Meet a Reader | Robin from the UK
Hey everyone! Today we're meeting Robin, a reader who lives with his wife and son in the UK.
One of the reasons I love doing this series: It's fun for me to meet readers that I don't usually hear from. Robin has been reading here for at least ten years, but I don't think we've ever interacted before.
So, now I have gotten to know another one of my readers, and that makes me happy.
Here's Robin:
1. Tell us a little about yourself
Hi - I’m Robin and I live on the south coast of the UK, in the suburbs of a medium-sized city (~200,000 people).
I’m a ‘geospatial software engineer and data scientist’, which basically means I write code to do things with geographic data - such as maps and satellite images.
I’m currently working for a large mining and minerals company and a satellite imaging company, and have also worked for other organisations ranging from community air quality groups to the UK navy.
I’m a typical nerd/geek, and my hobbies involve lots of things to do with computers (my last project was setting up our cheap wireless doorbell to send notifications to my phone when someone rings the bell) and reading lots of detailed books about various technical topics (particularly railway signalling and space missions).
I’m also very interested in a range of crafts - I grew up thinking I wasn’t ‘arty’ as I can’t draw, but my wife introduced me to a range of crafts that are just as artistic but just require different skills.
I used to do quite a lot of papercrafts as well as glass and silk painting.
I now do encaustic art, or ‘wax art’ where you melt coloured waxes on to paper with a little iron, and then smear and dab them to make beautiful images.
I also decorate cakes for family birthdays.
I also combine my computing and craft interests by doing ‘computer-enabled’ art with a computer controlled paper/vinyl cutter/plotter, and a 3D printer.
My wife also works as a software engineer - before Covid she cycled to an office 15 minutes away, but now she works from home the vast majority of the time - and my son started school last September.
I have a long-term chronic health condition which means I get very fatigued very easily. This has limited what I can do quite significantly, and because of that I only work part time, and I use an electric wheelchair for anything over very short distances.
As you’ll see in my later answers, that affected my financial journey.
2. How long have you been reading The Frugal Girl?
Many years, I really can’t remember how long. I think I originally found it through a link on The Simple Dollar (which I used to devour, though I don’t read any more).
The Simple Dollar came up when I started getting interested in how to manage money at the end of university - so I’m guessing I’ve been reading for a decade easily.
The Frugal Girl is one of the blogs where it feels like I know Kristen and her family even though I’ve never met any of them (and am never likely to!)
3. How did you get interested in saving money?
I grew up in a frugal household - my parents definitely focused on saving money rather than spending it. We didn’t have expensive foreign holidays, and didn’t tend to buy expensive things for use at home. I grew up enjoying second-hand books and toys.
When I met my wife, she had the opposite experience, and it took a while for us to meld our different approaches to money into one sensible approach.
4. What's the "why" behind your money-saving efforts?
Originally it was to save as much as possible to buy a house. When we were first married my wife was still an undergraduate at university, and I was a PhD student. We felt like we were millionaires when I got my PhD stipend, as it was a lot more than my student loan had been!
We decided then to try and live on one of our salaries, and save the other - ultimately for our house, but also for other big expenses.
That felt possible at that point, because my PhD stipend was far more than my student loan had been, and we’ve tried to keep doing that since.
Since I became disabled in around 2014, it’s become incredibly useful that we’re used to living on one salary.
As my health got worse I had to gradually cut down my hours at my academic job, and then stop work altogether - so we had to live on just my wife’s salary. I had no income for a few years before I started my freelancing business.
5. What's your best frugal win?
A few of them:
- Making the conscious decision to live on one salary whenever possible
- Having a very frugal wedding, which was still the best wedding I’ve been to (even compared to weddings that cost over 10x the amount)
- Having an agreement to talk to my wife about any ‘big’ purchases before buying them - and adjusting the definition of ‘big’ over time (originally it was pretty much anything over £15, now it’s more but we still discuss non-routine medium-sized purchases)
6. What's a dumb money mistake you've made?
Not increasing my rates fast enough when I started freelancing - I took a deep breath once and doubled my rates, and my clients still said yes, so I should have doubled them far earlier!
