The $$$ of protection

Let’s talk about insurance.

Insurance has been on my mind for the past few days, because on Thursday night, this happened:

I don’t know what I’m looking at here either, but the radiologist report reads: “uniform material in her stomach that is not typical of dog food and is concerning for a foreign body in her stomach.” What I do know is that Juniper - a sentient Roomba - vomited under the couch around 4pm. By 6pm, she was lethargic and looking at me with what can only be described as Dear-God-Help-Me eyes. Two days, two x-rays, and $1,600 later I’m happy to report that she is fine, having naturally passed whatever dark snackum she consumed. I’m also delighted to report that the $30 I shell out each month for her pet insurance is money well spent; after meeting the $500 deductible, I’ll recoup 80% of the remaining $1,100, and Juniper will be free to repeat this performance at least ten more times before we hit the annual limit.

Meanwhile, The Project has necessitated its own collection of insurance policies. In order to move forward with the construction loan, the bank required us to carry both home insurance and a product called builder’s risk insurance. The latter insures the property during the construction phase and comes at a pretty penny (we paid $6,101 for a policy through Southwest Business Corporation). I’m not exactly clear what the former is doing for us, since all of our personal belongings are now covered by renter’s insurance (a comparative steal at $400 per year).