Give Big and Leverage Dollars

Thermometer is up over 90%. This has a lot to do with the Seattle Foundation's Give BIG event. It's a good time to give, because it allows you to stretch your money a little farther by accessing the stretch pool. More than $13 M were donated this may to local nonprofits. It's pretty awesome.

I'm starting efforts to fundraise for the SummeRun 5K again this year, and hoping to get in some trail work with friends to get the last bit done.

I'd be lying if I said this wasn't starting to feel like a bit of a slog. Now we are talking deadlines, which are much less sexy. But I'm relieved to know that I'm actually on track to make this deadline (even if plan B is to donate the remaining money in July. It's now a number I can almost afford.)

I think that overall the impact of the project has been good. It's forced me to think about how I want to spend my time and money, and the various ways that those choices affect me and the people around me. And it's helped me to find ways to include charitable work and giving into my normal routine. I now ALWAYS say yes when a cashier asks me if I want to donate a dollar to the foodbank, MS society, cancer research, or what have you. I seek out girl scouts, boy scouts, and campfire kids to help their fundraising. I know how to connect homeless kids to services, thanks to Friends of Youth. I can also cook for a crowd. I make a budget for charitable giving. (Which is cool, because I have enough money I can comfortably share some of it- making me feel double awesome.) I've been able to talk with my friends and family about charitable work and giving, which previously seemed uncomfortable (it's only uncomfortable because no one has any idea what they are supposed to do).

I still struggle with the question of what is best in terms of my time and money. Food bank or Red Cross? Are 5Ks a legit form of "charitable giving"? What about other organizations that do cool and important work, like scholarship funds, animal shelters, or community services? I'm trying not to over think it now. I want to live in an interesting, safe, and vibrant community. That means I support the work of a lot of different kinds of people, mostly because I want to know that those kinds of people are around. One cool thing about giving is that it isn't all or nothing. I can give some dollars to the cat shelter, some dollars to the homeless shelter, some dollars to the community center, and all of this is good. I'm not stressing myself out about whether it is all equivalently good. If I feel compelled to help, I'll help.

A Day of Service

I didn't used to get Martin Luther King Jr Day off. I have no particular habits for this day (today), but last year I learned that many people take the day as a day of service. It's an awesome way to memorialize a man who worked so hard for peace. 

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is: 'What are you doing for others?'" 
-Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

This year, in my current job, I do get Martin Luther King Jr Day off, and I thought I would actually participate in a service project. You know, try out a new organization, meet new people, learn about a new issue.

I emailed my family and asked who would want to tag along, and through the United Way my Dad found a school that was looking for some help with a construction project and that sounded just right to him. My mom opted to go with him, which is lucky for this school, because the two of them are like a construction machine when they get going. I ended up not being able to participate, but they stopped by afterwards to let me know how it went (and get some help on another project my Dad is working on for me. Thanks Dad). They spent 8 hours (!) climbing ladders, sawing framing and generally building windows. Awesome. 16 hours added to the thermometer... and just like that the 70% mark was crossed.

I still want to find an excise to join someone else's service project, but in the meantime, I've got another date for dinner at Friend's of Youth, an both AWIS and HiveBio events on the calendar.

Update: More time than money

When I first started this project, I had this real desire to get involved in my community. I'd been living in Kirkland for a year, and I pretty much don't run in to people I know there. Maybe this is nostalgia from growing up in a small town, but I couldn't feel like my surroundings were familiar until the faces in it were too. Of course, what counts as 'my community' seems to be in flux a lot. The lab is across the lake, my old office was in Queen Ann, my house is in Totem Lake. Some of the things I have been working on have really helped a lot. For starters, getting my family and friends involved with me has been really cool, whether we've been running 5Ks or making meals. Learning more about these causes has also helped me to feel grounded in this project. I don't think of those punks at the mall as punks, I think of them as homeless kids who need my help. My homeless kids.

As always, having a real life does get in the way of my fantasy. This is in part because I don't have infinite time to be attending meetings, meeting with people and building relationships, even when the cause really matters. I've been to various Friends of Youth Offices several times, but I 1) don't know anyone's name there, and 2) don't run in to those people elsewhere. I don't know the names of a single person who I've served dinner to. This is fair, considering how little time I actually spend there. The point is, now that we've passed the halfway mark, and I've got a bit of momentum and some time to think about what this whole crazy affair is about, I feel like the real, personal connection is still missing.

This might be because opening the lab took a heap of time, and a lot of effort that involved either working alone in the lab, or sitting at home on my computer. I can rationalize that I think this is important, long term work. But man, I'd really like to spend more of my time with other people. Another crunch on my time has been working. I can't pretend I was working more than most full time people, but with an hour commute on both ends, it really takes a bit out of the day.

The update that I am choosing to view as good news for now is that I have completed my contract, so I suddenly have a lot more free-time. Yes, I will be spending the bulk of it looking for my next job, but the last time I was looking for a job, I felt terribly isolated and unimportant. Making phone calls and submitting job applications that never get answered can do that to a person. These are both feelings that charity work can help to alleviate, so I'm hoping to dedicate some of my time to moving along this lofty goal while I have more time than money. This can hopefully help me to get in touch with the people in my community, which will help me to feel like I belong here.