Day 31: canned goods

I am donating food items every day this week to a local charity set up by a senior at Milford High School. This not only makes my donating easy for the week, it also ensures that everything will be used and appreciated.  Well, maybe not appreciated. I'm not sure why, but some of the items I purchased at the grocery in anticipation of this week's food drive are not things I would eat myself.

I think this bargain shopping for items to donate has to do with the fact food drives really count on canned good, and lots of canned goods aren't really that good.  Today, I put two cans of veggies in (green beans and peas).  This is fine, although I love FRESH peas myself and fresh green beans. Last summer, I bought peas at the farmer's market that were actually delicious.  But for some reason, I went way basic for the food drive.  I even bought two cans of beans and wieners.  Really?  Who eats those?  I guess for a moment I thought they would have fiber and be filling or something.  Later in the week I do have peanut butter and even name-brand cereal.  I'll think of other ways that I can make up for my less than stellar choices.

Day 30: the bat sweater

By 8:30 this morning I had already donated a sweater that I had never worn--still had the tags, in fact. I call it the bat sweater for two reasons. First, it's the same murky gray color I associate with the airborne rodents. Second, it was a fashion disaster I purchased last year when this strange trend of short-sleeved sweaters started infiltrating the low-end stores where I purchase most of my apparel. Each sleeve hole on this beauty was the size of  a large pizza, so whenever I tried on the sweater (which looked relatively normal on the hanger--isn't that always the way) I transformed into a winged creature of the night.  A fat one at that. And I just looked awful. Ridiculous, in fact.  Somehow, I'm hoping this sweater will look better on someone else, somewhere.  If not, maybe it can sit in their armoire for a year and then they can pass it on to the next victim. I suppose it could go one like that for a near eternity. 

Here's a tangential problem:  I gave away one sweater today, but I purchased two sweaters from the clearance rack at Macy's yesterday. Overall, this is not going to reduce my total number of possessions in any way, nor is it helping anyone else (except the floor manager at Macy's who wants to reduce the stock).  Yet, tomorrow marks one month of giving or donating every day. I'm proud that I've been able to keep this up, and I have faith that I can make it for the entire year.  It's becoming second nature to me. I look for donation boxes, jars, and just plain ideas for giving everywhere I go. It's like the English teacher's curse of spotting missing or misused apostrophes on any written sign.

Day 29: oatmeal containers

Today I gave a way two empty, 18 oz Quaker oatmeal containers.  One was quick oats, one old-fashioned. In this case, I saw a posting by a woman named Diane on Freecycle for just these types of containers. I noticed that Diane and I live in the same zip code, so I offered to drop them off, but she insisted that she could pick them up. She might have thought it was weird for someone to offer to drop these off, right? She came by this afternoon and picked them up off my front porch. Why did Diane need empty oatmeal containers?  Some sort of craft project, I believe. I can't quite imagine, but for whatever reason I had the goods!  How is it that I had two empty containers? I actually didn't. I emptied the contents of one container into a ziploc bag.  I just thought it would be nicer to give two, especially if she was driving over. I hope there are more Freecycle requests like this one in the future. It was so easy today.  Just a couple of quick emails.  I feel so green about it, too.

Day 28: A binder, 26 cents, and a book

Unlike yesterday where I had to seek out my doantion, today has been a breeze. Since it was an inservice day, I stopped at Panera.  I had to dig in my purse to put some change in teh share the bread box, and I decided that I really need to start carrying a change purse (that sounds like something my grandmother would have said) just for these unexpected occasions. I also donated a book to our new student-led writing center, How to Swat the Killer Be's Out of Your Writing, and I gave a binder to a friend and co-worker, Diana.

