Egg's journal
Re: Egg's journal
Experiencing my first run in with temperamental old Mr Market. I'm down over £2000 on just over £35,000 invested within a couple of weeks. We'll see what happens. I'll hold pretty much whatever, but it's painful to watch!
Re: Egg's journal
I've skipped a month in this journal, but I'll just crack straight on through to January now.
January was dominated by a break-up with my live-in girlfriend of over a year, which got me down for a lot of the month. I’m pretty much emotionally over it by now, but it was the upset of my life to date. I also continued to pay half of the rent etc. for the month, even though I’d totally moved out by about half way through. On top of that, I started to incur costs from my new accommodation, so experienced a short period of being hit double. Since I’m considerably the higher earner of the two of us, I don’t actually have any problem with how that worked out. In fact all the furniture and general stuff we ever bought together, I’ve told her she can keep and I don’t want any money for it. The truth is, I don't give a fuck about money compared to the emotional side of it all.
Looking forward, I know I used to spend money faster before I got into my last relationship because, even though my basic accommodation was (and will be again) cheaper, I generally find single social life considerably more expensive. My overall spending patterns are likely to change accordingly to reflect my new circumstances. I’m going to try, though, not to let money dictate my social/romantic affairs – I’ve been guilty of missing out on life before by being too parsimonious, so I’ll try to avoid that joyless saving puritanism this time!
Apart from that, I’ve applied for a couple of jobs. We’ll see if I get any offers. My current work is fairly unstimulating at the moment, but at least it’s not stressful, quite well paid, and I like the people I work with. I’ll miss it, but if I have to go in March then I’ll deal with that as it comes.
January
Expenses – £942
Rent – £250
New room rent – £100
Council tax – £57
Electric – £22
Water – £22
Internet – £19
Bank subscription – £10
Public transport – £60
Kindle coaching – £100
Supermarkets – £90
Work canteen – £140
Restaurants – £15
Postage – £7
Phone top-up – £20
Misc – £30
Income – £2400
Salary – £2400
Savings rate – 61%
Overall another pretty decent month. 61% is about average for me, and overall expenditure was almost exactly the same as last month, even accounting for the fact I was paying for two sets of accommodation for half of it. I guess that’s been offset by the fact that crying and masturbation are cheap pastimes.
January was dominated by a break-up with my live-in girlfriend of over a year, which got me down for a lot of the month. I’m pretty much emotionally over it by now, but it was the upset of my life to date. I also continued to pay half of the rent etc. for the month, even though I’d totally moved out by about half way through. On top of that, I started to incur costs from my new accommodation, so experienced a short period of being hit double. Since I’m considerably the higher earner of the two of us, I don’t actually have any problem with how that worked out. In fact all the furniture and general stuff we ever bought together, I’ve told her she can keep and I don’t want any money for it. The truth is, I don't give a fuck about money compared to the emotional side of it all.
Looking forward, I know I used to spend money faster before I got into my last relationship because, even though my basic accommodation was (and will be again) cheaper, I generally find single social life considerably more expensive. My overall spending patterns are likely to change accordingly to reflect my new circumstances. I’m going to try, though, not to let money dictate my social/romantic affairs – I’ve been guilty of missing out on life before by being too parsimonious, so I’ll try to avoid that joyless saving puritanism this time!
Apart from that, I’ve applied for a couple of jobs. We’ll see if I get any offers. My current work is fairly unstimulating at the moment, but at least it’s not stressful, quite well paid, and I like the people I work with. I’ll miss it, but if I have to go in March then I’ll deal with that as it comes.
January
Expenses – £942
Rent – £250
New room rent – £100
Council tax – £57
Electric – £22
Water – £22
Internet – £19
Bank subscription – £10
Public transport – £60
Kindle coaching – £100
Supermarkets – £90
Work canteen – £140
Restaurants – £15
Postage – £7
Phone top-up – £20
Misc – £30
Income – £2400
Salary – £2400
Savings rate – 61%
Overall another pretty decent month. 61% is about average for me, and overall expenditure was almost exactly the same as last month, even accounting for the fact I was paying for two sets of accommodation for half of it. I guess that’s been offset by the fact that crying and masturbation are cheap pastimes.
