I'm a couple days behind in blogging but I have been doing the daily RAOK...or trying to, anyway.
On Wednesday, a friend who lives on the other side of the country told me about a job interview that had been scheduled for this morning (Friday). Though it was for a job she wasn't sure she'd even be qualified for, we were excited for the interview itself...any kind of open door in this economy is a great opportunity.
Knowing money had been tight, and knowing too that if I were to offer, I'd be obstinately declined, I tried to be sneaky and order an online gift certificate that she could print out and take shopping with her to get a new outfit for the interview. I knew that if it was already in her inbox and purchased, she'd have a much harder time declining it. Before I left work for the day, I sent her a cryptic message about being sure to check her spam filters.
When I trundled into my house late that evening, having run some errands and such, I had a message on my machine that there had been a problem with my GC order and I needed to call them. And of course, they had Eastern business hours and had been closed for a while. Looking over the order confirmation in email, I realized that I had used a CC that expired this same month, and was likely the problem.
Of course, the next day, the jig was up: I had to explain to my friend why I'd had her checking her spam filter all night and why the message never arrived. As expected, she protested she already had something picked out and ready to go, and didn't need to buy anything more. We eventually agreed that the universe had clearly decided in her favor by stopping the order from going through, so she won that round. But I did try (and would/will again if opportunity presents itself).
Friday, December 7, 2012
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
On the eleventh day of...
A couple of years ago, three smaller branches of the same grocery store in my neighborhood vicinity closed down to make room for one giant version of the same store. It's large, it's modern, it offers a lot of fun additions (self checkout options and the deli olive bar being two of my personal favorites). It's not that far from the store I used to frequent so it's not even much extra effort to get there. They introduced an "in between" size shopping cart that holds more than a handbasket but isn't going to ram into anyone like those mammoth Cadillacs so often do (and usually on at least one wonky wheel).
However, the one thing they didn't seem to plan very well was the positioning of the Return Cart Here corrals. They offer two or three fairly large ones in the center parking aisle area, but for everyone who has to park anywhere other than those 2-3 main aisles, it means a hike back to return the shopping cart. In bad weather, or for moms with kids and a now full car of groceries, or let's face it, for anyone just not feeling motivated to return something when they've gotten what they needed and can now get out of there, this results in shopping carts positioned willy-nilly across the lot.
Most of the time people at least try to park them somewhat out of the way: in planter boxes, along the inside lines of the parking spaces (which can make parking a bit dangerous and obstacle-course-worthy when the carts start lining up) but it's still an inconvenience to have to navigate around them.
This evening, parked on one of the outskirt aisles and having unloaded the groceries into my car, with a cold wind picking up and rain clouds gathering, I must admit I was tempted. Really tempted. And then I took a look around me at the cars parked crooked around the stray shopping carts, at the carts that had rolled off into some distant corner, spurred on by open space and a building wind to make a run for it. And I looked at the clock which told me it was just 5 pm and the evening busy rush was only getting started. I sighed, locked the car, and started trundling my hybrid-sized cart back to the front of the store. Then, for good Karma measure, I picked up one more along the way.
Sure, it was only two carts out of the couple dozen scattered around the area but I felt mighty for my small achievement. That was two someone else didn't have to fetch in the coming darkness. And as I struggled with sometimes keeping just my two in line and on course, I found a new respect for the shopping cart wrestlers who wrangle 5 or 10 or more at a time, getting them back into line, over and over, all day long.
However, the one thing they didn't seem to plan very well was the positioning of the Return Cart Here corrals. They offer two or three fairly large ones in the center parking aisle area, but for everyone who has to park anywhere other than those 2-3 main aisles, it means a hike back to return the shopping cart. In bad weather, or for moms with kids and a now full car of groceries, or let's face it, for anyone just not feeling motivated to return something when they've gotten what they needed and can now get out of there, this results in shopping carts positioned willy-nilly across the lot.
Most of the time people at least try to park them somewhat out of the way: in planter boxes, along the inside lines of the parking spaces (which can make parking a bit dangerous and obstacle-course-worthy when the carts start lining up) but it's still an inconvenience to have to navigate around them.