Day 27: Petsmart Donation

I went grocery (and other) shopping tonight at several different stores and kept my eyes peeled for opportunities to donate.  Amazingly, they were few and far between. I had to buy kitty litter, so I knew that if I could make it to Petsmart, I wouldn't miss my chance. I took advantage of the debit card donation, and I donated change to a box built into the checkout counter. Both of these small donations went to help homeless pets, so I'm happy with my choices.
Here's what I'm wondering, though, why do so many grocery stores have opportunities to donate food or money only around Thanksgiving or Christmas? People are hungry all year long.

Day 26: $10 to the Sunshine Fund

I donated to the Sunshine Fund today, the organization at work that sends flowers to co-workers who are ill or have spouses or children in the hospital, etc.. It's easy not to donate to the Sunshine Fund every year.  In fact, a lot easier. It's easy to forget and/or blithely ignore. In fact, it took me about three weeks in to the giving year to even realize that the Sunshine Fund was a possibility. Here are a few things I'm wondering:  has a male colleague  at Milford ever run the Sunshine Fund?  Seriously doubt it.  Why would anyone ever take on the thankless job of running the Sunshine Fund? Well, it's Dee's job now, and I really can't think of a better person. One of these days I will devote a blog entry or two to Dee, one of the most generous people I know. Sincere about it, too.

Day 25: fleece blanket

Although I'm sure I have plenty of bedding that I could donate to Goodwill, today I donated a new fleece blanket that I purchased at Meijers for a greatly reduced price (close to nothing really). Considering I've been freezing myself since November, it made me feel good to give away a blanket--and specifically a new one.  There is just something comforting about blankets, and if I've been cold this winter, I can only imagine how so many others in the Greater Cincinnati area have been truly cold--even chilled to the bone--from a lack of money for the electricity or gas bill or from a flat-out lack of shelter.  There should be a national donate-a-blanket day.

The thing I love about donating at the local Goodwill drop off center:  I pull into the parking lot and immediately this little old man inside notices, he opens the glass garage doors, pushes out a canvas bin to collect the donation, smiles at me and says thank you in that truly appreciative way that you don't hear that often.  He and the bin remind me of a friendly cuckoo clock. The ease of donating at Goodwill and the all around pleasantries make me sure I will go back again and again this year. Basically, today's donation gave me that good feeling--the one that subtly reminds me that I never really give something for nothing.

Does anyone remember the Friends episode where Phoebe tried to find some sort of act of charity that was purely self-less?  She couldn't. I think she ended up letting a bee sting her. Then the bee died.

Day 24: Candy for class

It's straying away from the charitable aspect of giving and it certainly flouts Michelle Obama's crusade to rid the schools of fattening food and obsese children, but today I offered up Nerds and Hershey's kisses for my AP students. They had to write timed essays today over some pretty tough topics for their exams, and I think that a little nourishment for the brain just might help. Is there too much junk food in schools? Probably. Is candy actually really expensive? Yes. I bought the Valentine's themed kisses and Nerds, and didn't really shop around for bargains, but my lord do they rip you off these days. You could spend $5 on just 12 or so candies if you are not careful. I have 100 students (some of them very hungry) so I have to be mindful like some old lady coupon clipper at the grocery store. I wish I could buy them more actually, Especially for testing situations.

Day 23: goods for troops

I went back to Everything Bagels for lunch today. They still had there barrel for donating supplies to troops overseas, so I contributed a bit. I purchased Kool-Aid packets and a giant bag of mixed candy (no chocolate that could melt). When I looked in the barrel, it looked like the same items from last week were still in there--not very many to be honest. One of the items is a stuffed bear dressed in camouflage. It's adorable, but somehow I can't picture a soldier really needing this. To me, this is what the soldier's child needs back home while mom or dad is away. Well, I'm sure someone will enjoy it anyway. The reason I decided to go with Kool-Aid (besides begin on a recommended list of what to send) is because it's mentioned in one of my favorite videos form school--Letters Home from Vietnam, that I used to get to show every time we read The Things They Carried. As far as the candy goes, I picture the soldiers giving it to little Afghan children--although in reality they just might eat it themselves. You don;t have to be young to like Nerds and Skittles. It's funny to imagine who will get the Kool-Aid and candy. How will it even get there? When? If?

