Day 90: Easter Egg Fun

I have some great memories from my childhood of hunting for eggs on Easter morning. My parents would always hide a bunch of eggs around the house and also a basket with my favorite candy and some toys.  My brother and I would always compete to see who could find their basket first.  Being that my daughter is only 10 months, she isn't able to grasp the concept of going to find hidden eggs so we just put a basket in the middle of her room for her to play with.  It was fun to watch.

Today, for my act of kindness, I decided to do something in the Easter spirit.  I took one of those plastic eggs that you can open and I put $5 in it.  My wife and I then took a trip to the grocery store.  I decided it would be fun to place this egg in the store for some stranger to find.  As you can see from the picture above, we decided on putting it in the peanuts.  We didn't wait around to see who found it, but I am sure they were happy.  Fun stuff.  Thanks to my wife for the idea.

Day 89: Long Overdue

What I will look like in a few short weeks!

For the last couple of years I have tried multiple times to get in better shape.  I have used many different forms of motivation like spending too much money on supplements, gym memberships and at home workout DVDs. I also signed up for the ToughMudder last year, which is a 12 mile obstacle course, in hopes that it would force me to get in better shape. Well it didn't, and although I was able to finish the ToughMudder, it definitely wasn't pretty. So in the end, none of my motivations have worked.  I would always start off strong, but after a couple weeks I would find an excuse to not workout and before I knew it I stopped completely.

Well today, I am trying a new tactic, and I will be using all of you as my motivation.  There have been days so far in the year that it would have been easier to not write about an act of kindness, but when I think about the amount of people that read this (Over 21,000 views so far) it motivated me to find time. So I thought if I committed on here to working out everyday that it would help keep me accountable.  With that being said, going forward, I will not write this blog each day until I have done some sort of exercise or have it planned to work out right after. Hopefully it works because I have already registered for the ToughMudder in September!

I thought this is another one of those, is it really an act of kindness things...?  But the more I got thinking about it the more I realized that being healthy has an impact on not just me.  It will make me a better dad and husband in the long run.  Plus it is important to be kind to yourself!

Day 88: Cheer for Intentional Walks

I am a big baseball fan.  With the season starting on Sunday I thought it would be fun to do something that revolved around the sport.  A coworker of mine brought a charity called "The Cure Baseball" to my attention this week. The Cure Baseball is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to providing financial, emotional and moral support to people and families affected by cancer through a traveling summer collegiate baseball team, support group programs and donations to prestigious cancer research groups affiliated with college and university medical centers.

A cool fundraising effort that this organization is doing is called "The Intentional Walks Campaign." Basically it is a campaign where they are looking for people to donate a small amount for every intentional walk this MLB season. So today, for my act of kindness, I donated 1 cent per intentional walk.  Last year, there were about 1100 total in the season.  Normally, I just get annoyed with intentional walks, however this year, I know that every time one happens, money (both mine and a lot of other people's) will be going to a great cause.  And that is something I can cheer for.

If you would like to learn more about this organization, click on the following link: http://www.thecurebaseball.org

Day 87: Purchased Bed Sheets

Sometimes there are days when I am able to do a random act of kindness while at the same time being productive.  Today was one of those days.

We have not bought bed sheets for over three years, and with a 75 pound dog who sleeps in our bed, you can imagine how much we are need for some new sheets. My wife found a cause on Facebook where a business, CoZzzy Comfy, if having a deal where if you purchase a set of bed sheets from them before April 3rd, they will donate $10 per order to a specific family in need.  The family it is going towards has a Facebook page called "Liam's Leaps and Bounds." Today is Liam's third birthday and  from what I have read, he has had a lot of medical issues through his first few years and whatever financial help the family can receive will be greatly appreciated.  I know I have never felt so good about buying bed sheets!



Thanks for reading my blog! I will be donating 10 cents to a charity or a good cause at the end of 2013 for every follower. Please follow me on twitter @365kindacts or like me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/365-Kind-Acts-for-2013/387097501381996?fref=ts

Day 86: Not Just Junk Mail

First off, I wanted to say that I got this idea from someone else who is doing random acts of kindness throughout the year.  You can find them on twitter @pledgekindness. Thanks for the great idea!

I literally check the mail at most once a week, and the reason why I check it so infrequently is because there is never anything fun in the mail.  It is either bills or junk mail telling me how I am pre-approved for something.  Well today, for my act of kindness,  I decided to send a complete stranger a different kind of bill, one that they would probably be happy to see.  I put $5 in an envelope and picked a random name out of the phonebook to send it to.  I hope they appreciate the small gesture of kindness and pass it on.  I know if I randomly got money from someone I would be checking my mail more than once a week!