This evening, parked on one of the outskirt aisles and having unloaded the groceries into my car, with a cold wind picking up and rain clouds gathering, I must admit I was tempted. Really tempted. And then I took a look around me at the cars parked crooked around the stray shopping carts, at the carts that had rolled off into some distant corner, spurred on by open space and a building wind to make a run for it. And I looked at the clock which told me it was just 5 pm and the evening busy rush was only getting started. I sighed, locked the car, and started trundling my hybrid-sized cart back to the front of the store. Then, for good Karma measure, I picked up one more along the way.
Sure, it was only two carts out of the couple dozen scattered around the area but I felt mighty for my small achievement. That was two someone else didn't have to fetch in the coming darkness. And as I struggled with sometimes keeping just my two in line and on course, I found a new respect for the shopping cart wrestlers who wrangle 5 or 10 or more at a time, getting them back into line, over and over, all day long.
On the tenth day of...
I tend to be drawn to those that love animals as much as I do, so it's no surprise that one of my BFFs responds to her pets as her children, and that they are included on my annual Christmas gift list. The gifts are typically the same thing each year: a small toy for Pixie-kitty, and a new bully stick for the Doberman, affectionately referred to by me as "puppyface".
This year, the gifts for the four-footed children were the last I needed to get before packing everything into a mailing box. Rather than going to a "regular" pet store, I stopped in at the store located inside our shelter (the same shelter I volunteer at, conveniently). While prices can sometimes be a little higher because they deal only with the highest quality products, the purchases send funds directly back into the functioning of the shelter, helping to pay bills, medical care, food, educational programs...all the things that make adopting more preferable to shopping when it comes to bringing a new member into the family. This alone would make a nice RAOK, thought I.
My effort at this RAOK paid off in spades because I found something that puppyface has needed even more than a bully stick: a rain jacket. Because of his size, standard "pullover" type clothing doesn't work well with him, but his age and his short hair are making keeping him dry and warm more important as time passes. Machine washable, slick on the outside and warm and fleecy on the inside, and secured by two heavy-duty Velcro straps around his body which will make it possible to help keep him more dry, warmer, and without the added pain of trying to stuff arthritic joints through the standard dog clothing. And the extra comfort and care, though it may mean nothing much to puppyface in terms of understanding, will pay off tremendously in terms of his human mother's peace of mind.
That's definitely an act of kindness I'll appreciate passing along.
This year, the gifts for the four-footed children were the last I needed to get before packing everything into a mailing box. Rather than going to a "regular" pet store, I stopped in at the store located inside our shelter (the same shelter I volunteer at, conveniently). While prices can sometimes be a little higher because they deal only with the highest quality products, the purchases send funds directly back into the functioning of the shelter, helping to pay bills, medical care, food, educational programs...all the things that make adopting more preferable to shopping when it comes to bringing a new member into the family. This alone would make a nice RAOK, thought I.
My effort at this RAOK paid off in spades because I found something that puppyface has needed even more than a bully stick: a rain jacket. Because of his size, standard "pullover" type clothing doesn't work well with him, but his age and his short hair are making keeping him dry and warm more important as time passes. Machine washable, slick on the outside and warm and fleecy on the inside, and secured by two heavy-duty Velcro straps around his body which will make it possible to help keep him more dry, warmer, and without the added pain of trying to stuff arthritic joints through the standard dog clothing. And the extra comfort and care, though it may mean nothing much to puppyface in terms of understanding, will pay off tremendously in terms of his human mother's peace of mind.
That's definitely an act of kindness I'll appreciate passing along.
Monday, December 3, 2012
On the eighth and ninth days...
This past weekend we received our first big winter storm (and let's face it, in this part of California, it's entirely possible that this might have been our only big winter storm). It poured heavy rain all weekend long, making it a nice time to snuggle indoors and watch movies, but perhaps not particularly conducive to Random Acts of Kindness since by intent, I isolated myself from the world. Still, small things were possible even when facing Noah's flood, pt. 1.