Day 22: Books

Today I purchased (on Amazon) and sent two books to a friend, Jill, who recently gave birth to her second son. I ordered a book called Charlie the Caterpillar for the newborn (of course he will have to wait  a long while to read it) and a book about being a big brother for Finny. As an English teacher and book lover, I love giving books. I really can't think of a better gift. The problem with giving books, however, is you don't know if someone has already read the book or not. What could be the harm, though, really. They could always give or lend the book to someone else.

I'm amazed at people who live in homes with very few books. I think I have over 1,000. This is why I try to go to the library now and buy books on my Kindle or iPad. Cursed, but in a good way.

Day 21: freecycle donation of monitor

It's another snow today--actually it's an ice day. No school again. I've spent the entire day not getting enough done, and now it's almost 7:00 p.m. and I haven't given anything away. I decided to turn to freecycle, an online organization that I discovered last year, and have sort of a fascination with. Freecycle epitomizes the old adage that one man's trash is another man's treasure. (I should change the gender considering that most members of the site seem to be female).  Today I posted an offer for a blood pressure monitor that I purchased last month. The monitor seems to work, but gives an error reading a little too often. I bought a different brand which may or may not work. I'm hoping that someone on freecycle will be able to use the "old" monitor. As I said, I love perusing the site, and the variety of items offered is incredible. Some will give away working appliance, while others offer open--and expired--bags of sunflower seeds (I'm not kidding). One person offered 50 chicken hot dogs, already cooked. Waste not, want not.

Day 20: $10 to the Red Cross

I pretty much knew I would be donating online today since I am a bit snowed in. (Day off from school!) I decided to donate to the Cincinnati Region of the Red Cross to help Cincinnati families in need. The smallest amount you can donate on the Red Cross website is $10. I suppose this is due to the processing fees associated with collecting credit card payments. It might just not be worth it to accept credit card donations of less than that.  This leads me to a thought. Wouldn't it be socially correct for major credit card companies to waive processing fees for donations to charities? I could be ignorant about this whole subject, of course.  Just wondering.

After reading a tweet, I also checked out wvxu.org today to see if I might donate there, but the smallest amount you can give is $48! That's just not feasible for me right now. I wonder how many others like me are out there--love public radio, but are not in the same tax bracket (so to speak) as the average listener.  Wait--just went back to the website to catch the link, and they now have the $10 donation added to your phone bill by texting.  I will keep this in mind for the future.

Day 19: Spray Paint

Today I was able to give some black and red spray paint to the drama director at school. The drama club is performing Annie in the spring, so the colors are perfect. She seemed really appreciative (and it really wasn't even that much). I had used the spray paint for a project this past summer--painting free rocking chairs that I got on freecycle. I now have the two chairs--one black, one red--in my classroom.  My tallest boy students love to sit in them. They look like those old men that watch over the Muppets (except bigger). I'm hoping to post more items on freecycle in the coming weeks. Great idea.

Day 18: notepads, cookies, rubberband

We have a department meeting after school today. I'm giving away small notepads, but these are really from the English department supplies. Therefore, I am also giving away cookies that I made last night (chocolate chip and chocolate with Heath bits).  These cookies are especially good because of the pinch of sea salt. They are from David Lebowitz's recipe. I'm sure they are going to be appreciated. If there is one thing teachers understand, it's the need for an after-school snack.  I also gave a student a rubber band and a paper clip.  Surely these cannot count as any serious donation.

Day 17: $10 to Samartian's Feet

My sister told me about a news segment about a local man coaching a girls basketball team while barefoot. I found the segment online and decided to text my donation of $10 to Samaritan's Feet--an organization with the goal of providing 10 million pair of shoes over the next 10 years to people in need.  It's hard to believe that there are people around the world without so much as one pair of shoes. Later this year (probably in the spring) I plan to buy another pair of Toms shoes as well--one donation per purchase.

