...in which Dawn does a goofy dance around her office -

I got great news today!! Maureen the most fabulous casting agent ever (and dear friend) needs some extras for a car commercial and I got called! Sweet!! It means I have to take a half of day vacation from work, but vacation time is something I have a fair amount of. (And money is something I don't.) My boss is understanding and gave me the go ahead.

One thing I should note - I don't put any money up in that right hand column until the check is pretty much in my hand. So, for example, I won't add the pay from this work until the check arrives. Same thing with House Managing - I'll add in the amount when the money is in my warm little hands. I got teased about this slightly* but there will be no counting of chickens until I can look into their beady little black eyes. I would rather have a surplus then plan for something that doesn't come, you know?

One other thing I am doing: I have a flex plan through work - now I am trying to use it properly. My flex plan reimburses me for health costs that aren't covered by my insurance - therapy, co-pays, prescriptions - that kind of thing. I love my flex plan - especially this year when I've had no end of weird medical ailments. So, for example, I go to the dentist and they charge me $45. I take my receipt and send it in, and they send me back a $45 check in a day or two. (My flex plan is super fast.) But here is where lays the problem....

I know that $45 is not budgeted for, so I would try to do "good things" with it - put it in my "high" interest savings account or pay off credit card debit. Except because it wasn't budgeted for, that was just like randomly taking out an unplanned $45 out of checking. Once upon a time when money was rolling in and I was rolling in it, this was just fine. But now that I am feeling the pinch of my bills and looming house payments, this hurts my bank account. It means I would get tight at the end of the month, when I got tight at the end of the month I would simply solve the problem by taking money out of savings. It was a vicious cycle and one I am working really hard to break. One way is by not taking money out of savings, the other is to use my reimbursement checks like reimbursement checks - and put the money back where it belongs. It was a real case of trying to do the right thing, but having it backfire.

So, tonight when I get out of work, I am swinging by the bank and dropping off my flex check - and just letting it go back into checking where it belongs.


*You know who you are, Irish!