Day 488: Mustang Sally Ann

Sorry for my absence, I was in the U.S. this weekend and tried to do a bit of cross-border good-deeding in the process.
I was in a lovely place called Ann Arbor, Michigan, which needed no Litter Lady services as it was as tidy and well-kept as one of those college towns in the movies.
So in [...]

Day 487: Happy Thanksgiving … American-style

The extent of my good deeds today were to try to be as kind and helpful as possible to a couple of people who asked me for directions, even though I had no idea which was the right way to go. (When will you learn, people, I am directionally challenged!)
But, in honour of this being [...]

Day 486: Small but mighty

Some of my friends and family have been ribbing me about how “small” some of my good deeds are.
“How hard is it to open a door?” they laugh.
I’ve tried to explain that that’s the whole point of my efforts … to try to pay attention to the small stuff –  stuff I can actually do. [...]

Day 485: Winners circle

Good luck finding a free plastic bag these days, folks. In a valiant effort to rid the Earth of these eco-unfriendly scourges, stores now routinely charge customers for the evil — yet handy — vessels.
So, along with many other shopaholics, I’ve taken to carrying a collapsible bag with me wherever I go.
Okay, not everywhere. I [...]

Day 484: Random acts of laundry

Rather than bore you with all the door-opening I did today (although one was mildly interesting as it involved balancing an umbrella, two bags and a coffee cup), I wanted to share a good deed of my husband’s. (Don’t tell him I’m broadcasting it online, though.)
After taking out a bag of trash at my in-laws’ [...]

Day 483: Do not enter … really

I gave a panhandler a good laugh today. Not on purpose, mind you. I walked up to the grocery store and he was sitting on the sidewalk holding out his paper cup.
“Hey, how ya doin’?” he said.
“Doing well,” I replied. “How about you?”
“I’ve been better,” he sighed.
And I proceeded to walk up to the automatic [...]

Day 482: Red Fridays

I visited my hairdresser today and she showed me a picture of her only son. He signed up with Canada’s military a few months ago and is away from home for the first time ever, in basic training. He’s 18.
Last time I was there, she spoke of him with pride but I could see she [...]

Day 481: Like a rolling scone

I love Christmas music, so when I saw a chance to buy a Christmas CD and do a good deed, well … you know the rest.
(And no, it’s not the CD you may think it is … already have one or cough10cough of those.)
I picked up Mr. Bob Dylan’s Christmas album. I do love the [...]

Day 480: Portable Parker

Not sure why I look forward each week to seeing which “Notable Quotable” appears on the cover of the Outreach Connection newspaper … but I do. I mean, I could get myself a Bartlett’s book full of them … but I don’t.
Instead, I make a stop at the downtown corner where Mr. Singh flogs his [...]

Day 479: Prepare to be prepared

Okay, here’s where I admit that my ideas are often good ones — so long as I follow through on them. The idea in question being to keep spare change in my pocket at all times, for easy access to good-deedery — anything from tipping buskers to giving to sidewalk charity collections.
The reason I came [...]