Philanthropist-In-Training

I have always told myself that when I had more money than sense that I would become a philanthropist. The allure of being able to fund organizations that I care about in a substantial way is something I've always wanted to do. 

One day at work, one of my co-workers told me about the mega-million jackpot and that she had bought a ticket. She made a pact with God, saying that if she won, she would take care of her family and do nothing but good with that money.

That immediately got me thinking. What is preventing me from donating from causes that I believe in right now? Why should I to wait until I had large amounts of money if I wasn’t doing good with the money that I already had? Would I really donate when I was rich if I didn’t have the practice with the money I had now?

There are so many opportunities to donate to causes that are close to my heart and that impact my local community. Right now, I can make a positive impact with just a few dollars. To my surprise, there was a company who made it really easy.

I found an organization that generates money for your charity through their search engine. Good Search is a company I found on a fluke, and is AWESOME. It’s very easy to join.

The charity I chose is SW Washington American Red Cross. They save so many lives every day with their humanitarian aid efforts and obviously with the blood that they collect. 

All I have to do is use www.goodsearch.com as my search engine. I’m pretty loyal to Google, but this is an easy, FREE way to earn money for causes that I love. There is a Firefox add-on listed on their website. And Yahoo! does a pretty good job as a search engine, even if it's so 2000 and late. 

There are many causes to choose from. Evergreen SD 114 was listed, SW Washington Humane Society, Boys and Girls Club, ARC, among the MANY others. Pick the organization you’re passionate about and start earning them money for FREE.

The other company that is partners with Good Search is Good Dining! This concept made me very excited. You sign up your credit card/debit card with the company. Then restaurants that you’d already be eating at will kick up to 6% of your bill to the charity of your choice! If this makes you a bit hesitant, they do have an A+ rating with the BBB. The privacy policy is on their website along with more specific details of how their program works.

There are 145 restaurants participating within a 10 mile radius of the zip code 98684. Lots of bars, family restaurants, fast food, etc. I’m sure you can find one that sponsors Good Dining!

Here are two organizations that require little effort to join, and benefit causes that you care about while you go about doing your normal activities. Which is something I totally can get on board with.

You can always donate directly to the website of your specific cause. Like I said before, I LOVE the American Red Cross.

Another cause that I’m really supportive of is one that my friend Kit coordinates for TransActive called In a Bind.

Quoted from the TransActive website: "In a Bind" is a project of TransActive's Community Education program. We collect pre-owned chest binders from guys who don't need them anymore and donate them to trans-masculine youth in need.

The queer community has a special place in my heart because of the wonderful LGBTQ friends I have. They have allowed me into their world that in turn has brightened my life and brought me such joy. And because of that, I am naturally inclined to support programs that give the queer community what they need to have a happy life too.

If you have more questions about this amazing program, you can check out the FAQ here, or their website or their Facebook page. I’ll post the links at the end of the post.

This is just a jumping off point. There are thousands of organizations that you can choose to donate your hard earned money/time to. ESPECIALLY TO LOCAL CAUSES, RIGHT HERE IN VANCOUVER. And it doesn’t have to be hundreds of dollars. If it is added to your budget, it's a nice expenditure every month that will go toward something that you believe in. Even if you can only give a small amount, it can be a game changer for an organization that you care about. And it feels good to give. 

I have so much to be thankful for. As I look around, I am overwhelmed with the things in my life that I've acquired that make me happy. The older I get, I'm finding that it's experiences that enhance life, not belongings. Creating experiences that benefit me and other people is fantastic in my book.

If there are any organizations you’d like to add to my list, I would appreciate it. Community LOVE!

Mahalo for reading!

Good Search

www.goodsearch.com

Good Dining

www.gooddining.com

American Red Cross

http://www.redcross.org/support

TransActive

http://www.transactiveonline.org/index.php

https://www.facebook.com/transactiveinabind?ref=ts&fref=ts

Golly, It's Been a While

Hello errybody!

I've been doing a whole lot of different things since we've last spoken. I left my full time job at Hearthwood searching for a different adventure.  I'm still doing in-home care for my girl, and I've picked up a few extra clients. I'm also now working full time at Shahala Middle School. Talk about a fun group of kiddos!

I've been working hard on a new novel (no, it's not anything like "Faster than the Speed of Love), and been dabbling in vocal training and learning about perfect pitch and relative pitch. Also throw some self discovery in there too. And exploring the great city of Vancouver.

I'm no longer in college, and I'm not in the choir anymore. I love to learn, I just don't know if I have the discipline to do it full time and in an institutional setting. And it's sort of a expensive mistake when you abruptly stop doing it because it stopped being fun, or you become bored with it.

So I'm out on my own, taking things slow and enjoying the simple pleasures of life. I've been making a conscious effort to hang out with my friends and to get out of my house. I am pretty fortunate to have such great people in my life.