If I'm right, I think texting donations first became popular after the Haiti earthquake. It's such an easy way to give, like the PetSmart button.

Day 16: $1 to share the bread

I'm wondering what it says about me that I gave $5 to homeless pets yesterday, but only $1 to share the bread--for hungry children--today. I'm also wondering why I've never giving to share the bread before. When I was ordering my bagel, orange juice, and coffee this morning at Panera, I noticed three boxes with change and a few dollars in them. Panera, a restaurant I probably go to at least once a month, probably has these boxes out every day. I think I just took notice today.  When I looked for "share the bread" on the internet, I couldn't find the exact charity.  I'll have to look more closely at the box the next time I'm in Panera.

Maybe Panera should think about the PetSmart option--the button on the electronic credit card pad.

Day 15: $5 to help homeless pets

Donating was incredibly easy today. While running errands, I decided to stop at PetSmart to buy a treat or two for my cats, Callie and Aggie. When you pay with your credit or debit card at PetSmart, an option appears on the screen that allows you to donate $1, $2, $5, or $10 to help homeless pets. Since I had already "saved" three dollars by using my PetSmart rewards card, I decided to donate $5. Normally, I would have donated just $1, but because it was my donation for the day, I thought I should give a little more. I was probably also affected by all the adorable cats and dogs that were at the store today hoping to be adopted. It was quite smelly, but also uber-cute and sad at the same time. I think the donation button is a fabulous idea. It avoids any awkward exchanges between clerks and customers. Just press the button that says "no thanks," if you are not interested.

While I was out, I also had lunch at Everything Bagels, my favorite independent bagel shop. I noticed they have a bin to donate items to soldiers overseas. What a great reason to go back to Everything Bagels next weekend. I'll have to think about a good donation.

My final stop this weekend was not a success. I went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to return a Homedics alarm clock that I received for Christmas that absolutely, flat-out did not work. So, I exchanged it for another of the same type that absolutely flat-out does not work as well.  Grrr.  Finished taking my chances on exchanged, I will just get the money next time.

Day 14: munchkins

I had a little time this morning on the way to school, so I stopped by Dunkin Donuts for a coffee. It hit me while in the drive thru that I could easily pick up a box of donut holes for my colleagues.  I spent a little over $5 for 25 munchkins-a mixed box. This small investment seemed to make a lot of people happy this morning. All but three were eaten before lunch, and several people thanked me.  I've always been a big fan of the small dessert--mini brownies and cookies, for example. This way people feel they can eat a sweet without the guilt. My friends at school make fun of me for always buying miniature food items.  I can't help it. Small food is just plain cute.

Another funny things about giving today: I had this urge not to tell my friends that I had been the one to buy the donut holes. While it was nice to hear "thanks," I sort of like being an anonymous donor as well.  In fact, I still haven't told any work friends about my giving year or this blog. For whatever reason, I think I will wait until I am at least a month or so in.

I've already planned out two donations for next week.  Miniature legal pads at the department meeting on Tuesday (almost as cute as food) and a donation to the school's Sunshine Fund on Wednesday.

Day 13: pink shirt

One pink shirt
Not much worth
Little effort little time
and a silly little rhyme

Day 12: a mere 50 cents

I gave a 50 cent tip today to the special education students who deliver Eagle Eatery once a month to participating teachers. It's a wonderful program (and delicious, too). If I had thought about it earlier, I would have tipped more. Why is it that paper money seems so much more meaningful than coins anyway?

Day 11: blogs, wikis, and podcasts book

What a hectic sort of day. This morning I spent way too much time looking on my ipad and cell phone for school delay or cancellation this morning, but nothing came. Went o school reluctantly. By 9 a.m., though, we knew that we were getting a two hour early release-- just in time to drive home in the snow. 

