Day 277: $1 to Autism awareness

I actually had several different ideas for donating today, but I took the easy way out and donated a dollar at Kroger for Autism Awareness.  While at Kroger purchasing some lunch for tomorrow (tomato soup) and some ingredients for my potluck lunch dish on Thursday (macaroni and cheese) I noticed that I will be able to donate a lot to breast cancer awareness this month as well. It seems like a multitude of items will donate part of the purchase price to cancer charities. You would think with all of this advertising/awareness-raising, that we would actually be able to cure cancer. I guess it's harder than it seems. It would be a wonderful day though.

Day 276: Two cans for food drive

I gave two cans of pineapple tidbits away to a can food drive sponsored by two football teams (ours and another local high school who are playing on Friday). I read a brief article in the local press about the can drive, and I sent a student down to the athletic office with the cans.  The only problem was that apparently the athletic office secretary had not heard of the can drive. She accepted the offer anyway, and added that she enjoyed pineapple. I'm sure that my cans will get to the right place eventually (I guess). They are supposed to go to the American Legion Post 318.  I suppose from there the Legion gives them away.  I also held back two other cans of pineapple for a donation later this week.

Day 275: Friskies Pet Food

Apparently, I was the first person to donate to the Pet Food Drive at Panera. I think that the pet food drive is a local endeavor because I saw a sign near Highway 28 and the dog park advertising the drive.  I stopped at Panera for coffee on my way to the Hyde Park art show and farmer's market today, and luckily the big barrel to donate food was still in the vestibule between the two front doors. My Friskie's dry food was the only item, and it clanged to the bottom obstreperously as the crowd behind me tried to overpower me on the way in the door. (Well, it was just one old man and two other women, but they seemed pushy.) I wish I knew how long the pet food drive lasts. I may donate again if I can.

Day 274: $1 to Share the Bread

I didn't even intend to donate to Share the Bread at Panera today, but when I stopped in to buy a coffee, they didn't charge me. This is the third time this school year that the folks at Panera have given me free coffee. Since I had my cash out, I decided to put a dollar in the collection box for Share the Bread. It almost seemed like I had to do this.  I also noticed that Panera has two other opportunities for donating--a pet food drive and some way to donate with pink ribbon bagels.

Day 273: Crock pot cookbooks

I gave my good friend Gina two crock pot cookbooks today. Gina recently purchased a crock pot, but hasn't actually started using it yet. Now that Gina's daughter is getting older, Gina (who cares nothing about food unless it is in the dessert category) needs to learn to cook a bit. The recipes in these little, cheap books are easy to make, too.