Re: Egg's journal
I don't know why, but every time I see "Egg's Journal" it gives me a little smile. I have no idea why. Anyway, I'm very sorry to hear about your break-up. Not the best way to start a new year, but I have always found that there is always something better out there. All the times I have lost something, I have eventually got something better, even though I may not know it at the time.
61% is an awesome savings rate! Sometimes, I get so annoyed with myself with my spending, but the more people I talk to, they think I'm an extreme saver. Compared to them, I am! Especially, when almost every month, they are borrowing on a credit card to continue to buy stuff. At least I'm saving something and every month I'll continue to do better. So I'm just saying that I wouldn't be afraid to spend a little money if the occasion arises for you.
Just a bit of advice, you may want to get some different hobbies.
61% is an awesome savings rate! Sometimes, I get so annoyed with myself with my spending, but the more people I talk to, they think I'm an extreme saver. Compared to them, I am! Especially, when almost every month, they are borrowing on a credit card to continue to buy stuff. At least I'm saving something and every month I'll continue to do better. So I'm just saying that I wouldn't be afraid to spend a little money if the occasion arises for you.
Just a bit of advice, you may want to get some different hobbies.
Re: Egg's journal
All the best, Egg. Perhaps we should be prescribing crying and masturbation to our overly-spendy friends and family 
Re: Egg's journal
Sorry to hear you've had a rough month Egg, a breakup is never easy, especially when you're choabiting.
Is your new place cheaper than the old one, or about the same?
Is your new place cheaper than the old one, or about the same?
Re: Egg's journal
Thanks inchicago. Wise words. It sounds like we have a similar mental self-admonishment when it comes to spending. I'm not saying 61% is extreme or anything - plenty manage much more - but yeah, spending doesn't make me feel good for sure. I have already been a bit looser this month on the discretionary side of things, for no better reason than that I felt like it.inchicago wrote:I don't know why, but every time I see "Egg's Journal" it gives me a little smile. I have no idea why. Anyway, I'm very sorry to hear about your break-up. Not the best way to start a new year, but I have always found that there is always something better out there. All the times I have lost something, I have eventually got something better, even though I may not know it at the time.
61% is an awesome savings rate! Sometimes, I get so annoyed with myself with my spending, but the more people I talk to, they think I'm an extreme saver. Compared to them, I am! Especially, when almost every month, they are borrowing on a credit card to continue to buy stuff. At least I'm saving something and every month I'll continue to do better. So I'm just saying that I wouldn't be afraid to spend a little money if the occasion arises for you.
Just a bit of advice, you may want to get some different hobbies.
Haha. I don't even want to imagine the reaction I'd get dishing out that gem of advicecjm wrote:All the best, Egg. Perhaps we should be prescribing crying and masturbation to our overly-spendy friends and family
The cohabiting didn't make much of a difference in practical terms - just emotionally it's very noticeable when someone goes from being around all the time to not at all. But I'm relatively okay to be honest. Thanks for your sympathy, though.Ydobon wrote:Sorry to hear you've had a rough month Egg, a breakup is never easy, especially when you're choabiting.
Is your new place cheaper than the old one, or about the same?
The "new place" is a room rather than a flat (albeit just for me rather than splitting expenses 50/50). It should be cheaper because it's part of my work, so I'm expecting the monthly bill to be around £200 including electric, heating, water and internet. Being kitchen-less, food will also be largely at work, so my previous supermarket spend will become ~£250/m for three meals a day at work. Beyond that, now I live at work the public transport expenses should go down. I don't really know exactly what to expect from my spending, but even with a bit more eating out/drinking I should fit broadly within the same expense envelope as before.
Re: Egg's journal
As I’ve alluded to in past posts, my current job is decently paid and actually not a bad job all round, but the probability is that I’ll be out of it by the end of March (albeit if that happens I’ll still be paid for an extra few months and get a pay off).
