charitable associations

in my previous post, i suggested that donating money to a charity of your choice is an easy way to show support for a cause that maybe you are unable to help in a physical way (building homes, visiting poverty sticken countries, volunteering time at a hospital, canvassing, etc). many of us simply do not have the time or means to do it. however, choosing the most fit charity can be a difficult task. i feel it is my duty to help you make an informed and sound decision. i cannot, for obvious reasons, give you a list of all charities worthy of your money, but what i can do, is help ensure that you place your money in the right hands. the following is a list of tips for giving:

A List of Tips For Giving

- first and foremost, choose a cause that is meaningful to you. you won't feel good about it if you dont.

- do your research and ask questions. any legit charity can and will eagerly answer all of your questions about exactly where the money goes, how its used, and what progress they have made to date.

- consider the impact and be realistic. rememebr that if you're giving to a large charity, the money is part of a bigger whole. the smaller the charity, the bigger the impact your donation will make. EXAMPLE: if you're looking to cure AIDS, donating to a small charity won't make this happen. but if you want to help children get a healthy breakfast in the mornings, i'm positive you can find a local charity that does just that and your $50 will go a longgg way.

- please, for the love of all that is holy, make sure the charity is legitimate. if you're in Canada, all charities must be registered. they will be given a registration number and the canada revenue agency supplies a listing of all registered charities. you can get access to that list here. if yours isn't on the list, you need to put your money elsewhere.

- try to choose a charity with low overhead and administration costs to stretch your dollar. bear in mind that all charities have public financial statements (just ask them, they'll be happy to supply you with it. if they dont then ding ding ding, something's not quite right). ideally, 10%-15%, or less, of revenue should be spent on administration and fundraising. legally, though, they can (and do) spend in excess of 25%. just for the record, war amps spends 7% (or less!) on admin costs.

- if you want to donate, but don't have extra monies laying around (like most of us) you can always rummage through your closet and fianlly get rid of those clothes you said a year ago you'll "wear soon." books, food, clothes, shoes, and protective items (think outerwear, coats, blankets, etc) are all great items to donate rather than trash during your spring cleaning.

:)

bought and paid for.

I usually try to avoid discussing the topic of which this particular blog is based. Only because of the simple fact that it makes for an easy intro into a heated political debate. Politics is something I am neither knowledgable about nor overly interested in. However, as a consumer, as a human geographer, and as an employee in the retail industry, I have something to say.

Currently I am a worker bee for a company that sells merchanise targeted towards 12-18 year olds: accessories, cosmetics, hosery, and more recently, clothing and shoes. From what I've seen over the course of the 7 months I've worked there, I have noticed that a large portion, possibly even 100%, of the goods are made in China. This should come as no surprise and is not the problem I'm having. As a direct result of the merchandise being produced there, my company is able to offer it to the public at a very reasonable price. By reasonable, I mean you can buy 3 shirts for $10. Um, bargain? Yes. But with that being said, how high do you suspect the quality of these shirts are? Personally, I would label the clothing quality as "satisfactory" and I'm only saying that because I cant think of a word that doesn't insinuate that the quality is "poor", which it is not, but it is definitely not "good". But regardless, this, again, is not my problem.

My problem is that customers purchase this merchandise, knowing full well that they could have easily gone elsewhere, and then come back 3 weeks after wearing it, and proceed to bitch like a little girl about how disgusted they are that there's now a hole in the shirt or that the seam is coming apart.

Now, I'm not a clothing designer or a seamstress, but I am a consumer. I buy things, I wear things, and I use things. In my 22 years of life, if theres one lesson I've learned, its that on the whole you really do get what you pay for. If I'm going to buy something that I expect should have a lifespan of greater than 3 wears, I know that I need to actually invest some money and pay a little extra. Do I wear the clothes that I sell? Yes. But I would never assume that it would last me longer than one season, that's if I'm lucky and dont treat the garment like shit.

So let's think about this, shall we? The Chinese people mass produce clothing for pennies a day in a sweatshop environment where the official standards are likely very low and a high number of items produced is the only indication of a job well done. If finer quality is what you seek, there are other options available. Why don't you support a local business or designer and purchase clothing that was made right here in Canada?

"But Jenn, the Chinese people rely on folks such as myself to make a living, even if it is in a factory".....well, if monetary support is what you're offering, why don't you think about the specific cause you're trying to help/concerned about (joblessness, homelessness, grotesque working environments, unfair wages, etc), look up a charity that relates to said cause, and then make a donation? It's easy.

In no way am I saying that I actively endorse or encourage the modern day slave-ification of the Chinese people, but if you're dead set on getting 3 shirts for $10, please don't make a scene when the dryer destroys them.

water's hotter

I really, really like water. It's definitely one of my favourites. I like to drink it, dip my feet into it, swim in it, bathe in it, freeze it and then crunch on it, and I like to look at it. I dream I can breathe under it. And I taught myself how to swim in it. The horoscope says im a cancer. That's a water sign. (I just googled my sign to be sure I was right, and ended up reading semi-in-depth about it, and I'm floored by how accurate it was. If you want, check yours here.)