7. What's one thing you splurge on?
We splurge a bit on gluten-free food (it sucks being gluten-free, and buying some of the nice gluten-free options helps) and on craft supplies.
I sort-of splurge on tech stuff, but a lot of that can be put down as a business expense these days, and I’m not as keen on buying tech as I used to be.
Oh, and we probably buy too many board games (inspired by The Simple Dollar ages ago…), but if you work out the cost per play it probably works out fairly reasonable for an hour or two’s entertainment.
8. What's one thing you aren't remotely tempted to splurge on?
Eating out - I don’t really enjoy it that much, and it’s a pain to eat out safely with my dietary restrictions. Adding a restless five year old to the mix makes it even less fun!
9. If $1000 was dropped into your lap today, what would you do with it?
Probably put it towards our savings for building an extension to our house
10. What's the easiest/hardest part of being frugal?
At times, the hardest part has been seeing other people spending money willy-nilly (is that just a British expression?) and not feeling like we’re able to do the same.
However, we’re now in a far better financial position than most of our friends who were spending like that, so it feels worth it.
11. Is there anything unique about frugal living in your area?
One big difference between frugal living for us and for Kristen is that healthcare in the UK is free at the point of access. There are definitely big problems with the NHS, but I couldn’t imagine having to deal with health insurance, paying per doctors visit etc - and I imagine with my health conditions I’d have great difficulty getting insurance.
A nice thing about our area is that there are a lot of frugal things to do in the area - we have the New Forest just down the road (a national park near the coast with fun things to do), and there are lots of nice parks and green spaces in our city.
Unfortunately there is currently a cost of living crisis in the UK, with most prices increasing, and energy prices seeing massive increases (easily 3-5x what it was last year).
We’ll definitely notice, and it may mean we can’t live entirely on one salary, but a lot of people in the country are going to hugely struggle.
12.What is something you wish more people knew?
You don’t have to spend tens of thousands of pounds on a wedding to ‘prove’ that you love your partner enough, or to satisfy family views on what is ‘appropriate’.
We got married at the church I grew up in, and a lot of people from the church helped out.
We hired a local village hall for the reception, bought a second-hand dress, hired the church youth group to act as waiters, and bought sliced meat from a local butcher and made/bought salads to go with it.
I think the whole thing cost us around £3,000, which seemed a huge amount of money then (early 2010s) but was tiny compared to most wedding budgets.
13. How has reading the Frugal Girl changed you?
It’s opened my eyes to day-to-day life in a different country, and how it differs (not just the medical bills stuff, but different styles of houses, different expectations for education etc.)
It’s made me think more about things like food waste, meal planning and so on.
14. Did you ever receive any financial education in school or from your parents?
We had a rubbish course as part of PSHE (Personal Social and Health Education) which was meant to teach us about managing money but didn’t really. Probably the best money education at school was a rather eccentric maths teacher who showed us the maths of debt and interest in great detail.
My parents taught me how to manage money fairly well, and I had a bank account from a young age. I went off to university with a fairly good idea of how to budget, and a frugal approach to spending money that lots of students don’t have.
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Robin, thank you so much for sharing about your life. And for the record, nope, we Americans definitely say "willy-nilly". At least....I do!
Also: I love the wax art you do; I particularly like the black and white one you made. And I love the shot of the shipping docks; I think city lights at night are so lovely when they reflect in the water.
The Simple Dollar was one of the first money-saving blogs I read before I started my own blog; it's fun to hear that you found my blog through that one. 🙂
Your firetruck birthday cake looks awesome! Way to go! I also loved the anniversary card for your parents. Those cards must be a delight to receive.
Thank you for sharing with us. Just as for you, it's eye-opening to me to read interviews from readers in other countries and I appreciate you taking the time to share with us all.
Hi Robin, you are very creative indeed! I love your work.
We had the pleasure of visiting Southwest UK several times for holidays and those are very fond memories. We went fossiling and swimming, visited numerous castles, went hiking, ate out (English food is excellent, and beers are best when brewed locally). We encouraged our kids to speak English, speak to people at sites, order their own drinks etc and this made them more confident in their oral exams.