I’ve known this was a strong possibility for a while (now a near-certainty), and I’ve been applying for a few other jobs accordingly. My preferred option had always been to join the (British) Civil Service Fast Stream. I knew it was relatively competitive, so I never really assumed it would happen. Since I’ve now been offered the job (actually scored ~top 0.025%, so pretty comfortable in the end) I’m fairly sure that’s what I’ll go and do. On a practical level, though, at £27k per annum, and almost certainly based in London, I’ll have less than half of my current buying power. In fact, because my current employment includes subsidised food and accommodation, it’d be optimistic to think I could maintain quality of life even at 0% savings rate. I'm confident I could score a better paying job in London or in a cheaper part of the country, but I don't really fancy it as those kinds of jobs generally fuck up the quality of life equation in terms of work-life balance.
So what does this mean? Well firstly it marks a rather early resignation to abandoning the levels of savings rate I have enjoyed so far. I’m not going to be targeting 60% on a £27k income in London – I’m sure it’s possible but I’m not motivated enough to find out. That’s not to say I don’t plan to return to higher savings rates longer term – I’m optimistic that after the four year stretch of the scheme, I can be earning more than I do now.
The fact is, though, I’m quite comfortable with going down to a near-zero savings rate for now. At the age of 24, I think there is a bigger risk of me wasting my youth than fucking up my financial future. Assuming the £20k severance, I’d be sitting on around £110k net worth by the time my current job stopped paying at the end of June. I’m not saying this is amazing, but I certainly feel it’s not shabby, and the money will hopefully pick up a bit of steam on it’s own through compounding if left untouched. When I think about the reason the savings rate would go down – living in one of the few truly global mega-cities in the world, where almost every opportunity I can think of exists – it doesn’t sound so bad. Besides, the only “bad” spending in my book is consumerist spending which neither grows you as a person nor makes you happy. That isn’t what we’re talking about. I’ll still be the same person with the same attitudes – proof that there’s not necessarily any difference in ERE “virtue” between 0 and 60% savings rates.
The second aspect to losing my job is that it is a phenomenal opportunity. I won’t have to work beyond the end of March and my new job would start somewhere between September and November. This gives me a number of guilt-free months where I don’t have to work a job at all. I don’t know what I’ll do yet. I could go travelling, try to find some sort of “fun” seasonal summer work, volunteer (I just applied to the International Citizen Service), work on Kindle publishing full-time to try and get it off the ground, or any number of other possibilities and combinations. A long as I don’t succumb to decision paralysis, I don’t think I can lose.
Any great ideas for what to do April-August appreciated. I am totally free except for being in the UK in mid-May to get my Masters degree!
I’ve known this was a strong possibility for a while (now a near-certainty), and I’ve been applying for a few other jobs accordingly. My preferred option had always been to join the (British) Civil Service Fast Stream. I knew it was relatively competitive, so I never really assumed it would happen. Since I’ve now been offered the job (actually scored ~top 0.025%, so pretty comfortable in the end) I’m fairly sure that’s what I’ll go and do. On a practical level, though, at £27k per annum, and almost certainly based in London, I’ll have less than half of my current buying power. In fact, because my current employment includes subsidised food and accommodation, it’d be optimistic to think I could maintain quality of life even at 0% savings rate. I'm confident I could score a better paying job in London or in a cheaper part of the country, but I don't really fancy it as those kinds of jobs generally fuck up the quality of life equation in terms of work-life balance.
So what does this mean? Well firstly it marks a rather early resignation to abandoning the levels of savings rate I have enjoyed so far. I’m not going to be targeting 60% on a £27k income in London – I’m sure it’s possible but I’m not motivated enough to find out. That’s not to say I don’t plan to return to higher savings rates longer term – I’m optimistic that after the four year stretch of the scheme, I can be earning more than I do now.
The fact is, though, I’m quite comfortable with going down to a near-zero savings rate for now. At the age of 24, I think there is a bigger risk of me wasting my youth than fucking up my financial future. Assuming the £20k severance, I’d be sitting on around £110k net worth by the time my current job stopped paying at the end of June. I’m not saying this is amazing, but I certainly feel it’s not shabby, and the money will hopefully pick up a bit of steam on it’s own through compounding if left untouched. When I think about the reason the savings rate would go down – living in one of the few truly global mega-cities in the world, where almost every opportunity I can think of exists – it doesn’t sound so bad. Besides, the only “bad” spending in my book is consumerist spending which neither grows you as a person nor makes you happy. That isn’t what we’re talking about. I’ll still be the same person with the same attitudes – proof that there’s not necessarily any difference in ERE “virtue” between 0 and 60% savings rates.
