Can You Find Compassion?

Compassion (hopefully) is something that everyone feels. I find myself to be a very compassionate person--especially when it comes to helping (people).

Not many people (willingly) take time away from themselves to help others.

I (think) that is a problem.

(Helping) is not hard, simply asking someone, "how are you?" can make a world of difference.

However, my compassion for (people) goes past thoughtful questions and I typically like to help people by voulenteering my time in my local community.

I urge you to try helping people out. Not only will it make YOU feel like you did something good it also (impacts) another life positively.

I like helping others because it makes me feel like I can make a difference, like I matter, and that I've done (something) worthwhile.

Wouldn't you want to make a difference, matter, and do something (worthwhile).

Did I mention volunteering is free?

Did I mention volunteering is fun?
-and-
Did I mention volunteering is easy?

The Baldwin Center

After volunteering at the same place a couple of times you would think that you have seen it all. I have been volunteering at the Baldwin Center for three years now and every time I have been there they have always had a new program or a different project to work on.

Today we worked in the clothes donation center and sorted everything from baby clothes to worn lingerie-imagine picking that one up. At the bottom of a bin I pulled out a neon blue strap only to reveal a very sensual undergarment customized with its own stains in unmentionable locations. It was probably the grossest thing ever--but somehow so funny.

Who would think to donate their used lingerie? How can that be okay? It wasn't even cute!

Going to the Baldwin Center has always been an interesting experience and I love going there to help anyway I can. I knew they had a lot of programs but I was pleased to find out they had about 30 different services they offered to the community. With offering so many programs I am confident that next time I volunteer I will be faced with a new project that is as memorable as the lovely donated lingerie.

Did That Really Just Happen Again?

It was a cool summer night and everything was going right. I was in New York on my day off from working at a Summer Camp, hanging out in a Days Inn hotel room with a couple of my girl friends having a great time. We decided to order some pizza and rent a movie so we could relax before we went hiking up a mountain the next day.

Our pizza guy, Charlie, who we thought was a really nice guy brought some friends over and we were all having a great time eating pizza and making jokes. The boys took ecstasy unbeknown to any of us and fell in love with all of us and wanted to stay up all night and party--but we wanted to go to bed.

We ended up kicking the boys at at 5am and going to bed. They came back and were trying to break into our room with a knife on 3 separate occasions. We were all so scared just laying in one bed all together thinking that these boys on drugs were going to come and kill us. We did not even think to call the police because we were so scared and just wanted to wait until they left so we could book it out of there as fast as we could.

After a sleepless eternity the morning came and we were convinced that the boys had left finally and were passed out somewhere. Oh, how we were wrong.

We got into the car and started to drive away when all of a sudden the pizza guys car whipped behind us and we were starting our high speed chase. We finally called the police and told them a man was following us that has road rage and we did not know what to do.

After a half hour of driving the police finally found us on the highway and pulled him over, we did not stay to see what happened. We decided that hiking up a mountain while people were just trying to kill us would not be a good idea so we met up with some other counselors at the mall and told everyone not to ever let the pizza guy into your Days Inn Hotel room because he will try to kill you.

Did That Really Just Happen?

The last thing I remember is hitting my brakes as hard as I could and cutting the wheel so the truck did not slam into my driver side door.

It was so quiet--none of us knew what really happened until the car filled with smoke from the airbags while sound of emergency vehicles brought us back to reality then I realized that I got into a major car accident at 2 AM.

I got out of my car and started to hyperventilate, I had never felt this much fear and relief at the same time. I never have cried has hard as I was and all I wanted was my Daddy.

I can't even begin to explain the terror that my parents had to of felt when their 21 year old daughter called in the early morning hysterical to tell them she got into a car accident and it was really bad. I remember all I could get out was "I was being a good girl, I didn't do anything wrong"

My dad rushed to the crash site and made the 20 minute drive from his house in 10 minutes to come save me and my friends. He made it just in time to see the police give the other driver a field sobriety test that he failed drunkenly and miserably.

I was the designated driver that night-driving my drunk friends to get food-doing the right thing-and I have to suffer because of someone else and their bad decisions.