Saturday's was the easier of the two. A friend of mine celebrated a birthday. She lives in Canada, and together we share common interests like reading and volunteering for animal welfare. For her birthday, she was asking people to consider donating to either her animal welfare cause, or if we preferred, something local to us for animal welfare. I knew that she was already familiar (vicariously, via my FB posts) with one of the local shelters I've helped in the past, so for her birthday, I visited the Amazon wishlist for that shelter (Nine Lives Foundation) and purchased 24 jars of Gerber baby food for delivery directly to them. Gerber baby food is used by the shelter for very young kittens, and for the extremely ill cats that can't eat or digest anything more solid. They should be receiving the delivery later this week. Happy birthday, Cindy, and happy eating for the kittehs!
Sunday proved to be a bit more challenging since the rainstorm and general weekend ennui that seemed to grow from the unhappiness of the week before had settled in. I turned on football and started wrapping gifts in preparation to start mailing them, and only slightly thought about what I might do for a RAOK. Given my lack of interaction with the outside world, I thought the day may pass by with nothing to show for it. I was even so lazy that I decided to order pizza so someone else had to cook.
When the knock came (about 20 minutes late so I was a little annoyed), I opened the door to see the smiling face of the deliveryman...the same guy who has been delivering my pizzas (mostly) for 5 years. Maybe more by now. Though occasionally I see someone else, it's usually the same guy, an older guy who speaks English with an accent and knows me well enough to comment "hey it's been a while since I saw you last!" Despite my grumpy mood, despite feeling disgruntled that he was late, I was suddenly faced with a familiar smile extended by someone who I recognized because of years of the familiarity of a regular stranger. What's more, he was dripping wet from the weather that I was choosing to hide from, probably chilled because it's winter and it gets cold (even in California). And still he smiled with genuine pleasure at seeing me.
The bill was $17 for my pizza and soda and the delivery fee. On impulse, I gave him a $5 tip--it's not over the top generous, I know, but it's certainly more than I normally would do for a $17 bill. Since it was on a charge slip, I'm not even sure he knew as he walked away, but I hope it helps. Merry Christmas, Pizza Delivery Guy. See you next time.
Saturday's was the easier of the two. A friend of mine celebrated a birthday. She lives in Canada, and together we share common interests like reading and volunteering for animal welfare. For her birthday, she was asking people to consider donating to either her animal welfare cause, or if we preferred, something local to us for animal welfare. I knew that she was already familiar (vicariously, via my FB posts) with one of the local shelters I've helped in the past, so for her birthday, I visited the Amazon wishlist for that shelter (Nine Lives Foundation) and purchased 24 jars of Gerber baby food for delivery directly to them. Gerber baby food is used by the shelter for very young kittens, and for the extremely ill cats that can't eat or digest anything more solid. They should be receiving the delivery later this week. Happy birthday, Cindy, and happy eating for the kittehs!
Sunday proved to be a bit more challenging since the rainstorm and general weekend ennui that seemed to grow from the unhappiness of the week before had settled in. I turned on football and started wrapping gifts in preparation to start mailing them, and only slightly thought about what I might do for a RAOK. Given my lack of interaction with the outside world, I thought the day may pass by with nothing to show for it. I was even so lazy that I decided to order pizza so someone else had to cook.
When the knock came (about 20 minutes late so I was a little annoyed), I opened the door to see the smiling face of the deliveryman...the same guy who has been delivering my pizzas (mostly) for 5 years. Maybe more by now. Though occasionally I see someone else, it's usually the same guy, an older guy who speaks English with an accent and knows me well enough to comment "hey it's been a while since I saw you last!" Despite my grumpy mood, despite feeling disgruntled that he was late, I was suddenly faced with a familiar smile extended by someone who I recognized because of years of the familiarity of a regular stranger. What's more, he was dripping wet from the weather that I was choosing to hide from, probably chilled because it's winter and it gets cold (even in California). And still he smiled with genuine pleasure at seeing me.
The bill was $17 for my pizza and soda and the delivery fee. On impulse, I gave him a $5 tip--it's not over the top generous, I know, but it's certainly more than I normally would do for a $17 bill. Since it was on a charge slip, I'm not even sure he knew as he walked away, but I hope it helps. Merry Christmas, Pizza Delivery Guy. See you next time.
Friday, November 30, 2012
On the seventh day of...