Still, I managed o give a book to my colleague, Diana. She needs it for working on her research or her Master's degree. I gave her the first edition of Will Richardson's Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and other Powerful Web 2.0 Tools. The text really helped me when I was planning my first OWP class, and I think it will be incredibly helpful to Diana's research. I was happy to be able to give her the book (instead of lend it) because I have the latest edition myself in both hard copy and kindle format. Also, I would have never gotten it back anyway, so releasing it from my possession at the start was the best way. I'm wondering if books are some of those possessions that I am more reluctant to give away. Am. More attached to books, shoes or coats? Today I'm feeling the books. Love them, love to ed them, love the thought of keeping them if only for the faint possibility of re-reading them in the future.

Day 10: Brown pants

Today I gave away of pants before 7:00 a.m. I guess I was thinking about how many places I have to go today, and I wanted to make sure that I was able to give these away today. These pants--brown, sort of like cargo pants--I have only owned for a year.  They are my size, but also-- and somewhat incredibly--way too big. I could have tried to deceive myself for awhile, but the truth is my size hasn't changed; these pants were clearly mis-sized. Also, after washing them, I noticed they make a swishy noise when I wear them. This makes for an unforgivable combination. You can only wear swishy pants so many times down the hallway at school before you begin to feel conspicuous.

I hope someone else will like them. I dropped them in the Planet Aid box around the corner from my house. From the looks of their website, it all seems pretty legitimate.

I am excited to start the semester at Miami today. Hoping I will find plenty of opportunities for donating around campus. I'll just have to keep my eyes peeled.

Tomorrow looks like snow. I'll probably donate online.

Day 9: Black shoes

I haven't ventured out of my home yet today. Instead I've been drinking decaf mixed with hot chocolate and just relaxing. Yes, I should be grading papers and getting ready for the week ahead, but with the prospect of a snow day looming on Tuesday, I'm feeling dangerously lazy. Nonetheless, as soon as I'm out today, I will give away a nice pair of black dress shoes. These shoes have been hanging around for a few months because of their clever deception. You might know the type--they feel incredibly comfortable when you try them on, but after ten minutes of walking around in them, the love affair sours and you start thinking about a trial separation. I even put shoe stretchers in this pair to try to salvage our relationship, but this pair resisted my efforts. It's time to call it quits.

I do not feel any regret about these shoes, and I'm not going through the waffling of yesterday with the two imperfect coats. I also read an article today about stuff and the value of possessions. I liked a specific line about not allowing your possessions to own you. It reminds me a bit of how shocked I was when my father died to realize that he actually owned pretty few possessions. Looking back now, I like the idea.  Thinking I should re-read Anne Tyler's book, Earthly Possessions. I wonder how much it is on Kindle.

Day 8: Goodwill Drop Off

Had a bit of an unnecessary internal struggle today. Last week I saw an advertisement about a coat drive by Huntington Bank that ends on January 9. I was sure the bank would actually be closed on Sunday, so I thought today had to be the day. But as I looked through the possibilities, I couldn't decide what to give away. I narrowed the choice down to two coats: an expensive (relatively) Jones New York coat that I never wear, but somehow still feel an attachment to, and a really ugly, giant (but incredibly comfortable) black coat that looks like a rug that I bought at Meijers a few years back. It probably makes me look like a fuzzy trash bag.

I wish now that I had been able to give away one or both instead of just waffling back and forth. Instead, I  purchased a brand new pink coat for a little girl at Walmart. It was on sale--only $10.  I tried to drop it off at Huntington, but didn't make it to the bank before they closed at 1:00. Luckily, I made it to the Goodwill drop off that is near my home. Giving away the coat was incredibly easy. I hope to visit the Goodwill drop off more often, and I hope to stop having so much ridiculous consternation about giving away items I probably won't even wear this season.

Day 7: magic loops and tiny apples

Just a quick entry today. I was able to give away three sets of Magic Loops today in three different classes to the students who could define the literary terms chiasmus or polysyndeton. (Such obscure terms, I know).  One of them isn’t even recognized by spellcheck. At lunch, I gave away three miniature apples to three fellow teachers: Jenna, Erin, and Craig. I also ate one myself. They were a novelty, but tasted delicious.