I like the rain too. I don't like to be IN the rain, but I do enjoy watching a thunderstorm. Especially on a warm day. And I have a sleepytime playlist that features the soothing sounds of waterfalls and jungle rains. My favourite song is Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd...and in it he says, "We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl, year after year." Do you know the line I'm talking about? Well, either way, he says it. I'm pretty fascinated with water in general I think. Oh, and did you know that ice can assume a large number of crystalline structures, more than any other known material? Impressive! (I found that tidbit here)





So you know when you're absolutely paarrched and after you pound a tall glass of water, you immediately feel like a million dollars? That happened to me this evening. I took a moment think about how freakin great water is. Then I stumbled upon the picture above, and others, shortly after. Basically, I really just wanted to show off how sassy the water looks.

Pretty Volcano

The picture above I found whilst browsing for a visually appealing photo to aid with my learning about this blog. I've been practicing putting links into words also. For example; to see another sweet photo that is almost as captivating as the one above, click here.

Bam.
So how'd I do for a newb? haha. pretttty well, id say.

They're Nothing But Bad News

Im convinced that my cellphone is giving me anxiety. I worry about it a lot. I worry about where i've put it. Is it in my jacket? Or my purse? On the dresser? Oh, got it. In my bag. Good. I worry that im sending a text to the wrong person. Always check that. Twice sometimes. I worry about long distance charges. Mag and i talk a lot on the phone i think. Is this costing me if its rogers-to-rogers? MyFive? Whats that? Oh yes. ive seen a commercial i think. Ill look into it. And my phone calls people by accident too. Gotta remember to lock the keypad. Dont want anyone to hear your secret conversations. Data plan. Will i go over my byte limit? probably! whatever that means, anyway. And now since my phone has been stolen from me (and miraculously recovered by ME! - more to come about THAT later..) i have to be extra careful. So after all this, is it even worth it? Seriously. Its all i think about. And frankly, that's kind of gross. Plus i have to pay out $70 a month to feel this miserable about it? Oh boy.

Fantasyland.

OK. So I failed my last mission. I acknowledge and accept it. Time to move on.

Today I was pondering different blog topics and how each topic would potentially play out if I chose it. I spent probably a good 15 minutes thinking about where each blog would end up. Then it occurred to me that not only do I have many normal dreams, (not that the actual dreams themselves are normal - I mean I have nighttime dreams) I am also a perpetual daydreamer. I have full out fantasies in my mind everywhere: work, on the bus, during everyday conversations with others, at night before I fall asleep, during lectures (not that I attend lectures NOW, but I used to not too long ago).

I spend a LOT of time just letting my mind wander off. Sometimes I think about what I'm actually doing and why I'm doing it, sometimes I replay events in my head and give them alternative endings which are usually more favorable for me than they were in actuality, sometimes I'll even introduce different people into the scenario and judge how their specific personality would change the dynamics of the situation. I also often wonder what people I know are doing at that very moment. And sometimes...the daydreams get kind of sexy. This happens on the bus usually. It makes me giggle to know that I'm thinking something of that nature in a place where its less than appropriate.

Anyway, then it occurred to me that maybe I have a problem. Is this healthy or unhealthy behaviour? Am I living in a fantasy world? Do I spend too much time thinking about what COULD HAVE happened rather than what REALLY happened? So here's what I did; I made a list of pros and cons to help me decide. See below.

CONS

• i get terribly distracted from reality
• public laughter at inappropriate times leads to embarrassment.
• not focusing on actual task or situation leads to decreased productivity (for example, i made this list, and essentially wrote this blog, while at work)
• i create unrealistic outcomes for situations and I let myself down because things RARELY work out they same way I dream they will.

PROS

• helps maintain a vivid imagination - key for someone like myself who tries to tap into creativity every now and again.
• its FUN. plain and simple.
• its like a movie in my head only its FREE. and it always ends the way i want it to.
• doing it makes me happy.

As you can see by my extensive list above, the pros and cons are equal. Now it only depends on how much significance each point gets. I say that since the daydreaming has yet to leave me socially inept or take me away from the world to such an extent that I'm shucking my responsiblities, I am still in the "healthy" category. I fear that maybe one day I will slide over onto the "unhealthy" side of things without even noticing. Its at this point that I dream someone will prepare an intervention.

The Pressure's On

How does a girl like myself who has yet to recognize where her interests and strengths lie, begin to tackle posting creative writing in a public forum when her previous efforts have failed? I suspect it will have to stem from dismissing the notion that what others think matters. Unfortunately for me, this takes a complete personal paradigm shift. Daunting. The catch is that in the end I believe I will ultimately look in the direction of the same people I am trying to pay no mind to, to provide me with feedback.

The most significant problem I foresee myself facing in this project is not the comments/criticisms from others, but rather the struggle with myself to stimulate creativity on a regular basis and produce interesting and meaningful works. I think it comes down to me discovering, and then actively embracing, what inspires me. Also daunting. After 22 years, you would think I would have a faint idea. Nature, music, art, successful people, a quote. No, no, no, no, and no. The only thing that I find "inspires" me, is pressure. Unhealthy? Maybe. Works? You better believe it.

The lesson: What I have learned here tonight is that I must encourage myself to set firm goals, reach said goals, and then reward myself accordingly.

The goal: I will write again before the work week is through.
The reward: bragging rights. haha.