Between King and Me

Reading. I can do it. I comprehend it. I have no passion for it.

The only time I really read is for school, or the occasional blog/website I stumble upon.

Stephen King's memoir enlightened me to want to read more.

There was something about the way he said everything that kept me interested and wanting to read more.

I've been blinded by textbooks for the past 16 years that reading for pleasure does not exist to me.

I enjoyed King.

Okay, don't get me wrong here, I have read books for pleasure, but they are few and far between. I've even enjoyed a few textbooks that I needed to read for a class. I want to read more in the future, King made me realize that I'm missing out on a whole world of writing and expression that I'm more or less blind to. Not only do I want to read to be able to enjoy myself, but it will also help my writing skills, vocabulary, and quite possibility be a stress reliever. Right on. Here's the hard part, Where do I start? I don't want to jump on the bandwagon of pop novels, but I'm really not interested in reading garbage (at first) that makes me not want to pick the book back up. I'm torn here because I want to find what I like, but how does one find an author they like if they don't know what they like in a book? I want to read more, I just don't want to read to find what I want to read. Oi. Suggestions?

Today or everyday?

I woke up this morning more hungry than I've ever been, but I had to wait for my mom to make me breakfast, bummer! I walked around the house for hours, occasionally going into my mom's room and jumping on her and then leaving because she pushed me off the bed...that's not nice mom, but I still love you! FINALLY I got to eat, ohm nom nom nom!

But what really made my mom yell at me is when I broke the wine glass she left on the table from last night, I promptly had to walk through it and call my brother, Jamal over to walk through it too. That really made her mad. Whoops!

When mom left for school I got to play with my brother and my cousin, I love when no one is home I get to go wherever I want and even climb in the Christmas tree that is still in the living room. FUN!

We have this big window at my house, to pass the time I usually look outside and watch cars go by..SQUIRREL, SQUIRREL, OMG SQUIRREL!!!!!!

When mom comes home I suddenly get sooooo hungry I cant stop telling her to feed me, FEED ME!!! She usually listens to me, and if she doesn't my brother comes around and both tell her to make us food...

OH NO! RUNNNNN JAMAL, ALLY IS COMING!!!

Irrational Fears

Seaweed has always been an irrational fear of mine, it's strange because I love the ocean and I even have a salt water fish tank in my room. The fear started when I was scuba diving for the first time in Florida and the guide wanted to take us through a kelp forest. I ended up getting stuck in the middle of the kelp and loosing my dive team. That is when the panic attack came, I blacked out under water and the next thing I remember was sitting on the boat throwing up from being sea sick. Thus my fear of seaweed. I have gone scuba diving and snorkeling since this experience but I will not even go close to the seaweed. I almost have myself convinced that I will get stuck in the seaweed and perhaps die. Years later I have a saltwater fish tank in my room where I have sea plants and I won't even stick my hand close to them for no good reason. I'm hoping that in the near future I can get over this irrational fear and be scared of something more worthwhile like bears or herpes...or even worse bears with herpes.

Always Ask A Stranger.

Growing up mommy always said not to talk to strangers, I never listened. By all means, talk to your mail man, especially cab drivers. Or your dry cleaner. Or the woman holding something weird on the bus. Or the uncle you see once every four years. Or that tall man in the silly hat. Or the crossing guard who never smiles. Or the butcher who smiles too much. Or the struggling poet, or nearly-famous folk singer who sits in the window of your neighborhood cafe.
After you ask a stranger a question and get a response you will feel good about yourself, and they will probably feel good about themselves unless you ask them something obscene or offensive. The goal here is not to offend someone, but to step out of your box at least once everyday. If you don't ask questions you will never have answers, you will never know why the butcher smiles so much, maybe he won the lottery, or he is going crazy and wants to butcher everyone in the store. Maybe you can even find out why you and your uncle do not talk often. If you ask yourself a question about someone or something, just ask anyone--there is no harm in that.
My friend and I talked to a random stranger today and she ended up opening her Rio Wrap restaurant up for us and cooked us a delicious hot meal. YUM! I'll be going back there soon!