I have talked about Ninja Bills before in the blog. They are when you aren't expecting a bill from somewhere, or a lower balance, then...Bamm! Something comes up that could potentially blow your budget.
Well, for the past three months we have been pretty good about our money management and budget. Nothing popped up and the Ninja from the picture hadn't attacked. Until yesterday.
I am currently hard at work on 2008 budget and goals and got the mail yesterday. We received our gas bill. Now we are lucky in Southern Oregon that it is pretty temperate. Never super cold or hot. This has been a big savings compared to out bills when we lived in Utah.
So imagine our surprise when I received our gas bill yesterday for $280! OUCH! This is nearly $200 more than last month and WAY above our average. This happened due to it being colder and bad thermostat wars breaking out. Well luckily we will be able to pay it due to our more recent ability to better manage our money.
To pay for it we will reduce all of our fun money (dining, entertainment) and take a bit from our Emergency Fund. Given that we all participated, we all pay! Before I would have had to pay for this by not paying another bill, or even worse using a credit card.
So next time you are deciding between putting a little away in your Emergency Fund or Freedom Fund, remember: this guy could be lurking in your mailbox next...
6 Comments:
Ninja bills--I love it! :) I mean, they totally suck, but it's a great term. Good luck with your thermostat this month.
Thanks Mrs. M!
I think we will all do a bit better this month! It will be hard cutting back the other stuff, but we all agreed ahead of time!
Aren't you glad you were prepared for the Ninja bill?
I'll bet there was a time that you would have gotten the Ninja bill and then freaked out about how to repay it. Now you seem calm and prepared!
You are absolutly right! I still hate the Ninja when they attack, but no desperatation.
I agree with Ramsey here when he says you need your Emergency Fund before anything else.
To easy to get back into a circle of debt otherwise!
I'm with Mrs. Micah - love the term "ninja bill"! Our gas bill was unusually high this month as well (about $200 above average). I had to use some teaching income to cover it, but luckily didn't have to dip into savings.
Brilliant.
You are all more than friends to the blog and I am happy to bring our goofy term into your budget planning process!
@Heidi - This is exactly why we budget! To be able to handle these issues with much less stress! Good for you...and may you defeat any Ninjas that appear in your path!
Thanks for commenting!!
Post a Comment