Surprise, Surprise

Surprises can be great - surprise birthday parties, free puppies, lotto wins etc. but they can also trip you up. In budgeting I have it literally down to the dollar what I can spend each month and the rest goes to debt repayment. A slip-up in planning or a surprise (large or small) throws the plan off quite significantly.

I know that I will be getting a healthcare bill in the next couple weeks for my monthly contribution to the provincial medical plan. I've never had to pay it before because I was in school and didn't make enough money to HAVE to pay for it (I was exempt when I was po') but a downside of sending in my tax return was that now the tax man and the medical people know how much I made last year and now it's a little too much so I have to pay up for the medical services I don't really use. (knock wood)

It's retroactive to the beginning of the year so it'll be about $250. That's a big chuck of my monthly taking and pretty much what I spend on groceries, so if I had to come up with it out of the blue it would be quite a hardship, and this isn't even that much money! If that's not a reason to have savings I don't know what is! There's a distinction to me made here.

I have two savings accounts. One is for "fun" like flights and trips and one is for emergencies. A medical bill, which if I was paying attention at all when I signed up with the plan I should KNOW the bill is coming, is not an emergency. I can easily pay the medical bill with my money in savings, but it's coming out of the fun pile. Emergencies are just that, unpredicable expenses which come out the blue.

See you later $250, I'll just stay closer to home this summer :( whamp wammm - At least I get to eat next month!!
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