Today was a challenging day. A reorganization of my company announced a couple weeks ago resulted in the laying off of a large amount of workers, many of whom worked in my department and I've known for 5 years, 10 years, more. Today was the last day they were required to work, and though they will continue to get pay and assistance from the company for a bit, for all intents, today they were done. It was a hard day for both those leaving, and those staying.
Combining these emotions with a heavy rainstorm pounding our area made the idea of doing a Random Act today difficult. I just didn't have the heart, or the energy. I just wanted to go home after the long day, relax, escape in a movie.
But I couldn't seem to let the idea of doing a RAOK go; I suppose once you've gotten used to the habit, it feels a little odd when you don't do one, like forgetting your watch at home or going to bed without brushing your teeth.
So while sitting and watching my movie (The Dark Knight, if you're curious) and sipping on some red wine, I took a little bit of time to browse through some LinkedIn profiles, doing a few endorsements and a couple of written recommendations for colleagues I consider friends, and friends that were once colleagues. It may not be a huge thing, but it suddenly seemed really important to make sure their talents/skills were recognized.
My energy petered out again not long after, with my eyes crossing a bit from fatigue (even now this blog post is getting fuzzy), but the few that I managed to do felt not only good, but really right. It's something I plan to work more on this weekend, after I've given my eyes, my mind, and my emotions a bit of a rest.
Combining these emotions with a heavy rainstorm pounding our area made the idea of doing a Random Act today difficult. I just didn't have the heart, or the energy. I just wanted to go home after the long day, relax, escape in a movie.
But I couldn't seem to let the idea of doing a RAOK go; I suppose once you've gotten used to the habit, it feels a little odd when you don't do one, like forgetting your watch at home or going to bed without brushing your teeth.
So while sitting and watching my movie (The Dark Knight, if you're curious) and sipping on some red wine, I took a little bit of time to browse through some LinkedIn profiles, doing a few endorsements and a couple of written recommendations for colleagues I consider friends, and friends that were once colleagues. It may not be a huge thing, but it suddenly seemed really important to make sure their talents/skills were recognized.
My energy petered out again not long after, with my eyes crossing a bit from fatigue (even now this blog post is getting fuzzy), but the few that I managed to do felt not only good, but really right. It's something I plan to work more on this weekend, after I've given my eyes, my mind, and my emotions a bit of a rest.
Thursday, November 29, 2012
On the sixth day of...
Continuing the literacy theme started yesterday...
Knowing that the project I mailed to yesterday wasn't able to accept hardcover books, I decided to use today to drop off a few of the hardcovers I was ready to get rid of at a location I knew could and would use them: my local library.
As city/county/state budgets become increasingly slashed, hindering many of the public services offered, libraries are struggling to compete for a piece of the pie. The gap continues to widen between those that have ready access to the latest tools and information via electronic devices and the Internet, and those that don't. As these budgets are cut, libraries often have to fight to maintain some kind of funding to enable them to continue providing services and materials.
One method that many libraries use to help supplement their cash flow is the Friends of the Library book sale (or some variation of). Some libraries do it quarterly, or on weekends. Some libraries are lucky enough to have the space for a shelf or a bookcase they can keep up year-round, where patrons can browse donated books for purchase, often at just a few cents a piece. But they can't sell them if they don't have them.
Well now they have another dozen to add to the selection options. And I've placed an empty bag in my closet to place additional hardcovers into after I've read them because this will be an ongoing RAOK, performed whenever I have them to donate.
Knowing that the project I mailed to yesterday wasn't able to accept hardcover books, I decided to use today to drop off a few of the hardcovers I was ready to get rid of at a location I knew could and would use them: my local library.
As city/county/state budgets become increasingly slashed, hindering many of the public services offered, libraries are struggling to compete for a piece of the pie. The gap continues to widen between those that have ready access to the latest tools and information via electronic devices and the Internet, and those that don't. As these budgets are cut, libraries often have to fight to maintain some kind of funding to enable them to continue providing services and materials.
One method that many libraries use to help supplement their cash flow is the Friends of the Library book sale (or some variation of). Some libraries do it quarterly, or on weekends. Some libraries are lucky enough to have the space for a shelf or a bookcase they can keep up year-round, where patrons can browse donated books for purchase, often at just a few cents a piece. But they can't sell them if they don't have them.
