In 2022 I started a worry book.
I did.
Sometimes I find I get so bogged down worrying about things that inevitably
that I decided to start my own worry inventory.
(I needed visual proof that my worry was useless!!)
I have only used about 3 A4 size pages in 2 years
(Which, personally, I think is pretty impressive)
It’s usually only used for those really big things that I sometimes can’t seem to see past….with probably 70% of this rumination revolving around money.
I then go and write in dates and comments when each listed worry is solved or made null and void.
It’s amazing to look through my comments and to realise how so many of our life problems seem to work themselves out eventually. I probably only have three worries in there that have yet to reach a happy conclusion.
(But I’m not giving up hope on them;-)
So the reason I am telling you all this….
is because it feels like my first week of 49 started with a multitude of worrisome bangs.
The last two weeks were a little insane….
On Tuesday the 11th of June I received a £500 invoice to fix the water damage done in my flat in South Africa last year.
This was supposed to be covered by the insurance of my upstairs neighbour.
(Well, that was what I was originally told about the leak when I reached out to the managing agent of our body corp who looks after our building almost a year ago)
All I was told was that I needed to get a quote to get it fixed and send it to him.
(Sounds simple enough!)
My estate agent found a contractor to do the quote within a week and I have pretty much spent the last 10 months waiting for him to email me the quote.
It is completely laughable….I know!!!
Numerous complaint emails, watsap messages asking her to find someone else, her saying she had no one else, me feeling so frustrated that I eventually told her to forget it:
“I’ll find someone myself”
Another 2 months wasted with me trying to find someone before I woke up and realised how ridiculous this was because quite frankly she gets paid a monthly fee BY ME to do a job…
So why was I trying to do it for her????
(Don’t you just HATE IT when people don’t do their jobs properly?)
I then went back to her in utter frustration asking her to please just find someone to get this sorted.
And 10 months later…we finally have a quote.
WALAAAAAA VICTORY at LAST!!!!!
On sending the quote in I was then informed that I was supposed to file my own insurance claim within 30 days of the damage being done. The fact that I hadn’t filed this claim unfortunately means that they will not be able to reimburse me for the damage.
BUT IF YOU HAD TOLD ME ALL THIS 10 MONTHS AGO I WOULD HAVE fILED THE CLAIM!
(Don’t you REALLY HATE IT when people don’t do their jobs properly?)
On Tuesday I also got the gazillionth noise complaint about the tenants in my flat and I finally realised that no amount of warnings or fines was going to
EVER get them to STOP IT!!
I had to hand them their two months’ notice.
(Evicting tenants is the worst part of being a landlord)
I then decided to check out the advert for my flat, on Property 24, which has ‘been on the market’ to sell for the last 10 months only to discover it had a ‘This flat is no longer available’ notice on it.
On reaching out to my estate agent her response back was:
“Oh dear, so sorry I forgot to renew it, I’ll do it now”
Are you freaken’ kidding me, chickie???
My flat has been on the market for almost a year….
God knows how long it hasn’t been online.
All you needed to do was renew an add!“
I saw all shades of red.
That was the last straw.
I realised that she too needed to go.
Come September I will need to find £450 a month to cover my South African rental while I have all the repairs done to the flat.
By the 1st of September, we will need to move from our beautiful home in London.
It seemed to dawn on me last week
“Oh shit, I will need a deposit for the new house!”
Due to the whole debacle with the receivership company and our bankrupt landlord, I have been trying to figure out whether or not we are going to be getting our deposit back….
I mean granted we haven’t paid rent in 4 months.
(The bandits that we are)
But that is due to a legal technicality that will hopefully be solved on the 3rd of September when we have our day in court. The judge can tell us who the rightful owners of our rent should be; we can pay them and restore our “Good, law-abiding human beings” status.
(My flatmate, Richard, has had the tedious job of reminding me, pretty much daily, that we are NOT the ones at fault in this whole freaken mess!)
I am a good person!
I am a good person!
I am a good person!
But all that aside, how on earth does this affect our right to get our deposit back?
I mean who even has our deposit?
The law seems so murky in this area.
It’s sooo bloody confusing!
(I cannot afford to lose £1200.)
I am in charge of paying all the bills in my London flat. I took on this responsibility after having years of drama with numerous flatmates/letting agents who were responsible for paying certain bills and then NEVER did. So when both my lovely flatmates moved in they moved in with the bills included in their rent.
(I was absolutely NEVER going to be stuck paying a huge massive unpaid bill again!!!)
I have consistently paid the gas and electricity bills for 3 years in this property.
NO PROBLEMS!!
On returning home from my South African holiday in January I found a £510.45 overdue gas bill waiting for me.
I did what I do best, stuck my head in the sand and hoped the problem would disappear.
Magically it did.
(Cause as we have already discovered my manifestation powers ARE AWESOME!!!!)
My February bill arrived looking considerably healthier…..and I didn’t even need to adjust my payments!!!
(Clearly, the Cupid Gods were shining on me!)
March and April it appears I wasn’t sent any bills.
I thought maybe my energy provider had taken a little “mental health hiatus “.
(Cause quite frankly they needed it!!!)
So I did what I do best ….
I forgot about it!!
(See nothing to worry about)
Like seriously?
Again, I wasn’t too worried, this wasnt my first energy bill rodeo.
Last week on the 15th of June I got sent a reminder about my overdue balance which is now, apparently:
I mean WTF!!!!
(This feels like Energy Bills Russian Roulette!!)
I thought things were supposed to work better in the UK?
I mean this is the kind of shit you would expect to happen in South Africa
(Sorry South Africa – I do love you but you know it’s true!)
So, I give up!!!
Moving on!!!
Due to a comedy of errors I needed to cancel my therapy session 3 times in a row for the last couple of weeks.
3 TIMES!!!!!
And I subsequently had to deal with all this crap by myself!
(What’s up with that Universe???
Like do you think I am an adult now or something???)
So last week I found myself in this limbo, shell-shocked state wondering what magic pills I could swallow to stop the financial haemorrhaging that appeared to be happening from every angle!!
But it was a weird feeling really….
because although I felt
shell-shocked – I also felt happy
Although I felt Worried – I also felt hopeful
Although I felt ever so slightly panicked- I also felt ever so slightly peaceful
all rolled into one.
A whole assortment of varied emotions that quite frankly I was able to contain
all by myself.
(OMG Maybe I am growing up!!!)
On Wednesday I logged on to my first therapy session in 3 weeks and found myself smiling at my therapist and saying
“I’m good thanks!!!”
(And I actually meant it)
As I sat there I felt overwhelmed with gratitude for the lovely human being sitting opposite me; for his consistent, caring support and encouragement over the last decade of my life. In a world filled with dodgy, unhealthy therapists I luckily landed up with a good one.
At the end of my session, I was confidently able to say…
“I think I’m ready to start cutting down my sessions……”
My therapist smiled warmly and said:
“I think you are!”
In conclusion
This week has been a productive week
And low and behold…what have I discovered during this whole process?
Apparently, our UK landlord cancelled our deposit protection without telling the receivership company.
As a result, the receivership company has failed to protect our deposit for us….
Under the Housing Act 2004, it is a legal requirement that a tenant deposit is protected AT ALL TIMES.
When a landlord or letting agency breaks these laws, you can claim your deposit back PLUS from 1 to 3 times the value of the deposit on top of that.
(Don’t you just LOVE IT when people don’t do their jobs properly?)
All I can say is,
There is a God!