One holiday one of our kids broke an arm and we were taken to the Dorchester hospital, where we received excellent and very child friendly care.
@J NL,
Thanks!
Glad you enjoyed your trip to this part of the UK. Where's home for you? You mentioned practising the language, so I'm guessing you're not from the US?
Some friends of mine live near Dorchester and have probably spent more time in the hospital there than they'd like...glad they treated you well!
Hi Robin
This was a funny one to read as I’m in the UK, have a disability that includes fatigue, I love arty projects, and my partner is a GIS specialist!
I loved the photo of the docks. We’re spending a week near the New Forest in October and we’ll be driving round as I shout Ponies! every 2 minutes 🙂
For those of you who don’t know, there are wild ponies that live in the New Forest. A local group sees to their health but they wander round free and it’s common to drive round a bend and have to stop for ponies in the road.
Healthcare is always one of the things I’m grateful for as a read US blogs, as while I spend a lot per month on health support outside the NHS, it’s nowhere compared to what I’d pay for full healthcare in the US.
I’m starting to panic about energy costs as being cold is bad for my condition, but I’m in a much better place than many. I also read The Simple Dollar a lot, when I was beginning to look at better money management.
@Victoria, I've driven around the New Forest myself, seen the signs for wild ponies, but never saw any! I grumbled to my ex that we needed our money back, ha.
@Victoria, Lovely coincidence! Do you mind me asking where your partner works? I've been involved in the GIS community for quite a while, so I may even know them!
Actually, as another person in the UK who has a fatiguing condition, if you'd like to get in touch outside this chat then feel free to email me on robin rtwilson com. I don't know whether your fatigue affects your mobility, but I wrote a document for a friend recently about accessible walks and activities in the new forest which I'd be happy to share with you.
I think my son is just so used to seeing ponies in the forest now that he doesn't realise that's not normal for most forests!
@Rose, I had that same reaction when we didn’t see bears in Yosemite!
I love all of the creative pursuits you shared with us, Robin, but I am really impressed with your gluten-free baking. I have tried this in the past and had more failures than successes! Your firetruck was next-level good.
Hi Robin! It was fun seeing all the different sorts of art you work with. I particularly like the birthday card with the wavy image that looks (to me) like a sand dune.
@kristin @ going country, Thanks - that card was algorithmically-generated art. I wrote some code in Python (a programming language) to generate random wavy landscapes like that, and then I picked my favourite ones to actually get drawn using the plotter (my paper cutter can have the knife blade replaced with a pen and then it can draw rather than cut). The back of the card explains how it was produced - and for some of them I even included the URL to the code on the back!
Hi Robin! My ex husband used to do a lot with writing geospatial software as a hobby. I'm sorry to hear about your illness/fatigue--I know all about living with it. It's hard for people to imagine if they haven't had to deal with it. I am glad you are expressiving your creativity with crafting, and I squealed a little when I saw the Glasgow roses on your parents' card.
Hi, Robin. I enjoyed reading this and viewing all the artwork. I must say that for a "non-arty" person, you're more artistically talented than most of the rest of us!
And sympathies to you, Victoria, and all the other British readers in this time of turmoil for the UK. Regardless of your views on politics, the economy, or the monarchy, there's "a whole lotta shakin' goin' on" (if you'll pardon the Americanism!).
@A. Marie, Thanks for saying that I'm artistically talented. When I was growing up, art at school was so focused around drawing and painting, and I can't really do that - so I grew up feeling that art was just something I couldn't do. I'm gradually starting to come to terms with the fact that I _can_ do art, but it really helps when people tell me!
I loved hearing about the Simple Dollar. Unfortunately, the blog is no longer. I do miss Trent and his point of view. And I believe that is how I found Kristen as well. I used to read both those blogs daily. Now only Kristen.
And I love paper crafting too. Although you, Robin, have taken the art to a whole new level. Thank you for sharing your passion.
Welcome Robin!
First of all, my condolences to you and your countrymen on the loss of the Queen.
