A Good Deed Left Undone

I was cranky today. I went to bed around 2 a.m., but couldn't fall asleep until after 3 only to be woken up over and over again by Creed, who decided around 5 a.m. he was not to go back to sleep for another hour and a half. This afternoon I was on my way out to meet Katherine when I looked down and realized I was covered in spit-up. Then while I was at Katherine's someone sideswiped by car. The damage was minimal, mostly black stuff from their car that rubbed off and some scratches and a dent, but I was so annoyed. Who hits someone's car and just drives away?

Onto this evening, I been searching all over for a cute outfit for Creed because Candice is going to take new pictures of him while we're in Utah. I went to get this outfit with some gift certificates that I've been holding onto, but when I got there they had the hat in every size but Creed's, and they just started carrying it and the hat is the cutest part. I hurried over to Joann's to pick up some white paint for trim on fairy doors and they didn't have any. Seriously, they have zillions of colors of white paint, but not one single drop of plain old white paint. How is that possible? I decided that at least I could get some brown fleece to get started on Creed's Halloween costume and the woman at the cutting counter told me that every color of fleece BUT brown was on sale. Ummmmm, ok . . . It was just not my day.

I stopped at Panera before heading home because I was starving and wanted to pick up a bagel and you know what the girl at the counter told me when I went to pay for it? "Oh, don't worry about it." I asked if she was sure and she replied with a smile, "Yep. Have a good night!" Suddenly, that one tiny dose of kindness changed my day. It was only a little bagel, but I no longer felt like the world hated me and I drove home with a smile.

Does it ever occur to you to do something nice for someone, but you decided that you just can't afford to? That happens to me all the time. I keep finding myself wishing I could budget a hundred dollars a month just to do random nice things for other people. Someday, when Larry's a real doctor, right? (I know he's a REAL doctor, but he doesn't have a real doctor's salary) Here are a few of the things that I would love to do:

• Send someone dinner the day they get back from a big trip so they don’t have to go shopping (let them know you’re doing this ahead of time).
• Buy someone something on their Amazon wish list or etsy favorites and send it to them out of the blue.
• When you’re buying something for yourself that you are excited about like a new book and you know someone else who would like it, buy two and deliver the extra.
• Go delivering when you’re feeling down. By multiples of anything; pints of Ben & Jerry's on a hot day, your favorite new soda that you just discovered, fresh picked apples from an afternoon at the U-pick farm, sunflowers from the farmer’s market . . . then spend an afternoon sharing the love and delivering them to any friends that you catch at home.
• Pay for the person behind you when you’re picking up fast food or pulling into special event parking.
• Sends friends good mail just because.
• Your friend was just telling you about something that they want to learn to do? Sign them up for lessons or buy them supplies to begin.
• Download songs that remind you of a friend or a trip to burn a CD for those it reminds you of.
• Discover a new magazine? Surprise a friend with a subscription.

What are some fun things that you would do for others if you had a little extra money to spare?