I keep reading all these inspirational stories here and there's apparently at least two ways to have an emergency fund: access to credit cards, or cash & cash equivalents.
Today, I updated the ol' net-worth spreadsheet, and I had a minor revelation. Of the various places I have money, some of them are convertible to cash quickly: Sharebuilder, Vanguard STAR, savings bonds, money market at the credit union, etc. I had never earmarked any of them as an emergency fund before, but maybe I should think as such.
As of today, these total $11,266.80. I could also pull money out of the Roth in a dire emergency, I suppose, but that's not an attractive option, so I didn't count that. I also have about $22,000 in available credit spread over four cards, and I never carry a balance.
I think I'm probably covered. Employment is extremely stable (public safety in government) and I don't worry about losing my job. What do you think of this?