Monday, October 22, 2007

RAK in action

I was up much earlier than I am used to and in to work an hour early. Really surprised the night crew with my visit as I think they were fearful of some kind of impending disaster with me up before dawn. I distributed the following list with a Mars bar to every employee, it's meant to have a box to tick off on the right side to keep score:


Kind Act

Only said nice things about coworkers behind their backs

Smiled at a stranger

Told someone you loved them

Recycled your household items

Hugged someone today

Donated clothes to a shelter

Complimented a stranger

Donated to a charity

Called someone you haven't spoken to in a while

Adopted a stray animal or found a home for it

Wrote a thank you letter to someone who has helped you recently

Gave a massage to a friend

Baked a treat and brought it to work

Let the impatient person go ahead of you in line

Smiled at a stranger

Lent the TV remote for the day (esp. important for men)

Volunteered at a local non-profit

Planted a tree

Sent cookies to a neighbor

Bought lunch for a homeless person / asked how they are?

Fed a parking meter

Played music for strangers on the street

Put out birdseed for your feathered friends

Sent only positive inspiring emails for one day

Bought coffee for the person behind you in line

Picked up litter along the road

Bought a flower for a stranger

Left a small gift at the door of a family suffering severe illness

Returned your shopping cart to the corral

Sent a letter to someone who made a difference in your life

Started a conversation with a lonely person

Made breakfast or did the laundry others do for you

Asked if someone is ok and really listened to their answer

Sent an anonymous greeting card to someone feeling down

Let someone into traffic in front of you

Wished retail workers a good day as well when greeted

Apologized if you’ve been a jerk even if the other person is wrong

Visited an animal shelter with treats for animals and staff

Helped someone pick up dropped papers, luggage etc

Told someone they were amazing and have deep potential

Smiled and said hello to other people at work in the hall

Spent time with a friend, cleaning the car, cooking together

Read a book to someone

Did a job like mowing, shoveling, housecleaning without charge

Fixed the date for someone you’ve been meaning to see

Left a positive anonymous comment on someone’s journal

Got to know a friends pet you find difficult

Passed on a funny joke or thought for the day

Sponsored a child

Sent a postcard to a stranger (ex Postcrossing)

Wrote a poem or story for someone you love

Held the elevator or door for someone

Fulfilled someone’s wish either online or in person

Thanked your boss for something they did for you

Spoken kindly to service workers

It was great to start the work week off on a positive note. I got more out of the exercise than the recipients I think, seeing all their surprised smiles after they discovered I wasn't doing a survey to do with infection control. We've continued on with two draws today (and will continue for each day this week) so the mood has been fairly upbeat. My mood is decidedly upbeat as MAC (Medical Advisory Committee) has been rescheduled so I don't have to stay late and argue about hand washing. After reading that last sentence I realize it must sound like I would have been attending a daycare meeting. Sigh.

And yes the movie Mr. Woodcock was a great big of escapism - silly, predictable and screamingly funny - at least to two jaded middle aged folks who were tired of being grownups and needed to laugh out loud in the dark. How could you not enjoy Billy Bob Thornton and Susan Sarandon I ask you?

Smile for the day
I am five feet, three inches tall and pleasingly plump.Recently, after I had a minor accident, my mother accompanied me to the emergency room. The ER nurse asked for my height and weight, and I responded in a serious tone, "Five-foot-eight, 125 pounds." While the nurse pondered this information, my mother leaned over to me ... "Sweetheart," she gently chided, "this is not the Internet."