The second aspect to losing my job is that it is a phenomenal opportunity. I won’t have to work beyond the end of March and my new job would start somewhere between September and November. This gives me a number of guilt-free months where I don’t have to work a job at all. I don’t know what I’ll do yet. I could go travelling, try to find some sort of “fun” seasonal summer work, volunteer (I just applied to the International Citizen Service), work on Kindle publishing full-time to try and get it off the ground, or any number of other possibilities and combinations. A long as I don’t succumb to decision paralysis, I don’t think I can lose.
Any great ideas for what to do April-August appreciated. I am totally free except for being in the UK in mid-May to get my Masters degree!
Re: Egg's journal
I should add, that if I work on Kindle publishing, I would preferably go somewhere cheap and with a nice, warm climate (Thailand?) where I can just use the internet whilst experiencing a semi-holiday feel.
Re: Egg's journal
I vote for this!!Egg wrote:I should add, that if I work on Kindle publishing, I would preferably go somewhere cheap and with a nice, warm climate (Thailand?) where I can just use the internet whilst experiencing a semi-holiday feel.
Re: Egg's journal
cimorene12 wrote:It would be really cool if you went to Thailand while you worked on Kindle publishing. There are plenty of authors who move there and enjoy the good climate and cheap cost of living.
Hehe. Thanks for the input. I'll think about it. I've got cousins in Costa Rica I want to visit, so I'm still thinking about what's going to be reasonably economical, whilst making the most of the time I've got. Thailand is still up there in my mind though. I've got to be in the UK in mid-May for university graduation, so I'm envisaging any further-flung travelling only after that point.C40 wrote:I vote for this!!Egg wrote:I should add, that if I work on Kindle publishing, I would preferably go somewhere cheap and with a nice, warm climate (Thailand?) where I can just use the internet whilst experiencing a semi-holiday feel.
Re: Egg's journal
Slightly belated, but February roundup now in. It was an alright month on the whole, I'd say. It didn't 100% conclude the question of whether I'm leaving my job - I'll have 24 hours notice when they make a final decision in the next couple of weeks. I've planned the immediate future, though, as if I'm leaving. I'm going to stay with my brother in Edinburgh next month and do a course for teaching English as a foreign language. I may use the qualification, I may not, but it's a good additional string to the bow for travelling, and provides an option to offset cost by teaching.
I've been seeing a new girl, who's cool. Nothing serious (just as well as I'm still shagging one of the girls in the office - I better be leaving or else that'll be too close to home for my liking) but she improves my overall morale. Will have to see how that goes. It'll probably end in a few weeks when I go to Edinburgh tbh, but who knows. As a bit of a tangent, it's interesting to observe in myself that I feel more relaxed when I'm seeing girls casually, whether it's just one or several at the same time. Relationships just give me stress because they play badly to my insecurities. Long-term I will almost certainly be better off facing my inner demons head-on, but I'm enjoying being back in the dating game for now.
Anyway, enough of that. Financials:
February
Expenses – £1320
Room – £185
Work canteen and bar – £200
Bank subscription – £10
Laptop screen repair – £70
Public transport – £25
Cinema – £30
Supermarkets – £10
Kindle – £760
Misc. – £30
Income – £2400
Salary – £2400
Savings rate – 45%
45%?! What a scandal. To be honest, I don’t feel too bad about it, though. Granted it’s a cheap psychological trick which doesn’t change the amount of money in my pocket, but if we were to subtract the amount I spent on Kindle publishing, which I hope to see returned in time, my savings rate would have been 77%, about as good as it’s ever been. Even if Kindle is a relative flop and I get back 50% of my initial investment, that’d send the savings rate up to a more palatable 60%. So basically, a pretty poor headline month, but hopefully a healthier underlying reality.