You surprised me with all the different crafts you've taken up--and after you grew up thinking you weren't artsy. Far from it. Kudos!
I was also impressed with your wedding. It made me feel a lot less alone when I too decided to forgo the fancy feast and go with something homemade. To this day, I think it was the best meal I ever had.
I do hope your health condition improves. It's tough to carry on when fatigue is in the mix.
Thank you for sharing your story. It's always a treat to hear from someone on the other side of the pond.
I was excited to see this Meet the Reader post! I also have a disability, and I have been shadow-drafting a Meet the Readers post about how it’s affected how I spend money for… three years now? Something like that?
Thanks for taking the pressure off, Robin! Phew!
@Kate, Glad I've taken the pressure off!
I could have mentioned a lot more about my disability in the post, but I didn't want to make it too long (I have a habit of being rather verbose...). Things I didn't mention include the cost of things like my wheelchair (which cost nearly £7000, and needs replacing soon!) and the fear of suddenly losing disability benefits (the Department for Work and Pensions who organise all of this in the UK are particularly unpleasant, and can suddenly take away your benefits for no good reason). I'm so glad we had been living frugally before I got ill, or we'd have been in a far harder position when I did.
I do worry a bit about the good folks over across the pond. We're looking at some massive increases in inflation but nothing like that seen in Europe.
Very nice fire engine cake, by the way. It's a bit bigger than the ones used in Trumpton, I'd imagine.
Also it's interesting you brought up The Simple Dollar. I can't say I know anything about Trent but I also can't really fault him for selling out when he did.
Wow! I love your wax art. You are definitely arty. Thanks for sharing, really enjoyed reading about life across country pond.
Hi, Robin. It's great to meet you! My husband is a software developer and writes code that helps guide truck drivers around the United States, which I think is quite cool. Living on one income is such a wise approach to living a frugal life, as we never know what the future holds.
Your art is lovely, and the fire truck is so cute. That's a birthday to remember for your child, for sure.
Robin, your art is so lovely! Thank you so sharing it. I am also intrigued about how others live financially in countries outside of my own (US). I am so jealous of the free health care in the UK, although understandably it has it's downfalls. I work in healthcare and see so many people go bankrupt trying to treat their medical issues or decline medical care altogether (even chemotherapy!) because they cannot afford it. Nice to meet you!
Such wonderful colors in your artwork! I enjoyed seeing them this morning. Those tulips! One of my favorite art works is an encaustic; the few I have seen are all somehow nature scenes.
I also got in to a serious frugality mindset with "The Simple Dollar".
As a side note, pre-existing conditions are not to be a barrier in the U.S. for obtaining health insurance, (one of the important provisions of the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare). That doesn't make everything perfect, but it was a strong step in the right direction.
So nice to "meet" you, Robin. My ancestry is all linked to the UK and consequently, I am fascinated with all things English/Scottish. My family immigrated to the New England area years ago, but there are many, many traditions that I find are very similar.
I am a nurse, and I'll be the first to admit our healthcare system needs an overhaul (also the first to admit I have no idea how to do it), but I've also had numerous patients from Europe/Canada over the years who came to the US for healthcare that they couldn't get in their own country or that they didn't want to wait for. Insurance here is expensive, but in our experience, it's not nearly as expensive as the tax burden of Europeans and Canadians. I wish there was a better way for both sides. Sigh.
@Tricia,
Although our system is complicated, I agree that generally the level of care received in the US is excellent. We also have a great deal of autonomy over our bodies and healthcare choices. Unfortunately, I think navigating the healthcare and insurance systems is difficult for many. (See Corrine’s comments above) I wish that support was more readily available to guide patients through this process.
@Tricia, I live in Michigan and we frequently get folks from Ontario in our health care systems. My best friend lived there for several years and said that it was very difficult to see specialists. I don't love the US system, either, and like you, I have no idea how to fix the problem.
Nice to meet you Robin. Your crafts are very stunning.
I was sad this week on the loss of the QUEEN.
