The first five years

Hi, today is special. Take a look at the date, the 2nd of January 2014. Today is the fifth anniversary of my blog. Five years of blogging, and this is post number 1858. I am chuffed with myself, a good achievement I think. It's a diary of the last five years of my life. Five years of sticking at it and not giving in. I didn't know if people would read it, but they do, so that's a bonus, and I am pleased. I would still write it if nobody read it, because it's a record for me to look back on, and I enjoy writing. So thank you people for coming along with me on my journey, I am secretly chuffed that you do read it.

Let's go back to the beginning, the very first post. My words are still relevant today, nothing has changed. I am still paying my way, I am still making ends meet, and I am still not worrying about having just enough money to live on. Best of all, I still wake up each morning looking forward to the day ahead.    

Hi there, thanks for taking a look at my blog, this is my first attempt at blogging, so I hope you find something of interest. The main theme for the blog will be frugal living, because that is what I have been aspiring to for the last ten years. I decided to reduce my time at work, so reducing my income, and creating a whole new challenge, I now work at how to make ends meet. That may sound daunting to some people but it's easy, as long as you can differentiate between what you need and what you want. Making ends meet gives the impression that you are scrimping and saving worrying about where your next meal will come from, that is not true. For me it means making the most out of the money I have, getting the best value, the most food from the supermarket, and the challenge of surviving by my own means. I have never been in debt, always paying my way, so perhaps I am used to living within my means, luckily my mother taught me all about it.

I have been a lorry driver for 32 years, something I am immensely proud of, in total I have worked for 44 years, and now it is time to slow down. All my hard work has almost paid for a house, still a bit to go so not completely debt free, but I am working on it. I am now looking forward to a fabulous retirement, but of course I will never fully retire because I like work. But from now on, any work I do will be on my terms, it will be something I want to do, and I will do it when I want to do it. There, a bit bolshie maybe but that's how I am, I know my own mind. Life is too short to be a slave, and by that I mean a slave to money. I have realised that I am perfectly happy with just enough, a simple life for me means less worries. Do I worry about money, of course not because I haven't got any.

Please join me on my frugal journey, I am going to record how I live my life on very little money. I'm not setting any targets, or making any rash statements like living on a £1 a day, it will be a true story of how it really is. Don't expect me to be complaining about how expensive the cost of living is, or how fed up I am of having no money, that won't happen. Instead I want to open your eyes to the pleasures of a simple life, the enjoyment you can have out of life's free gifts, and how I wake up each day looking forward to the day ahead. See you later. Ilona

My blog is a bit like a magazine, it doesn't follow one theme, there are lots of different topics to dip in and out of. Variety has always been the spice of my life, things become stale so I move on. I like surprise, I embrace change, and I enjoy moving forward. 

I have picked out some photo's from the archives, which give a flavour of what my blog is about. A little bit of nostalgia for me, reflecting on the last five years, and a short tour for you. Have a look, come with me on this whistlestop tour of Life After Money. 

There are lots of reports about walking, on my blog. I love walking for hours and hours. I love the countryside, and I love finding my way with a map. I have done six long distance walks, the longest being 162 miles over nine days. Add them all together and I have walked 807 miles in 43 days, averaging 18.76 miles a day. I also have shorter walking trips staying overnight at Youth Hostels. 

I like to take holidays and days out when finances allow. I budget for this by cutting down on my day to day living expenses. I usually drive on these holidays, my car gives me the freedom to go where I like.

There are examples of my artwork on my blog. I like to use recycled materials, and believe you can always make something with rubbish that might otherwise be thrown away. It just takes a bit of imagination.  

You don't need to spend a lot of money on craft work, if any at all. I use recycled materials. There are lots of hand made bags on my blog. 

Plastic bags can be fused together and made into pictures, and sewn onto a plain linen bag.

I am a contributing guest on Radio Humberside. Here I am in the studio at Hull with David Burns.  

My voluntary work includes helping with a cat rescue in my village. Here are Mayze and her four kittens, they stayed with me for a few weeks because our pens were full. They were found living underneath a shed. We found the kittens nice homes, and Mayze seemed settled here so I kept her.

This is me and Janet, fundraising for the rescue cats. We collect items that are donated and sell them on a stall at events. This was at the Summer Fair at the junior school in our village.

Our village is quite busy with community events. I like to write about village life. This is the refreshment tent on the Green at the Spring Fair. I am lucky to live in a nice place.  

I like to look back occasionally at my life as a lorry driver. They were good times. The best thing I ever did was to pass my HGV driving test. I am proud that I did a really useful job, without lorry drivers this country would grind to a halt. Just about everything we own is transported on a lorry at some point. B & Q was my last job before I retired. I was there for seven years.

My health and fitness is always at the top of my agenda. Here I did a half marathon, raising funds for Lindsey Lodge Hospice. It was supposed to be a night walk starting at 10pm, but I managed to run some of the course. We started off at the football ground.  

Holidays are quite high on my priority list. I save up so I can afford them. This photo is taken from an eight seater aircraft coming into land at St Mary's, one of the Scilly Isles. It was so exciting. A lovely place to explore. I had two boat trips to other islands.

I have a big garden, so I put it to good use and grow some vegetables. It all helps to keep the cost of living down, and the produce is organic, no chemicals. The greenhouse and raised beds I built from pallets and reclaimed timber, all free. The idea of growing veg is that it gives you cheap food, it is daft to spend money if you can get free materials and build things yourself. 

Photography is a hobby I am interested in, though I am not familiar with complicated cameras. I have a simple compact point and shoot, which gives me good results. I like to compose my pictures and experiment with different angles.  

I have a few friends who own dogs, and I love to take them for a walk. This is Lady, we passed a field of sugar beet and I got her to sit amongst it for this photo. I love walking my doggy friends, it keeps me active and out in the open air. A win win situation. 

In my blog you will find pictures of my yellow sticker shopping. I go to The supermarket at 8pm at night, and buy the fresh food at knock down prices, which is going to go out of date on that day. I can get really cheap food by shopping this way, 90% off sometimes. I would find it very difficult to be able to go on holiday and keep my car, if I had to pay full price for food. 

Those that know me, know I am a bit of a joker. I like a laff, and don't take life too seriously. Me and Julie dressed up for a party, I took a step ladder with me, it was a hoot. 

Cats feature heavily in my blog, I have three of them. This is my best boy, Bugsy has been with me for 17 years. He came here as a kitten, he was wandering the streets because his owner kept going away and leaving him. She agreed to rehome him. I adore him.  

Happy food. There are lots of examples of my meals. I haven't eaten meat for over twenty years, and gave up fish a year ago. I eat masses of vegetables, salad, and fruit. I still eat dairy, so I am not vegan. I do believe that my healthy diet, and the fact that I spend a lot of time outdoors, has a lot to do with why I am very rarely  ill. 

Well that's the first five years, let's see what the next five years have to offer. Lead on MacDuff, are you coming with me or what? You are? That would be nice. 

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I told you I like surprises, well here's one for you. I will put together a parcel of bits and bobs of crafty stuff, and will post it anywhere in the world. Not saying what will be in it, but there will be something ready made, and something you have to make yourself. To win it all you have to do is comment here. Closing deadline is Saturday the 4th at 6pm. Good luck
Catch you tomorrow. Toodle pip