I've been seeing a new girl, who's cool. Nothing serious (just as well as I'm still shagging one of the girls in the office - I better be leaving or else that'll be too close to home for my liking) but she improves my overall morale. Will have to see how that goes. It'll probably end in a few weeks when I go to Edinburgh tbh, but who knows. As a bit of a tangent, it's interesting to observe in myself that I feel more relaxed when I'm seeing girls casually, whether it's just one or several at the same time. Relationships just give me stress because they play badly to my insecurities. Long-term I will almost certainly be better off facing my inner demons head-on, but I'm enjoying being back in the dating game for now.
Anyway, enough of that. Financials:
February
Expenses – £1320
Room – £185
Work canteen and bar – £200
Bank subscription – £10
Laptop screen repair – £70
Public transport – £25
Cinema – £30
Supermarkets – £10
Kindle – £760
Misc. – £30
Income – £2400
Salary – £2400
Savings rate – 45%
45%?! What a scandal. To be honest, I don’t feel too bad about it, though. Granted it’s a cheap psychological trick which doesn’t change the amount of money in my pocket, but if we were to subtract the amount I spent on Kindle publishing, which I hope to see returned in time, my savings rate would have been 77%, about as good as it’s ever been. Even if Kindle is a relative flop and I get back 50% of my initial investment, that’d send the savings rate up to a more palatable 60%. So basically, a pretty poor headline month, but hopefully a healthier underlying reality.
Re: Egg's journal
Ah - Kindle *publishing* - I'm sitting here thinking 'what the hell is he buying, you could get 2 Kindles and 100 books for that?'! 
Edinburgh sounds good, I'm off to Murrayfield for the rugby this weekend, always a good laugh.
Edinburgh sounds good, I'm off to Murrayfield for the rugby this weekend, always a good laugh.
Re: Egg's journal
Haha. Yeah, not quite that voracious a reader!Ydobon wrote:Ah - Kindle *publishing* - I'm sitting here thinking 'what the hell is he buying, you could get 2 Kindles and 100 books for that?'!
You Edinburgh-based too then? Just as well it's about having a laugh not getting the win, ehYdobon wrote:Edinburgh sounds good, I'm off to Murrayfield for the rugby this weekend, always a good laugh.
Re: Egg's journal
Nah - Glasgow - but we got the win 
Re: Egg's journal
Just read your journal from start to finish Egg, and a very enjoyable read it was.
Congratulations on getting a place on the Civil Service Fast Stream. I've heard good things about it. I'm in London on a very similar salary to what you'll be starting on - and managing about 30-40% savings. Unfortunately, I'm about ten years older than you and with not a terrific net worth, London expenses and looming marriage and likely children and a larger house - things are looking a little bleak on the ERE front.
If there's one thing I wish, it's to go back to your age and spend that time getting as close to FI as possible before those aspects of life start to force themselves upon you.
Congratulations on getting a place on the Civil Service Fast Stream. I've heard good things about it. I'm in London on a very similar salary to what you'll be starting on - and managing about 30-40% savings. Unfortunately, I'm about ten years older than you and with not a terrific net worth, London expenses and looming marriage and likely children and a larger house - things are looking a little bleak on the ERE front.
If there's one thing I wish, it's to go back to your age and spend that time getting as close to FI as possible before those aspects of life start to force themselves upon you.
Re: Egg's journal
You did, and a smashing victory at that. Consider my words eatenYdobon wrote:Nah - Glasgow - but we got the win
Re: Egg's journal
Thanks on all counts, Ginger1Ginger1 wrote:Just read your journal from start to finish Egg, and a very enjoyable read it was.
Congratulations on getting a place on the Civil Service Fast Stream. I've heard good things about it. I'm in London on a very similar salary to what you'll be starting on - and managing about 30-40% savings. Unfortunately, I'm about ten years older than you and with not a terrific net worth, London expenses and looming marriage and likely children and a larger house - things are looking a little bleak on the ERE front.
If there's one thing I wish, it's to go back to your age and spend that time getting as close to FI as possible before those aspects of life start to force themselves upon you.
