Cleaning out Mom's Pantry

This week we're visiting my mom in L.A. When it comes to my writing, I do believe she's my #1 fan. There's not a word I've had published, on the 'net or on paper, that she hasn't read, and she's my most consistent and accurate editor. So, it should come as no surprise that she's been keeping up with this project. She was particularly interested in the food bank project, so...

The project:
Clean out Mom's pantry. Toss outdated foods. Pack up some food for the pantry. Create a box of food-related gadgets for Goodwill. Clean the shelves and doors.

Time:
45 minutes-1 hour

Why bother?
Mom asked, plus it's fun to do a decent sized project in someone else's home. Kind of like the difference between washing a car that drives city streets in rain-free cities versus cleaning the four-wheel drive that's been muddin' on a back road right after a week of rain.

Worth it?
Yes, on more than one level. This project spreads the love not only within my own family, but with strangers who will benefit from the shared abundance.

Saving Cane

We're on the road again. First completing our cleanup from this week's camping trip, then packing and pulling out again. When we spend the day in the car, it's tough to do a personal, good deed of any sort. Sure, I let the truckers in, try to behave in traffic.

Fortunately we don't spend our entire day in our vehicle when we travel. Our lunch stop provided an opportunity to lend a hand. While in the restroom, I spotted an abandoned cane.

The project:
Returning a cane to its owner.

Time:
2 minutes.

Why bother?
While the cane's user was able to walk away from it, surely she had a reason for carrying it. And these things don't come cheap for folks on fixed incomes.

Worth it?
The owner of the cane was fairly easy to spot as she hobbled away from the restroom. When I hand it to her, she was surprised she'd left it behind, and very grateful for having it back in her hand. She said she carried it for security.

Mayday in the Men's Room

The girls and I stopped at a restaurant in Paso Robles for lunch on our way home from camping and related errands today. As we entered the restaurant, I noticed what appeared to be a family moving slowly across the parking lot - an older man shuffling with his walker, an older woman on one side of him, an adult woman who could have been their daughter or simply a friend trailing behind. They seemed to be doing alright.

After we ordered our food and found our seat, the family entered the restaurant. The man began shuffling straight for the restroom. The older woman, previously at his side, announced, "I'm not going in there with you!" Then walked away. The younger woman turned the other way and found a table.

Before I could grasp what was happening, the older man had fallen into the bathroom while trying to manage his walker and the door.

The project:
Help a fallen man.

Time:
3 minutes - no additional help was needed once he was back up on his feet, supported by his walker

Why bother?
His "family" or "friends" left him in the lurch. He lay face-down on the bathroom floor. Who cares if it's the men's room? The door's wide open, he needs help.

Worth it?
Absolutely. And maddening that these "companions" would just let him go. Clearly he could not have made it into the bathroom, through his routine there, and out again safely. I found it hard to believe they weren't compassionate about something as basic as the need to relieve one's bladder.

Online mentoring

While we hopped into town for an appointment, I did some online research for local volunteer opportunities. As with all good web-surfing sessions, I stumbled upon something interesting but for which I hadn't been searching.

I fired off an e-mail to see if we might fit their volunteer requirements. Sure, I could volunteer on my own, but this looks like a great project for our girls, too, since it involves age-appropriate reading, letter writing and socialization of sorts.

The project:
Academic mentoring by way of the pen. Kids and e-penpal mentors read several books on their own, then discuss them electronically.

Time:
A person could commit minutes or hours to this program. Today I merely wrote a quick note seeking their approval of my children's participation as pen pals, too.

Why bother?
There's no better way to learn reading and writing skills than by, you guessed it, reading and writing! Unfortunately, not all students have someone in their lives who is interested in discussing books.

Worth it?
We'll see if it pans out.

Park tools

One thing I've learned this week is that doing good deeds is much easier in very public places. While it may be tougher to find ways to help out when you're traveling, on vacation, or in the boondocks, it's not impossible.