So many talents! Thank you for sharing today 🙂
Your art is lovely. Thanks for showing us that creativity takes many forms. The definition of art is much broader than just drawing. It’s wonderful that you have found a niche for your creative expression.
I had to smile when you spoke of the money challenges early in your marriage. My husband and I are from completely different backgrounds. My goodness those early years were tough! Even 35 years later, we handle money completely differently.
When reading your comments and those of other UK readers, as a group you seem to have an extremely negative view of the US healthcare system and accessibility to it. I’m very curious as to why. I’m not trying to argumentative. I am just trying to understand how our system is perceived.
Thank you for telling us about yourself.
@Bee, I'm really going to try not to get into a political argument here, and I don't want to get into this topic in depth. However, as a brief response: I think one of the main reasons is just a shock at how different things are. Regardless of your political or economic views, if you've grown up with healthcare 'free at the point of access' - with money never even mentioned or discussed at anything to do with medicine - then it's going to be a shock when you experience somewhere where you have to pay for medical care. I know I just grew up assuming medical care was free (at the point of access, obviously paid for by taxes) everywhere, and it was a real shock when I heard about countries where it isn't. I think the US probably comes up more in the views of UK people because a) you speak English so it's easier for us to hear/read about it, and b) you're a big country, so there are lots of people to hear about it from, and more chance for things to go wrong and produce 'horror stories' for us to hear. I was definitely shocked when I first heard about people going bankrupt because they couldn't afford healthcare. However, I fully admit that there are problems with the NHS in the UK, and (particularly at the moment) there are massive problems with long waiting lists, which is making a lot of people turn to private healthcare anyway.
Hope that helps explain some of the UK viewpoint - as I said, I don't want to get into a political argument, but I wanted to respond.
@Bee, Fellow Brit here.
I understand your issue about “our” perception of “your” healthcare. Sometimes humo(u)r explains easier than we might.
An American Gets Healthcare Abroad: https://youtu.be/ZAMtgCtq1oU
@Robin,
Very interesting. Thank you for sharing. I am authentically curious how others see our system and how other systems work. I appreciate that you took the time to answer. Cheers!
I like your perspective on weddings! I was married in 2000 and we had a very simple wedding, and it has still been my favorite wedding I've been to. 😀 I can't remember all the costs, but when all was said and done probably around $2000 or less.
All of your various crafts are so nice! and that shipping map is very interesting! Thanks for sharing.
Hi, Robin,
First, a big thanks to your wife for helping you find your inner artist, because you surely have one.
I think agreeing to live on one income even though you had two incomes was one of the smartest things you and your wife could have done. More of us should have done that, and I'm pointing a finger at myself as well when I say that.
It's good to meet you and your pictures are lovely. And oh, yes, I used to read the Simple Dollar too!
I had never heard of wax art, so thank you for introducing me to it. And I sometimes make cards but yours put me to shame! What talent you have. I am with you on how eating out isn't usually worth the hassle if you are in a wheelchair, never mind with your youngster and dietary issues. I was very appreciative when in New York City years ago we happened upon a restaurant that had a table by the front, designated as a spot for wheelchair users. They kept a lot of space around it so it was easy to get in and out of the area and the table was a bit taller so you could actually pull right up to the table. I thanked the owner and he said his sibling had been in a wheelchair all her life so he was aware of some of the difficulties. Not every restaurant can afford to do what he did, but I certainly appreciated it.
@Lindsey, Oh wow, that restaurant sounds wonderful! So often I've had to make almost everyone in the restaurant get up out of their chairs and move them, just so I can get through to my table at the back! And that's not even including the restaurants that "have ramps" until it turns out that they don't, or it's in the back yard covered in cobwebs, or actually broken, or actually "we lost it"...
Robin,
How wonderful to meet you. I love that you have so many artistic, and to me unusual, hobbies. Your work is beautiful.
It's fun to get a glimpse of your life in the UK.
I hear you on the GF foods. Thank goodness they are available and they are worth purchasing at times.
Thank you for sharing your art. It is lovely.