Day 85: Marriage Equality

Today is the first day of the Supreme Court hearings on a couple same sex marriage laws.  I try to make it a point to not make this a politically driven blog however this is something I feel very strongly about. I don't believe anyone should be restricted on who they choose to love/marry.  So today, for my act of kindness, I did something that a lot of people did today throughout the country, I switched my profile picture to the image above to show my support for marriage equality.  As just one person switching their picture, I know it doesn't mean much, however with the massive amount of people who have switched their profile picture today it gives a much better perspective on how far this country has come in the last ten years regarding this topic.  And that is great to see!

"We're just trying to find happiness in the bodies and minds we were given, like everyone else" - Ellen DeGeneres

Day 84: A Library for Ants

For anyone who caught my "Zoolander" reference in the title....good work, and we should definitely be friends if we aren't already.

When I went out to lunch yesterday in Door County this "Little Free Library" was outside of the restaurant.  Apparently we have a few of these in Madison, WI but this is the first one of these that I have seen.  I think it is such a cool idea because lets be honest, who reads a book twice? I know I never have. Whenever I am done with a book I either give it to someone or put it on a shelf somewhere to collect dust.  So today, for my act of kindness, I found a book (thanks Mom) and donated it to this little library on my way out of town.  I hope some stranger enjoys it!

Day 83: Asking to Help

Ever since I was little my family has made mulitple trips per year up to Door County, WI.  Some of my best memories from my childhood there. Seven years ago my parents bought a place in Door County and now live there. We try and make it up to Door County as much as possible because it is always such a relaxing time and this weekend has been no different.  However, today while I was laying on the couch, I wondered if there was anything I could help my parents with while I was up here.  My dad has back issues which makes some stuff difficult to get done. When I asked my mom she mentioned that they needed some stuff taken over to the storage unit.  So today, for my act of kindness, that is what I did.

I wasn't sure if I should use this as an act because it should be common practice to help your parents with things like this.  However, like I mentioned earlier, Door County, in my mind, is a vacation place and I don't associate work with vacation.  But now that my parents live here, I will make sure to ask if there is anything I can help with everytime I come up.  

Day 82: Pepperoni Pizza is the Best

You ever get that question....if you could eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be? When I get this question my answer is always pizza, pepperoni pizza to be more specific.  I could literally eat this everyday and still crave that next meal.  I went out to eat with my family this afternoon to my favorite pizza place in Door County, the Wild Tomato.  Whenever I go to a pizza place I never even need to look at the menu.  I love pepperoni pizza so much I won't even consider anything else.  However today, I noticed that the business was supporting a local effort to build a skatepark for kids and if you ordered a specific pizza a portion of the proceeds will go to building the park.  Unfortunately this pizza had pretty much everything I don't such as onions and mushrooms.  So, I went with my pepperoni pizza instead.  However, the business did have a jar in the front for donations so today, for my act of kindness I donated $5 to the build a park fund.

Day 81: Lost Dog

Fear not my faithful followers....although late, I still made it before the day is over! I've been in the car the last 4 hours which made it impossible to write this earlier.

I have one of those dogs that if the door is left open too long she will bolt.  And Paisley is so fast it is really tough to catch her.  Good thing, whenever she has gotten out, she thinks it is a game and sticks relatively close.  With the help of neighbors we usually can get her back in the house after 15 minutes or so. I still get afraid every time she gets out though. It is not a fun feeling.

When I was driving around the neighborhood today there was a stopped car in the middle of the street.  When I got closer I realized the driver was out of the car and trying to coax a dog into the back seat.  The dog was clearly scared and running away anytime the person got close.  So today, for my act of kindness I pulled over and asked if I could help. It turned out it was a lost dog and the person spotted the dog on the side of the street. We ended up being able to lure the dog in her car by pretending we had a treat.  I am not sure we would have been able to do it with one person.  I am sure there will be one relieved dog owner today.

Day 80:Thank You for Your Service

Whenever I am walking through an airport I always try and make it a point to say thank you to anyone I see in uniform. They are willing to do something I never had the courage to do and I just want to make sure they know I appreciate that fact that they are putting their lives on the line to protect my freedom. So today for my act of kindness I ended up thanking 6 members of our armed forces. Sorry this post is so short, the Internet keeps going in and out and I am about to board my plane for home! Can't wait to see my girls!