Day 6: Ronald McDonald and a pencil so far

I was worried that I wouldn't run across an opportunity to give something away today because it's a really long workday today--parent/teacher conferences tonight. These are the nights when I work 12-hour days. I should be used to this, once my class at Miami starts, I will have 12-hour days twice a week.

I guess I should come up with a list of ways to give, so that I can stop feeling pressured each day. I am waking up each morning a little tense about what/where I will give. Sounds silly because, of course, the possibilities are endless. It's just a matter of finding the time and following through, really.  I imagine this will subside after a while. Or maybe it won't.

Obviously I could always go back online. I'm sure $5 here and there would be welcome by any institution. I'm also going to spend some time this weekend washing and organizing old clothes and shoes. This will help as well.

Back to today--by 7:15 a.m. I had already donated my change ($1.13) to the Ronald McDonald House and given a pencil to my student, Eli. This is the third day in a row for pencils. I wonder if I'm on a streak.  That would be sort of fun.

Day 5: a pencil, green onions, and a book

I started out today trying to give away a piece of technology--an airliner--that I haven't been utilizing in my classroom. That didn't pan out for today (maybe later), so I decided to just wait for opportunities for giving to arise. The first came during study hall when I gave a student a pencil. I jumped at the chance. I saw him clicking repeatedly on the top of his mechanical pencil and then exclaim something like, "Are you serious?" Immediately I reached into my desk drawer and came up with a brand new mechanical pencil from a box I bought a few years back. I purposely gave him a new pencil in case this was my only opportunity for giving for the day.

At lunch, however, I ran into my second chance. I had packed a delicious baked potato with all kinds of accouterments including really fresh, bright green onions. There were too many, however, for my small potato so I offered them up and had two takers. Erin said it was just what her sandwich needed.

By the end of the day, I still felt I needed to give something more substantial, so I took a book off my shelf before I left school for the library across the street. I thought that the library might have an opportunity to donate, and I was right.  I first pondered which book to take (I decided on one I thought was good, but I wouldn't miss).  At the library, I saw a sign about an upcoming book fair, but no big bucket to throw books into. At the last minute I decided to ask the librarian who was helping everyone with the new self-checkout system if they were taking donations. "As long as it's not a textbook," she said.  I wonder if anyone will buy my old copy of David Sedaris' Holidays on Ice? 

I'm wondering now how often I will have to seek out my giving opportunities and how often they will just fall in my lap.

Day 4: School Supplies

Giving away school supplies is a necessary part of any teacher's job. But should it be? I guess that's why we get a tax credit at the end of the fiscal year, right? Today I gave each of my AP Language students a tiny pad of post-it flags to use while they read Nickel and Dimed. I thought it was a kind gift, and I was happy to do it. I also gave my student, Wyatt, a pencil today.  Pennies, right?  Actually, I wish I would have kept track somehow from the beginning of my career just how much money I have spent.  The boxes of tissues, supplies, and things for my classroom might even come out to be as much as I've spent on continuing education. What's the point, though. I guess the only point would be if there was ever a more organized, national movement to support education and educators in this country. And by support, I mean with money--the green kind.

Not really complaining, just saying. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to work in an office where everything you need is supplied.   Of course, there would be the whole working in an office part. Probably not worth it.

Just editing now--I just gave away a pack of index cards to my study hall student.

Day 3: Cleaning the iPad screen

Today I gave my friend and fellow English teacher, Allison, a microfiber cloth for cleaning her iPad screen. She just received an iPad for Christmas; I've had mine since the end of the summer, and perhaps one of the biggest nuisances is the constant smudging of fingerprints. At the NCTE conference, I actually made a replica of the whole qwerty keyboard with tiny fingerprint circles.

