On Friday I had my wages which included the overtime that I’d worked recently. By the time the tax ‘man’ had taken his cut and the NI increased, and my pension of course, and my student loan, I was left with just over half of what I’d earned. I was gutted! I’m not in the higher tax bracket, not even close! I’m doing more overtime this month and I’m seriously considering taking the time off instead.

I often think I’m on a good salary, and wonder why I find it hard to manage. Recently I had an annual statement from the tax office detailing how much tax and NI contributions I’ve made over the year and the figure that I’m left with. Scary! By the time my pension comes off too (6.5%!) and my student loan, it’s little wonder that I sometimes feel broke. When I then read of multi-national companies, and individuals, who find tax loopholes and ‘avoid’ paying tax, it makes me pretty mad. I’m sure I’m not alone.

I really do feel that there’s a new underclass in the UK (I can’t comment on other countries as I don’t live there) it’s the working class that work full time and don’t qualify for any benefits of any kind. I know of two families in my street that don’t work, and have never worked, yet somehow the one can afford to run a car and go on holiday at least twice a year, every year, whilst the other family went to Italy last year. I work full time and have always paid my own way, yet I can’t afford a holiday. My son and I haven’t had a holiday since 2009, and even then, it was in a caravan in the UK. Something doesn’t make sense…

Speaking of my son, they’ve ‘threatened’ to stop his Job Seekers Allowance, again, because he didn’t apply for enough jobs one week. He can only apply for jobs if they actually exist! I’ve told him to apply for any job that he could even remotely do, just to keep them happy. In the meantime, they’re ‘encouraging’ him to go on yet another worthless training course. This one is 6 miles away, and will entail him catching 4 buses in a day, unless I take him and collect him. He could get a bus pass for the duration, but it’ll still be expensive. So, I’m being ‘punished’ too, because he can’t find a job. Read the above paragraph again, and you’ll see why I often get quite angry that they seem to be going after him. Breathe…

I had a nice weekend though haven’t slept well due to serious cramp on Friday night, and being woken 3 times Sunday night with pins and needles; one bout of which was severely painful. We had a nice meal out; we each had a pizza – not huge and shared a gelato desert and we had a soft drink each, yet the £25 voucher didn’t cover it. We only paid a few extra pounds, but eating out has become pretty expensive in the UK. I often watch Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, and am often surprised at how often some of the public on there say that they eat out. Food must be a lot cheaper in America, or maybe they have more disposable income. As nice as the food was, we won’t be eating there again any time soon.

Take care if you have snow or ice. It’s pretty cold here but no ice or snow. Heating is on, I’m wearing 3 layers indoors, and gloves, and I’m freezing!

Have a good week.