Thanks for sharing - I'm with you; I really enjoy hearing about the many varieties of cultures/lifestyles/etc. we FrugalGirl readers represent! It's great that you discovered your inner artistry and have found so many ways to cultivate it. I especially love the paper-cut map artwork, and your lovely little blue pot.
And your wedding sounds wonderful. As I think back, my favorite weddings to attend have been in church fellowship halls or backyards - they definitely don't have to be super expensive to be elegant and fun!
@Suz and @Robin, I forgot to add my usual comment on small/frugal weddings, which is A. Marie's First Law of Marriage: The happiness and stability of the union are generally in inverse proportion to the size and grandeur of the ceremony. (DH and I got married at my family of origin's county courthouse, with a judge who was a former neighbor officiating, and had a simple celebration at a local restaurant afterward. Friends here in our current city threw a wedding shower for us after we returned.)
@A. Marie, Yes, I've noticed a similar correlation with some of the weddings we've been to. Some of the enormous fancy ceremonies seem to have been papering over some of the cracks in the relationship.
My wife and I have been married for over ten years now, so we're doing ok so far!
eh, we had a small, affordable, lovely backyard wedding, a happy marriage, and my husband still walked out after 24 years.
@Rose, I did say "generally," not "invariably." And I remain sympathetic and regretful about yours. Nobody sends us a memo in advance about sudden walkouts, Alzheimer's, and so on.
Hi Robin!
I'm impressed with all of your creative endeavors. My husband and daughter are both good at drawing/painting, which is not a strong point for my son or me. I refer to him and me as "creative" as it's hard for me to think of myself as artistic. 🙂
This was a fascinating interview. You have so many varied interests and experiences, and, like other US readers, it's been interesting to compare how life is the same in some areas and different in others. Like you, when my husband and I got married in 2001, we kept our costs down, and I've never regretted it. Our savings from that allowed us to put a down payment on our home and to have a nice honeymoon. I enjoyed looking at the buffet table from your wedding--no one went hungry, that's for sure! It looks like it was a joyous celebration. Thank you for giving us a glimpse into your life.
Hi Robin,
Wow, such varied artistic endeavors (endeavours ha) and your skill at each of them is amazing. I’m so glad your wife convinced you that you have artistic talent because it shows. I’ve been a curator in a fine arts museum for 20+ years and I suspect that your work might merit an exhibition in a contemporary art show. Kristen knows how much I love good photography, a side interest in my workplace. Your image is beautiful. And many people don’t know what an encaustic is.
Really good hobbies of all sorts provide such delight in life, I find.
@Erika JS, PS-You mention enjoying other blogs with a “feel” similar to TFG; would you care to mention a few?
@Erika JS, Yeah, one of the others I enjoy is Little Hearts Big Love (https://littleheartsbiglove.co.uk/). It's actually written by a friend of a friend, even though I've never met them. They had a daughter with a congenital heart problem, and it started as detailing their lives as a 'heart family'. Unfortunately she died a few years ago, but the blog continues about their journey. It's very 'real' and honest, and they do a lot about seeking gratitude - and like this blog, I feel like I 'know' the family, even though I've never met them!
@Robin, Thanks for sharing that blog - I see what you mean; it offers inspiration to live with resilience and gratitude even in loss. (And I totally want to find a kid to make her clothespin airplanes craft with...)
I just want to say hello, Robin! I lived in Yorkshire when I was a child, my parents held jobs at a civilian base there. We often holidayed in Cornwall and spent time in Blackpool as well. Hello!
@Bee, in all of Europe, healthcare is free at the point of entry. Income taxes are from 30 to 55% of income depending on countries and income, no or very little copay. If you fall and break a leg, a ambulance, urgent care and immediate operation will be done at no cost ( for you) and no waiting time. On the other end, stuff that can wait etend to be postpone until….you can wait 6 months to see a rheumatologist, or a year to see a psychiatrist. Urgent care, great and accessible, the rest waiting list and little personal choices. There are documentaries about healthcare in the states where you see people in Virginia getting basic care in tents, poor people with no teeth. Women talk about the cost of giving birth and the lack of maternity leave. Okay . This was long ( also got here via the simple dollar)