Poll

I've been working really diligently on cleaning out my room. I am a major packrat and accumulate a lot of stuff, and now I have a sizable pile of great-quality, donate-able goods sitting outside my bedroom.

I figured that this weekend I would take it all to the Salvation Army, which I so frequently patronize. However, in the mail yesterday we received one of those "donate to the Vietnam vets" things. So, if anyone is reading this... where should my stuff go?

1. Salvation Army
2. Vietnam veterans
3. Divvy the stuff up

Earth Hour 2008 update

Thank you to everyone who supported Earth Hour 2008! (And, um, to a lesser extent... thanks to the people who sent me disparaging articles about how useless Earth Hour is. That's... awesome.)

I had planned on being at home on Saturday night, but I ended up driving to Columbus and spending time with friends. Those friends, however, were totally down the Earth Hour... they shut down all the computers in the house, all the lights and even their cell phones (we went a little nuts). We played Spades by candlelight for an hour and a half or so, before returning to our regularly scheduled energy-guzzling.

Thank you Jared, EricaB, Mark, Bradley and Bill (who was very confused when he came over around 8)... and to anyone who played along at home!

Earth Hour 2008

I've been amiss with my posts lately, which is unlike me, and I apologize. Things are just a little hectic right now!

But I've been "supporting thrift stores" like crazy lately... which is to say, doing a lot of thrift store shopping. Salvation Army is still my fave, but I hit up Goodwill from time to time, too. And as much as I like the eclectic stuff I come home with, I really do think about the difference it makes to reuse things... these clothes aren't being trashed, they're finding a new home with me. I'm also supporting good causes through both S.A. and Goodwill.

This weekend won't see the giant post I was hoping for, but I do want to at least put the word out about Earth Hour 2008. The basic gist: everyone turns out their lights for one hour (8-9pm) as a statement about climate change. I was introduced to the project through my friend Krystan, and I gave her my word that when March 31st rolled around, I'd shut off my lights proudly.

I'll be out of town, so my friends have agreed to have a "candle party" with me... which is great, because it has suddenly gone from 2 people (me + my brother) to 5 or more people involved with Earth Hour.

Anyone else on board? It's a very simple endeavor...

Vote!

If you're in Ohio (or Texas... or Vermont or Rhode Island...), vote today!

It's not philanthropy so much as civil liberty/responsibility. But that's kind of a buzzkill, isn't it?

Another stab, continued

I DID IT!

I'm on top of the world right now. The blow by blow (kinda graphic if you don't like needles):

--Last night, drank water like it was my job. It was getting ridiculous-- I was peeing every 15 minutes. Also took my iron, like I do every night at dinner.
--Today, starting the water thing all over again. Had a huge lunch. And more water.
--During the Hoxworth screening process, the thing that screens your blood (after the needle prick) beeped and I thought it was going to reject me. The nurse tried it again and it was fine... she even complimented my iron count. Hell yes!
--Then the real panic buttons start, because it's time for them to find a vein. The guy checks both arms and doesn't seem too confident... when he finally settles on my left arm, the vein works out immediately.
--15 minutes later he said I was done! That's it! No hematoma, no less-than-full donation, no collapsed vein. DONE! Full donation!
--Cut to Girl Scout cookies and orange juice.

I can't tell you how good this feels, especially after last run's partial failure. Yea, Year of Philanthropy!

Another stab

I'm on my way out the door to give blood. Can you believe it's been 8 weeks already since the last one?

I started chugging water yesterday, instead of waiting for this morning. (Last time that kept me from being able to give a full donation.) I drank so much water I wanted to yak, and I've kept it up since I woke up. I honestly can't see any difference in my arms... here's to hoping the nurses can find a vein this time.

I'm also up on my iron, so we should be good to go. Wish me luck.

What Goes Around

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about two Letters of Appreciation I sent out. One was answered by email that same night... the other I figured was ignored.

Until today, when we checked the mail and I had a form letter from Bic and a coupon for a free razor. This was an especially interesting turn of events because of this line from Bic's "Contact Us" form: Please note that BIC does not send out free samples or coupons.

Just a trick, I guess-- crap, am I letting a cat out of a bag?

And it's fortunate that it happened today, because I've been having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. (It wasn't THAT bad, but still.) It was such a mucky day by about noon that I specifically stopped into Murray Brothers and picked up some sugar-free candy for my diabetic grandmother. No reason, no holiday... just because it's the Year of Philanthropy, and I've been slacking lately.

I also picked up a Reese's Egg for my mom, because a) it's her favorite candy, and b) clearly, she taught me to show my love through sugar.