I’m not normally a (very) pessimistic person, more like someone that looks at ALL angles, both good and bad, so when I got our stimulus package I decided to do something a little different than I had originally planned.

You see, recently my company went through some layoffs, and that along with the way the economy is at the moment, makes me want to ‘hedge my bets’ somewhat so that even if the worst should happen, we’ll be ready.

SO when our check came in (along with my most recent paycheck AND the tax return), I put everything directly into my investment account. I’m not SO worried that I am unwilling to take a little risk to make a little more money, so it’s investments rather than a savings account.

What Triggered My Save Gland

The one thing that really caused me to turn on saving again instead of paying off more bills was gas prices. I drive a LOT more now than I used to, and I end up filling up the tank about every other day. That alone keeps me sensitive to the price of gas. Over the last month alone, local gas prices have gone up almost $.60/gallon. Since I have quite a commute, I also have quite a while to think about things, and the thought that kept going through my mind was "no one’s coming up with any good ideas to lower the price!"

It seems that most people are resigned to the fact that $4.00/gallon gas is either here or will be here shortly, and that it is never going to be lower than that. That worries me because I don’t think we’ve seen the shift in economics that will come with a ‘permanent’ higher energy price. Prices are just now starting to hit the markets with increases because of shipping and transportation costs. The ripple effect is still moving outward from higher gas prices.

Good Side-effects of a Savings Fund

With my recent contributions to the family fund, we’re fully funded to survive 6-9 months of zero income should it come to that. With my savings gland happy, and the wife’s risk levels satisfied, there are a few benefits to this as well.

Housing Market Still Going Down – Over the next two months, the housing market is facing another record increase of subprime mortgages. That I believe will translate to ANOTHER wave of foreclosures and price reductions in houses. I’m aiming at continuing the savings throughout the next year, with an eye to buying a property or two in mid-late 2009, when I’m predicting prices might be near the bottom of the curve.

Upswing in Foreign Markets – While the U.S. is still suffering through a lengthening recession, I believe that there are still emerging markets with quite a bit of steam left in them. Latin America, China, and other upcoming countries’ stocks is where I’m putting my bets for a good return short-term. I’m diversified with my retirement holdings, but I’m going to concentrate some of the savings into funds focused on these areas.

Saving for Home Improvements – I know that this year we’re going to have to replace the back fence and probably the deck, and neither is going to be particularly cheap, so this emergency fund can partially pay for those repairs, if and/or when I see some improvement in the economy. 

Happy Wife, Happy Life – As I mentioned earlier, having an extended emergency fund has given my wife a lot more peace of mind as to what would happen if I suddenly lost my income. I keep telling her I could blog full-time, but for some reason she doesn’t seem to think that’d be enough.

Saving for a Rainy Day, Not Hiding in a Cave

The main reason I switched this to savings, other than the reasons mentioned above, is this was a HUGE AMOUNT OF MONEY (at least for me) to have at one time. With the credit cards under good control already, it seemed a shame to take this particular one-time windfall and use it on bills. This is my version of ’splurging’ with my money. It felt good to put another five-digit amount of money into my account and realize that it’s there if I need it. And if any of the bills act up again, I can just pull it out and kill them on the spot.