Day 79: Recognition

I am a big fan of great customer service. Being on the road a decent amount I deal with customer service often. Tonight I went to dinner at a restaurant in my hotel. Not only my waitress was great, but I noticed the waiter serving the tables next to me was also doing a great job.  After I was done eating and on my way out I asked if I could speak with the manager. When he came over I told him that his employees were fantastic and gave great customer service and I wanted to make sure he was aware of that. The manager was very gracious and mentioned that people normally only ask to speak with the manager if something was wrong so he was happy to hear of my experience. He then asked if I would like dessert on the house. I was stuffed so I turned it down, but this got me thinking about how powerful the act of paying it forward in simple kindness can be.  First, it was my waitress being nice, then because of her generosity, it was my turn to pass it on and tell the manager and in turn, he passed it back to me by offering free dessert. Good stuff.

Day 78: A Ride for a Stranger

Today was another one of those days where I didnt need to find a kind act to do, my kind act found me. I was driving to lunch when I noticed a car on the side of the road with their hazard's on.  A little ways in front I saw an older lady walking away from the car. I pulled over and asked her if she needed help. It turned out her car had run out of gas and she was planning on walking to the nearest gas station. I was a little hesitant but it was pretty obvious to me this person was telling the truth and needed help. There was a gas station about a mile away so I offered to give her a ride. She was very happy that I offered to help and thanked me probably 10 times in the minute it took me to drive her to the gas station. When we got to the gas station I helped her fill up a gallon and drive her back to her car. She was so appreciative when I dropped her off that she tried to give me $20. I turned it down and told her to just do me a favor and help the next person she saw in need.

Day 77: Heavy Luggage

One of the nice things about traveling for work is that there are a lot of opportunities to help strangers. I came across one of those opportunities today when I was boarding my flight. When I was making my way back to my seat the person in front of me went to lift her carry-on to the above storage. I could tell this was going to be a tough task for her to accomplish. I asked her if I could help lift her luggage. She was very happy and told me she thought she had zero chance of doing it herself. I was happy I was able to help her.

Day 76: Being Grateful

Originally I had something else planned for today's act but the way the day played out I decided to do this instead.  Today was one of those days that not much went right.  Nothing really bad happened, but just a lot of little things that left me feeling at the end of the day that I just couldn't catch a break.  Then I took a step back and put things in perspective.  In the grand scheme of things I am a very lucky person and should be very grateful. I have a great family, a good job and the most beautiful/healthy baby girl I could ever wish for.  However, sometimes I let the little things drag me down and I forget how lucky I really am.  So today, for my act of kindness, I took a step back,  and remembered how grateful I am for the life I have and the people I share it with.

Now I'm not sure this should be considered a kind act but I feel that sometimes it is important to not only do kinds acts for other people, but also for oneself.  And being able to take some time and write about this topic has really made my day better

Day 75: Diapers

I knew very little about babies before I had one of my own.  One thing that I was clueless on was the amount of diapers you go through in a day, and diapers are not cheap.  Thankfully my aunt helped us with this.  Basically every time I saw my aunt the first 6 months of Emma's life she would always come with boxes of diapers.  This helped us out a ton.  So today, for my act of kindness, I decided to give a box of diapers to parents to be.  I don't think I will be able to give as many as my Aunt gave me, but at least it will be one less box of diapers they will need to buy because every little bit helps as first time parents.

Day 74: No Road Rage

I sometimes can get a case of some road rage.  I blame this on my grandma.  I still remember driving around with her when I was a kid.  There were words that came out of her mouth that I didn't even know existed! One of the things that bothers me the most is when a lane is ending and a car will fly to the very end of that lane and then just expect people to let them in.  Also, being cutoff, tailgated, or a car not passing people in the passing lane will drive me nuts.  Well today, I ran into all of these situations and then some.  So today, for my act of kindness, I decided to have zero road rage and give everyone on the road a pass.  I was the person who let the car in at the end of the lane closure today.  When I was cutoff, I didn't on the horn to appease myself and let them know my displeasure.  And when I was stuck behind a car in the passing lane, I just waited patiently waiting until they FINALLY moved over. In the end I found this was a much better way to drive.  I think I will try to have this mentality going forward.

Day 73: Voted For a Good Cause

Gilda's Club Madison is a place that provides support for people with cancer, along with their family.  I found out today that they have applied to have The Creative Center come to the Gilda's Club in Madison but they are going against 9 other facilities across the midwest to see who gets the most votes.

 The Creative Center at University Settlement has offered free-of-charge workshops in the arts to cancer survivors and their caregivers as a way to discover their own creative resources as they navigate the "cancer journey"—from diagnosis through survivorship. The program offers people living with cancer the opportunity to connect with others through the arts, which can reduce anxiety, allay fears, combat isolation and boredom—and most importantly, helping people who are often viewed as representatives of their disease, rather than the unique individuals they are.

