Okay, so as I explained last night, I was going to attempt to do 22 acts of kindness today, since I turned 22. I don’t have a lot of pictures, mainly because I really wanted to do this challenge for what it represents and not just so I could come home and blog about it. If I just wanted blog glory, then I would be defeating the entire purpose of the challenge. Also, it was just me. Things would have been much easier had I had paparazzi following me all day. Haha. Anyway, my results were not a perfect 22, but I feel like I did pretty darn well. Here’s what I managed to accomplish:

1) Paid for the person’s Starbucks order who was in the car behind me. When I asked the cashier if I could do this, she said, “Awh, that’s nice of you!” but the look she gave me was too funny. She was surprised, that’s for sure. I hope that random guy in his little white car enjoyed his hot chocolate, ’cause dangit, Starbucks makes some pretty beast hot chocolate.

2) Intended to stick nice notes on people’s windshields. Now, I must admit that I did not do this. The weather today decided to be either one of two things alllll day: torrential downpour or steady raindrops. This kind of killed my super optimistic notes that I was going to stick on people’s windshields. I wrote them out and everything, which means that the first day that it does not rain, I’ll be handing them out. Hollaaaa!

3) Held the door open for someone. One would think that this would be an action that people do every day, which I do. However, the problem is that so few people DO do this that I felt like it was, indeed, an act of kindness. Chivalry is rare these days.

4) Took a bucket of Halloween candy in to JcP to share with my co-workers. Happy Halloween!

5) Wrote someone a letter who made a difference in my life. I loved this one, because I just love writing and receiving letters. So many people rely strictly on technology to communicate that sometimes a good old-fashioned letter is the best way to tell someone you care about them. I mean, for real, it takes some EL OH VEE EE to sit down and write someone a letter. Who does that anymore? (Keep snail mail alive!)

6) Adopted a Soldier Even though I have my own soldier to mail things to, there’s always someone else out there who could use our love and support.

7) Donated coffee to soldiers. Starbucks used to have this program where you could buy a bag of coffee to send overseas, but when I walked in to ask them about it and purchase my bags of coffee, they informed me that they were not sponsoring that right now, so I improvised. Green Beans Coffee sponsors Cup of Joe for a Joe. All you have to do is choose your gift (I chose to pay $6 to sponsor three troops), and they deliver your gift of a cup of coffee to servicemen and women all over the world. You can even write a message that is delivered with your coffee. How cool is that?

8 ) Left a random, inspirational note somewhere on campus. It’s really not that hard to find. Hopefully someone who needed it today is the person who found it. :]

9) Let someone in front of me on the road. I’m a big fan of manners on the road, but I’ll be the first to admit that sometimes I get a little selfish. Today, I refused to be selfish. Yay me, for I suffer from immense road rage.

10) No cursing! Going along with that, I did not curse a single time about the fact that a woman stopped in the entrance of the mall where incoming traffic DOES NOT stop. Anyone who knows me knows that this drives me absolutely bonkers.

11) Bought Barnes & Noble gift cards and left them in random places on the shelves. Now that I’ve uploaded these pictures, the places that I left them aren’t so random anymore, but I imagine that they’re gone by now, anyway. I put one in one of my favorite children’s books and the other in a section that features one of my favorite novels.

12) Bought coloring books and crayons and left them in a hospital waiting room. There was hardly a soul in the hospital when I walked in, but hopefully at least one kid will get some enjoyment out of them. Hospitals are so depressing. Kids need a little color when they’re in there!

13) Sent a surprise gift to someone whom I thought would appreciate it. That’s all the more I can elaborate on that one. I don’t want to ruin the surprise in case this person reads this before he/she receives it!

14) I smiled at ALL KINDS of random strangers. I really did, and can I say that hardly any of them smiled back? Poo.

15) Mom and I went to visit my grandma in the nursing home. We do this all the time, but I still felt like it was kindness-worthy.

16) Said hello to people for no reason. Try this, people! Sometimes they give you super funny looks, but other times, people seem genuinely happy that you took 0.5 seconds out of your day just to say hi to them. Funny how our culture works. Saying hello to someone is deemed odd, anymore. Weird.

17) I was so appalled by how the Zanesville, Ohio exotic animal fiasco went down that decided to sit down and write a letter to Governor Kasich about laws regarding the ownership of exotic animals in Ohio. I demanded that the laws need to be regulated in order to keep not only humans safe but the animals as well. It’s unfair that Sheriff Matt Lutz was put in the difficult position to decide what actions would be necessary to eliminate public risk throughout the situation. If we had stricter laws, Lutz would not be getting the current backlash for trying to protect his jurisdiction. Stricter laws would not have forced Lutz to make the decision to kill each of the now deceased animals, due to their possible threat to the public, because the animals would not have been there in the first place. Who knows whether or not my little voice will be heard, but it’s a start.

18) Picked Mom up from work. You wouldn’t want her to walk home in the rain, would you? That’s totally an act of kindness.

19) Shared my Halloween candy with Mom. Daughter of the year award, right here.

20) Made a $15 donation to To Write Love on Her Arms, because I have been passionate about this movement since high school. TWLOHA is an American non-profit organization which focuses on helping people suffering from depression, addiction, self-injury, and/or thoughts of suicide. This really is such a beautiful organization, and it is an outlet for young kids, especially, to get help.

And this is where I stopped for today. Once Mom and I finally got in out of the rain for the night, I was ready to sit down. I have this cold that’s taking over my life, and I feel like a slug. Tomorrow, I’m going to finish the list, though, because that’s what I said I would do. Here’s what I had on my list that I didn’t get to today.

21) Send a picture you have taken which includes a friend and send it to them with a note remembering when it was taken. I just thought this one was such a brilliant idea.

22) Leave a dollar or coins taped to a vending machine.

I promise, promise that I WILL follow through with those last two, ’cause ya know what? A promise is a promise. Here’s to another year of life and the fact that I will never become old, even when I’m 90!

xoxoxo
Ash