(Don't) Keep the Change

I've been thinking a lot about charitable donations lately and how to use good judgment in deciding where to donate my dollar-and-cents. I give 10% of my income to my church, but there are lots of other opportunities in addition to that.

I used to work with a girl, Kirsten, at BYU's Writing Center who recently started a charity to help her nephew come to the U.S. to receive medical treatment unavailable to him in Italy. The family is doing everything they can to help themselves and their son, but the father lost his job because of the poor economy. The son can only receive the treatment he needs by visiting a specialist in the U.S. This single trip and doctor visit will cost $8,000 and the family is unquestionably coming, even if it means they will sink lower in debt. (http://dylanfund.blogspot.com/)

Kirsten is a BYU student who is newly-married. She doesn't have a lot of money to spare. But she set up a fundraiser during finals week and is doing everything she can to help out. I am really moved by Kirsten's efforts to help people that are within her sphere of influence. She isn't looking far outside herself to donate to every charity in the world; she just wants to help her extended family.

I'm a college student with only a part time job. I'm not exactly rolling in it, but I'm doing just fine. And so I donated a bit to Kirsten's need. I wasn't looking for a charity to donate to, but this one came along and I feel the need to support it. It was easy since they have a Paypal set up, and no amount is too small (my donation will probably only pay for meals for one day).

I'm not encouraging everyone to donate to this charity (though I definitely think you should consider it). But I think we each have a few dollars we can shave off our savings to help others directly within our sphere of influence.

A Few of My Favorite Things

This is the time of year when the weather gets colder, my skin gets dry, my throat gets sore, and my mood gets darker. To spread a little sunshine amidst these conditions, I want to share some of my favorite things of late:

L'Oreal Everstrong shampoo
I was recently recommended this shampoo by my friend Emily Belanger. If your hair is anything like mine (as dry as straw no matter how little I wash it), consider a sulfate-free shampoo like L'Oreal Everstrong (and PS. It's still cheap and goes a long way).



Marie Callender pie
If you haven't had one of these pies, get in your car and drive over to Smiths where they carry an amazing array of these award-winning Marie Callender pies. I recently started watching the now-canceled yet fantastically quirky TV show "Pushing Daisies" in which a regular pie maker has the irregular ability to revive the dead and uses the power to revive his childhood sweetheart (who is a Zooey Deschanel lookalike). Anyway, the pie maker owns The Piehole and you can't get through an episode without hearing about pie this and pie that. Hence, my sudden craving for delicious pie when I previously did NOT like pie. Marie Callender does it best. Go for the razzleberry.


Mucinex
I have had a cold every two weeks this semester and the colds seem to get worse with each catching. I heard that Dayquil is now far less powerful than it used to be (apparently too many people were using the pseudoephedrine in it to make meth, so they removed the ingredient from it). Long story short, I needed a powerful over-the-counter drug and Mucinex worked GREAT.

Tights and Boots

When it's snowy outside and I still have to look nice and professional for my job, fashionable tights and boots are a good solution. I am looking to invest in even more boots, so let me know if you hear of a good sale or can recommend a quality brand.

Dystopian Young Adult Fiction

Do you love The Hunger Games? The Giver? Pretties? Then YOU, my friend, also love dystopian YA fiction like I do. I am looking forward to reading Matched by Allie Condie (it just came out this week). She is a BYU grad and already has a Disney movie deal to produce her upcoming trilogy. I have no idea if it will be good; it might actually turn out to be another Twilight-esque series, but I'm open to being prematurely optimistic.




So there's my recommended list of favorites. I hope you will try some of them out to beat those winter blues! Sorry I can't be like Oprah and give everyone reading this post a sample of my favorite things. If I could, I would add some more expensive, substantial items to the list so we could all benefit. (By the way, did you know it is Oprah's last season? We have reached the end of an era).