Regardless of where The Creative Center goes it is a good thing, however I am hoping it comes to Madison.  So today, for my act of kindness,  I voted for The Creative Center to come to the Gilda's Club Madison.

Day 72: The Joshua Chamberlain Society

I am in outside sales so I meet a lot of new people each week. It is one of the things I enjoy the most about what I do. Something that I really believe in as a sales person is the idea that people buy from people they like. Because of that, when I walk into an office the first thing I do is look around for pictures, sports memorabilia, diplomas, etc.  Basically anything that will give me common ground with the person sitting across from me. A lot of times this will lead me into conversations I never thought I would have.

About a month ago I walked in an office and couldn't find anything to really go off of,  however there was a picture of her family so that's what we started talking about. I'm not entirely sure how we got there, but she told me that she tells her kids that they should try and do one nice thing a day for someone they don't know.  This obviously struck a chord with me so I told her about my New Year's resolution, and there was the common ground I was looking for.  After talking for awhile she told me about a great charity in the St. Louis area called 'The Joshua Chamberlain Society.' This is a grass roots non-profit from the St. Louis area that provides long term support to veterans and also children of veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice. The unique thing about this charity is that it supports the veterans or children for the long term. 5,10,20 years after the servicemen or woman has suffered permanent injuries 'The Joshua Society' will be there for them.  To date they have "adopted" five local heroes and plan to help them for the rest of their life, or in one case, the rest of their child's life.

I thought this was such an amazing charity.  So today, for my act of kindness, I donated to 'The Joshua Chamberlain Society.'  If you would like to read more about this charity here is their website: http://www.chamberlainsociety.org/

Day 71:Carpool Benefits

I live about 45 minutes from where I work so to save gas and avoid boring drives I am in a carpool with a couple of my friends from work. When I told them originally about my 'acts of kindness' they joked around about how they were going to be the receivers of a lot of my acts.  Well I made it to day 71, but I finally caved in.  Today, for my act of kindness, I bought one of the members of my carpool lunch at Subway. In case you are wondering,  I didn't leave the other carpool member out, he is traveling out of state this week.

Day 70: Vball

I got a call from a friend today and he was looking for a sub for his volleyball team tonight.  I used to play in a couple different sports leagues throughout the week but with my time so limited I have had to cut down on the amount of teams I play on.  However, it is always fun to sub ever once in awhile.  So today, for my act of kindness, I subbed for my friend's team.....on Bachelor finale night.  I know....you are probably asking yourself how I could ever miss this epic moment of television?!?  Don't worry I dvr'd it. :) Wait I'm kidding,  I don't watch The Bachelor and it played zero role in me deciding if I could sub or not tonight.  Just wanted to make that clear.  Ok that is all. 

I hope he picks the wedding dress girl....

I blame my wife for me watching this stuff

Day 69: American Red Cross

There are two things I do not handle all that well; blood and needles. So when my employer had a blood drive a month ago it seemed like a perfect opportunity for an act of kindness however I could not bring myself to go and give blood.  If I can man up, giving blood is something I want to do this year because it is so important however today, for my act of kindness, I decided to help the American Red Cross in a different way.  I went to their website and registered to be a volunteer for events in my area.  Maybe this will be a good step to donating blood later this year.

Day 68: Parking Meter Kindness

There have been a lot of times where I misjudge the amount of time I give myself at a parking meter. I hate that feeling walking back to the car where I know there is a good chance there will be a ticket waiting for me.  Even if it has only been a minute or two since the meter has expired it seems like these parking meter enforcers never miss an opportunity to write a ticket.  Well today, for my act of kindness, I gave a stranger some extra time and probably saved them from getting a ticket.  I was downtown for dinner with my wife and I noticed a meter that had expired.  It was about 5:15pm and the meters stop being enforced at 6pm so I put enough money in to cover the 45 minutes.

Day 67: Dear Mom

So far this year, I have written letters to my daughter, a teacher and an old boss of mine.  Today, for my act, I took some time and wrote a letter to my mom.  She is such a strong person that sometimes I take that fact for granted and forget to show her how much she is appreciated.  She reads this blog so I am hoping she takes a couple days off so that it is a surprise when she gets the letter.  But if not, hi Mom...I have a letter for you. :)

Day 66: Lost and Found

Whenever I check out of a hotel I always get the feeling that I am leaving something behind even though I look through the room numerous times before leaving.  I just always think to myself that if I am leaving something behind, I just hope it isn't too important.  My grandma recently checked out of a hotel and was a good ways away before realizing she had left her diamond ring in the room.  I bet this was a pretty sinking feeling to have.  Thankfully, when the got back to the hotel the ring was right where she left it.

