Winter woes (I sinned)

It is in the most critical temperature that I have begun to think about how good it is to have the following with me while typing away with freezing numb fingers:

(1) An electric blanket to warm up the bed before tucking in; (I can't fall asleep until a good 2 hours later because my bed was too cold and my feet were not warming up at all)

(2) the above or a warm quilt / duvet; (I actually woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't go to sleep, but had to add another blanket on top of the base blanket)

plus

(3) a cat / dog that can curl up at my feet and keep them warm and toasty. (Not to mention that I'm a huge animal lover)

(1) will be good but I can't fathom the idea of sleeping on some electric currents (lol), (2) is most sensible and practical but my room / home doesn't have space to store it during summer, and no, I'm not going to wrap myself up with that with the air-conditioning blasting in summer, so no. (3) is too high maintenance and my mom doesn't like pets, pets aren't supposed to go along well with my asthma either.......

And I have a pair of furry slippers, thank god for that. They aren't cheap nor well-made so they would last one season only...*makes mental note* must do research on more durable ones next year, wearing socks alone wouldn't work because our home is dusty.

...And then I sinned. I caught a cleanser and a toner on sale and bought them. Makes me wonder what was going on, as I was doing great at closing down the tabs of various stores, promo emails. Not blaming the weather entirely but you know, I only have myself to blame for this!

Goals of the week

Goals of last week:

- Tidy up room (clothes and shoes) NO.

- Clean the summer shoes and put them away YES.
- Pick up birthday tickets from cinemas Yes, took one, but another to be picked up in early January.

- Continue to search for new glasses Keep looking.

- Finish drafting up goals for 2015 and have them published here Still have some more to post.

- Track cashback sites for purchases that are made Keep tracking

- Drink more water during the day. YES.

- Apply body cream and hand cream every night. ALMOST.

Goals of the coming week:
- Tidy up room (clothes and shoes)
- Pick up remaining ticket from cinema
- Continue to search for new glasses
- Post remaining 2015 goals on the blog
- Outfit plan* on Sunday for the week ahead (see below)
- Track cashback transactions x 2
- Track refunds x 2
- Apply body cream and hand cream every night

I turned down an invitation to all-you-can-eat hot 'n' spicy BBQ with a group of friends simply because (1) the location is too far, it's not even close to the train line; (2) the BBQ style they chosen is the hot 'n' spicy kind, which is not so good for my skin; (3) the weekend getaway with the said group of friends last time didn't leave me completely enjoyed or happy; (4) that time of the year I'd most prone to various sickness, I don't want to complicate matters by adding frost to ice. Self-care is what I put first, I'm no longer a teen.

*For the outfit plan, it'll help me save so much time in the mornings trying on stuff, thinking about what to wear, and deciding what to wear. My mornings should be easier and quicker. The daily commute was rough for me so I don't think wearing tights daily are realistic, and frankly speaking this year I put warmth in front of style, putting on tights requires a few more minutes than usual (if it's not broken or torn by cuticles and sharp accessories before leaving the door...). Pants, jeans, leggings and extra padded tights with thermo layers underneath (not so easy to tear) will be my company. I've also fitted a pair of flurry fleece socks into the wellies I wear, it shall keep my feet toasty. The only gripe was that I picked the right size and it should fit, but it made my otherwise roomy wellies very tight in space! My calf paralyzed when I was trying it on and removing the shoe on the spot. #Fail I need to find out what happened and probably need to re-size the socks by taking it to the tailor... but I'd rather not.

[Ed note: I have put a new page "Outfit and temperature guides" on the nav bar. But weekly outfit still has to be planned every Sunday based on the latest weather forecast.]

I did pull out my mittens and gloves and warm base layers yesterday though :-) the clothes and shoes pile is still a mess though.

The "Reset" button

I spoke of purging and cleaning the wardrobe, room, hanging up the curtains etc last week, I went through the process during the weekend and it was a nightmare. Every time I cleaned I am shock at the sheer amount of stuff I have, how much space they are taking up, how much effort they require to be cleaned regularly. This serves as a reminder every single time that I need to downsize, and stop bringing things home!

