Sunday, June 30, 2013

Paying library fines - perspective switch!

I have been an avid patron of the public library for many years (and was thrilled as well as jealous when my sister in law became the director of her local library!  She gets to spend hundreds of dollars a month on books each month!  how FUN!!!).
Anyway, as an avid user, I do occasionally acrue a library fine (typically on some media that I ended up not liking and forgot about, or hoped that I would get into, but ultimately hated.)  I used to get SO annoyed at these fines.  But a former boss gave me a new way of looking at these fines.  I now consider them a donation to the library.  Love it!  But the blog has pushed me to find new and creative ways to give back.  So as I was paying my most recent fine (an act that in the past would make me hang my head in shame, but now I consider my most recent contribution to an instiution that I LOVE)  I asked if they would keep the change and use the money to zero out another patron's account.  They obliged.  I gave them a note to give to the chosen patron. 

I think this is a nerd's variation on paying for the toll/coffee behind you. 

Friday, June 28, 2013

Supporting Veterans Through Strawberry Picking

 It's strawberry season! Not only is it cheaper to go pick your own, it gives this stay-at-home parent a fun outdoor activity to do with my children.  And as if that were not incentive enough, I heard about a local organization called Clear Path for Veterans that has a strawberry patch and the money goes towards supporting the programming they provide. Here is an interesting segment on a great approach to help veterans find meaning, prupose and connection upon their return

Fun in the fields. There were so many strawberries, and we are catching the tail end of the season. The staff and volunteers were very friendly, and they encouraged sampling in the fields (good for my kids, especially the little one, who gave me the challenge of keeping her basket full, she ate them so quickly)

Don't the strawberries look luscious?

Friday, June 21, 2013

Appreciation - Via Social Media

With the magic of social media, I am now at least somewhat connected with hundreds of people.  Some are people I knew before I hit double digits, others are much more recent.  There are some people I have not seen in almost TWO decades, and have just a few specific, perhaps slightly random, memories of.  But I thought that I would take a few moments to shoot each one a private message sharing with them what I appreciate(d) about them.  This is free, kind of fun and hopefully will spread some smiles (it is an ongoing project that I do a few at a time)

Monday, June 10, 2013

One hour for the girl scouts





This is one that I did awhile ago, and I hardly consider it a "kind deed" but none-the-less, I did share my time and knowledge.  An old friend of mine does lots of good work for her daughter's Girl Scout Troop. Periodically, we bump into each other in the community.  One day she asked me if I would be willing to do a session with the girls on American Sign Language (ASL).  I am not a particularly skilled individual in any particular area, but I do have a deep enough knowledge of this language that I felt I had a lot to offer for a very basic introduction. And I was honored to have been asked!


So it was a super fun, though short, evening teaching 15 young Girl Scouts some basics about ASL.  Side note, In preparing for this session, I learned that the founder of Girl Scouts was Deaf.  Additionally, my notion that this all comes around, this lovely Girl Scouts troop contributed to my St. Baldrick's fundraising efforts too!