Well now they have another dozen to add to the selection options. And I've placed an empty bag in my closet to place additional hardcovers into after I've read them because this will be an ongoing RAOK, performed whenever I have them to donate.
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
On the fifth day of...
I've been out of college for a number of years, and most of my textbooks were sold back or given away a long time ago. But as an English major and Religious Studies minor in love with both subjects, there were a lot of texts I kept as reference, in case there was a time at some point when I wanted to pull them off the shelf to look something up, or re-read something. Realistically, though? The only time they really get moved is when I dust.
Last night I read on Tumblr about a book project being orchestrated by a group trying to collect and build (or re-build) libraries for women incarcerated (primarily for non-violent crimes like shoplifting or prostitution). While fiction books were greatly appreciated and accepted, the post said, what they were truly hoping to receive were non-fiction books: text books, workbooks, books in different languages, books about different cultures, about parenting, about self-improvement and self-employment. Books that could be used as study aids so that the women could use the jail time to study for and pass their high school equivalency exams. Books that could teach them about being single mothers, or about exercise and diet, or simply about improving literacy skills so that, when they are released, they have better opportunities for breaking the jail cycle.
The books needed to be softcover, with no spiral bindings. Even with simple books, in jail there is danger of them becoming weapons. Outdated books were ok; they could be catalysts for sparking a desire to learn more about the subjects discussed. But they needed to be postmarked by November 30 in order to meet the project goal deadline.
This morning I took a good look at just one of the 10 bookshelves I keep in my house (not even counting the stacks of books in my closet and in boxes in the bedroom....not even thinking about the 4 boxes in my car, or the 20 in my storage unit). While a few of my texts kept were thick, heavy anthologies of literature and, therefore, not suitable to send, a lot more weren't. I've held onto them for years, a few of them for a couple of decades, and yet suddenly, this morning, I found it very easy to pull 5 off the shelf and prepare them for mailing. I might have done more if I'd had time, but I was limited in terms of mailing materials and needing to dash off to work, especially knowing I'd need to mail it today in order to meet that deadline.
Just five books...about diabetes, about religious diversity, about contraception, about non-violent protest. Five books that may now pass through dozens of hands, and may spark something that changes the path someone has stepped on but no longer wants to travel.
Just five. Imagine what a whole library could do.
Last night I read on Tumblr about a book project being orchestrated by a group trying to collect and build (or re-build) libraries for women incarcerated (primarily for non-violent crimes like shoplifting or prostitution). While fiction books were greatly appreciated and accepted, the post said, what they were truly hoping to receive were non-fiction books: text books, workbooks, books in different languages, books about different cultures, about parenting, about self-improvement and self-employment. Books that could be used as study aids so that the women could use the jail time to study for and pass their high school equivalency exams. Books that could teach them about being single mothers, or about exercise and diet, or simply about improving literacy skills so that, when they are released, they have better opportunities for breaking the jail cycle.
The books needed to be softcover, with no spiral bindings. Even with simple books, in jail there is danger of them becoming weapons. Outdated books were ok; they could be catalysts for sparking a desire to learn more about the subjects discussed. But they needed to be postmarked by November 30 in order to meet the project goal deadline.
This morning I took a good look at just one of the 10 bookshelves I keep in my house (not even counting the stacks of books in my closet and in boxes in the bedroom....not even thinking about the 4 boxes in my car, or the 20 in my storage unit). While a few of my texts kept were thick, heavy anthologies of literature and, therefore, not suitable to send, a lot more weren't. I've held onto them for years, a few of them for a couple of decades, and yet suddenly, this morning, I found it very easy to pull 5 off the shelf and prepare them for mailing. I might have done more if I'd had time, but I was limited in terms of mailing materials and needing to dash off to work, especially knowing I'd need to mail it today in order to meet that deadline.
Just five books...about diabetes, about religious diversity, about contraception, about non-violent protest. Five books that may now pass through dozens of hands, and may spark something that changes the path someone has stepped on but no longer wants to travel.
Just five. Imagine what a whole library could do.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)