Anyway, I read somewhere on the internet that microfiber cloths work wonders. I saw a two-pack in the $1 spot at Target, bought it, and was pleasantly surprised. Now Allison can stop using the corner of her fleece Snuggie to clean her iPad, and I've fulfilled my mission for the day.

I also gave another friend and fellow English teacher a number of assignments to use in class today.  I don't think this really counts as giving, though.  It's more a normal part of my job.

Day 2: Today's Giveaway--Keds

This one will hopefully become a regular habit. In the first place, I own way too many pair of shoes. Secondly, while I still wore these Keds occasionally, they were actually never very comfortable for me, which is really my second point: I own way too many pairs of uncomfortable shoes. The were tan Keds mules (or slip ons) with superfluous laces. I think I first bought them at Kohl's with the idea that I could wear them with capris. A couple of thoughts came to mind with this second donation:

1. Why did it take me more than a minute to decide to give these away? I guess it is because the were still perfectly wearable. Even my sister said, "You're giving those away?" in a questioning tone.
2. Maybe by the end of this year I will only own comfortable shoes. Should this be a secondary goal of my project? Truthfully it should be a goal for all women, but I don't know that I will every be able to really follow it. Maybe when I'm 80.
3. I gave my shoes away to a donation box in a strip mall. I plan to do this a lot because it's easy. But I did start questioning the idea of whether or not this is really giving. The box said that all proceeds from the donations go to support Special Olympics--a good cause. However, that means that a for-profit company is selling my free shoes.  I thought about this for a minute (especially since I passed up another box that said Planet Aid but was full). In the end, I've decided to stop being judgmental about this giving thing. The were only a pair of old sneakers for goodness sake. What right do I have to demand integrity for them. I have a suspicion that I will have to keep reminding myself of this throughout the year.
4. Two other things I noticed while driving to give away shoes and buy coffee this morning: a Goodwill center and something about Kids Helping Hunger. It looked like a good place to donate some of my time this summer.

First Day of the Big Project

The plan is simple, really. It’s January 1, 2001, and I’m pledging to give something away every day this year. Even if it’s just a pencil to my student who needs to take a Scantron test— one thing every day. I’ll blog about my giveaways here.  Because I am typically a rule-follower, I feel the need to set up some parameters for myself.  I’ll start with three, but I’m sure to add more as the year unfolds:

1.  It doesn’t have to be monetary and it doesn’t have to be momentous. In fact, it may be the smallest, most insignificant gesture of the day.  No pressure there. Phew. 

2. If I mess up, I can get back on the wagon. This is a cardinal rule of dieting, I know, and I think it would apply here as well.  Again, this relieves a little pressure, which begs the question, why do I feel so much pressure about this? How hard can it be to simply give something away for 365 days and blog about it every, single day? Well, let’s just say that a commitment to a plan like this has every possibility of waning. I’m sure there will be boring days, days when I just don’t feel like logging on, days when I’m feeling selfish, etc. 

3. I won’t get preachy and didactic about giving. The fact is, I plan to get something out of this for myself. For one, I will de-clutter my home by giving away clothes and other items I no longer use. For another, I will have a reason to write every day, something I love and hate to do at the same time. Finally, I’m sort of expecting that a heightened awareness of all the possibilities for giving will change me in any positive way. Can’t really put my finger on that one, but how could it not?

To get started, I planned to give $10 today on donorschoose.org, a website where teachers post about items they need for their classrooms. Starting small, but close to my heart. The website, though, felt overwhelming. So many classrooms, wanting so many items.  Having no real way to sort through the requests, I narrowed by subject (English Language Arts), then by state (Ohio), then by city (Cincinnati) and found a great cause.  I donated money to buy copies of the third book in the Hunger Games series, Mockingjay, for a local classroom. It felt good until I realized that my $10 is not going to go that far. But it’s tangible at least, it’s one book.  Had I not purchased my own copy of Mockingjay on Kindle, I guess I could have also mailed her that. Well, that’s an idea for later, donating books.  I certainly have plenty of them.