Emergency Fund

Today got me thinking about my old emergency fund. In my youth i always had, stashed away, a few hundred dollars. Hidden somewhere that was secure enough to remain unfound during the many room searches of my teenage years but easily accessible at a moment's notice (if audio tapes were as easy to hide i'd still have my old tape collection). That money and a backpack always packet with a change of clothes was my insurance plan, useful for the several times i was kicked out of the house and in the event of fire (the latter never happened though).

At that point in my life those meager supplies where enough to get me through anywhere from a couple of hours to a few days if need be. Fast food and the possibility of cheap room. An insurance agent's wet dream in preparation if not for the frequency with which i had to make a claim against my rainy day plan. i wasn't that bad a kid... really.

Believe it or not i still have that emergency fund stashed away in a very similar place. Old habits die hard, especially ones so closely tied in with a personal sense of security. My security blanket of sorts. The usefulness of $100 or so, however, has changed dramatically whether due to inflation over time or lifestyle changes.

Sure that money could still feed me for several days, and possibly get me a night or two at a flea infested motel. Sure it would take a couple of months before the electricity, cable, water, and heat were turned off (summer would be a better time for this, of course, than winter). But what about the mortgage? i've grown quite fond of owning my own house, having a safe haven from the world at large. i've dropped a lot of sweat and spilled a bit of blood fixing this place up. Walking away is not quite that easy for me now.

i'm pathetically in love. This is not a solo mission any longer. How long will that money last for two people? Maybe half as long? Maybe less? Will she still be as tolerate of my ways in such a circumstance?

The argument for whether inflation or lifestyle serves as the root cause for the uselessness of my emergency fund quickly becomes a moot point. i quickly realize that freedom is the constant in this equation. Although i am in a vastly happier, healthier, and better spot at this time in my life i am not necessarily any more free than i was as that powerless teenager.

The difference here, however, is that i have chosen the limits of my freedom (a majority of them at least). In fact, i could alter many of those limitation today if i wanted, not increasing my freedom but re-defining it. Looking at how far i've come in that time, i think i'll continue with my current limitations. i'll also continue to hide a few hundred dollars as well, just for old time's sake. (Do you still have your blankey, or sheet?)