Spring break was FABULOUS! I worked a couple of days, then went to the beach with my second family, the Remsings and a few stowaways...

We stayed in the cabins at the KOA in Astoria. They were all so terrified of rain, but I assured them that I had enough Universe power of goodness stored up that it wouldn't rain and ruin our trip.

 I'm seriously, the weather was this beautiful the WHOLE time.

We rented two cabins. I had to be the adult in one of them.

 They cook all of their meals over an open fire. It still boggles my mind.

We had fried chicken and it was fantastic!

 The Astoria Column. Lots of stairs of death.

 View from the top of the Column.

 It's a LONG way down.

I climbed to the top, conquering my fear of heights and the exertion from being fat the entire camping trip. The view was so worth it, and I'd do it again.

We played Apples to Apples (cause my adult friends are bored with this game. Apparently I didn't go to enough parties in high school when it was played. The new "hip" game is Cards Against Humanity which is a really fun game too.) both nights and stayed up late laughing. 

I didn't get enough time at the beach, but I know that I'll be back that way in June.

I've made some self discovery realizations too. I watched a special presentation on PBS by the philosopher and author Dr. Wayne Dyer called  "Wishes Fulfilled". 

I choose to live my life by Universe Theory, that we are creators of our own destiny, that by our own thoughts and words we decide how our life will be. I suppose that's the most simple and generalized version.

There were hundreds of insights I had while watching that program. The thing that stuck out was using the phrase "I am." How many times a day do we use this phrase to describe ourselves?

I am:

poor

fat

uneducated

unworthy

stupid

scared

ugly

And if you ascribe to the theory that we are creators in our own universe, can you imagine what you are attracting to yourself? I try to remember if I'm going in a downwards slump to replace negative thoughts and "I am" statements with positive "I am" phrases.

I am:

loved

clever

important

beautiful

Try this and feel the shift in your body. Your body immediately breathes a sigh of relief. Occasionally I even get a tingling in my stomach realizing the immense power I have inside of me. I bought a chalkboard at a thrift store for the specific purpose of writing daily "I am" statements to myself.

I did this because I need a reminder of the goodness I have. It's easy to forget sometimes.

I also came to a realization about two things one day. Deuce inspiration!

First, this is not a culture that is very forgiving of failure. Though we know many great things did not come to pass on the first try. I was talking to my sisters and father about this and their frustration of a culture that doesn't allow anyone to fail. I gently suggested if the climate for failure wasn't so harsh and allowed a safe place to land after small and large failures, we COULD have a comeback  of the word failure and not have it be such a devastating thing. To make mistakes and learn from them and to not feel like a soul-crushing disappointment to the people you love or respect would be quite refreshing.

The second one of that day was about love. Specifically for me, but I'm sure it applies to other people too.

I need to be accountable to someone. As of now, I'm accountable to no one. Sure, you could say I've got to be accountable to my boss, or to my family. But I'm not really. I could quit my job at the drop of a hat, lose a bit of street cred,  but still be fundamentally whole. And I'm not accountable to my parents because they have already raised me and have done their job. To me, being held accountable gives your life value. And to the people who rely on you and adore you, it's a grave and serious responsibility. While that has the potential to be restricting, I find it relieving. There is a quote from a pretty heavy episode of Family Guy when Stewie tells Brian, "I love you as one loves another person who one simply cannot do without. You give my life purpose and maybe, maybe that's enough." And being accountable doesn't mean that I'm completely dependent on you or even co-dependent. While I'm out in the world making thousands of choices I know that I will have to make them wisely because I will be held accountable for them. For how they will impact us.

My favorite thing to do recently is to stroll around Downtown Vancouver. I LOVE living in the City of Vancouver. Soon I'll post some events and other great places that I've visited and places you should visit too. 

I was frustrated with the statement that there is NOTHING TO DO in Vancouver. I'm happy to report what a BLUNT FACE LIE IT IS.  (I know that's not the actual saying, but it should be.)

I have also began a serious love affair with Fort Vancouver and Officer's Row.

 Two porches. I need this house!

 The community garden leading into the fort.

 You can still go inside of this!

Near the Land Bridge.

 Don't sit under the apple tree... 

It's the oldest apple tree in Vancouver!

This bird was fearless. Lots of people walking by on the waterfront.

I think the citizens of Vancouver are so incredibly fortunate to have such a historically significance piece of history in their town. I discover something new every time I go.

I suppose that's enough for now.

Mahalo for reading!

-Lauraborelious

Places mentioned in the post

Astoria/Warrenton KOA

http://www.astoriakoa.com/

Astoria Column

http://www.astoriacolumn.org/

Fort Vancouver

http://www.nps.gov/fova/index.htm

Officer's Row

http://www.fortvan.org/

Dr. Wayne Dyer's Wishes Fulfilled

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yJP9cuKNqI