This week the kids and I joined some friends for a campout at a local rural park. The place was VERY quiet, and the other campers kept to themselves for the most part. We all took turns cooking for each other (but we cook for our own families every day) and I made some scrumptious desserts with the Dutch oven (some present clearly considered these treats good and deeds well done).

But today's charitable deed involved the playground.

The park has a lovely new play structure, including one of those talking tubes that connects one end of the structure with the other. Unfortunately, when they installed the playground, they left uncovered the thin plastic tube that's supposed to carry the voices MYSTERIOUSLY from one telephone to another.


The project:
Cover the pipe so it has a chance of withstanding the tromping of little (and not so little) feet.

Time:
10 minutes - While I'd intended to dig a trench, bury the pipe properly and recover the area with the impact material installed at the park (shredded tires), it turns out there's a thick plastic barrier to keep the shredded tires in place and the weeds out. Rather than cut the plastic, I buried the tube in the impact material and stashed the shovel.

Why bother?
Kids have a great time with this modern playground staple, particularly the littlest kids. Without the underground tube, it's completely useless.

Worth it?
It would have been worth it if I'd could have done the job right. Instead I'll send a note to the parks department in hopes that they'll finish the job.

Recycling

As promised we took our goodies to a food bank today. Super simple drop off. There are bins. No questions asked. It took us exactly three minutes to park, walk in, drop the groceries and return to our car. Anyone can do this.

Today we also recycled our grocery bags. Not a big deal, but I really hate seeing these things flying around as I travel the nation's roads, floating in our creeks and lakes, shredded in the gutter. So we collect them when we shop (and forget our reusable bags), then take them to our neighborhood grocery store so they can be recycled into something usable.

The project:
Gather the plastic bags and wrappers. Deliver them to the recycling drop-off at our neighborhood store.

Time:
5 minutes (if you include drive time)

Why bother:
It has been argued that plastic bags are simply bad news. (And here and here.) But the fact remains that many of the products we buy are packaged in the stuff, and the stores that sell them often hand out recyclable plastic rather than biodegradable bags or even paper bags. Why toss them in the trash? Since we don't have a dog, we don't find the need to use the bags as doggy doo cleanup tools. And I don't intend to begin knitting with grocery bags, but you never know. Instead, we choose to recycle them in hopes they find better use in their next life.

Yes, we carry reusable bags, but I'm not a big purse gal, so it should be no big surprise that I often forget to bring a bag or two (or more) in with me to the store.

Worth it?
Given the debate about the source, longevity and litter related to these bags, clearly it would be best to do a better job carrying my reusable bags. Until I've completely reformed myself, it seems recycling rather than sending into the black hole of the local landfill is the better viable option. And I can do it with a sweep of my arm over the recycling bin as I pass into the neighborhood store - no special trip needed.

Food Bank

Sudanese diet for a week:
American diet for a week: Images from What the World Eats published by TIME magazine here, in book form here, and covered by NPR.

In America, we're seeing record increases in obesity, diabetes and other diseases related to overeating. So how can it be that we're also seeing families go hungry? Many claim the hungry have put themselves in this position by placing luxuries (e.g. plasma televisions, new cars, cloths) higher on the priority list than food for their children. But there are families without these and other luxuries who do struggle to put food on the table.

Many communities offer services for hungry people from food kitchens where hot meals are served regularly to food banks where food, largely donated by the community, is given away free of charge. Schools also provide free and reduced price breakfasts and lunches to qualifying families.

The project:
Gather food from our pantry to share with the local food bank.

Time:
10 minutes

Why bother:
People tend to give during holiday periods. There's also a great demand at that point. Food pantries are often greatly depleted shortly after these peak periods. There's no better time than the present to lend a hand.

Worth it?
I'd like to think that someone would be there for our family if we really couldn't afford food anymore. If our donation means some kid won't go to bed hungry, it's absolutely worth the few minutes it took us to gather it. We'll deliver tomorrow when FoodBank is open.