While I was cleaning, the picture became clear again: there's always something I don't wear in the closet, yet I can't bear to donate them. This alone is making the closet burst and finding clothes a difficult task. I found 2 long coats bought at the charity sale last year which were WAY TOO BIG for my built, the size made me look like a homeless person (the horror), I thought about getting them altered but the cost will definitely be higher than what I bought them for! So they are still sitting in the closet now, until I figure a way to make them wearable.

I put aside some unwanted clothing and sold them for $10 together with some old papers. I also picked up another $10 from the pavement the other day. Yay!

With that in mind, I probably will not go to the charity sale this weekend. If I do, it'll be helping my mom to carry her stuff, and I'll not spend a penny on any clothes. A lesson should be learned here: NEVER, ever buy clothes that don't fit (a bit small or a bit big), don't harbor the thought of I'd fit into them *someday*, I won't.

I've been doing some small reading ion ETFs and stocks, I really need to get my dough, albeit small, to start rolling. The question is where, and how. I was told it will be a lengthy journey for anyone who wants to learn about investment, hopefully I will get it right. My goal before the end of the year is to open an investment account and put in funds for some dividend-paying stocks and maybe a bit of ETFs / funds. 

The weekend getaway in November came at HK$200 below the expected amount, another thing to be happy about! I paid for it promptly but it'll technically be a November spend. On a health-related note, I need to get on with the jog this weekend to give November a healthy start.  I also have started thinking about the vacation plans for next year (2 trips), it'll be a financial strain for me (given my late start in budgeting) but thinking that for the next 2 years I won't be able to take any long leave from work, it'll be OK. Now all that's left to do is to tighten the belt and how to make it work, stick to it.

Here's to a good start for everyone in November!

Drained.

The past two weeks various family troubles plagued me. I've spent time and energy to work things out but sometimes it's not me, it's them (the relatives) that were not being reasonable. They made me mad and upset and I had to find people to talk to, and you can't really talk about family troubles with anyone out there. Right now things have gotten to a very thorny, tricky and hanging-on-a-thread juncture, and I'm not sure where it'll head to. The worst case scenario is we won't be seeing some of these relatives during festive times, or that we'll pretend not to see each other. While THAT is odd, I guess we'll all get used to it at some point. 

It is the most critical of times that reveal who that person really is, and it is exactly that right now. I get to see who some of them really are and I"m not pleased at them, nor will I compromise to their unreasonable demands just for the sake of family harmony. It's hard to be a good and helpful relative, and I will stop doing that from now on. All I got in return was backstabbing and ungrateful words. Even though I've discussed this with my friends lately, I still feel the need to properly write these things off my chest and start the day clear. So the rant will end here. *RANT MODE OVER*

Aside from dealing with family issues, I've hardly make any progress on October goals. I plan to do the room cleaning tomorrow, purging the wardrobe and see what needs to be donated / rid of, digging all the winter apparel out, and putting the summer stuff away, hanging up the curtains, etc. November we'll see a weekend getaway, a charity sale (I won't buy but I may go along with my mom to help her with carrying stuff, let's see). A haircut would be great because I feel sluggish and badly in need of a trim - having a haircut when you want to start from afresh / cut away with old past, is psychologically helpful. I'm hoping to get on my feet to complete the said goals, tweak my budget and such, work harder on the side-hustle front.

It's a bit early to say that but I truly hope November will be a good month! 

Change of seasons and preparations

It's been a good 12 days since my last check-in. I finally got a small tax refund :) it's a small amount (about US$30 odd dollars) but nevertheless it's nice to have a refund after all. 

The past 12 days had been hectic and frankly the protest news had got me mentally fatigued and I wasn't in the mood to do anything really. I'll catch up with the blog posts I missed and the comments to make. Nowadays I prefer the TV off, it annoys me and upsets me when my mom switches it on. I can't remain calm when I watch the news, and I feel very sorry for the cops who are literally fighting a battle each and every day/night. I care (about what's going on, but every time I watch the news I got upset and terrified by what's going on. Those people are really nuts, and I can't stand to live in such a place anymore. When I have the money, I'll leave. One more reason to save $!