Ah yes, "children", "house" and "London" all in the same sentence are enough to make anyone blanch. I'll be sure to check out your journal to see how you do it, but 30-40% in London sounds good to be honest. There are some very strong savers on the forums by percentage, but they often have the benefit of high-STEM earnings and sometimes also lower cost of living cities (I've certainly benefitted from the latter for the last few years). Fair play to them - we choose what (if anything) we study and where we live - but I'd not be put off in your position. Also, what you say about age is entirely valid, but as the proverb goes: "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now".
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2Birds1Stone
- Posts: 1610
- Joined: Thu Nov 19, 2015 11:20 am
- Location: Earth
Re: Egg's journal
Hey there Egg! Fellow Pole living abroad. I saw your posts in Bakai's journal and ended up reading yours from start to finish this morning.
I too started my journey to FIRE in my mid 20's. My savings rate took nearly 3 years to get to the 50-60% range.
I look forward to following your continued progress.
I too started my journey to FIRE in my mid 20's. My savings rate took nearly 3 years to get to the 50-60% range.
I look forward to following your continued progress.
Re: Egg's journal
Ah cool. Great to hear from you! It seems like there's not much for young Poles back in Poland, so I can't blame them for coming over here or for generally seeking a better life outside of their country. I don't view myself as a "Pole living abroad" because I've always lived in the UK, and I'm half-British, but I do still view Poland and the Polish language as an important part of my identity.2Birds1Stone wrote:Hey there Egg! Fellow Pole living abroad. I saw your posts in Bakai's journal and ended up reading yours from start to finish this morning.
I too started my journey to FIRE in my mid 20's. My savings rate took nearly 3 years to get to the 50-60% range.
I look forward to following your continued progress.
P.S. Jealous of Bora Bora/Tahiti! Sounds like you had a great time!
Re: Egg's journal
Okay, so I've been a bit lax with my journal here these past few months. I have been tracking my spending as usual, and even wrote up a brief summary of the months, but just never bothered to upload it here. To save a bit of time, I'll just post the headline financial figures for March, April and May rather than a full breakdown. I may actually move towards a more summarised financial update format anyway unless anything new and exciting crops up in my expenditure, as it has been pretty similar each month since the beginning of the year.
March
Income - £2400
Expenditure - £955
Savings rate: 60%
April
Income - £2400
Expenditure - £835
Savings rate: 65%
May
Income - £2400
Expenditure - £1020
Savings rate: 58%
So, what have I been up to? Well my job didn't finish in March like I expected, and I accordingly didn't go up to Edinburgh for the month, didn't join the circus, didn't travel the world etc. etc. Instead the decision was made that I will have to leave my job, but six months down the line i.e. end of September. I have mixed feelings about that. Of course it's disappointing not to have the oodles of free time to go do something exciting. On the other hand, it means I can keep my savings momentum up just a little longer. In the past few months, I've been away on courses, graduated with a master's, and generally ironed out most of the uncertainties of my near-future. Meanwhile, my bedpost continues to acquire notches, and I've been enjoying the unseasonable British sunshine, even going semi-regularly to a friend's allotment to get down an dirty in an altogether more wholesome way. So in short, it's been a good few months. The savings have been ticking along just fine, work has been uneventful, and my personal life has been more colourful than it's been for ages.
March
Income - £2400
Expenditure - £955
Savings rate: 60%
April
Income - £2400
Expenditure - £835
Savings rate: 65%
May
Income - £2400
Expenditure - £1020
Savings rate: 58%
So, what have I been up to? Well my job didn't finish in March like I expected, and I accordingly didn't go up to Edinburgh for the month, didn't join the circus, didn't travel the world etc. etc. Instead the decision was made that I will have to leave my job, but six months down the line i.e. end of September. I have mixed feelings about that. Of course it's disappointing not to have the oodles of free time to go do something exciting. On the other hand, it means I can keep my savings momentum up just a little longer. In the past few months, I've been away on courses, graduated with a master's, and generally ironed out most of the uncertainties of my near-future. Meanwhile, my bedpost continues to acquire notches, and I've been enjoying the unseasonable British sunshine, even going semi-regularly to a friend's allotment to get down an dirty in an altogether more wholesome way. So in short, it's been a good few months. The savings have been ticking along just fine, work has been uneventful, and my personal life has been more colourful than it's been for ages.