have to get my head around the face that being so busy with the semester's end, we never get the Christmas I long for. I suspect it's a fantasy anyway--my mom worked like a maniac to make Christmas full of baking, parties, homemade gifts, gorgeous outfits, etc. I have box after box of Christmas decorations, old Martha Stewart Christmas magazines, but I rarely get even one-third of it out. The house is only sort-of decorated. The tree is up, my Swedish lights are in the window, but there are piles of papers to be graded, laundry to be done, and just plain stuff that needs putting away.

We JUST finished our Christmas letter, so I guess they can go out tomorrow. Maybe. Could someone send over either Santa's elves or the shoemaker's elves to help?

Have any of you been to Barcelona? Some friends want me to meet them while I'm in the UK--and we'd welcome any advice you've got.

I'm feeling reconnected. We received Christmas cards for a couple of long-lost friends today, the call from my aunt the other day, and lots of random encounters at the university make me feel more in touch with life than I've been for a while. I'm now officially glad classes are over.

I spent four+ hours at a Study Abroad Faculty meeting today, complete with scary stories about disappearing students, assaulted and assaulting students, students off their meds, students drunk, students left behind in foreign countries, etc. But the university handed me the official packet today with everyone's flight information, passport copies, medical emergency forms, and a UK-compatible phone. I guess we're going! As a matter of fact, we're going in five weeks.

No money spent today; I've just been grading and grading.

I suspect there was a large, loud chorus of hallelujahs today because fall semester classes are over. Usually I do a huge happy dance, and I'm indeed happy, just a tiny smidge of bittersweet. This is the first time in 15 years I won't start teaching again in January at my regular shift in my regular classroom. And my last two classes of the day today are my favorites of the term--I was sad to see them go. We really only had about 20 minutes of work and evaluations to do, but most of my last class hung around for over an hour. They like each other, and I sure like them. As I left, I turned out the lights and just looked at my regular classroom for a while. As much as I whinge sometimes, it's really the best job in the world.

But on to less bittersweet things. I had a lovely hour-long conversation with my 95-year-old aunt last night. I can't believe how sharp she is. Christmas and London both beckon--after the grading is done.

I have meetings all day tomorrow, so as much as I'd like to spend the day grading and get it done, it won't be done until the weekend.

I made myself go to the university library today to grade papers; this in an attempt to disallow distractions and get more done. It worked pretty well, except the person seated next to me was a German professor giving oral exams to her beginning students. I tried to tune them out, but their German was so awful, I started laughing a couple of times.

All I spent was $2 on coffee and $$ on the postage for my ebay sales. Yes, CCF, I finally sold some stuff!

Forecast for the weekend: More paper grading.

After all the flu talk on the news, I'm finally getting a flu shot tomorrow. How about the rest of you?

And I've been beat, excited about London, tired from the semester, overloaded literally and figuratively, and haven't been sleeping well.

So, I'm off to bed. No significant other news.

The spending today was limited to taking my colleague out to lunch. I've worked with her for years, she about to retire, and she's the one who clued me in to the study abroad in London. We had a great chat, she offered some useful tips, and it really made the day.
I also bought her a bottle of wine as a thank you for all her help.

These last days of the term are always such a slog. But by this time next week, one of my classes will be finished, with the other four finishing the following day.

I'd like to leave the semester on the side of the road right now and start Christmas and London planning, but I'm happy that it's all so close.

Christmas planning can start on Friday?