The temperatures have dropped a bit and it was definitely getting cooler. I've made a to-do list to prep for winter and there is just so much to do. Bear in mind that we don't have snow here so it might not be "cold" by each person's standard. Without further ado, here's the list:

1) Reshuffle wardrobe and put the winter pile at the front, summer pile to the back

2) Dig out the winter shoes, booties and tights (for some reason my tights always go "missing" in the mornings, or the wrong ones keep popping up)

3) Purge old clothes, winter coat and donate

4) Clean room with bleach once again (repeat every 3 months)

5) Hang up the curtains in room

6) Stock up on shampoo

Regarding item (3), I had a younger cousin who I gave my old/purged clothes to for the past few years, she's always taken it for "granted" and was reluctant to come to a train station near my home, the pile was heavy each time. She insisted that I meet her up at the train station near HER home, and she was also the one who had a student discount on train fare, and I don't! I got fed up by her attitude and laziness, it seemed to me that she doesn't really "care" for the free clothes, mind you some of them are brand new. I would call her up and asked her to pick up the clothes on a holiday weekend and she would reply reluctantly and keep telling me she's busy (hello she's a student). I don't want to go through this nuisance and suck up her attitude. I would rather bin the pile or donate it, it takes less time and less effort and at least I don't have to deal with her bat-shit. There has been lots of family troubles going on which bothered me personally lately. 

I have a coat in mind which I'll trash it because it got a bit small for me now, and the buttons keep falling off after I stitched them back for a few times during the past several years. Maybe I"ll take it with me next time I travel, and bin it upon return to shed some of the luggage weight. I always do that with the torn and worn undergarments. I've also set my eyes on a few nice coats but I don't think I'll get them (not at full price anyway), there's just too much in my wardrobe already! I'll go through the coats one by one and see which one can stay / go, then we'll see if there's a chance for some new additions.

The current blanket I'm using is not enough for winter and I should really just get a nice warm duvet/quilt but a nice one filled with down will be really, really expensive. Plus there's the storage issue and I"m not sure if I can use it during summer too, will sleep on this and come back to it later? It won't fit in my current budget anytime soon...hmm...

Budget-wise, an overspent have been recorded(!!!). I think I've done pretty good so far up to mid October, spending less than half of the amount for food (up to today) and I did not make unnecessary trips to the supermarket. But I screwed up majorly in the clothes and beauty section. Remember the GAP gym bottoms I mentioned last time? They were not budgeted but it was a 30% off total. The real blow came when I ordered a mini tote with 25% off in an FF sale! Then I snagged 3 shorts on clearance, because when is a better time to buy summer items for next year? Now! I should put a stop to the spending on clothes.

The beauty department was where the major overspent appeared. I came across the rarely-in-stock cotton puffs and stocked up majorly, then I got a nice coffret by paying less than half (thanks to cash coupons). The cotton puffs I'll use up eventually but the coffret is NOT a "need" but a "want" obviously. Then there's the shampoo stock-up. I made an order last minute because the house is running out of shampoo and the order (which has a nice surprise 10% off) will bring 9-10 bottles of them for all of us in the house. That shall last for about a year or more. I'm very pleased with the deal, but I need to budget for this time and again.

Our office will see a colleague departing who is really close with me. This week and the next will be full of social lunch occasions, we're talking about 5-6 of those with different parties but the same colleague!! GAHHH, there's really no way to get away with it but to chip in and pay for her share. So I'll do so. I've re-purposed an item which will be gifted to her, which I'm very proud of, lol. Last week I treated two of my relatives to dinner and it was a good one, albeit it's came around a bit more than I budgeted for - but I'll gladly pay for the time spent together any day.

Next month we'll see a weekend getaway trip with a bunch of friends, and the long overdue haircut shall also happen next month, my hair resembles a stack of dry hay as of late. I hope I can make a bit more from the side-hustles next month, as October has been a bit sluggish in that area. A formal budget review shall come next month too, as the current one is a pilot one made in July which needs some adjustment and tweaking.

Hope everyone has had a good month so far!