Recent Purchases: Tent, Sleeping Bag and Sleeping Mat. I bought new good quality ones that I hope I'll still be using in 20 years time. It was weird seeing the Tent (Marmot) coming with a Lifetime Guarantee - you don't see many of them these days !

These items were sort of a Debt-free present to myself - a practical present in that I expect them to pay for themselves many times over.

Anyways.. I've created a Slush fund. This is for Cash that is destined to be spent at some point in the future - it can also act as a first line of defense in an Emergency.

I have a Cash Savings Account that I don't want to touch - that I want to build up into a sizable amount - to be part of my Financial Independence toolbox. I mean before I start buying shares/funds I want to have a significant Cash cushion.

The Slush fund is where any money that is not spent in my monthly budget or Overtime etc etc goes and sits until I want to buy something or in case of emergencies.... This slush fund will be outside of my budget and so will be guilt-free spending... although there will be many competing potential uses for the money - I will have many inner debates on how much to keep in it & what to spend it on.

Currently I've 500 euro in it but that is earmarked for spending money for a week in Spain starting next Saturday. Life is Good. I may not even spend all the 500 - we'll see.

I also have about 600 euro in my Checking account acting as a buffer but I'm going to forget I even have that - I mean it's just to prevent me from going overdrawn at any point. I earn no interest on it but, on the other hand, it protects me from Bank charges for going unintentionally overdrawn.

I havn't been posting much recently. I've mostly just been reading the odd post here and there. I've become a bit detached from my finances in that now I don't think they add an iota to who I am as a human being. I sort of consider them as a working dog who I have to take care of, train and point in the right direction - but recently my sense of self has changed.

This quote from Eckhart Tolle TV points to how I'm feeling:

"The universe has conspired to put you here. The totality of all the molecules and atoms that are floating around the universe, some of them temporarily gathering together and manifesting what looks like a person. They were forged in the furnace of stars and in this amazing way it's all coming together; the totality of life has suddenly put you here. Everything is connected to everything else, it's all timeless."

Oh.. and I want to refocus on my Screenplay - it's bugging me from within - like a puppy scratching to get out of a cage.