by Hope
I remember a time very clearly when I was cleaning out an old binder and stumbled upon a hidden stash of money. Or those times when you are cleaning out the pockets of your laundry and find a wadded up $20. Finding extra money is always a blessing.
Many times, I can quickly recall when I put that money there. But every time, I do a little jump for joy at finding some “extra.”
Bookkeeping Error
As you know, money has been very tight around here. I am pinching pennies left and right. Borrowing from peter to pay paul. And sometimes taking things a bit too far.
What I haven’t told you is that our water was cut off last month. Now don’t jump down my throat, read the details first.
First, it was off for less than 5 hours. But it shouldn’t have happened.
I schedule all my payments through my bank account. I have learned the hard way, now to schedule a payment until I have the money in the bank. (Clients do not always pay when they say they will, so I no longer count the money until I have it in hand. Although I use forecasting to know what I expect to come in and when.)
This particular bill is due on the 10th of each month. I was not able to schedule the payment until the 21st (and then it takes a week to arrive.) So the check was literally in the mail.
On the 25th, we woke up to no water. I was 15 days late, and had not ever been late before. They had cut my water off!
I was able to call them and make a payment over the phone and they turned the water back on within a couple of hours. But wow, that taught me a lesson about being late with the utilities here!
Fast Forward to This Month
The payment for the water bill is still due by the 10th of every month. I scheduled it to arrive on the 6th.
Since then, I have been watching to make sure the check was cashed, and I was not at risk for having my water turned off again. And I waited and I waited.
Today, I started to get nervous as we approach the 10 day past due period. Before I called the utility company to confirm they received it, I decided to check the bank one more time.
And there is was, cashed on the 6th. I don’t know how I missed it!
But I am not at risk for getting our water cut off again, and I have an extra $108 to spend. (I track my day to day availability on an Excel spreadsheet which I also use to forecast. This lets me know what’s coming up and how what I do today will affect the future months out.)
It’s not quite the same as finding a stash of cash in a binder or hidden in the pockets of your jeans, but I’ll take it. Every little bit counts!
The old Hope would have blown this money. The new Hope is laser focused on what bill I can pay or debt payment I can make with it!
Have you every had a tiny and unexpected windfall? How did it make you feel? And what did you do with it?
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Hope is a resourceful, solutions-driven online business manager with over two decades of experience helping clients streamline operations, manage projects, and grow their businesses through digital marketing and technology.
But life has a way of rewriting your plans.
A year ago, Hope made the decision to move in with her aging parents full time – a season she wouldn’t trade, even as it came with its own financial and emotional weight. Earlier this year, she lost her mother, and is now walking the tender, disorienting path of grief while learning what “forward” looks like from here.
Hope came to the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015 as a single mom raising five foster and adoptive children. She’s written through job changes, financial setbacks, and the bittersweet transition to an empty nest. Her kids are finding their footing in the world now – and so is she.
Rooted in faith and fueled by the same perseverance she’s brought to every hard season, Hope is ready to face her finances with fresh eyes and an honest pen. She believes that clarity, courage, and community can change the trajectory of anyone’s story including her own.
She lives in Austin, TX with her dad, loves adventures with her dog Addie, and is figuring out, one step at a time, what this next chapter is meant to be.
Unless you have a pressing bill due i’d save toward the volleyball fees….you’d be 1/3 of the way there!
Those are always stressful times, when money is tight like that. I’ve never had utility cut off but it’s no fun stressing about it. Your experience is kind of why I’d rather pay a bill directly on the company’s website, instead of through my online banking. It usually posts that same day or the next, so they know they have the payment (or it’s pending) and not waiting for the 5 days it takes to get there from online banking. I only have one bill (our city water) that doesn’t let me pay directly on their website (they don’t even have one LOL) so I do pay that through my bank.
Yes, the city did not have a website for payments when we moved here last year. And would only take a card if I called in, and charged a convenience fee. Thus, the bank pay.
That’s ridiculous that your town would cut off an essential service after only two weeks of non-payment and without notice! I’m all for people being responsible, but I think your town is inhumane.
That was my thought too. I’ve never heard of anything like it.
It does seem like they just randomly decide dates to cut off water (not consistently every month) and anyone who is past due gets cut off.
Another adjustment to small town life when the policies and procedures are not always black and white.