Well today, for my act of kindness, when I was packing up my things I noticed a scarf on the chair that I hadn't noticed before.  It was a nice 100% cashmere scarf and clearly was not mine.  My guess is that is was left behind be the person who stayed in my room prior.  I would be lying if I said that it never crossed my mind to just throw it in my bag but I knew that wouldn't be the right thing to do.  So when I checked out, I dropped it off at the front desk to be sent back to the owner.  

Day 65: Spread the Word to End the Word

Today is the national day of awareness of the hurtful use of the R-word.  When I was younger, I was definitely guilty of using this word from time to time.  I guess a lot of it was just a case of me being naive.  I didn't take the time to really think how inappropriate and disrespectful this word really was and who I was hurting by saying this word.  I have done my best over the last few years to erase this word completely from my vocabulary and for the most part I have done that, but I am not going to lie, I probably have said this word a few times over the past couple years and I am not proud of it.  So today, for my act of kindness, I went to r-word.org and made a pledge to stop using this word completely.  I also wanted to include the below video from a school that is in my neighborhood.  It is great to see this stuff going on in schools and an awesome video.  Those kids and the teacher should be very proud of themselves.

Day 64: Car Clean-Off

Well we got about 10 more inches of snow last night.  I am currently on a business trip in Minneapolis and staying in a hotel.  When I went out to the parking lot my car along with many others were covered in snow. I proceeded to scrape off the snow of my car.  When I was done with my car I decided to clean off all the cars in my row. It total, for my act of kindness today, I cleaned off six cars. When I was on my second to last car, the owner actually came out to his car. At first I think he was a little confused that some stranger was cleaning off his car. When I told him that I just felt like helping clean off stranger's cars while my car warmed up he was very appreciative. He then told me he was from Texas and was not used to this weather.  So, in think in the end, I not only helped clean off his car, but I also think I helped the people he was going to be driving in front of later that day because my guess is he would not of cleaned off the top of his car and would have blinded the driver behind him with the snow drift from his car. Typical southerner mistake!

Day 63: Gave a Compliment on Customer Service

Yesterday my wife and I ordered Topper's Pizza for delivery.  It was one of those days in which we weren't feeling all that well and Topperstix were in desperate need. The reason I am writing about this is because the delivery guy was a really nice guy and I felt like he went above and beyond.  Especially when he saw my dog running to the door he asked if he could give my dog a treat.  This is the first time a delivery guy has done something like this.  I was so impressed with his customer service that I felt like he should be rewarded somehow.  So today, for my act of kindness, I went to Topper's website and submitted a compliment for this employee. I hope it gets back to him and he gets the credit he deserves.

Day 62: Lending a Hand

First off, I wanted to say thank you to everyone who has reached out about my father-in-law, I really appreciate it.  He is now home recovering and doing well.  It is still going to be awhile before he is back to his full capacity which leads me to my act of kindness for today.  This ordeal all started when he was shoveling the driveway Wednesday night and the only reason he was shoveling was because his snowblower was broken.  Now it will probably won't be until next Winter that he will be doing any of this but today for my kind act I went over and , with the help of my brother-in-law, picked up the snowblower and took it to a friends dad's house to be fixed.  Hopefully he doesn't need to shovel heavy snow ever again.

Day 61: Free Gift for a Follower

On day 56, as difficult as it was, I gave away my Xbox to a family who would get much more use out of it than me.  Along with just the console, I gave them a few games, controllers and a guitar for Guitar Hero.  However there was one game I decided not to give away and that was the game Battlefield 3.  Because the family has young kids I figured this wouldn't be the best game for them.  However, now I still have the game and nothing to play it on.  So today, for my act of kindness, I thought I would give back to my followers.  The first person who sends me an email and tells me they want the game, it is theirs.  My email is 365randomactsofkindness@gmail.com.  I will update this page when the game is claimed.  Good luck! Oh and this is my favorite game I have ever played!

Day 60:Leap Day Bday

I feel like people who were born on February 29th sort of get ripped off in terms of celebrating their birthdays.  They only truly get to celebrate their "birthday" once every four years.  I found out yesterday that I work with someone who has a leap day birthday. I found this out because her desk yesterday was decorated with "Happy "Birthday" banners.  When I asked her if it was her bday she said that it actually is February 29th.  Now at work, we have a sign that you see right after walking in the front doors.  This sign lists who is celebrating their birthday that day.  I mentioned to Sarah that I didn't see her name on the list and she said that her name never gets put on the list.  So today, for my act of kindness, I went down to the front desk and made sure that her name showed up on the sign for her February 29th birthday.  Happy 7 1/4 bday Sarah!